Coming out of the pandemic, my family limited our long-distance travel and started exploring places closer to home. These day trips from Berlin are some of my favorite places and we have re-visited often. But I am always looking for somewhere new. Enter the...
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Guide to Vienna
When I was last on the job hunt, I had two interesting opportunities. The jobs had some important differences, including different locations. One was in Cologne, the other in Vienna. This caught my attention as both options were remote so I could happily work from my...
The “New” City of Dresden
It feels like every year at about this time I hear rumbles of dissatisfaction with Berlin. Sometimes they are coming directly from me, but this year I've noticed more online posts than usual complaining about the rising costs of the city, the dismal winter weather,...
Life in Germany since the Invasion of Ukraine
I was in the throes of Covid when the invasion of Ukraine began. In my own personal pits of exhaustion and despair, I watched in disbelief as a war in Europe began. The first 48 hours we were glued to the news. I watched line after line of Russian military vehicle...
Der Handwerkerbaum – or how traditions travel
My first experience of May 1st (Erste Mai) celebrations was as a student in Berlin in 2002 drinking beer in a park Kreuzberg. I don’t much like beer - not then and not now - but that was what everyone else was drinking and it felt like the right thing to do. Along the...
7 books which will help you get to know Berlin
Alongside relishing delicious tapas, sunbathing, and swimming in the sea, I spent our two-week summer holiday in Andalusia last year reading “Tales of the Alhambra” by Washington Irving. Reading relevant books for the location is something I like to do - Henry James...
Berlin Tip: Grand Opening of the Pfefferberg Theater Berlin
When I first came to Berlin in 2002, Pfefferberg was just about the coolest place I'd ever been to. Sitting out under the stars in the Berlin summer, drinking a good German beer, and listening to live music was for me the absolute height of sophistication. On the way...
Don’t Mention the War. Read About It.
One facet of German culture that continues to impress me is how they have dealt with their WWII history. German authors have written extensively about it from the "inside" of German perspective, although I have yet to delve into their works. As an outsider, it is...
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