Tag: germany
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Hello Copenhagen
I was awoken this morning by a text message. The truth be told, I’d heard a few messages come in throughout the night, but since I’m on holiday, and since I’m in Berlin, I hadn’t bothered to look at them. They were, of course, a series of messages concerning the latest challenge (or non-challenge) to the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard.… Read the rest “Hello Copenhagen”
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Visiting Berlin
The first time I visited Berlin was in 1983. At that time, Berlin was a city divided into East & West by “Die Mauer” (“The Wall”). Sixteen years later (on my birthday), the Berlin Wall came down, and Germany was re-united. Several months after the wall was all but demolished, a group of artists came together to paint messages of peace and freedom on the wall, and to transform the concrete structure into an open air art gallery, The East Side Gallery.… Read the rest “Visiting Berlin”
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Double Happiness in Berlin
I was so incredibly excited when I woke up and looked out of the window this morning. The truth be told, I felt like a big kid. The reason? Snow. Real snow. Not just snow on the ground snow, like I experienced last week in Sweden. Not just a bit of a flurry here and there.… Read the rest “Double Happiness in Berlin”
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Back in Berlin
The last time I visited Berlin was in the summer of 2008. Before that, it was in 1983, as a pimply-faced teenager with a full head of hair. My, how things have changed. Back in 1983, I was studying German at HSC level. In 2008, despite the twenty-five year difference, I was amazed at how much of that HSC German came flooding back.… Read the rest “Back in Berlin”
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Berlin Wall Mark II
“I must take a photograph of the new Ultimo Wall”, I thought to myself as I left work this afternoon. There’s been such a transformation in what was previously a very ugly wall that I thought I should document what’s occurred because, frankly, no one else is going to bother.
But if you, like me, have a fairly regular routine to and from work every day, it’s the little things that sometime become big things in your life.… Read the rest “Berlin Wall Mark II”
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Berlin Wall Anniversary
It’s the twentieth anniversary today of the fall of the Berlin Wall. I doubt there’ll be television specials except perhaps on the ABC or SBS, but I note there is a Beck’s Beer advertising campaign appearing on bus shelters around Sydney.
1983 I’m not sure why, but I’ve always felt a bit of an affinity with Germany.… Read the rest “Berlin Wall Anniversary”
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Berlin Wall Flashback
Thanks to my schoolmate and friend, Louise, who sent me this photograph, here’s a brief flashback for you of a pimply-faced seventeen year old standing in front of something which no longer exists. And yes, I had hair!”
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Back in Berlin
Twenty five years ago, aged seventeen, I travelled to Germany (well, West Germany as it was then), with a group of school-mates and our teacher. I was in Year 12 and I’d been learning German for a number of years. Sometime a couple of years early, one of us had the idea of fund-raising for a trip to Germany, and so that’s just what we did.… Read the rest “Back in Berlin”
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Hello from Berlin
After an early evening nap, I headed back to the Amstel Tavern last night. The same barman from the other night was there again, and after chatting for a while I found out he was actually Scottish. You would never know from his accent he was from Aberdeen. I though he was Dutch who had learned English from American television.… Read the rest “Hello from Berlin”