#bierstube

[witekspicsoldpostcards]

DORTMUND (a brewery) / GERMANY

[greenbagjosh]

Day 2 and 3 - 10th and 11th October 2009 in Kyiv (original post)

Привет, как ты? Сегодня мы совершим пешеходную экскурсию по Киеву.

Привітання, як справи? Сьогодні ми здійснимо пішохідну екскурсію по Києву.

Прывітанне, як справы? Сёння мы зробім пешаходную экскурсію па Кіеву.

Today, Saturday the 10th October 2009, is the great walk day in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. The weather is supposed to be cloudy and cold, maybe in the upper 40s / around 8 or 9 Celsius. Rain is not forecast until Sunday the 11th.

What time zone is Ukraine in? In 2009, it was the same as in Bucharest, Athens, Istanbul, Sofia and Nikosia, as well as Kaliningrad and Minsk, using daylight savings time, so one hour ahead of most of Central Europe, and one hour behind Moscow and St. Petersburg. At that time of the year, the sun rises no earlier than 8 AM (go up north to about 60N latitude, it may not even rise until 8:45 AM!). So that makes waking up a bit difficult for those who came from lower latitudes. We will make it to breakfast time somehow! I showered and got dressed and put my camera in my day bag. Somehow I went the wrong way down the hall, and ended up with a view of an Orthodox church Микільський собор / Mykilʹsʹkyy Sobor, and I found the other USSR-era elevator that served the even floors, as opposed to the odd floors.

The hostel building itself did not have a specific breakfast room, so there was a restaurant close to Vulitsa Mykoly Pymonenka. I had some coffee with eggs, bacon and toast. I probably sat at the table for half an hour, thinking about the Lonely Planet walk route. I wondered if I would also have time to see the Пам'ятник жертвам нацизму / monument to victims of Nazism site, called “Babin Yar” and near the Dorohozhychi metro station.

After breakfast, I walked to a ticket kiosk and bought a ticket for the trolley bus. I caught the bus at Vulitsa Hoholivska and went to the Lukianivska metro station. Just like on the metro, the busses also had the “Обережно, двері закриваються.” announcement with next stop. I bought a few more turquoise tokens for the metro, and rode the green line to Zoloti Vorota, changed to the red line at Teatral’na (did not hear the Natalya Morozova song that time, but the next time I was not so lucky), rode one stop to Kreshchatyk and exited to Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the central independence square, where the walk supposedly started. My only goal was to complete the walk before sunset and not get turkey-dropped, a common “lost-wallet” scam of some unscrupulous locals.

The walk started off, crossing the Vulitsa Kreshchatyk, which was blocked off to normal vehicular traffic for the weekend, and follow along Arkhitektora Horodetsko to the Mykola Yakovenko statue. That led to the Gorodetsky House that had chimera gargoyles sculpted on the outside, and also the presidential administration building. In the Ukraine you can take photos of the outside of the presidential administration building without the local police and secret service really caring too much, but if you do the same in Minsk, Belarus? You can get into big trouble, but more about that later.

After the presidential palace, I walked southwest on Vulitsa Bankova, to Vulitsa Liuteranska, and to the end of Vulitsa Shovkovychna, where the Ukrainian Parliament building is located, and has its own traffic signal (I think you may have seen the parliament building in the video). At that time, about maybe 11 AM was a demonstration at the Mariinsky Park next door. I spent maybe ten minutes listening and realizing I did not understand well enough what was going on, so I walked further towards the Dnieper.

Saturdays when the weather is good in Kiev, couples making their wedding photos like to go to the Mariinsky Park for example. I must have counted six or seven couples in total, having photo parties and such. Even at one stage, I saw a Chrysler 300C extended limo driving along the driveway. The park consists also of the grounds of the Dinamo soccer stadium, Park Bridge and Museum of Water, as well as the Friendship of Nations Arch. I think that is where I saw my final wedding couple, or so I thought.

