CARITAS kunst & krempel, Birmensdorferstr.

Or "homewares" or "household" CARITAS, which is how I refer to it! :)

27 May 2014

At Birmensdorferstrasse 53, across the street from 'expensive' CARITAS, you can find a small shop with nicely displayed secondhand items. It has one of the narrowest spiral staircases I've ever used, books for 1 Fr. each (though English-language books are, unfortunately, at premium prices... 4 Fr. for a paperback by Margaret Atwood, for example!), and almost always a pleasing window display with a theme.

It might be difficult to see with the reflection, but today was an "Asian"-theme. Very pleasing!

I've briefly reviewed this shop before, but I'll add to my previous comments here. I went yesterday to take photos (and make a small purchase), and was pleased to see that the cramped and claustrophobic basement had been tidied (it felt much larger this time!). The lady at the cash register was also pleasant, but it's the second time I've been here, trying my Deutsch as best I can through my thick Canadian accent, that I've felt unloved for my ausländer status. This employee was different than the last one, too, which means there are two that aren't so keen on us foreigners, no matter how polite we are and how much effort we put in to saying the right things.
 

There's usually another theme to the window facing the entrance - this one was travel and rural Switzerland! So lovely!

One might argue that if you're even a little bit anti-foreigner, that you ought not use an English-language "Yes, We're OPEN" sign. ;) Ah well, nevermind.

Which is weird, because at virtually all other CARITAS (okay, that one employee at 'cheap' CARITAS aside), people really humour me with my broken Deutsch, and often try to teach me things (for example, "tüte" is what they say for bags in Germany, according to one of the Hardbrücke ladies.... "plastik tasche" is the correct way to say plastic bag in Switzerland! Ha ha!).
 

27 May 2014

The basement - see the gnomes in the window?!

Anyway, slight and occasional ausländer-aversions aside, the experience is a mostly pleasant one. I don't have much else to add apart from the Pros, Cons and Strategies, so I'll jump right in!



PROS:

• Lovely window displays
• Decoratively displayed items indoors, too - apart from basement, a tidy store
• Good selection of 'krims krams' (knick-knacks) and pretty things
• I almost always find marionettes (puppets) and musical instruments here, as well as full (and nice) tea services
• Prices are quite reasonable - for crockery or china, it's on par with Brocki-Land
• Cashier will wrap up breakables in paper for you (although the bitchy lady I mentioned didn't - I'd like to believe that she was having some sort of personal crisis that day and it was a complete anomaly otherwise. The good news is that if she is that miserable at her job, she's unlikely to stay at her post long!)

CONS:

• There's a bitchy cashier here sometimes
• Sometimes I feel less welcome as an ausländer here
• Basement is close and often cluttered - can be quite claustrophobic (and that narrow spiral staircase doesn't help!)
• English books cost 4x more than Deutsch ones of the same variety

STRATEGIES:

• Some of the nicest things are in the window displays - check them out as you pass by
• Don't try to pass anyone on that spiral staircase, or someone will have to go backwards!
• Don't go downstairs if you're claustrophobic or afraid of gnomes - there are GNOMES peeking in from the window! Yep, Gartenzwerge! I don't even mind them, but they gave me a little fright at first glance!
• If I was looking to purchase a secondhand gift for someone (which has never happened - it feels odd to give something used, but nevermind!), this would be one of the first places I'd look. They have some lovely things for home decor.

And that's about it! At opening, there is this old man loitering about who is 'disconcertingly friendly'. He's probably harmless, and he often comes into 'cheap' CARITAS at opening to talk with the staff. Come to think of it, he might be roaming between these three CARITAS's to while away the day, as I've seen him there in the afternoon, too. 

He's so far been nice enough, but he's one of those guys that's looking for an excuse to touch you (albeit just on the arm or shoulder or back) and talk. And that doesn't appeal to me. He was trying desperately to start an intimate conversation with me as I tried to take photos of the exterior at 09:50 yesterday.

His manners are very good, though, entering the stores with a boisterous, "Grüezi Mittenand!" :) Not a problem-person, I don't think, just lonely... and cloying and clingy, which I really dislike while I'm shopping. If you're a friendly sort of person and want to have a conversation, keep an eye out for this guy! :)

Enjoy your next trip to Birmensdorferstrasse! 

TiZ