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Goodbye, Schönhauser
This blog, like the experience which its intent was to detail, is done. A new era begineth. We hath departed our place off the Schönhauser Allee, and flown back across the channel to our peculiar Insel, to take our place as Insel-Affen, and happily so, as we now have 18 months of Berlin in our blood. Our future is all the better for it. Our new cosy pad is cosy; and hopefully soon to welcome…
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Kutna Hora, CZE – 30th Dec 2015
Prague, CZE – New Years Eve 2016
Rekyavik, ISL – 4th to 7th Feb 2016
Hastings, Brighton & Worthing, GBR – 10th to 12th Jun 2016
Pullborough, GBR – 15th Jun 2016
Bournemouth & Bristol, GBR – 17th to 19th Jun 2016
Brussels & Oostende, BEL – 28th Jul 2016
Amsterdam, NLD – 29th Jul 2016
De Haan, BEL – 30th Jul 2016
Stockholm, SWE – 9th Aug 2016
Gothenburg, SWE – 11th Aug 2016
Berlin, DEU – Aug 2016
Berlin, DEU – 17th Oct 2016
2016 Galleries Kutna Hora, CZE - 30th Dec 2015 Prague, CZE - New Years Eve 2016 Rekyavik, ISL…
Beijing to Berlin It seems that communism is alive and well. At a recent jaunt around the tourist spots with my mate Gaz (ledz) we came across this group of Chinese tourists by the statue of Marx and Engels by Berliner Dom.
The fresh faced, eager, and, to be fair, mostly totally on-it mob of new 1st years have arrived. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (BIMM) has enrolled for is second year teaching magic (music). The wizards (musicians) and witches (musicians) are ready to learn their spells (scales) and unleash their defence against the dark arts skills (bands) unto the world.
Don’t really know where I am going with that to be honest. Harry Potter. Yeah…
It is almost time for me to fly home. To be specific, I will be flying to UK this weekend to HEADLINE A MUTHA F**KING SOLD OUT SHOW AT MAMMOTHFEST B*TCHES, then followed by actually moving back to England on 28th October. The enrollment of our new year at BIMM heralds the end of an era; my job here is done; the experience is coming to a close.
Just to be 100% clear, I am flying back on an airplane. Not a broom.
The Fat Lady started her song last night. On a mission to do as much as possible with my last month, lot’s of things are booked in – including a couple of gigs and shows to keep me going. Last night saw the mighty Black Peaks at Cassiopeia supported by Heck – a band who elsewhere I have already described, and will only describe from now on, as nuts. They are just nuts. Check ’em out.Still to come is Down To Nothing & Broken Teeth. On the polar opposite, The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra are playing on 22nd October. One of the best in the world in their own venue? Mozart, please.
Add to that Mammothfest, and then extend the trip a bit with some final Seek Nothing shows and you get a pretty bloody good send off I reckon. Seek Nothing are booked to play a Berlin show on 5th November, again at Cassiopeia – and the idea is killer: 10 bands, 10 minute sets each, one night. Short and Loud Fest #4 is a great chance to check out a load of new bands in one hit. It does means flying back to Berlin to play a 10 minute set – but is definitely worth doing. To follow, Seek then hit the UK for three dates with our bro’s Murder Mile and Who Cares?, with the final show for myself on bass in Leeds on Saturday 12th.
I don’t want to leave Seek Nothing behind. In that band, I found (geddit) a group and an identity here in Germany. I love the music we make. I could tour with them all over. They are the main reason of only 2 why I would stay. But it is not enough. I have more reasons to go home. Here, publicly, let me express my thanks to these dudes for welcoming me into their world. What a place. Naif!
Gabriel Walth is not in this photo. He ceased to be a member of Seek Nothing a couple months back – but this thanks is for him as well, as he was just as much a part of the Seek Nothing thang as the other three reprobates – Dale Bradbury, CJ Claesson and Mike T West.
In the last post I wrote, it was stated that this blog would cover all the stuff unwritten, all the events and photo’s and stuff I didn’t cover in the few months of abstinence. Well, apart from saying that Berghain is as good as you imagine, I am gonna leave it there, mainly because I don’t think anyone would care about what I did back in January, but also cause words, man. Lots and lots of words. Suffice to say, things happened. Was fun. Mostly. Sometime insanely.
Instead, I am going leave this ramble in the best way possible – with a quote. Three quotes in fact. My my top favourite memorable sayings from other people while I have been here, 3 to 1:
3)
“Ethnically Appropriate” – Shon Abram
This quote both sums up the multi-cultural nature of Berlin, and totally contradicts the personality of the man who said it.
2)
This has to take form of a conversation:
Me: “Hey man, where are you from?”
