Wow. I've been here for nearly two weeks and I still only think its been a week.
A lot of fun things have happened, and it still feels like it was only yesterday that I was sat on coach in a sleep deprived haze wondering and thinking on what It will be like when I get here.
Guess it still feels kind of hazy, I'm still thinking of it as a holiday at the moment, I think it will start to sink when I start my internship tomorrow, Im hoping then the routine will remind me that I live here and I'll stop forgetting that there is no return ticket, not that I want a return ticked of course!!
Have made some good friends, Have been hanging out with them quite a lot most days since I last wrote. On Wednesday I went to an expat boat party where I met some really nice people, it was good fun and would quite like to go back this wednesday, only I'll have work so I wont stay out as late, although the two people I met there and am still in touch with are medical interns here, and they stayed there with me until quite late. I think they're the only night owl med students I've ever met, strange. Twas cool tho and they're both very nice people, think we're having dinner here tomorrow night. Hmm What to cook.... Anyway.
The weekend was very interesting, Got the most drunk I've been since I came here on Friday, had a great night, was supposed to meet the med students but they were moving house so they got delayed, instead Kyle, Liz, Maisie, Sabina, Martina, and I went to a party in alexander plattz, the party was run by a very odd girl, who told us after getting everyones attentions by tapping a wine glass, that the balcony was no longer to be smoked on for the sake of the ferrets that also lived at the party, strangeness indeed!!!!! We soon left the party deciding more fun could be had in one of the many cool bars in Berlin, we went to Luzia which is a very cool bar to meet the med students. Only we got slightly delayed, you see there were five of us in this small lift, and we decided to test the weight limit by jumping up and down to see what happened, well... We ended up stuck in there for the next hour and half, which turned out be to good fun. I'd recommend that others do the same thing, only you should take a few precautions which we all did.
1) get the lift doors open and carve things into the wall
2) Be sure to be well equipped with cigarettes.
3) Be sure to be well equipped with at least 3 bottles of wine (3 bottles did well for us I think).
4) Utilize the wonders of modern technology, take picures, make videos and play music.
5) When music gets boring, make your own, we did!
6) Pretend to be claustraphobic.
7) Work out between you in a Civilised manner who should be eaten first.
8) Oh and of course call for help, before it comes to that.
We eventually got rescued by the fire brigade who weren't very happy to be helping 5 drunken people out of a lift at 3am in the morning. Luckily we had fellow companions waiting at the bottom of the lift for us, I'm not sure they found it as much as we did though :) I dont think any of them have ever walked into a lift sober, and come back out drunk!! Good times, I'd do the same thing again.
We eventually got to luzia, a cool bar which has a section with a ladder which you climb up and can get into a living room with 3 chairs a table, and a bed, only it was busy!! (The room i mean I dont know about the bed).
It eventually reached closing so we went and got some food, and then proceeded to wonder about Berlin to find something to do, being quite drunk we failed so we bought some beers and came back to mine, liz and kyle ended crashing here in the living room.
Saturday was a write off. A hangover of epic proportions was felt. Still worth it though! Went for a few a drinks on Saturday with liz and kyle, and got a fairly early one by Berlin standards. 3am.
Sunday we went for brunch, and i got charged 5EUR for an orange juice!!!!! ARGH!!!! nm!! we then went to a park and built an awesome snowman, well it was me and kyle mainly, liz just fetched some twigs for the arms, Tut. We spent some time laughing at a guy/girl by themselves who was strolling up and down a path repeatedly doing the same dance move every step, HEHE twas so funny, also we saw a camel and a lama! No jokes, Berlin has everything!!
Liz left and me and kyle went to a friends place of his, a texan married couple who are very cool they gave us green tea, awesome vegetable soup, good conversation, and good times. Kyle and I then met Christina and Tomas, and had sushi and drinks. Kyle crashed here again and we watched a strange film, today I helped kyle move his stuff and then he helped me register myself, no 100EUR :( I'm not a student damn it!!! Then I came back, and a friend of the guy who lives came here to collect the post, he was only supposed to stay here for ten minutes, only he was pretty cool and me and jose ended up chatting with him for a few hours!
