INTRINSIC ENERGY
text & photos CHRISTINE PETERS
The historical center of Bremen on a normal mid-week day: Old and young people are enjoying an easy-going stroll in the market place, protecting themselves with umbrellas and raincoats against the rather unfriendly northern German weather. One of the prettiest historical buildings in the market place houses Bremen’s oldest pharmacy: the »Raths-Apotheke«. First mentioned in records in 1532, the »Raths-Apotheke« is nowadays run by the Real family. Together with his parents Dr. Horst Real and Brigitte Real as well as his wife Kirsten Real, the pharmacist Thomas Real ensures the co-existence of the traditional and the modern. Thomas Real developed his interest in drug vials, fragrant herbs and different kinds of tinctures very early on when his parents let him help in their pharmacy. »Back in the days we would give away gummy bears to our client’s kids«, he remembers. »I used to collect them in little cellophane bags.« The pharmacist proudly leads through his carefully arranged premises, which have been owned by his family for 136 years. Over the years the building has been undergoing significant changes:
Issue 15 | October 2014
265