Dude: “Zimbabwe”
Me: “Oh yeah? What’s it like in Zimbabwe”
Dude: “You ever been to Birmingham?”
Me: “Yeah”
Dude: “Well, it’s like a better version of that”
1)
And finally, the immortal words of Bob Scott:
“There’s that feckin’ tower again”.
Until next time. Expelliarmus!
The Fat Lady The fresh faced, eager, and, to be fair, mostly totally on-it mob of new 1st years have arrived.
Blog, Awaken!
Blog, Awaken! #corbynconverge
Man, I have not written here in a LOOOONG time. Life took me by the neck and said ‘Live, LIVE you bastard’. Who am I to not listen. Now it seems I am getting back the time and the inclination to write about that life. So much has happened, and I will need to write a longer entry about everything that did – including trips to Prague, Sweden, Belgium, plenty of Berlin shenanigans and visitors,…
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It is 12:45 am here in Berlin, Germany. Bells from a nearby church have just stopped pealing, ringing in Christmas day for a full half hour.
I am here, looking forward to Christmas day with my love, my wife Ami. My thoughts are also with all my friends and family around the world. No matter what you believe in, MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone and love to you and your families!
My thoughts are also with those who will have a hard time this Christmas, those for whom the struggles they face continue despite the day. I am not without loved ones who face such things, and I wish I could be closer and be with everyone.
I have always loved this time of year. Ami knows it, and she is being a proper little Christmas Cheers Elf. Her face here says it all!
Below I have put some festive photos, including some taken from a trip to Charlottenburg Schloss Christmas Market with my parents last weekend. You know, just for posterity. Have an amazing holiday season, and a happy new year to everyone – in Brighton, Berlin, and the rest of the world!
Frohe Weihnachten! It is 12:45 am here in Berlin, Germany. Bells from a nearby church have just stopped pealing, ringing in Christmas day for a full half hour.
It’s raining, and life is grey. Outside, the leaves have gone and the sky is hidden.
My alarm goes off as usual. I have already been lying in bed, staring at the ceiling for an hour, thinking as little as possible, which is much harder than it sounds. I barely notice the shrill beeping. Is that a cobweb? Better get up there and dust it. Might as well fix the curtain while I’m at it. Add another thing to the list.
The train is busy today, but there are less bikes. The community of our carriage, thrown together by trajectory for this brief time on our individual journeys, may as well all still be asleep. Man, there are some right characters here. All you have to do is look. The one thing a wet winters morning does is wash the façade off people’s faces. You can see them for who they truly are while they struggle to wake up for another hump day.
There is a man with an open box of books, reading. I wonder if he will just stay on the train and go round and round, and how many books he will get through. Opposite him another tired man, large and burly with a silver grey beard and a gruff demeanour, carries a hamster in a cage. A woman, tired of love and life, hair strewn and clothes thrown together, stares out of the window and sees nothing or more. A child is picking his nose.
A youth moves down the train and finds a seat. He has a cold and is clearly hungover. His eyes dart, searching, scanning the faces of all around, seeking a piece of humanity that is larger and more meaningful. I know how he feels. He looks at me, connection made, but fear takes over, so we both look away. This is the way of things.
If we had looked, met, talked, we could have been friends. We could have understood each other. Sure, we could have not, but we would have tried. Funny, there is a lot of that going around.
People blowing people up. Revenge being taken for the sake of revenge. Religion creating excuses for death. An industry built on fear, selling guns and blood, made real out of bullshit by those we did not really choose to lead us. If viewing the world from an outsider’s view you would be forgiven in thinking we are all bloody idiots. Paris. Beirut. Murders at abortion clinics in America. Stabbings on the London underground. Fascist, right wing wig wearers asking Muslims to wear identifying badges. Walls being built. Sound familiar?
By the Brandenburg Gate, on Pariser Platz, there was a huge pile of flowers and memorials laid in grief for Paris. The photo’s here speak from themselves. However, I feel that, more than ever, we, the general-wanna-get-along-trying-to-make-sense-and-survive people are aware of the global situation – we grieve, not for Paris, but for the world. A lot has been said on this issue in the weeks since the attacks, so I will not go on.
Fucking hell Ant, I imagine you saying, lighten up bruv! Well, yes, I want to. One issue here is that I have been experiencing a part of Berlin that I never expected – a kind of visitor’s syndrome that the sudden cold, grey and dark weather has inflicted. Mixed in with a large amount of frustration with my language skills, whilst missing friends and family, these last 3 weeks or so have been tough. Ami said I may be suffering from mild SAD – so I looked it up. Turns out, there are tons of people who go through the same thing here, with whole streams of posts and forums on the topic. By gaining some knowledge of other people’s experience, I realise that actually, if you want to live in Berlin, you need to learn to love the winter, and not give up trying to speak German or make friends. It seems a lot of people move here to escape. I think in a way I did too, although from what I am not sure. After the wild scorching summer, reality really catches up to you here at this time of year, and once it does I guess it’s a question of either running away again; or staying put and dealing with your situation. For now, I choose the latter.
