Bavaria: Beer, Bratwurst and Pretzels

In Bavaria, beer is not regarded as alcohol but as a 'Grundnahrungsmittel', which roughly translates as 'staple (or basic) food stuff'.

It's not uncommon to find beer vending machines in the coffee-break areas of factories, and standing right beside them are other machines where workers can deposit their empty bottles before buying a new one.


Breakfast of champions

Yes, you understood correctly. In Bavaria, factory workers can often be seen guzzling a beer (or two) and smoking a cig at 9 in the morning. I've seen it with my own eyes.

Now forgive me if I'm being petty here (after all, I enjoy the occasional good pint of beer), but in a country where you can get fined for crossing the road when the little man is on red, you would think that drinking alcohol in the work place would be banned as a matter of course - especially in places where heavy machinery and vehicles are used (such as in factories owned by supposedly reputable multinational companies like Siemens).

But not in Bavaria. In Bavaria, you can happily eat, drink and smoke yourself to death with the enthusiastic help of your employer and the Bavarian government. How ridiculous is that?


Leberkaese (liver cheese)

The staple drinks here are beer and Jägermeister, and the staple foods are bratwurst, liver cheese (comparable to meat cake but made with liver ... see above) and prezels, which probably explains why Bavaria is now top in the world obesity rankings.

Fair enough, pretzels are not fattening if baked, but they don't exactly have a high level of fibre.

Everywhere you go, you are 'attacked' by alcohol and cigarette advertising. The outsides of trams are often used to advertise beer, while giant bill boards promote cigarettes. One such advertisement shows a young, attractive couple sitting on the top of a mountain smoking a cigarette while the sun sets in the distance. If you look closely, you'll see that the cigarette has been photoshopped into the guy's fingers.


You'll find cigarette vending machines on almost every street here, but these days you can only buy cigarettes from machines if you have your identity card with you to prove that you are 18 or over. Despite this, it's still absurd to make cigarettes so easily obtainable at any hour of the day or night. If the German government is even remotely interested in the health of its citizens, some serious changes need to be made.

But that won't happen. At least not in the near future. Cigarettes and alcohol are big business, and while many EU countries have already banned smoking in pubs, cafes, restaurants and the work place, Bavaria appears to have no intention of doing so. The ex-Bavarian health minister is seeing to that! It's all about getting votes, folks!

And one final thing: Don't expect to take a ride on any form of public transport in this part of Germany without having to endure the stench of alcohol, curry wurst and McDonalds (or a combination of all three). As far as I'm aware, there's no law here against drinking beer on public transport or in public places, so it's a common sight everywhere you go. Having said that, smoking was recently banned in the underground and in all train stations, so at least something's happening.


So here I am, living amongst some of the nicest and most helpful people I've ever met, and many of them are eating, drinking and smoking themselves into an early grave. That's insane!