I discovered this uber elegant department store whilst in Germany last month. The sunny  yellow window story celebrating spring fashion / Manhattan meets Munich first caught my eye (actually it was the beautiful building with black silhouettes in the first floor windows that first captured my curiosity). I wasn't disappointed when I stepped inside for a snoop.

It is always "interesting" to see what sits on the top floor of a department store. Increasingly such spaces are being converted to "dining with a view" (if a view is on offer) or speciality destinations. To my surprise I found a seriously luxe fit out and a very large CD collection. My first thought was "wow this fit out must have cost a bomb ... it's gorgeous ... and their customer base must be 60 yrs plus". I wondered why such a department even existed with on-line sales seemingly decimating the music category. I discovered the store specialises in a certain category and "very hard to find" discs. Offering the largest classical music collection in Europe this is a well known destination for lovers of Baritone, Baroque, Busoni and a zillion other classical composers with names that left me clueless. I love a retail surprise and Munich was full of them!

I am drifting a little from the regular POD fodder subject, but this one was too good not to share. I arrived in Munich to find the town in full-on Fat Tuesday mode. Young and old get dressed up and celebrate the last day before Lent (the 6 weeks before Easter). The dudes in the orange Combi win the smart award (bring your own seat), the Viking was literally standing up having a bit of a kip but my fave has to be the buxom blonde!. From what I could see they give the beer halls a fair nudge on this particular day ... those Germans sure know how to party!