I am finishing this blog post many days after the opening lines were writ. I am massively hungover/still drunk from one too many Mexicana’s at our staff Christmas party last night. There are three things currently holding me together, not just today, but in general. One: my parents are here tomorrow for a long weekend and we get to celebrate Christmas early as a family. Two: I then get to have Christmas, followed by a New Year’s trip to Prague with the love of my life. But third, and most important, tonight I get to watch a new Star Wars film. I am lucky. Lots of us are. Many are not.
Every day for a month a girl has sat at the stairs of my stop, reading, with a cup for change and a sign that says ‘please help’. She wasn’t there today. I hope it is because she made enough money.
Trajectory It’s raining, and life is grey. Outside, the leaves have gone and the sky is hidden.
Remembrance
Around 3 months ago, a friend and work colleague drew my attention to a small, blacked-brass square set into the cobbled street. He explained that the inscription it bore was the name and information of a person, someone who was a victim of Nazi persecution. They are laid by the persons home, or other significant place, and are know as Stolpersteins. Many of these people died, some did not. Most…
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Today, Ami took me to a place she had been shown on a tour of Berlin her first day here. It was right up my alley, pun intended. So many highly regarded artists and pieces in one place, such as El Bocho, Don John, Banksy etc – most of whom (save Banksy) I am just starting to recognise and learn the names behind the art. Below is a gallery of pics to enjoy, no more words required!
Street Art Alley Today, Ami took me to a place she had been shown on a tour of Berlin her first day here.
Berlin is blooming through decay. The pleasant greens of photosynthesis have become vibrant yellow, orange and red. The leaves, in death, are playing their swan-song. The U-Bahn trains, flying by on their elevated rail along Schönhauser Allee, are the same colour as the tree tops they are level too. In some roads there are already no leaves left – in others the tapestry is stunning.
The city was beautiful when green – now, it is enchanting. This change is meaningful, mainly because we have been here long enough to witness one. April was the start of summer, and when we arrived the cold was already lifting. Now, the descent from hot to bloody freezing has, literally, happened over night, but with warm jackets and the new natural paintings that the trees have brought with autumn are making this my favourite time here so far.
It has inspired adventure, probably because the city seems new again. Having wanted to visit for months, we finally took a Sunday to walk in the Grunewald forest on the south-western edge of the city. Despite the name, the area is now golden. It is a large forrest, and we only saw a segment on our walk, but enough to feel escaped from metropolis and man. A half hour walk took us up the only hill in the area – in the whole of Berlin, which is flat as paper – to Teufelsberg.
Grunewald Station
Golden Gate
Blair Witch
The Black Metal Version
Canopy
Teufelsberg means Devils Mountain. This name is apt, as the mountain (well, hill) was raised artificially and is home to an abandoned US listening post, built by the NSA to spy on it’s East German DDR communist enemies. And probably anyone else for that matter, knowing the American’s love of ‘National Security’. For a full account of the place history see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teufelsberg.
Now, after years of being left abandoned, squatted, broken into and defaced, the site is home to a group of people who care for the place, run tours on Sundays for anyone who wants to see, hold parties and club nights (there is a wicked outdoor bar area), create art from sculpture to street paintings and there is a guy who has a workshop in the old canteen where he restores antique doors. They even keep Bees, and make their own brand of honey.
Taking the tour, the word of the day was ‘wow’. Going inside and upstairs saw entry to two massive floors of street art, breathtaking to discover. The walls included pieces from artists from all over the world, of note for me was a piece by well known Brighton artist Snub23, plus other artists whose pieces are recognisable in Berlin, Bristol, Brighton – all the B’s.
Welcome!
Treehouse
Devil’s Mountain
Ich bin Ein Berliner
Oddity
Don’t Eat My Mother
Death mask
Soldiers
Industrial
Captain K
Street Art Gallery
Viewing
This was massive and hand painted. Looks like a photograph when viewed from a distance, but up close you can see all the tiny brush strokes.
Snub23 – Brighton to Berlin
Art, Not War
Help
Street View
Dino-Bot
Puddle Art
Script
Army Chic
Zebrafish
FLY
Taking the many, many stairs we hit the roof to check out the views of both the city and the forest, plus to see the giant domes that housed the sensors to pick up radio signals. Triangular cloth patches with small disc receivers in each corner stitched together to make giant footballs – apparently the perfect shape for picking up signals. A final ascent took us inside the highest dome. A small grilled window made it possible to look out, but the real excitement was inside. The shape of the structure bounced every tiny sound right back and directly into your ears. You could literally hear the breath of a guy on the other side. The group, on this discovery, set about making as much noise as possible, banging on metal poles, making whistles and cat calls, drumming and beat-boxing. It was amazing – and I now want to record samples in there.
