'German Culture' is covering a beach chair this week, but it isn't just an every day piece of furniture, it's:

GERMANY'S CULT BEACH CHAIR, THE STRANDKORB

Summer is here, or should be, but for those lucky enough to hire or own a Strandkorb, 'enjoying the outdoors' doesn't have to stop because of the rain or temperature. For generations a wicker beach chair, the 'Strandkorb', once likened to an upright wash basket, has not only sheltered beach goers from wind, rain and too much sun it has become a part of Germany's culture, a symbol for holidays, sand, sea and just the right amount of sunshine.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art177061.asp



And the Word of the Week - DER STOCKFISCH

A Stockfisch is fish which has been dried to preserve it. After the head has been removed a pair of fish are bound at the tail end and hung from wooden sticks until thoroughly dried out. As a meal it is considered quite a delicacy.

However it is certainly not a compliment to be called a 'Stockfisch', because then it means 'a dull old stick' or a 'stick in the mud'. Hmmmm, hardly positive.

  

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Francine McKenna,
German Culture Editor

http://germanculture.bellaonline.com