15/6/10

These graffiti prams appeared overnight near the infant-dense playground on Kollwitzplatz, Prenzlauer Berg.
Most weekends, the Platz is thick with prams, strollers and of course, children thanks to the fertility explosion (eeeew) in P'Berg.
Someone has taken it upon themselves to bring order to this mêlée of 'kinderwagen' and assign lanes to the pavement.
The Berliner Morgen Post has already jumped on this story and assigned the vandal with a moniker - 'The Pram-Hater of Prenzlauer Berg'

2/6/10

berlin fernsehturm

29/4/10

Paris/New York... (Minsk /Bucharest)

22/4/10

A contender for the Dawdles Award?
This facade renovation has been abandoned for so long that the scaffolding is covered in vines and weeds.
The worst part is that the apartment block is full of residents.

22/3/10

"Standing 100-foot high, the red brick water tower built in 1877 has become a symbol of Prenzlauer Berg. A water reservoir until 1952, the tower is now a six-story residential building with a day-care center located in the former pumping station"

19/3/10

I believe these pipes are for transporting rainbows and baby unicorns.

14/3/10

13/3/10

12/3/10

So, I have a new bike.
After a frightfully embarrassing incident outside the British Embassy where the brake cable of my old Simplex was dragged into my spokes, bending the fork, shredding the hub and forcing me to a halt in a blur of expletives.
I managed a 'controlled dismount' and thankfully my person was unharmed but the bike needed some serious repairs that would have totalled around 200 euros. It's still chained up somewhere on Wilhelmstrasse.
After a few days of searching, I managed to find a suitable replacement. It's a French road bike, a Motobecane.
Unfortunately there's been a bit of snow lately so I haven't had a chance to give it a good run, but I'm sure we'll become better acquainted over the Spring.

9/3/10

7/3/10

The locals say that the thaw is on it's way

6/3/10

In Germany when you rent a flat you often have to bring your own kitchen sink, oven and door knobs.


Most flea markets here have a pretty amazing selection of second hand door knobs (amongst other household necessities like silver diving suit helmets)

5/3/10

On a whim, Lex and I decided to see Still Flyin at the Magnet Club in Kreuzberg

I'm glad we did. Not only was it an awesome show, and our first live gig in Berlin, but The legendary Mark Monnone is now playing bass with the band.

3/3/10

I am the proud owner of a new bike.
Bicycling in pancake-flat Berlin, with it's hundreds of kilometres of bike lanes is so easy. Actually, I encountered a slight hill going over a bridge today and was quite put out by it.
There's a real market for fixed gear and single speed bikes here, not just because they're trendy at the moment but the cruisy terrain means you don't need gears (I'm keeping an eye out for a lightweight single speed road bike for the summer) but it seems most Berliners prefer the old-style cruiser like this one, below. A true workhorse.
It's made by a Dutch bicycle company, Simplex. I just learnt from my father-in-law that Simplex, in a very Dutch tradition, used to also manufacture chocolate vending machines.

1/3/10

This is a place called 'Mini Bar' on Graefstrasse, Kreuzberg. It holds a maximum of about 7 people.
8 if you include the bartender.

28/2/10

Some graffiti I noticed in a doorway while strolling through Berlin's Freidrichshain neighbourhood. It urges locals to: 'Laugh at Tourists. Cheers'.

I should be offended but it's quite a sharply executed illustration. Charming, even.

27/2/10

25/2/10

First day in Berlin.

The one thing that surprised me about this city was the openness. Despite being home to 3.5 million people it seems as though there is so much space here.

Wide Boulevards, plenty of accommodation, empty trains and empty streets.

I guess it will fill up during Summer but for now, it's blissfully quiet.