Heavens Open
Spy Dome
Main Tower
From Above
This taste of abandoned berlin has ignited an spirit of discovery. it has been a couple of weeks since, and I have found myself walking down more back streets and taking more random corners as part of my day to try and find new parts. This has been enhanced by two very different experiences last weekend.
Seek Nothing are a bunch of reprobates that I have the pleasure of playing bass for. My first show with them took place on Friday 30th October at ZGK in Friedrichshain. You wouldn’t find this place if it was not there, its walls covered in graff with no signage. The bar was dark and smokey, the venue a converted basement with an intense vibe and wicked PA system, complete with excellent sound man who knew how to work it. We were opening support for the touring combo of Oak from Sweden, and Hollow Earth, a band from the states I have falling for after checking them out when we got this booking. Massive shout to Arthur Le Perroquet for putting on this night. The night is best summed up by re-posting the comment I put on my Facebook the following day:
Last night was the best Berlin night. Venue was amazing – dirty graffed up squat like place with a wicked sound and staff, bands looked after so well, had proper vegan dinner laid on, played packed first show with my new bros Mike, CJ, Gabe and Dahle who all bossed it, got to support and see Hollow Earth who have become one of my all time favourite bands over the last couple months, hung out with good friends from both Berlin and Brighton, had a 10 minute intense packed club experience at K17 where you couldn’t tell if Halloween or everyday goth, and ended up drinking in a park chatting in basic German to the nicest vagrant ever who believed in Aliens existing on Earth as humans. Does not get better.
‘Nuff said. Photo below by Zoe Noble Photography.
The following night, we went to an event that was a different world. Some friends made through work have released an award winning film ‘Sun Village’ – a documentary film about a space in Beijing that cares for children whose parents are imprisoned. Getting there was another proper Berlin moment:
“Where is it?”
“Dunno, this is the right address…”
“what about in this old college-like building that looks abandoned?”
“You mean the one with the coffee shop and a club in the basement, with an art and photography studio on the top floor up all these stairs via corridors that look like a Hackney council high rise but once you get inside, panting from the exertion of the climb because we smoke too much, the space is lovely and cool and has tons of lovely and cool people in it doing something lovely and cool?”
“Yeah, that one!”
The film was brilliant, moving, artistic and though-provoking. Check it out here. I have not known film-makers Zoe and Mike for long, but it was clear they worked really hard on this, and are very good at their art.
The week that has followed has been relaxed. A weeks hiatus between contracts has meant time to chill. I have done not a lot for days now. But I am starting to get the itch, and want to go see more of Berlin again this weekend. With my man Gez Walton in town, that may descend into anarchy, but I don’t think anyone will mind. Here is to new discoveries and new adventures in the city that appears to have been made for them.
My Robot
Smiles All Round
Autumn Leaves Berlin is blooming through decay. The pleasant greens of photosynthesis have become vibrant yellow, orange and red.
Fly
As usual, our story begins on a plane…
The final, massive, heart-wrenching, blood-seething chord of Palm Readers ‘Unabridged’ hits at the exact moment the wheels hit the runway. Lost in a world of epic hardcore, this single co-incidence is, to me, a symbol of all planets aligning for a purpose; that my life is worth being alive for.
Sussex is drenched in sunshine. I am hot, overdressed and sweaty by the time I arrive in my digs for the next 3 days, having traversed the great Brighton mountain of Albion Hill on route to Kemp Town. The flat is sparse, only having just been taken on by a good friend, who has supplied the keys and mattress use as desired (I guess within reason).
I have traveled once more from Berlin to the stomping ground for Mammothfest – a venue based metal festival in Brighton. Last year I was part of the organising team. For the 2015 edition, I contributed the designs for logo’s and tees – this has earned me entry and the chance to see a lot of friends in one place at the same time, with the added bonus of headbanging away to that most glorious of musical styles – Heavy Fucking Metal.
Music is music – but metal is METAL. No other music makes me feel this passion. No other music makes me feel such a part of something bigger. Metal is a community, a lifestyle, a tribe. It is, in a lot of cases, not a choice – It chooses you. It is cathartic, releasing in people an energy that at times just needs out. It is our escape from the world into one of our own creation. It is misunderstood by those who don’t get it, a fact that those who do really don’t give a shit about. It is all things and none of them, and much much more. It is basic and complex, real and fantasy, aggressive and accepting – all at once. I love it.