And so tomorrow here I start work, this is my last day of being unemployed, last day of no responsiblity, It went quite quick, wish it could last but duty calls.
Anyways duty calls. Gotta go to do what needs to be done, I'm sure I'll mention it at some point. Was funny on weds finding the place, i got confused getting there as one of the lines is undergoing construction work so finding it was an experience itself, the university building i work at is on one the main prostituion roads here (its legal here, seems wrong to me) anyways not really knowing that fact. i was very confused, and then scared by these women who kept pestering me, I called my manager to say I was extremely lost and being harrassed by prostitutes and need rescuing, he promptly came and found me and we had a good chat and a good laugh, I met the team and got on well with them. I'm looking forward to starting tomorrow.
Anyways life here is interesting, more things seem to happen. Tis much goodness.
Monday, 18 January 2010
Saturday, 9 January 2010
Another Day in Berlin
Things are picking up.
I have a German number, a German bank account, I'll be registered soon, and I start work on the 18th.
Things have been tough and I have been feeling quite lonely until today. Have sorted some things out in the old head department, and have taken steps to establish myself, with lots of help from Josie, all I need to do now is register myself, thats not such a problem though as the state of Berlin gives every newbie 100EUR for doing so, not bad. Birmingham is shit! but a small part of a pile of shit! 100EUR is proof of this. Once I'm registered I'll be a fully fledged independent Berliner.
I'm still loving the apartment, Had some people round today, and we sat drinking wine, talking, and eating pretzels whilst listening to Billie Holliday, I WISH this apartment was mine!!!!
Chilled with Josie earlier today, watched Sita Sings the Blues, WATCH IT! Awesomeness! Then me an jose played guitar and learnt some duet tings which was good fun.
Some of Josie's friends friend came round (as mentioned earlier) who were off out tonight, an American Girl called Liz and a English friend of hers called Maisie. Josie went home and we were planning on going to a bar but Liz got wind of a party that was going in a place I've forgotten the name of (It still surprises how the street names aren't in English here)so we went to that.
The party turned out to be pretty cool, the apartment was really cool, It was full of lots of expats like myself, many of them American, It felt like a good subtle introduction to my first ever Berlin party. Spoke to some really nice people, had some good conversations, and had fun.
Managed to fulfill todays good deed by a helping a stranded taxi driver push his car out of the snow on the way back.
Am home now, chilling listening to music feeling far better about everything.
Am off for breakfast tomorrow with liz, josie and some other people, then I think were off to the German flee market which should be funs.
Its cool being in a new place, can't help but feel quite child like in terms of my curiosity and enthusiasm for the place. YAY.
I have a German number, a German bank account, I'll be registered soon, and I start work on the 18th.
Things have been tough and I have been feeling quite lonely until today. Have sorted some things out in the old head department, and have taken steps to establish myself, with lots of help from Josie, all I need to do now is register myself, thats not such a problem though as the state of Berlin gives every newbie 100EUR for doing so, not bad. Birmingham is shit! but a small part of a pile of shit! 100EUR is proof of this. Once I'm registered I'll be a fully fledged independent Berliner.
I'm still loving the apartment, Had some people round today, and we sat drinking wine, talking, and eating pretzels whilst listening to Billie Holliday, I WISH this apartment was mine!!!!
Chilled with Josie earlier today, watched Sita Sings the Blues, WATCH IT! Awesomeness! Then me an jose played guitar and learnt some duet tings which was good fun.
Some of Josie's friends friend came round (as mentioned earlier) who were off out tonight, an American Girl called Liz and a English friend of hers called Maisie. Josie went home and we were planning on going to a bar but Liz got wind of a party that was going in a place I've forgotten the name of (It still surprises how the street names aren't in English here)so we went to that.
