do people really pay these prices? (A Baden-Baden reverie)

[KennethRSloan]

I've just spent the morning walking the streets of the old-town section of Baden-Baden. You want to buy a watch? You can't walk 20 meters without passing yet-another-watch-shop. Everything from Skagen to Rolex (and beyond...WAY BEYOND!)

It was very early, so I was mostly looking at window displays. It was also unusual (in my limited experience) because price tags were easily visible in MOST (not all) displays.

I was astounded. Now, granted - I don't pay a lot of attention to "brand new, retail, MSRP" numbers. But still - the numbers struck me as completely beyond belief.

By comparison, the prices shown for the smallish cuckoo clocks were very sane. Which reminds me...time to go acquire a souvenir before my meeting starts in earnest tomorrow. When I arrived, I had this foolish idea of purchasing a distinctly "German" watch while I was here. But...not at these prices! A bit of Black Forest kitsch will have to do.

The shopkeeper filling the outside display case with Skagen's (for some reason the Sinn display remains in place overnight) did nod appreciatively at my "around town" watch for this week - my new Ebel La Carree. I might have bought a Sinn from him - if he had had the copper dial in stock. I even contemplated a Skagen - but those are not particularly *German*, are they?

I drooled over a very nice selection of Nomos - but just couldn't bring myself to consider one at those prices. And, I get the feeling that not a lot of discounting happens here in Baden-Baden - at least in this part of town.

From the looks of the scaffolding going up, a big time Pop Music festival is about to start up this evening. Could be fun.