Between Days

How have your 'between days' been? I mean the days between 27th December and 31st December. Here they have been relatively quiet. In the supermarkets I note customers are buying lots of bottles of sekt (sparkling wine) and fireworks.  Both are essential for this evening!

A lot of fireworks which give off lots of light and colours rather than just a big bang, but there are sill plenty of those around, as I am sure I shall hear this evening. My 'between days' were lazy ones. Sleeping late, lots of reading and going for walks. I have not had my TV on for about a week. Over the 'festive season' there is nothing that interests me. I get the news over the radio or computer.

Yesterday was the best of my 'between days'. The Family arrived. I told them they could use my place to eat in and do what they wanted. They arrived with a large wheelie bin full or pots and pans and they were full of cooked food. Yes, Ma had spent hours over the cooker preparing a special meal. She immediately got to work in my kitchen. She knows where things are and what to do.

I took Sis to another room and showed the presents given to her by Holger & Gabi and a really nice house containing different kinds of colours from Marianne. She likes to paint and draw. She was more than happy and immediately settled into a corner and started to paint. As she did that I helped to put cloths on the living room floor for our late lunch.

Yes, it was sitting cross-legged on the floor again and eating a delicious Afghani style meal. Mmmmh the taste of the vegetables cooked with spices. Now that was something special. After the meal, Papa fixed a cable to my laptop to connect to my flat screen and we settled down to watch songs and dances from Iran and Afghanistan. They were from the internet and the Boyz immediately started to sing along and dance!

After some time they settled back onto the couch and I noted the sinking of eyelids. Yes, Boyz of their age are either hyperactive or just want to sleep. I led them to my bed and within two minutes they were out for over an hour. Meanwhile Mama and Papa and I watched old news reports about life in Afghanistan in the 1960s and 70s. I trip down memory lane for me. I was in Kabul in 1979 when the Soviet Red Army moved in and I headed quickly in the opposite direction taking one of the last flights to Delhi.

When the Boyz joined us later we had tea and cakes with lots of chats before they slowly packed their things, and presents, for the journey back home. Papa needs warm winter boots like Bro1 so will look for some in the winter sales started on Tuesday. All thanks to the generosity of Peter and Andre. Thanks again to both. Papa will call me when he has found some so I shall join him to pay for them and so another person will enter the New Year with dry and warm feet :-)) Prost for this evening!

Very Nice Day

I have had a nice day - so far!  I watched an interesting film on the internet last night. I thought I would watch it for 10 minutes then I was hooked and watched it to the end. It was set in Italy in 1980 and was about the unfolding of a short and doomed relationship. The main language was English so I could understand the dialogue. I hit the sack very tired and slept late this morning.

I was awoken by my telephones ringing. I turned over and tried to ignore them. It was Marita calling to wish me a Merry Christmas. I called her back when I had both eyes open and we agreed to meet at my place this afternoon. She had things to do and people to visit but she rang the doorbell at the agreed time.

After seasons greetings we settled down to catch up on news over a bottle of sekt/sparkling wine. It is always interesting to listen to her views on a range of matters and this meeting was no exception. I told her she should write a weekend column for a Berliner newspaper. She just smiled and nodded! We talked about 'The Family' and she said she wanted to meet them and see how she could help. A nice offer.

Earlier I had toasted my family and friends around the world at 12.00 noon - as per my tradition. This was done with a glass of cold sekt!  I did this as I opened presents and cards. I love this part of Christmas Day. I get news of family and friends, family stories and photos and for a short time I am part of their lives and family. Here you can see the cards.

In a short time I shall have a shower, put on a suit, warm overcoat, thick scarf, warm gloves and leave for a bus which will take me to a U-Bahn station. There I shall meet Johanna and continue the journey until we reach the Berliner Philharmonie. We shall then settle into our seats and let the music of Beethoven wash over us. Hope you have a wonderful rest of Christmas Day.