Mammothfest featured 3 days of gigs over 4 venues.The Haunt held the opening Friday night with a thrash edge, featuring headliner Onslaught as well as a reunion show by former tour mates of yours truly, Terrathorn. We threw down. Oh, and only one of the best bands EVER to come out of Brighton opened the show – the simply must be bigger than they are King Leviathan. The event continued on Saturday and Sunday at Sticky Mikes Frog Bar, The Albert, and, Mammothfest’s now spiritual home. The Green Door Store, where the sound was massive for every band that played.
Bands that impressed: Conjurer. First on the list and getting their own mention because they literally redefined intelligence, intensity, performance, songwriting, technical ability and passion in metal for me that show. Your band is never going to beat that. Others included Widows, Murder Mile, Deal Was For The Diamond, The Darkhorse, Hang The Bastard, King Goat, Hades Lab, Stormcast, Sea Bastard and Stone Circle. Sunday headliners Hang The Bastard (a band name I feel is always pronounced with the wrong inflection) were pipped as second best of the weekend by the mighty Slabdragger, as heavy as you can imagine from the moniker. The metal community was out in force – merch stalls featuring Blackstar Amps and Double Slit Guitars, Severed Hand Clothing, Moomin Merchandise and Audio Empire as well as band tees, patches, stickers, vinyl etc provided a focal point (other than the bar, of course) for conversations and catch ups. Lost In Brighton, Metal Temple and others were there to capture the event for press – loads of photographers like Ajit Dutta and Greig Clifford snapped away to give us memorable images to last.
Broken and happy I crawled into bed on Sunday night after a blur of a weekend. Alongside the festival there were: crushing rugby defeats followed by consolation drinks; pirate parties at Apocalypse Brighton including whiskey fights on podiums and chants of ‘Bullshit’ when they were playing Lady Gaga (it’s a bloody metal night, Trewin); emergency bacon when needed without asking; lots of catch up conversations, heart to hearts and talking nonsense. All round, a really really good weekend.
Metal is family. Family is also family (and so therefore metal? discuss), so before flying home trips ensued to London and Farnham. Mi Abuelo estaba dormido, and I had not the Corazon to stir him, as when he sleeps he is out for hours and needs it. Onward to Farnham saw more lively responses from my sister, niece and nephew. A couple of days of torrential rain did not prevent us from playing in puddles, playing at giants, and generally mucking about in what is a really peaceful town, a place it seems my sister can settle and be happy. It even has a castle, so it’s a good place in my book.
This is the last UK trip lined up for a while. I do not know when I will return, a notion that unsettles me slightly. However, with winter on-setting, there will be plenty of new things to experience at home in Berlin. The bitter cold for one thing. As I leave, I reflect on this, and become excited about my journey again. Regarding our subject,
As usual, our story ends on a plane…
Palm Reader is back on repeat for the train journey to Gatwick, but it is ‘Silent Graves’ by Hollow Earth that fuels my tired flight back to Germany. This band has been discovered as my own band, Seek Nothing, has our first show (with me on bass) supporting them in Berlin on 30th October. Can’t wait. Check out the event page HERE, and a couple of Seek Nothing Tracks HERE. Metal is everywhere in Berlin – lots of venues, touring and local bands, bars and opportunities. It is a scene of which the surface is but scratched by me, but this gig will give a sweet further introduction.
Hailing from the states, Hollow Earth combine a hardcore edge with metal savagery and it’s delicious – and absolutely perfect to get you home.
Metal As usual, our story begins on a plane... The final, massive, heart-wrenching, blood-seething chord of Palm Readers 'Unabridged' hits at the exact moment the wheels hit the runway.
I look into the night sky from the aircraft’s window. The moon, full and glowing, shines back. I look down to see lights of towns punching through the blackness of the land below, and see the moon again – captured in a lake as still as a mirror, a perfect reflection of a celestial angel, seemingly brought into the water.
It is cold in Berlin when I land. The change of seasons is bringing mostly sunny days with a crisp edge. When night hits, the temperature drops sharply, a sign of bitter things to come.
If I sound reflective, like the lake-moon, it is because a journey is coming to an end. Not the flight I am on, nor my time in Berlin. This week, BIMM Berlin enrolls our first cohort of students. It is the culmination of the hard work put in by a brilliant team, the reason we moved here 6 months ago to experience all I have detailed in this blog so far.
The physical journey that ended in the cold was a return from Brighton, from the second of three consecutive weekends there. Last weekend was all about rugby, with a night at a friends to watch a match or two and see their new born mini-cooper. Come morning, The Best Fry Up I Ever Ate (mostly because I am deprived due to ease of acquisition in Germany) was followed by a raucous day at The Amex Community Stadium for USA vs Samoa. I was able to walk Brighton’s streets for the first time in a few months, checking out some new (to me) street art before meeting familiar faces and chatting utter crap into the night.
