Germany entangled by "spaghetti" icecream

Sunday can be a tricky day in Europe.

Once vibrant towns seem to go deathly quiet.  This was certainly the case last Sunday as my cousin and I began our week-long, Rhine River cycle from Heidelberg.

Despite the fact the country was voting in its federal election that day, you could pretty much drive your BMW blindly down the footpath at 150km and not hit anyone.

While the peace and quiet was delightful as we tried to get the hang of cycling in Germany, it became an issue when we wanted to get some lunch.

After a solid three hours of cycling, including getting lost a few times, we were keen for a lunch break.  The sizeable town of Weinheim didn't seem to have much open at all, so we hoped the next town along, Hemsbach, might prove more forthcoming.

Despite asking / miming to a local about where potential eating places might be, it was beginning to look like this town was also devoid of food.  Then we spotted an Italian restaurant that seemed to be open so we thought our luck had changed.

Sadly and strangely, this restaurant only served "spaghetti" icecream on Sundays.  So that's no pasta, pizza or anything remotely meal-like, just icecream that has been made to look like spaghetti.

 

We had noticed the German fixation with icecream back in Heidelberg, where chilly 10 degree mornings were no deterrent to some gelato.  However, this "spaghetti" icecream seems to be taking things to a whole new level.

Alarmingly, the craze has gone nationwide as we keep encountering it, even in tiny little towns.

Admittedly I haven't tried it, but it does seem kind of pointless squeezing icecream through a device so it looks like a completely different meal.

It seems like something an eight year-old might have come up with while trying to fool their parents into thinking they were eating a proper meal.

What's next? "Salad" icecream?