Merry Christmas

I have just returned from Johanna's where I met other Kowalke Gang members. We met up for our traditional Christmas Breakfast. Delicious as usual. Normally Jutta and Gerald host the event but this year Gerald was in hospital so Johanna offered her home. Fortunately, Gerald is out of hospital so could join us.

Lots of interesting discussions and a telephone call we were all waiting for. It was from Colin in Australia. Really nice to catch up on news and we are all looking forward to welcoming him to Berlin next summer. It was evening there and only 26°C, but then he told us it had been 35°C in the morning! We all said we were in the wrong country.

I got some nice presents earlier in the week, as you can see from this photo. I shall open them tomorrow along with my cards. Yes, I am traditional and only open things on Christmas Day. Jutta gave me some decorations and I wondered how to use them. She added thin ribbons and put them on my ears. She said that I had to stand-in for a tree which we did not have. Here is a photo of me deputizing for a Christmas Tree :-))

I'm going to a Beethoven concert at the Philharmonie tomorrow evening with Johanna. That will be the high point of the Christmas period. Meanwhile, BBC Radio 3 is broadcasting a lot of music by J.S.Bach in what they call the 'Spirit of Bach' season. Well worth a listen and you can always catch up for one week after if you miss anything live. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EACH AND ALL!

Dry Feet

I remember a song from many years ago called, 'These Boots are made for walking.....and I'm gonna walk all over you!' I think the singer was Nancy Sinatra - daughter of a famous Papa!  If I am wrong please correct me. Just do this on the Comment section of each post.

The story began last Sunday. Bro2 arrived for help to write a report about his Praktikum in a hairdressing salon. A few hours later Bro1 arrived to do the same about his Praktikum in an electrical engineering company. The Bros always take off their shoes when they enter my Palace!

I noted that Bro1 had wet feet/socks. I asked why and was shown his shoes. Each had a large hole at the back of the sole. His brother and sister have winter boots, but he didn't. I was surprised. Each Bro has a nice winter coat thanks to Ian and Birgit. I reported about this earlier. I never thought about his feet. 

We did his paperwork and the the Bros left. I then opened my E-mails and saw one from Peter in Altlandsberg. This is a town in the countryside east of Berlin. He wrote that he had just sent some money to my account to buy things for The Family for Christmas. I was really surprised and wondered how on earth he knew that Bro1 needed good winter boots and how should I pay for them. What an interesting and strange coincidence.

I met Bro1 this morning at a shopping centre with three shoe shops. We found one offering  Sale Prices and boots he liked. He took his time trying on different models and settled on the ones you can see in  the photographs. When we left the shop we threw the old shoes into a recycling bin!

We now have a very happy Bro1 with dry feet! And with boots that German boys in his class will approve of.  It's all part of the wider strange world of 'integration'. In this case mixed up with teenage language and clothes! 

Bro2 Cut

I had an unexpected haircut this afternoon. It all began when I met Bro2 during the week. He needed help to fill in a report about his Praktikum (job training) in a hairdressing salon in the north of Berlin. Lots of bureaucratic questions in bureaucratic German. We had to use translation pages on the internet to complete the first part of the form.

He came this morning to complete another part of the form. Having done that he said he would like to cut my hair. I was rather surprised and asked him what style. He answered in detail, which again surprised me. I realised he had learnt a lot during his training so I agreed.

He started slowly on the sides then the back. He said I should have a cut that clearly separated the sides from the top. I just smiled and said. "Do it". He also thought I should have my hair shorter on top and combed to the front. I nodded again and 'The Artist' got on with his creation.

You can see the result in a photo. It was taken just after the cutting and before I showered and washed my hair, which changed the appearance a little. I think Bro2 has found a new occupation. He cuts his father and brother's hair in addition to now perfecting his skills on my head. I would never have thought that he had such a skill even six months ago.

