ich liebe Berlin!!

After I had written the last blog on Tuesday in Berlin I went to try to wake up Phi & Phong unsuccessfully. I did manage to wake up Borgar though and we went down to the East Side Gallery where they have preserved part of the Berlin wall and the street art on it. It was nice to look at but I really liked the newer street art at the end of the wall where there was this very interesting place called Yaam. It had a skateboard ramp, basketball court, soccer court and a lot of sand with a nice looking beach bar. It looked like a fun place to hang out, I'm sad I didn't get to go there at night but I'll just add it to the list of many things I need to go back to Berlin for.


Then we had to get back to head to the Hansa Recording Studios where we were having a tour for our project. It was a beautiful building being one of the only left standing in the area after the second world war and was interesting to hear the history of the area, Potsdamer Platz. We looked at the rooms where David Bowie recorded and then went to the one studio they still use. There was an upcoming big new German band recording there and was funny watching all the girls getting so excited to see them. After the tour we went to Alexander Platz and to a German pub for some schnitzel, yum! Then it was back to the hostel for one drink before getting some much needed sleep. Wednesday it was up and out sightseeing again.


This time I was going to an art museum with the art and architecture crew and we saw an interesting exhibition of Andy Warhol's celebrity works. We also saw the Berlin's main station which is an amazing building built in High Tech style.



After getting something to eat there Sune and me headed back to the hostel for some rest before hitting happy hour at the hostel bar. We were soon joined by the others and it was a very big party night.


So Thursday I was not feeling too hot but had to be up and packed to check out at 10am. I had breakfast and then met up with the members of my group who wanted to come and we headed out to follow Bowie in Berlin. We first went to this beautiful big store called KaDaWe where he used to go but the boys were more interested in their stomachs so we didn't stay there long. Then we headed to where he used to live and had a pot of tea in the gay cafe/bar under his old apartment. We walked around the neighbourhood and to the Goya theatre which used to called the Metropol where he performed some shows. Then it was back to the hostel to meet the others and leave for the airport =( It is a very bad airport, once you check in you have to go straight through to the gate where there are no shops or anything just a room with cold, hard chairs and floor. Once back in Copenhagen it was a short trip on the metro and then 2 buses home but it was around midnight by the time I was back.



Friday it was glorious to sleep in and I had a nice relaxing day until it was time to get on my bike and head into town for Caroline's birthday party at Nadsat. It was great to catch up with everyone but the bar got way too smokey so I moved on to Karriere bar to meet with work friends. This bar was way to crowded though and too many guys in suits.

Saturday it was a nice day so I jumped on my bike and biked out to the mall. It was nice to wander around the shops and then I came home to get ready to go to Stefan's place for yummy Vietnamese soup, lots of red wine and great company. His place wasn't so far from Phong's so I went to his place afterwards. I was feeling the effects of way too much wine though and decided after a few attempts that it was definitely not a good idea to bike home. So it was a long walk home and sleep in today. So tonight I am enjoying having a quiet night and tomorrow it's back to action at school and work.

Laters..

blog from tue 22nd oct

Being so busy and then a lack of internet I’m a bit behind with my blogging this week. I had a quiet start to the week before catching up with Pirita and Sarah on Thursday night over some delish cocktails at The Office bar. Pirita had spent 2 weeks in North America and Canada and made me very envious with stories of all the cheap shopping.

Friday it was a special Friday bar as the next time I would see a lot of my school friends would be in Berlin so it was a very merry atmosphere. A bit too merry I would say as I went home, made myself something to eat & had a shower to get ready to go to Kathrine’s birthday drinks and then proceeded to fall asleep =(

Gotta love your friday bar!

Crazy Danes..

Saturday I went to go meet Sash who had come over from London for the weekend with a friend. I took them to Christiania but as it was raining it wasn’t a very good day to be there. What else is there to do on a rainy day in Copenhagen then than to go to the pub.. It was great to catch up with her and then when they went to have some dinner I met Kathrine at her work and had some birthday drinks with her. I didn’t get home to late though as Sunday I needed to pack for Berlin!

Sasha and me.

