Until this week, I couldn’t have told you why November 9 is a kay date in German development. But it marks a turning point in German history not once, but twice. Kristallnacht, or Night of the Broken Glass, and the fall of the Berlin Wall, both monumental turning points in German history, happened not just…
Read MoreNovember 9, 2019, marks the 30-year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Thirty years since a wall divided the city; when the fall came, Berliners said this day was more important than “Christmas and New Year’s combined.” To mark the occasion, the Berliner MorgenPost put together a series of interactive sliders that spotlight places along the wall, comparing how they look now to how they looked then. Check them out here:
https://interaktiv.morgenpost.de/berliner-mauer-damals-heute/
When you think about German music, I bet a few different beats come to mind. The oom-pa-pa of the polka. The oons-oons-oons of Berlin techno. The heavy metal clashing of Rammstein, or a childlike, ethereal voice counting red balloons. What I bet you don’t hear is the melodic riffs of Caribbean dancehall music. And that’s…
Read More
It’s fall in Germany, and that means one thing: Oktoberfest. Despite having lived here for three years already, this year marked my first trip to Oktoberfest—the real one, anyway! In just one weekend, I learned a lot about the do’s, don’ts, and history of this storied festival. Here’s everything you’d want to know about Oktoberfest. …
Read More
Should you take photos at a concentration camp? People have a lot of opinions on whether you should document a visit to a concentration camp (and if so, how). For me, I came into the visit wanting to document and share the experience. The camps still exist to be seen and bear testimony to what…
Read More
It’s taken me a long time to write about how it felt to visit a concentration camp. For a long time, I didn’t know how to talk about them. And it is a hard thing to talk and write about (especially respectfully). But I think that’s the whole point. We shouldn’t only go places that…
Read More
For me, watching soccer in Germany is like making new friends. Whenever you’re trying to establish a friendship, there comes a point that requires you to show something real. Something deep. Whether that’s admitting an obsession with astrology or sharing a love of trashy sitcoms, it’s a make-or-break moment that will either settle you deep…
Read More
There are days when I wake up, and I am so damn grateful to have this expat life. Living abroad means days are full of surprises and new experiences, delicious foods and castles (yes castles!) just sitting there on the side of the road. But there are other days when nothing seems to go right,…
Read More
There are days when I wake up, and I am so damn grateful to have this expat life. Living abroad means days are full of surprises and new experiences, delicious foods and castles (yes castles!) just sitting there on the side of the road. But there are other days when nothing seems to go right,…
Read More
Everyone’s favorite stereotype about the Germans is how efficient they’re supposed to be. But if there’s one area of life that I’ve noticed Germany is happy to slow down and enjoy, it’s breakfast. The German Breakfast The most common German breakfast centers around brötchen, or “cute breads”. When I met Germans in the US, the first…
Read More
Up and Gone 