Edelweiss and Lederhosen

No Mr Snowman!  Don't jump!

Pretty napkin arrangments!

 The first time I heard this word was in the Sound of Music and I never knew what it meant.  But now I know it’s the name of a white flower native to these parts, so there you go!  It’s also the (former) name of the hotel where Maciek is a waiter. It was changed just before this winter season.  I told you I’d include some pics of him in Lederhosen so here you are, although if you were expecting the short ones with long socks and braces you’ll be sorely disappointed – perhaps if he was to keep the job through summer we might be entertained by that look but it’s not to be.

There have been some busy times but mostly it’s been quiet which means most of the time he’s standing around twiddling his thumbs, and practicing his knee slapping and yodeling (not!)  He’s been struggling with the language.  For example, there’ll be 5 customers at the bar having banter with the other barman, and Maciek just standing there like a pratt.  Wouldn’t be too bad if there was work to do, but there wasn’t.  And groups of people standing together laughing and talking while Maciek is tidying a table and when he looks up at them they are all looking at him smiling, so he’s not sure if they were having a joke at his expense or what, but I’ve experienced that myself and it doesn’t feel very nice.

There’s a little hut outside, a small bar, where he’s been stationed a couple of times, and a group of mostly German tourists are gathered drinking the evening away after their ski.  He’s doing his best to look like he’s enjoying the Deutsch Discotheque even though he knows none of the songs nevermind the words, and all the while making up prices for the drinks as no-one has given him a price list and when he’s asked no-one knows anyway!  Apparently it’s 3 euro for a beer, and 3.80 for pint of coke! 

It’s holiday season, so lots of tourists from all over – mostly Deutschland, then Nederlands, Slovakia, Italien, some car rego’s with a European Union ‘B’ on them (what’s that – Bulgaria?  Is that still a country?  Or has it been changed to something like Bulgavian Democratic Republik of Bogsdanodan, or maybe it’s just ‘Britain’ by itself because it’s not as Great as it once thought it was?), one or two Frenchies, and lots from all over Austria, and of course UK.  It kind of gives us free reign to speak English as we can just pass as tourists and we have an excuse!  There have been a couple of bus loads of English school kids staying at the hotel on ski trips which at least gives Maciek people to chat to!  One 14 year old lad approached the bar and asked for a packet of cigarettes.  Maciek looked at him and said “how old are you?”   “14,” replied the boy.  “I don’t think we sell cigarettes,” replied Maciek.  “You do” said the lad “coz I bought some yesterday!”  Maciek looked at his boss and asked “Do we sell cigarettes?”  “Erm, yeah, I suppose” replied the boss shrugging his shoulders.  “But do we sell cigarettes to him?”  asked Maciek.  “hmmm” replied the boss nodding his head.  “ok, how much are they?” asked Maciek.  “They’re a fiver, that’s what they were yesterday” said the boy, at the same time as the boss shrugged his shoulders again and began walking away.  And so Maciek sold a 14 year old boy a packet of cigarettes, thinking, if this was Australia I’d be arrested for this!  On another night a group of 16 year olds were sitting around the bar drinking beers.  It’s legal here, to drink beer at 16.  Not spirits, although if they want one no-one’s going to batter an eyelid!

Maciek shouldn’t feel that bad really.  The head chef is Iranian, the assistant chef Greek (not a word of English or German), the chamber maids are Hungarian, the receptionist is from Stuttgart and most of the others are German or Austrian too.  Quite a multicultural workplace!  And on the upside, at least he’s not as knackered as he was when he was tiling, and he gets fed, so I don’t have to cook!