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It is funny how in one country something can mean one thing, but in another country it can be something so different. I was looking on the internet the other day and I ran across a website about new bars and restaurants and I was reading the reviews on them. Apotheke is one that is new and really popular now. I tried looking it up online individually instead of on the website that I just saw it on in a list with several others. So when I typed the word in, I saw that different things came up in German, like online apotheke, which I saw was an online pharmacy. It interested me a lot that something that we have in the United States as a bar is the same name of a pharmacy in Germany.

The text on the site says: "Es macht mir Spaß, die Menschen zu beraten, ihnen zu helfen. Es ist besonders schön, wenn ich die Rückmeldung bekomme, dass mein Rat geholfen hat" so Christl Kraus, Inhaberin und Apothekerin der bodyguardapotheke.com Pforzheim.

Christ Kraus enstammt aus einer der ältesten Apothekerfamilien in Pforzheim,

die inzwischen in vierter Generation in dieser Profession arbeitet. Auch die nächste Generation ist mittlerweile ins "family business"eingestiegen. So entstanden im Jahr 2007 auch die Versandapotheke bodyguardapotheke.com sowie die eigene Pharma- und Kosmetik- Produktlinie bodyguardpharm.

Besonderen Wert legt Christl Kraus auf die menschliche Kompetenz.

"In die Apotheke kommen Menschen, die oft keinen anderen Ansprechpartner haben und

Rat suchen, manchmal auch in sehr persönlichen Dingen. Da ist es wichtig, kompetent und diskret zuzuhören und die Menschen nach Kräften zu unterstützen." It means that an pharmacy is the right place to help people.

When I thought about it more though, maybe the name apotheke was meant to represent that real word from Germany. A pharmacy or an apotheke is a place where people go to get their medicine and to get better or heal themselves. A bar sometimes plays the same role (well at least sometimes it seems to for some people). A lot of people go to bars with friends to have a good time, celebrate or just relax after work or meet up with people. Other people though go to bars when they are feeling down and they need a drink, as if it is like their medicine. When someone is having a bad day or they just lost a loved one or maybe even their job, they will often hit up the local bar and have a few drinks (or maybe more than a few). So I think maybe (and I could be totally off) apotheke as the name of a bar is really a symbol of that it does for people.

I have heard about other bars or restaurants that are in places like Chicago, like the one I just talked about that are named things like Beso (kisses) which is also interesting. I think it is a great thing to live in America where everyone is so diverse and has a unique background because we end up with great places like these where we learn about other people and their histories. In other countries, people aren't always allowed to express their differences or their individuality and I am lucky to live in a place where we can.