Then Bro1 arrived. He had finished his Sunday late-sleep-in and needed help to fill out a report about his Praktikum. His was in a small electrical engineering company. Lots of work on machines with different metals. He has to complete and give in his report by Wednesday. He left it very late to complete all the Blah, Blah. It took hours to complete most of the sections and often only with the help of a German - Persian translation website for he did not understand many German words.

I prepared a light lunch for the Boyz, including a fresh fruit salad which they enjoyed. After lunch I noted they started to 'nod off' as we tried to complete the reports. Given their age no surprise there, so I ordered them to go to sleep. They did so immediately. Meanwhile I looked through the forms and completed more questions. Even so, we still needed a few more hours work on Bro2's documents.

Bro1 is coming to my place next Thursday afternoon to complete his forms. He has until 8th January to do that so less pressure. I wonder if he will want to snip a few stray hairs on my head. We'll see!

Oz-Wurst and Spoken Rubbish

I recently got this great photo from friends in Sydney. Every time I see it I have to smile! How on earth would someone come up with the idea to convert an old VW van into a mobile kitchen and then add the German words 'Volkswurst'? Amazing how creative some people are.

Das Volk means The People then add 's' for the possessive and Wurst means Sausage = The People's Sausage. I wonder if the people who created the van and the product came from Germany. They clearly have founded an interesting business.

Talking of words.   I want to share more Spoken Rubbish with you. I have had some positive comments about  earlier posts where I criticized speaking English rubbish. Here is my latest list and all came from BBC Radio 4 News Reports:

A product company/ a health outcome/ a storm in a filing cabinet/ engaging Parliament ( I wonder if this person married Parliament) / something didn't quite exist (Now that is an interesting idea for Professors of Maths and Logic) / problemetising/ to memoranise/ creeping normalisation/ the idealisation of formula/ to better monitor/ the high negatives of Trump/ to engage with concerns/ a moment of clarity.  More issues =  to correct an issue/ an issue with snow/ to handle these issues/ put the issues behind him.  I wonder what the speakers wanted to say!

Sunday Lunch

What did you eat for lunch last Sunday? Were you at home, in a restaurant, with family, with friends or alone? Hope you enjoyed it whatever you had and wherever you were.

I went to Johanna's nice home for lunch. She decided it was time for the Kowalke Gang to relax and gently enter the Christmas spirit. I spent the whole afternoon sitting at the table with them, sipping nice wines and enjoying interesting conversations. The topics ranged A to Z with lots of humour and laughter.

We of course talked about other people, such as Colin in Australia and how he/they would have enjoyed the lunch. I can hear you asking what we ate. The answer is 'Donald Duck's brother'! Here are photos of the table and my plate.

On the plate you can see potatoes and red cabbage. I really like the latter for it is cooked with apples and spices. Very tasty and ideal with 'Ducky'.  Mmmmhhh I could eat it again when I see the pics!

First Snow

During Sunday night we had the first real snow of winter. Here is a photo of my garden covered in snow. I took it just before I went to bed. I had to make a number of changes to my camera settings before I could get a shot.

Earlier, I had been to a concert at the local protestant church. It is famous for its organ. It was made for the sister of Frederick the Great and attracts many people when there is an organ concert. Some are broadcast on the Berlin Classic Music station.

This time it was J.S.Bach BWV 248 Kantaten I-III. The performers were Kantorei Karlshorst, Berlin Sinfonietta and the Kinder - und Jugendchor Canzonetta Berlin. There were also 4 professional singers who sang the narrative text. A really wonderful event and sounds. The next concert will be on 7 January 2018 for Bach's Kantaten IV-VI. I shall be there :-)

The Friday before I went to another local church with Jutta. We heard a Christmas concert given by the Chor der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. This included songs in a number of languages, including English which they sang with such clarity you could hear every word. What a nice weekend of music I like. Hope you heard music that you like.