After crossing the Congress Center at Vulitsa Mykhaila Hrushevskoho, I took a break at Volodymyrska Hill, I ate some beer nuts and drank one of my bottles of Kvass. I think I was at the halfway point, and it was around 1 PM. I did not run into any turkey droppers. Not yet anyway.

After the Volodymyrska Hill, I walked to the St. Michael’s monastery. Nearby is the funicular train, marked in Cyrillic as “Фунікулер”, that descends to almost the shore level of the Dnieper at the Metro station Poshtova Ploshcha. And it costs about 1.70 UAH per ride. The monastery chapel explicitly forbade the wedding parties to film at that spot, as there was a written sign in Ukrainian to that effect. I took some photos of the golden domed monastery before moving on to the bell tower of Saint Sophia. The clouds gave way at that moment and it must have warmed up to the mid 50s, or about 12 to 14 C.

After the Saint Sophia bell tower, I walked along Vulitsa Volodymyrska to the Golden Gate Park. I think this is where the first failed turkey drop happened. The turkey drop is some scam where a local has some money in a plastic bag and he drops it, and if someone picks it up, they are the turkey. That is how I understand it. If there is any money, it is best to leave it alone and nothing will happen. Until the next person anyway. Information on that scam at https://www.lonelyplanet.com/.../for-all-the-great-kiev.... The next one would be along the Булвар Tarasa Shevchenko after St. Volodymyr’s Cathedral. Don’t think anything of that turkey drop and then walk further to enjoy a bit of the Taras Shevchenko Park, before taking a break at the Shalena Mama café. I had a glass of Kvass there, though they served meals, and I was more in the mood for a bowl of borsht at the Viola’s Bierstube. Sadly since after my visit in October 2009, the Shalena Mama closed down years after, and was replaced by a Domino’s Pizza. Gosh, even Kiev is not immune to globalization.

I found the Viola’s Bierstube just at the intersection of Bulvar Tarasa Shevchenka and Vulitsa Khreshchatyk. There is, or rather, was, a statue of Lenin, at that intersection, but it was replaced with a big stone with Ukranian engraving. Across the road is an underground mall, connected to the Bessarabsky Market. In the Viola Bierstube I had a beer and a bowl of borsht – passing on the four ounces of complimentary mustard that they seem to freely give out, they do the same thing at the original Bierstube on Vulitsa Velyka Vasylkivska near the Ploshcha Lva Tolshtoho / Palats Sportu metro station. I was careful not to spend too much, as most places in Ukraine do not accept credit cards. After making it to the Bessarabsky Market, I had reached the end of the walk as stated in the Lonely Planet Guide. I think it was getting around 7 PM or so, and sunset was around 7:30 PM. I had other places I wanted to visit, but I was feeling worn out. Even the original Bierstube was a bit difficult to find but I think I found it on Monday the 13th.

I went back to the hostel, left my day bag in the room and went to Vino e Cucina on Sichovykh Striltsiv for pizza. The pizza was good. I went to bed after walking back home. At some point, I would have to get a train ticket for Minsk in Belarus for Monday evening arriving in Minsk on Tuesday the 14th. I would try my luck the next day at the Кіїв Пассажірскії rail station.

Tomorrow Sunday 11th October 2009 is the pilgrimage to the Lavra, a large campus of Ukrainian Orthodox chapels, near the Arsenal’na metro station. Also the city military museum (some content there can be disturbing) with the Motherland Monument, Indian food, rickety tram ride on a USSR-era Tatra unit, and the monument to WWII victims. To cap it off, a dinner on Khreshchatyk and breakdancing just like from the early to mid 1980s. Stay tuned for more!

Спокойной ночи и до завтра!

На добраніч, і до завтра!

Дабранач, і да заўтра!

[felizconejo]

#wurst #bier #bierstube #germany in #philly #pa #cider #rosécider #tasty #fbf #queerasfolk #moody (at BRÜ Craft & Wurst)

[booksplease]

My trip to Salzburg to participate in the Salzburg Global Seminar’s twelfth session “Defining America: New Writing, New Voices, New Directions” at the beautiful Schloss Leopoldskron comprised of many profound moments of learning. At our Graduation Dinner in St. Stephen’s College, way back in 1999, my happy batch-mate Siddarth Correya had said that his learning in college had been as much outside the classroom as inside. The Schloss provided me with the atmosphere I was hopelessly nostalgic about post leaving College Campus. You learn during the sessions, from what is said, but you learn as much from just being there, and from what is still left unsaid.