As usual I left everything to the last minute and quickly packed before getting on the bus to the Metro and then taking that to the airport. I checked in and met with Erik, Sune, Kristen and Lukas after the security check. There is no tax free when travelling inside the EU so couldn’t do any cheap shopping. I got a beer and next thing it was time to get on the plane. It was a really short trip. Seemed to have only just taken off then it is time to land again. We had met a few more from school at the plane and after we had our luggage took a bus that took as to the train that we needed to get to our hostel. The hostel is right next to the station so very easy. We checked in and dropped our bags then headed to an Italian place next door for some pizza. Then we had to wait for Borgar and Steve’s plane to arrive to check them in. Then it was time to hit the bar!! It is a very lively hostel we are in especially after the arrival of so many Danes! Phi, Phong, Alex, Nick and Dean turned up after being out with Paula and it was a fun night. I went to bed not long after the bar closed around 2am.

Waiting for the guys on the later flight.

German beer is goood! Steve & Phi having a laugh.

Monday morning it was up and on the bus at 9am for a Berlin highlights tour. It was nice being driven around and checking out some great spots in East and West Berlin. We had a short stop at the Olympic Stadium and then carried on to a very touristy spot with many great sights. Then we spit up and I was with a group whom went to visit a WW2 bunker. The guy who gave us the tour was very interesting and showed us around the bunker talking a lot. Then after some lunch we made our way to the Jewish Museum. I had been really looking forward to it but it did not live up to my expectations. It was late by the time we got back to the hostel and we just had time to get freshened up before a bunch of us went out for dinner. Had a nice meal & some yummy cocktails then it was back to the hostel to catch up with everyone and drink lots more yummy German beer =)

Reichstag.

Brandenburger.

Inside a WW2 bunker.

Checkpoint Charlie.

Jewish Museum.

So it was after 2am again this morning when I went to bed. I have got heyfever pretty bad and decided to have a little sleep in this morning. Was going to meet the group doing the Berlin Wall tour at 12pm but then realised I didn’t know how to get there and was feeling pretty crappy. Lets hope the antihistamine pills do the trick, right I’m off to find the guys..

dad comes back to visit..

I'm probably not in the right head space to blog right now after just watching Der Untergang (Downfall) and feeling, I can't really explain, I guess closest I can say is a bit sick.. It is a very well made movie and extremely well acted but it is so hard to try to understand how that could happen and so many people died. It is a good idea to get a better understanding of what happened in Berlin in it's past so that when we are there we can see how it has been shaped by it's history. Our project is coming together slowly. We have some good ideas but it is really getting time to really plan what we are going to do so we know what we need to do and where we need to go in Berlin next week.

Work was again so busy last week and it didn't help that we had to move in the middle of it. After the disruption though it is nice to have a change of scene and a view! (I mean to the canal outside, not the new guys to look at.. hehe). Pirita came back from Canada and the States but was pretty tired understandably from coming home on Sunday night and then starting a new job on Monday so she cancelled her leaving drinks on Friday. This left me free to meet my dad after school =)

A more perfect day to arrive in Copenhagen I don't know as it was Friday and also Copenhagen Culture night. After a few tasty beverages at the Friday bar I was on bike into town to meet Dad and Misoo. It was perfect timing, I arrived the same time as their train and then we went so I could buy the culture night pass at the ticket office. Unfortunately they had run out of english programmes so we had a hard time trying to work out where to go. Copenhagenites are very friendly though and we met this guy giving away coffee in a wetsuit and lots of other people willing to help us out.

I thought I had read on the internet that there might be some interesting sailor stuff happening in Nyhavn so we headed in that direction but what is usually one of the busiest tourist places in town was unusually quiet. We had a nice beer though and then headed towards where I thought the National Museum was. On the way we stumbled into a Danish immigration happening and then an old military display near the armory museum.

Once we got the the museum they had interesting music playing and a light show and we wondered around the Danish exhibition until they kicked us out around midnight. On the way to the train station we came across a very nice exhibition from a lady whom has taken pictures of Christiania residents. You can see these photos on her website. Unfortunately by the time we had made it back to the train station the last train had been so dad had to take a taxi and I had to walk all the way back to my bike and then home.