Christmas Market

From the start of December in Germany you will find Christmas Markets all over the country. Many stalls offer traditional food and drink such as 'Grilled Wurst (sausage)' and Glühwein (mulled wine). You can find other stalls offering clothes, wooden objects, paintings, toys, photographs or anything linked to Christmas. Here is a photo of part of the market.

On Saturday I went to the east of the city on my local U-Bahn then walked to the Kaulsdorf Christmas Market. There I had a Thüringer Bratwurst as I waited for Jan to call me. Yes, he was in town with Arancha and baby Emma. I was pleased to see many of his old school friends with him and with their wives and children. His mother was also there watching over the pram. A real family meeting.

I took photos of all including Jan and family. Many with Emma but I do not show photos of her on my blog at her parents request. Instead you can see Jan with me and a couple of his old school friends sipping different liquids. It was great to see them again and quickly catch up on news. As they refilled their glasses I said my goodbyes and left for the local U-Bahn station.

I traveled towards Alexander Platz and got out two stations before on the Karl-Marx-Allee. I  then went to a cafe/restaurant. I met the ladies in my Kowalke Gang and settled down to enjoy a late afternoon performance of readings and music.

The 'stars' were Ines and Jakob. He provided the music. She read out various traditional texts from different countries with the theme of Christmas Stories from all over the world. Here is a photo of Ines with my Kowalke Gang. She is in the middle of the back row. Thanks Ines for a wonderful event. Looking forward to more next year.

A Conference

Yesterday I went to Willy-Brandt-Haus. I had been invited to attend a conference. It is the Head Office of the national SPD. The Berlin SPD has a separate building in another district to the north. It was an international conference with members and guests from a number of countries. There were also diplomats from various embassies in Berlin.

It started at 12.30 with welcome speeches before we got the opening speech from SPD Party Chairman Martin Schulz. We then moved into discussion 1. This was led by 5 speakers and a moderator. The theme was 'Renewal of European Social Democracy. There has been a decline in support for Social Democratic parties across Europe and increase in right-wing populist parties. The debate focused on ways to reverse this decline.

There was a short break followed by a speech given by Sigmar Gabriel. He is the current Foreign Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and ex-Chairman of the SPD. After that we went into discussion 2. The theme was 'Perspectives for progressive politics worldwide'. The panel included people from South America, Philippines, Macedonia and Norway. An interesting mixture.

I took this photo during the session. Not my best but I did not take my 'best' camera. I enjoyed listening to two speeches in Spanish and noting how many words I understood. Nice!

Memory Lane

I had a trip down memory lane yesterday. Jumped into my local S-Bahn train and 20 minutes later got out at Friedrichstrasse, waited a few minutes then saw a big smile approaching. It was Neil and on time. He had been exploring the area before my arrival and noted changes.

We walked over the River Spree, which is next to the station, and went into a popular restaurant called 'Rheinland Ständige Vertretung'. The Rheinland is an area in the west of the country. This restaurant/bar sells beer from the Rheinland and so as the name suggests, the place and its beer is a 'permanent representation'. We found a table and settled down to catch up on news.

Neil comes from Liverpool, studied German and French, graduated in 1979 and moved to Germany. Over lunch he added that he is now in a class to brush up his French. In 1979, he studied at Humbolt University in what was then East Berlin. He met a lady and married. After unification he got a job with a publishing company called Cornelsen and lived in a block of flats owned by the company.

I met him through the founding of an English teachers' association and later moved into a flat in the Cornelsen property. By then he was single again and often on the road for the company, but we still found time to have a beer and go to local workshops for teachers. I then moved to the district where I still live and Neil got a job as a lecturer at the university of Duisburg-Essen. This is in the west of the country so it was goodbye to Berlin. He bought a flat in Essen and now lives there.

