Thoughts From A Mall...

Or rather, Shopping Center.

Bob got the best gift for his Birthday: A piece of paper with a denomination printed on it. Money ! Well, that made us drive through to the nearest Mall. In our case the E. O. ( Einkaufszentrum Oberwart ). Who knew that it could be so busy on a Saturday afternoon ?

Bob and I have been together almost 10 years and in those I have learned a few things. Foremost is the one about not going with him when he chooses clothes. No need for marriage spats in the changing rooms ( he behind the curtain, me in front of it ) ! He is extremely fussy and can take a while to choose. No problem yesterday, because I could meander around the center.

Here are a few observations:

• In summer, the shop to own is the Ice-Cream / Coffee shop. It was warm yesterday and even outside the building I saw legions of Ice Cream fans devouring their bounty with that happy & self-absorbed expression. Talk about advertising. By the time I actually got close to the shop, my tongue was hanging out in longing. The only thing that stopped me, was a line 20 long, waiting for their turn. Clearly, money was being made hand over fist.
• Most malls have big clothing shops selling clothes for under 5 / 10 Euros. Compare this with a scoop of ice cream at the coffee shop ( @ 1.10 Euros ) and you get to wonder....Consider that the clothes still have to be made halfway across the globe, shipped and marked up at various suppliers along the way and you get to seriously question the price tag of under 10 Euros ? !
• Before we emigrated, shopping or rather paying for the shopping was no problem. Yet, even then, I would rather buy a good piece every now and again, instead of buying cheap stuff every month. Well now, when shopping is a treat saved for Birthdays, I've realized that my old clothes are still going strong and don't look out of place. Okay, not trendy but I am not 20 anymore...
• One great thing I noticed at H&M was that they have put " kind " lighting ( yeah ) into their changing rooms. No more horrific surprises when we inadvertently glance in the mirror !

Biggi