The next day was then a slow one and in the afternoon I made my way out to the campground they were staying. What a mission!! Oh I feel so happy that I live right in town now as the train did not stop at the station I needed and the only directions I had was from that station. So then I got bad directions from a guy and got on the wrong bus.. Anyway, almost 2 hours later I finally arrived and it was a very nice evening eating and drinking in the motorhome and catching up on their travels.

yum!!


Then it was a very interesting and fun filled trip home by bus, night bus and lots of walking!!
So Sunday was another slow day, cleaning the apartment and finding a supermarket open on Sunday. Then dad and Misoo turned up for dinner and make the most of my internet connection. Then it was time to say goodbye and see you in a couple of months..

Another ting that happened last week is that I got my new bike back from Harold and lowered the seat. The first time I rode it to school it felt so strange and I didn't like it but I been sticking it out and now it is really nice to ride. I took a photo on my phone today to show how it is bigger than my other bike that I used to call the monster..

That's it for now. I have to do some research for the Berlin project. Laters..

a week of extremes..

Well it's getting a bit late to be blogging now as it's Tuesday and getting hard to remember last week already. It was a crazy busy week, that I do remember!
People getting let go from work of course means more work for the ones left and with parental leave and sickness added in meant that I pulled a few late nights at work. We also had to hand in our assignment on Friday at school so most days I was working hard at school, then biking straight to work until 7, 8 or even 9 at night and then back home to do some more school work. In fact Thursday I did this and didn't get to sleep until 1am, working 15 hours almost straight.

So I was very much looking forward to Friday! We did our presentation first and then I stayed to watch the other groups before heading to work. There was an Octoberfest party later that night at school so no Friday bar. I finished work at 6pm and headed to the Friday bar there to meet with all the peeps gathering to have some drinks with Harold on his last day. Of course my plan to go home and get changed before meeting at The Office didn't happen so instead it was a burger on the way.. It was great at The Office bar with so many people from work there. I was introduced to one of the barmen whom is from Hamiltron! And he made me yummy Moscow Mule cocktails, made all the more special because of the rarity of ginger beer in Denmark. We got kicked out of there at 2am and the hardcore bunch left got on our bikes and headed into the centre of the city to Copenhagen Jazz House. I thought this was going to be great when I first got there as they were playing nice music but then it turned into the same hip hop crap that most places play. It was a great last night with Harold and Marta and I realised when I got home at 6am that I had been partying 12 hours.

Saturday then was sleep day. It felt so good to sleep in most of the day and then just relax at home. I watched the first episode of the 17th series of Survivor. I also watched some episodes of the new Americas Next Top Model and think that the people are so smart to show these programmes in the winter. Sunday I woke up and it was raining, boo! I talked for a looong time to Mum and James though which was really nice, cleaned up a bit and did my laundry and then the sun came out, yah! So I could get on my bike to the shop and then across town to Christiania to hang out with Sina a bit. When I came home I watched a movie we are to watch for school, Goodbye Lenin. It is a sweet film set in the time that the Berlin wall came down in East Germany. I have 2 more to watch and very much look forward to them. Der Himmel Uber Berlin (Wings of Desire) and Der Untergang (Downfall).

Monday we got introduced to our new assignment at school and it looks like it is going to be much more interesting than the last. We are to design an alternative travel guide for Berlin. This will be in the way of a podcast and website. Then we do some print design in the way of a billboard, business cards and another product of our choice. So we are finally gonna concentrate and have a lot of learning on design! Also the website is to be made in flash which means actionscripting, sure to satisfy the code geek in me =) I went to work for 4 hours then went to meet with Marta and Harold and some others to say goodbye =( I am really going to miss them. Harold is a wonderful rare person who is always happy and full of energy. And both him and Marta are genuine, fun, lovely people. It is sad to say goodbye but good now I have a reason to visit Barcelona!!

Well I'm sorry it is so boring with no media or photos but as you can probably tell I have been very busy. Just wait for the image bonanza after I've been to Berlin!! =)
Laters..