He has also written three books. You can see him above with the latest. I did a report about it on this blog. It is called 'Liverpool: Gateway to Heaven and Hell'. If you have not bought it yet then rush out now and do so :-))  I also like his second book. It is called, ' Modern Germany: An outsider's view from the inside'. It's an interesting account of his experiences since 1979, and set against historical changes in 1989/90. I can really recommend this book if you are interested in that period of modern history.

I took a photo of him with the river and S-Bahn station in the background. This means a lot to him for it used to be the crossing point when he entered/left East Berlin. A real trip down memory lane for him. We then went our separate ways. He went to look at the area where we both lived in the publishing company property, and I went to meet a couple of people for Kaffee und Kuchen.

He invited me to visit him in Essen. I shall do just that next Spring or early summer. Thanks Neil for a really interesting time yesterday, write another book and I'll see you next year.

December 2017 Things

We are now into the last month of the year. It is cold and some parts of the country have had snow, but not yet in Berlin. My Photoshop Gang meeting was cancelled due to illness and visitors. Stefan called me this morning. The next and last meeting this year will be in two weeks. Now I have more time to update my blog and then relax with my book.

I have a dental appointment on Monday morning. It's just a check-up. On Wednesday evening I have been invited to a Vernissage. German uses the French work but the Brits say invitation to a preview of an art exhibition. On Friday evening I am going to a local church with Jutta for a choir concert. 

Next Saturday I'm having lunch with my Kowalke Gang before going to Cafe Sybille on the Frankfurter Allee for a presentation by Ines, with musical accompaniment. The topic is Christmas stories from all over the world. She's a great performer. Next Sunday I am going to the local protestant church for a concert of choir music by Bach. 

The week after includes my local SPD meeting with a Christmas party afterwards. I'm booked in for a meal at the Falckensteinstraße Community Centre where I have my Photoshop course. This time it is a traditional Christmas meal based on slices of goose breast. Next day is training as usual and then we shall all relax for a Christmas party. My contribution is to bring two bottle of sekt = sparkling wine.

The next day, Saturday 16th, I am going to a presentation called Classroom Lifecycles. It at the Cornelsen Publishing House building on Friedrich Straße and hosted by ELTABB. This is the English teachers' association I co-founded many years ago. After that we are all going to the Christmas Market at nearby Gendermenmarkt for 'refreshments'. I am sure you can work out what that means!

On the 19th I shall meet my SPD 60+ group to enjoy a session which will include Christmas style 'Kaffe und Kuchen'. From there I shall go to a cafe in Friedrichshain to meet members of the Berlin Labour Party. I am sure we shall have a glass of something during or after the meeting! Next day I shall be at Lichtenburg Museum to attend a Christmas party.  Things then slowly spiral down to no appointments over Christmas to New Year. I forgot to mention that I shall meet Imre sometime early in the month before he flies to Manila. Also that Jan and family will be here next weekend. 

Who has a birthday in December?

Michael N. hits 53 on the 5th, Stefan from my Photoshop Gang will be 57 on the 7th and celebrate it in Italy. Brother-in-Law Geoff will be one year older in Silsden on the 13th and celebrate with sister Frances there. If you remember, she is one of two people for whom I write this blog. Back to Berlin for Evie who will be all of 10 on the 18th. Julie Bolton near to Silsden will celebrate her 43rd on the 20th, a day she shares with Thomas in Berlin who will be 57 and enjoy it on holiday in Malta. Jonas in Bremen will be 'an old man of ' 21 on the 22nd.   Bro2 will be 17 on the 24th and am sure he will celebrate with his family at my place, just as they did last year. Neil Dickinson hits 71 on the 28th and I'm sure he will celebrate with his family somewhere near Brighton. He shares the day with Stefan Schöneberg who will be all of 34. The very generous Ian Maxwell will be 58 on the 30th and so ends the birthday month. I am sure he will have a party with Birgit and his family in Ozland. I shall have to get The Family together on that day to also celebrate his big day and to say thanks to both for their financial support. PROST and CHEERS to each and all no matter where you are!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!