As a side note, I can already hear at least one person say ‘you could always make a fry up’ or ‘you can get them at such and such’. No. The first is not the type of fry up I need, and the second is possible, but so far not there when I need it. At least you read my blog, oh commentator.
A week then ensued back in Berlin – more of the standard flow of work, seeing friends and band practices (now a regular thing with 2 projects on the go, but more of that for a later post I reckon). Then, round 2, the trip from which I now return, a weekend of family and lasagna, an awesome wedding at Duke of Yorks Cinema that looked like the cast of The Soprano’s had all become metal-heads (SO many beards), and a birthday that turned into a homemade Sunday roast and more rugby, but I guess less of the RWC from this weekend the better. Bloody Dragons.
Which brings me back to this crisp cool air and visions of a sunken orbit. Not so much a blog to tell of what I have been doing, more to express how I feel moving forward from here.
I have another trip to Brighton to come – for Mammothfest 2015. This is a chance to get metal neck drunk with my mates from the Brighton metal scene and beyond. I know it will affirm again how I now view the city, and how I now view Berlin, a sentiment that those of you who may have read any of these posts before will know – it is about the people. I wish all my mates from Brighton could just be here with me, because Brighton as a place no longer feels like home. Berlin does. I never thought I would say that.
Once this week is over it will be like the closing of a book. The sequel is still a pile of notes, awaiting a final edit before putting to pages. The story thus far has been an epic, a comedy, a thriller and a romance all in one – and I for one am eager to savour the opening lines of part two.
Back and Forth I look into the night sky from the aircraft's window. The moon, full and glowing, shines back.
Before I talk about the zoo…
My last post sent us traversing the world of current politics and human catastrophe. I believe that my blog will change over the coming months, it will become less about my experiences of Berlin and more about thoughts, reflection and information on all kinds of things, albeit, of course, very Berlin focused. I believe this for a couple of reasons:
The longer I spend here, the less ‘new’ everything is
My initial working contract to establish BIMM Berlin is coming to an end on 1st November. If I stay here, then the ‘Brighton to Berlin’ format will have served intended purpose
I don’t think many people really read this anyway
I don’t think those of you who do read this give much of a shit about what I write about – as long as it is relevant to me, you and life in general
With subject expansion in mind, lets bring it back to intention.
Berlin Zoo (The Zoological Garden in West Berlin, not the East Berlin Zoo, which I still need to go to) is amazing. Usually, I find animals in captivity something of a dichotomy, being needed conservation and education on the one hand, and an terrible mistreatment of life on the other. Bristol and London Zoo’s have, whilst admirable in their own ways, both left me with a feeling of disgust by the end of the visit.
Not so Berlin. Amazing. Really well kept environments, healthy animals (save one distressed Anteater to be fair) and staff who really seemed to love their jobs and their wards. The place is massive, with supposedly the most species of creature kept in one place in Europe. They have all the big animals you would expect, primate house, aquarium, aviary, a nocturnal world (ALL the Bats), kids petting zoo etc. Of note is the really very bloody good reptile and insect house. Black Widow? Check. Awesome lizards? Check. Insane bugs? Check. Wicked Snakes? Check Jungle hot enclosure filled with Crocodiles that I wanted to live in? Check. Couldn’t see the Gladiator Spider in it’s tank though – shame, that was always a favourite.
Going to the zoo was part of a visit from family – Auntie Susie and Uncle John, who are, to coin their own phrase, ‘the best of peeps’. Their stay also took in the TV tower, usual and other tourist spots, good restaurants, lots of Bier and, one night, and excessive amount of Tequila. They overlapped a stay by our good friend Scottish Bob, which ended up including more of the same, plus some proper Berlin night life experiences (IE getting turned away from most of the clubs we tried before saying fuck it, let’s go to Tresor – side note, Tresor is wicked). But for now, especially because I am looking to be more active on this blog again with smaller posts about more stuff, lets stick to the zoo, and the usual photographic evidence that I am not lying when I say I went there. Although I am not in any of the photo’s. So, yeah.
Berlin Bear
Wolfie
Monkey Butt
Spider Man
I’M BATMAN
Big Fish
Lurker
Crocs
Snake, Snake!
Lizards Slumber
Alert
He’s Cool!
Zoo Before I talk about the zoo... My last post sent us traversing the world of current politics and human catastrophe.
Refugees Welcome (pt 2)
Refugees Welcome (pt 2)
When I first used the term ‘Refugees Welcome’ as a title for one of these blog posts, it was as part of my description to the experience of 1st May workers day here in Berlin. Now, four months later, this title has more relevance and meaning then ever. Given recent events and high profile news stories, and after more exposure to the way Berlin thinks and acts about such things, I have felt…
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About a month you say? Well, I am terribly sorry my old chap. A month passed and not a word, not a photo nor a hint of a blog-type item. This I must rectify. Let us discuss… Visitors.
