Random observations

One of my favorite things to blog about while traveling are the small, unique things that I observe while walking on the streets.  Below are some of my random observations.

Postal bike parked on the street.  I love the unique design of training wheels to keep it from tipping over.

I have no idea what the meaning is of these animal images on each floor of our hotel, but we have pigs, giraffes, and cows.  Perhaps for kids to know which floor they are on?? Aren't they with their parents if they are not old enough to remember floor numbers??  

Sandmannchen = Sandman

We were organized on our cultural tours by cartoon characters.  Our group was Sandman.  All kids know these characters although we had never heard of them.

We found him in the park in our later explorartions. 

From Wikipedia:

22 November 1959  East German television began broadcasting its own Our Sandman , complete with its own "good night, children" character, so called Sandman . Created by the puppetmaster and director Gerhard Behrendt , the East German show presents everyday life, travel, and fantastic adventures. The character often showscased socialist technological achievements, such as the use of awe inspiring vehicles like futuristic cars and flying devices. Belonging to the point that after the wall fell, former citizens lamented the appropriation of the beloved cartoon by corporate West German television.  The production of the German version of Sandmännchen ceased in 1991, following the unification of Germany. The East German version was finally published and episodes are still broadcast today. 

We saw this sign on the river.  Google translate says "Bats are calling".  There is a box to the side that reminds me of a feeding station that you see at animal parks, but it could be a thing that makes bat sounds to attract them??  We probably won't unravel this mystery.

Our student hosts shared that gnomes are a "thing" in Thuringia (this part of Germany).  We've certainly seen a number of them.  This was my favorite, with an advent calendar in his hat.

Our group noticed that nearly all the police for the president's security had facial hair...dress code or not??

Delaney and I visited McD's because she was craving a familiar burger.  We looked for a trash can, but instead found this tray drop kind of like in a cafeteria.  The cups fit in round spots on the top so the trays could be stacked.