Apotheke vs Drogerie

An Apotheke (Apotheken for plural), sells medications and over-the-counter medications. The over-the-counter medications are usually in sealed displayed counters (so they're really not over-the counter ^_^) and you'll have to ask the pharmacist for it, yes even aspirin. A German pharmacy (Apotheke), sells medications and only medications.

A Drogerie or Drugstore is not a Pharmacy (so don't confuse the two). A Drogerie doesn't have an American equivalent. (Mostly because everything is compact in one store example: Wal-Mart.) At a Drogerie you can buy products such as body care, hair care, cosmetics, household cleaners and snacks. You can buy throat lozenges here but that’s the only thing close to a “medicine” that you are going to get. So it’s basically Walgreens or CVS or Boots (UK) without the over-the-counter medication or prescribed medication. My favourite drogerie is Rossmann. You’ll see soon enough. ^_^

Recap:

Apotheke + Drogerie = CVS or Boots


Also, if you were to go to a German pharmacist and explained your symptoms they can give you the medication you need on the spot. They are really fast and super friendly.

I hope this helped.

Quick guide to German beauty products

Now, if you find yourself in Douglas or Rossman (my absolutely favourite) wanting to try beauty products the labels are in German, French or Italian. You'll find few products in English. I know a good amount of French so I was ok, but the items I was looking at are completely in German. I didn't know what was what. As I mentioned before, I used to live in Japan and made Japanese girlfriends and they were able to help me out with some of the products that were completely in Japanese. The japanese beauty market is amazing!!! There were a good amount of products in English.  I was totally of course sorry! ^_^ Here are a few key words in German that will help you in your beauty journey. If there is anything that you think I've missed let me know and I'll update accordingly.


Sensitive Skin                                                
--Sensibel Haut

Oily Skin                       
--Fettige Haut

Dry Skin                       
--Trockene Haut

Combination Skin
--Mischhaut

Body Butter
--Körper Butter

Hand/Feet Cream
 --Hatte/Fusscreme

Bath Salts
--Badesalz

Bubble Bath
--Schaumbad

Day/Night Cream
--Tage/Nachtcreme

Hair Care
--Haarpflege

(Decorative)Cosmetics
-- Dekorative Kosmetik

Eyebrow
--Augenbrauen

Eyeshadow
--Lidschatten

Nails/Nailpolish/Nailpolish remover
--Nagel/ Nagellack / Nagellack-Entferner


Stay beautiful!!!

Mini Haul (Dusseldorf)

I checked out a bunch of different sites for tourist and I came upon Dusseldorf. Now, the websites stated that Dusseldorf had a large Japanese population and it was like "Mini Tokyo". Me and the husband, met in Japan and we miss Japan. So, we went to check it out and it was not like fantastic. There were small Japanese stores sporadically all over the place. We did get some "Oishii" (delicious) ramen and gyoza from the ramen house. Which made up for the dissappointment and decided to do a little shopping. This is what I bought.

I absolutely love Hello Kitty and wanted a messenger bag. Most of the bags in the area that I lived in; in Japan had purses or backpacks. I love over the shoulder bags. I don't really carry a purse. This cost me €30. Not bad if I say so myself.

What we have here are eyebrow razors. Now, I first started doing my own eyebrows in Japan, picked up a few razors (at Daiso or 100 yen shop; totally love that store) to see which ones I liked the best. (No these aren't my #1) This pack is actually my 3rd pick. For me, american razors were too sharp and if I ended up cutting myself I kept bleeding. My friend is going back to Japan and I've asked her to send me my favourites. ^_^

I picked up this small eyeshadow palette (photo doesn't show the colours well) because most of my eye shadows were broken in the move. Which I'm just fine with because it allows me to shop for more. ^_^ This kit was on sale from €12 to €3. From Left to Right. That's more of an opaque white. It's a great highlight. Then there is a light green and a dark green, both of these colours don't show up well on the eye but they do on the finger tips. (pictures below) The next to colours are a nice brown and maroon colour, my favourites so far. The last is a light blue and I don't know what I'm going to do about that one.

Same colours (Left to Right)

In the middle is the dark green that wouldn't show up.

#414 Missyln Nail Polish. I got this for about €4.50. I wasn't sure about the colour but I couldn't stop staring at it. The hubby encouraged me to get it. I adore this colour it's a nice addition to my growing nail polish collection.

Another look at the nail polish...

The nail polish, I had on the day of the trip. It's called Flormar; it originated from Turkey. It was on sale at Douglas and the price was €1.25

End of trip. I'm surprised my curls lasted. ^_^ Hope you enjoyed.

Traveling tips in Europe (Saving money)

It's not much different traveling in Europe from when I was a kid. (I was in Germany from 1997-2001 and out of that I did a year as a foreign exchange student with a family in London.) Now, I'm back and the only thing that really has changed is that the currency is Euro's no except for the UK, which still has the Sterling Pound. As an American, the Euro has the Dollar beat, which can sometimes make traveling or buying souvenirs a little difficult (or whatever your currency). So here are a few small tips to help you save.

• Plan out trips at least 3 months in advanced. This way you can save money on transportation (i.e. Train, Plane)
• Check your local news paper or recreation center, they usually have discounted trips.
• Try taking trips in a group, groups are always discounted. This will allow you to save money not only on transportation but hotels as well.
• Never accept tours from people that come to you and ask. This is a scam and also is a safety concern. Besides what's the fun in that? Grab a map and go explore!!!
• In a restaurant, order in sets. Some menus will display a certain amount of food and it will say, "Serves 2" etc.
• When buying souvenirs, buy them at the exact location you are at (i.e. Eiffel Tower). Let's say you want to get a small Eiffel Tower key chain or magnet. The further you get from it the more money you'll pay.
• In a big city, lets take for example Paris; Buy an all day (or days) Metro Pass, you can ride all day and night (Just don't lose it!!!). It will pay for itself and you won't have to stand at the kiosk. These passes are accepted on buses too, but the Metro is so much faster.
• Always bring water or your favourite type of drink. I usually carry a small back pack and I always  have water in it (along with small things I purchased). This will save you about 2-3 Euros. Every little bit counts right? ^_^

I hope that this is helpful. Exploring the world is what I have done, and was lucky for the opportunity to travel at such a young age. Don't be afraid, explore!!!

xoxo
*CiCi*

Just (started) blogging!!!

Hey,

Just started my first blog. I guess I'm a little late (age 25), but it's better late than never!! I'm excited none the less. This blog will be random from what my day or week consisted of, to me trying to break out of my tomboy habits to goals, I'm trying to achieve. Well, I'm going to start learning the controls and try to change my template background. More to come!

Have a great day!

*CiCi*