Don’t worry, I have not gone mental (at least I don’t think so – but then, I wouldn’t know if I had), and I am not expecting extra terrestrials. I guess writing this blog does constitute talking to myself, but, oh well, you do that too when no one’s looking. What I mean is friends and family – people who have accepted my foibles as admirable oddities rather then repellent horrors, and have have decided to come over and stay, taking a trip, Berlin style.
Moving to the most awesome of cities comes with accepting guests. This makes me happy. We have been able to welcome people we love, sharing with them our new home and our excitement for this metropolis with it’s own unique personality.
We had Camille Lafon (1st guest, take a bow!). Then came The Coopers, Sam and Nina, warriors from the west with hair of fire. And how about Mr & Mrs Howe, Andy and Harriet, here to sample both bier and heritage in equal measure. Honestly, we have made a couple of trips to UK, and made sure to see people, but these visits meant the world, allowing us to literally bring Brighton to Berlin.
Amongst them, my parents made the journey to stay for 4 days. This gave me the chance to play tour guide to my favourite tourist/visitor area (ie the one I know most about) – the Brandenberg Gate and Holocaust Memorial. Having already written about the Memorial in depth earlier in this blog, I was struck by how different an opinion another could have of this piece of art I see as beautiful, peaceful, and isolating – my Father, unknown as a poet before this visit, stated: ‘This monument is screaming’.
Brandenberg Parents
‘This Monument Is Screaming’
Memorial Mum
Having booked in advance for security reasons, we were taken to the roof dome of the impressive Reichstag building. Inscribed ‘Dem Deutsche Volke’ in big letters on the front, the reconstructed modern centre piece is a marvelous piece of architecture for the people. It’s spiral walkways traverse you to an unrivaled 360 degree view of the entire city. You are able to either read in depth the building history, a historic fate entwined with that of it’s people, now a modern statement for western politics, whether that is good or bad depending on your opinion; or simply try and spot your house from here. I did a bit of both.
Lunch and a walk along the waterway’s of the stunning Tiergarten followed. We got soaked in a downpour on route to the disappointing tourist trap Checkpoint Charlie, then home to rest before a lush steak dinner at a place round the corner (everything here is ‘around the corner’); followed by a balcony conversation with the old man, and a bottle of whiskey, that I will never forget.
Emotion flooded their eventual departure, the feeling of being far away still creeps in even though we proved that weekend that we are but a flight away.
Berlin is hot right now. It has been pretty unrelenting. Days of sun and high temperatures with sweat filled nights of restlessness. It makes you lethargic. It makes you forget that winter is coming, and it will probably be harsh. The city of extremes – in all possible ways. Maybe this is an attraction to many who want to come here, friends who want to visit – it is certainly still an attraction to me. Tonight we have Tarq Bowen, one of those goose-bump musicians I am proud to call my friend, heading over to crash with his band, and I know for a fact he is excited right now, having been here before and seemingly built for this place.
He will not be the last. We have 3 or 4 more bookings at Castle Giles for Sept/Oct/Nov, including the return of one Lafon and her man Jamie, AKA Gruff, with whom we recently became the visitors instead of vistitees. Spending a lush weekend on the Belgian coast in De Haan was 4 days of pure chill, a chance to do something that I have noticed needs to be done every now and then – get out of Berlin. A complete change of pace and an adventure every month, no matter how small, serves as a break but also to reinforce your feelings for the German capitol on you return.
Not that this was a small adventure. De Haan beach is delicious. The days were spent on balconies with drinks, taking evening or morning strolls in the small pools formed by the outing of the tide, sampling local Belgian biers and tastes. A trip to Bruges saw the Bier Wall – supposedly a collection of every Bier ever from Belgium. It also saw us see the famous square and tower, as well as giving ample opportunity to pretend that they were ‘filming midgets’ over there, and announce that it was like a fucking fairy-tale. However, probably the highlights of the trip were digging a huge hole in the sand and building a fort against the advancing sea (the sea won), plus the excruciatingly funny late night games of ‘Cards Against Humanity’. Thank you to Gruff and Camille for not only inviting us, but for have as sick and twisted a sense of humour as Ami and I.
BTW: Waffles and Chocolate Sauce. Next time, I will just get two waffles – not two spoons. Final note on Belgium – I refuse to be drawn in to a debate on who makes the best Bier.
Anyhow, for now, come on Tarq, bring that voice over here. Can’t wait to see that walking smile in a cowboy hat.
Visitors About a month you say? Well, I am terribly sorry my old chap. A month passed and not a word, not a photo nor a hint of a blog-type item.