The party turned out to be pretty cool, the apartment was really cool, It was full of lots of expats like myself, many of them American, It felt like a good subtle introduction to my first ever Berlin party. Spoke to some really nice people, had some good conversations, and had fun.
Managed to fulfill todays good deed by a helping a stranded taxi driver push his car out of the snow on the way back.
Am home now, chilling listening to music feeling far better about everything.
Am off for breakfast tomorrow with liz, josie and some other people, then I think were off to the German flee market which should be funs.
Its cool being in a new place, can't help but feel quite child like in terms of my curiosity and enthusiasm for the place. YAY.
Friday, 8 January 2010
Day 3
So here I am. My 3rd day in Berlin and probably the best yet, I'm remembering what is to be me again by forming my own wisdoms again regardless of external perceptions.
I broke up with my girlfriend, but this experience isn't about her it's about me.
First two days were the toughest, I was sleep deprived after 25 hours on a coach, with a lack of friends and familiarity, I was unhappy and had a lot to take in.
Yesterday was better to start with but then it got tougher.
I feel a lot more at home in the flat today, it belongs to a guy called Dominik, a freelance journalist with lots of cool things, including an awesome sound system complete with a great collection of classical musical. The flat is beautiful, The living room is a long wooden floored atmospherically lit room, its very easy on the eye and soothing to relax in with a glass of wine as I am now. A definite creative hub for me.
Today I visited Oranienburger Tor near AlexanderPlatz (The place with the huge phallic soviet radio tower which is now a TV tower I believe) to visit Josie on her lunch break from work. Afterwards I went for a wander and saw some awesome artwork which actually had an effect on me, odd as before today I've never really got much from artwork, the start of a new passion perhaps?
I then went to to a quiet bar just round the corner from where I live, and sat drinking a beer, smoking and reading Sophies World, occasionally looking up to to watch as darkness fell setting itself on the glowing snowy Berlin trees as winterly dressed people passed by braving cold in directions I can only wonder about.
The pace of life seems so much more relaxed here. Birmingham is shit! Despite what the opposing website about it tries to say.
I'm off out tonight, will hopefully make some friends but if not I know there'll be other opportunities. I'm feeling better about this whole move today, Hopefully tomorrow will be better again. I think there's a lot here for me.
Over and Out.
I broke up with my girlfriend, but this experience isn't about her it's about me.
First two days were the toughest, I was sleep deprived after 25 hours on a coach, with a lack of friends and familiarity, I was unhappy and had a lot to take in.
Yesterday was better to start with but then it got tougher.
I feel a lot more at home in the flat today, it belongs to a guy called Dominik, a freelance journalist with lots of cool things, including an awesome sound system complete with a great collection of classical musical. The flat is beautiful, The living room is a long wooden floored atmospherically lit room, its very easy on the eye and soothing to relax in with a glass of wine as I am now. A definite creative hub for me.
Today I visited Oranienburger Tor near AlexanderPlatz (The place with the huge phallic soviet radio tower which is now a TV tower I believe) to visit Josie on her lunch break from work. Afterwards I went for a wander and saw some awesome artwork which actually had an effect on me, odd as before today I've never really got much from artwork, the start of a new passion perhaps?
I then went to to a quiet bar just round the corner from where I live, and sat drinking a beer, smoking and reading Sophies World, occasionally looking up to to watch as darkness fell setting itself on the glowing snowy Berlin trees as winterly dressed people passed by braving cold in directions I can only wonder about.
The pace of life seems so much more relaxed here. Birmingham is shit! Despite what the opposing website about it tries to say.
I'm off out tonight, will hopefully make some friends but if not I know there'll be other opportunities. I'm feeling better about this whole move today, Hopefully tomorrow will be better again. I think there's a lot here for me.
Over and Out.
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