Different countries seem to go in for different amenities to differing degrees. Street corners in French towns seem to be made up with opticians, in Spain with pharmacies and in the UK with estate agents, or well...corner shops. Although one of my sisters (who buys flowers for Lidl and is therefore an authority on German flowers) says there is nothing ultra special about flowers in Germany, in Berlin at least, flower shops are two a penny and cater for every single purse.
From the guy on the stall selling 10 tulips for €2.50 for to the larger discount stores or the very cute little boutiques which present every offering in a mock farmhouse pot or wicker basket straight out of the pages of House to Home (which my other sister edits), there are flowers for everyone. It means that I can always have flowers on my bedside table (parrot tulips right now), and that it was cheaper to buy a whole mint plant rather than a packet of stalks which I am just about to use in the bean, pea and lettuce summer stew that is on the menu tonight.
It also means that flowers make an appearance in every type of dining experience. Loads of the turkish or pizza take out places have benches and tables outside where you can sit and eat in the summer (with a beer from the Getränkemarkt if they don't sell them). And eating when you've got a flower and a vase on your table means it doesn't feel so shabby and doesn't have to be confined to the end of the night!
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