This is how summers are supposed to be.
Lethargic, stretched out and chilled, no particular goals for the day. The sun is shining as we have come to expect and want. Over the last couple of weeks, it has hit highs of 37 degrees C. There has been beaches, naked swimming, birthdays, hotbox gigs, sun-burn, ice-creams, epic thunderstorms and a fair few sleepless nights, where the sweat has made you swim on your sheets.
Yes: naked swimming. Last weekend, yours truly turned the venerable age of 33, and to celebrate we did what has become a Giles weekend favourite – to be fair a Berlin weekend favourite – and, you guessed it, went to a lake. Denied our first choice of Liepnitzsee, further outside the city then previously ventured, due to S Bahn closures, we landed at Flughafensee, a large lake near Tegel Airport. Early on, a quiet spot gave us time to relax, have lunch and swim – with this birthday boy suiting up as 33 years ago on that fateful day when I first hit the water, so to speak. Germans are not shy about nudity, not shocked and prudish like the English, especially on hot days spent in water like this one. Might as well join in. Oddly, it kinda reminded me of the first and only time I ever wore a Kilt – liberating and, er, fresh.
That’s enough of that. Back to being British.
CAKE!
Bday Boy
I’m not naked in this one
We then hit the beach area where there were hundreds of souls vying for sand space and sun spots. To be fair, we spent a bit too much time baking – and we were not the only ones – evident later when several people announced they had mild to medium sun stroke/sickness and a big birthday night out became a night in, and allocated hangover days became 3 days of pure flat related chill time. But hey, wouldn’t change a thing. Especially the love shown by friends old an new, plus evenings sat on the balcony while the heat/air pressure became a maelstrom of lightning, thunder and rain – some of the biggest I ever saw. Oh, and if you have never had a Pickle-Back – try it. I had 6. In an hour. It was by Birthday after all.
We had adventured aplenty the previous weekend. Despite my affinity with the noble Kilt, I had never been to Scotland before, but an opportunity arose to visit Edinburgh for a few days as a holiday. A good friend of Ami’s named Kyle had traveled there from South Africa to graduate from university, and we crashed the party for a few days, staying in a small B+B in Linlithgow, and hanging out with his family who were also over or who live there. For this trip, I am mostly going to let the pics really speak from themselves. Let’s just say that the South Africans know how to party. They were all so welcoming to me, a neewb in the group. The trip included the following highlights: Homemade biltong, pub crawls (the Scottish really know how to do a good public house), haggis (first try), battered haggis (AMAZING), castles, palaces, loch’s, wearing a t-shirt with a giant bear on it in a gay bar, having a man juggle knives and fire whilst standing on me and Kyle (!), whiskey tasting, and several banging curries all at once. For more photographic evidence, have a pop here: https://goo.gl/aookNO
Star and Garter
Whiskey Shop
Castle
Piper
Volcanic Rock
Death Juggler
Linlithgow Palace
Loch Swept
Having the chance to travel has been a major part of the reason we have come to Berlin. I am, however, starting to settle into the mode of living somewhere with job and responsibilities rather then just being on an extended holiday. This is a new experience all over again. Trying to keep it exciting has become about making the most of your time outside of work, not allowing yourself to just ‘be at home’ but realising that outside there are still so many more things to see and do, more people to meet, more adventures to have.
This is now taking the form of getting back into live music after a couple of months of ‘other stuff’. There are so many shows coming up – H2O, Judge, Devin Townsend, Brujeria, Less Than Jake… the list goes on over the summer. We want to meet more people in the rock/metal community here, starting tonight by going to our first show at legendary SO36, to see the equally legendary band Napalm Death. We also check out more local bands. A friend and I have also started one, which will help.
Speaking of gigs, last week saw a show by Steve Von Till – Neurosis front-man and solo artist/gentleman extraordinaire. Neurosis are a band that captivates me. I admit I have not experienced Von Till’s own material much before, but this gig and the advance/subsequent album listens have been an inspiration. He is truly an artist who shows it is possible to make the music you want to, straight from the heart, no pandering to convention or popular trends. From my online post the following morning:
‘It is rare that you hear a musician who is so able to express those feelings that we all have but find it tough to communicate. His honesty appears absolute and his lyrics cut through, with songs that are purely music he wants to make – no attempt to conform or reel you in. Melancholic, at times depressing – and utterly, utterly beautiful.’
It was so damn hot at that show. And we were all just stood there, absorbing.
New Album
Live Shot
Me and SVT
The weather has cooled now, clouds rolling in since starting to type. I look forward to the night, the storm after the calm of the day, where intense grindcore metal shall be our thunder, Napalm Death our Thor.
So Damn Hot This is how summers are supposed to be. Lethargic, stretched out and chilled, no particular goals for the day.