It has taken me awhile to unpack. Between laundry and reams of notes, I find stories, I catch myself smiling. At the Schloss, the rooms overlook the sprawling lawns, fountains, the lake, the mountains, sunshine, inside the discussion focused on the nuances of authorship, or, the symbolism of a wet sari in a Bollywood film. The generous meals were sprinkled with conversations: the political air of Malaysia, traveling from Calcutta to Berhampur, the paintings that denote seasons, is there music playing? The range of speakers and topics were mind-boggling. The mind danced. And, the refrain I kept returning to, what does this mean for American Literature and the ghazal?

But, let’s just set aside my emotionally charged pen, (erm keys), talking hard facts, this Seminar belongs to the rare breed where seamless structure and efficiently managed logistics magnificently merges with informal atmosphere. It is an intensive program and an immersive one; you are dipped in and saturated. And you leave knowing that your thoughts have been tweaked.

As I slowly return to reading and writing, I feel I have greatly benefitted from the experience for three reasons. Firstly, because it has managed to refuel my faith in this field – sigh, campus life, also there is so much work still to be done. I know, I do hear the dismal talk about the state of academics and funding, but, by golly there is so much research still to be done, and this field is so deliciously dynamic. Secondly, in the library, at the Schloss I found ghazals I had not read before. I carried back these gems with me to use in my studies, along with lots of notes that I will try to incorporate into my research. Lastly, bierstube. That’s all I can say!

Enjoy the pictures! You might notice a picture of a cactus that has flowered. While I away our resident prickles decided to shine in neglect.

More about the seminar: The seminar was hosted by the Salzburg Global Seminar American Studies Association (SSASA).

It had attendees from 26 countries that included novelists, critics, Ph.D. candidates, academics, editors, professors, and performers. The speakers and discussion groups sought the definition of ‘new’ and aspects of it in American literature.

Seminar website: click here (spot me in the picture – black and white outfit, approximately in the middle row).

Edited to add: official pictures <— click

Unpacking Salzburg Global Seminar My trip to Salzburg to participate in the Salzburg Global Seminar’s twelfth session “Defining America: New Writing, New Voices, New Directions” at the beautiful Schloss Leopoldskron comprised of many profound moments of learning.

[mybayreuth-blog]

[ocfooddiva]

#cheeseburger #sliders at #bierstube inside the #phoenixclub in #anaheim 🍔 #appetizers #onolicious (at The Phoenix Club in Anaheim)

[worldlyamused]

#bierstube #bamberg #beer iconic traditional beer pubs (at Klein Venedig Bamberg)

[blamadorck]

Favorite shows of 2015 (Part 1 of 6 - Oct thru Dec)

I went to way too many live music events this past year. Here are my favorites that I could find events/fliers for, starting with the most recent.

1.  Ice Hockey (final show)/The Cambodian Heat (MI)/Closet Witch/Obsidian Sword - 12/17 @rozztox

2. GUY FAWKES NIGHT CELEBRATION AND GOSH! TOUR KICKOFF WITH REACHES (chi), WULFBRIAR, AND SISTER MISSILE - 11/5 @rozztox

3.  Dana T Album Release!! - Halloween at Gabes ft. Brooks Strause and the Gory Details, Dylan Sires and Neighbors, and Little Ruckus - 10/31 @ Gabe’s, Iowa City

4. ☠ MR NASTI // BABY NOIR // LESBIAN POETRY // JEFFREY ROALSON ☠ SPOOKY BASEMENT DUNGEON SHOW ☠ - 10/28 @ Governor’s Mansion, Iowa City

5.  WILLIAM Z VILLAIN, SETH KNAPPEN, RONIN, SISTER MISSILE - 10/8 @ Bierstube