Hung in the City

Project: Bike

2009-08-13T22:00:00.000-07:00

I went over to the Bicycle Kitchen* on Melrose and Heliotrope and pulled this little number out of the pile of velo-carcasses and parts.

It needs some attention and love** but I am very excited for my Huffy 3 Sea Trails bike. In their computer system, they have it as a brown bike but Liz pronounced it to be burnt sienna which I much prefer...

Unlike my current ride - a sexy road bike that is nice because it is without adornment, I'm looking forward to having the kickstand and getting a basket. This will be ideal for tooling around the neighborhood

*Bike Collective in LA staffed fully by volunteers. Unlike a regular repair shop, you pay for parts and get help from the capable and nice staff in fixing it yourself. Then you leave a suggested $7/hr donation to support the space (or whatever you can afford). You can also buy a project bike for a price (mine was $50 - sliding scale) and then avail yourself of the staff and parts to build it up. Learning by doing --

**along with front and back wheels, front and back brakes, pedals, seat, etc...

Mouse Ears

2009-08-06T19:49:00.000-07:00

Dear Mom-

Remember how in our backyard in Brooklyn, this plant would grow in the cracks? I remember them spreading out from the crevice and fanning itself along the pavement. I never saw them in a real market, certainly not in the Waldbaums down the street from our house and not even in the Chinese markets. You called them 'mouse ears' because the leaves faintly resembled them. And you would harvest them, blanch them and dress them with soy sauce, sesame oil, maybe some garlic.

We've since sold that house and it wasn't till years later in the Park Slope Farmers Market that I encountered them again. I was surprised too cause the prices they were charging were unbelievable. The young freshfaced organic farmer told me its name too - Purslane. Good for you too.

Well today coming home from the library, I stopped by my local Armenian vegetable/fruit store in East Hollywood and saw them sitting near the cash register. No name, no price. So I asked the older gentleman and he said two bunches for one dollar.

"How do you prepare it?"

He replied with a smile - in a salad -- with tomatoes, fresh lemon, some salt, olive oil, maybe onion.

So I did just that -- and it was delicious.

But you see, I really have you to thank. You nourished me with really good food all my life. You sent me off to school with a thermos of hot soup for lunch or a bento box with leftovers, strips of red bell pepper for snacking and would pack these amazing picnics for our occasional road trips.

It is because of you that I naturally gravitate towards fresh ingredients, home cooking and vibrant flavors.

Thank you for that gift.

And of course --- happy happy birthday!

Always,
Your loving daughter

Velo-themed Saturday

2009-08-02T10:49:00.000-07:00

Sunny day in the Valley -- headed out to the Encino Velodrome to check out what Thomas called "the local track heroes"

Then on the way home, we saw this ragtag group of people -- a guy on a gigantic tall bike flanked by friends making his way slowly and surely down Santa Monica Blvd.

We watched with trepidation wondering how he was going to manage it if he ever had to stop. Perhaps the troupe of friends would be there to hold the bike. Lamp post maybe?

That is one seriously long chain.

Sun and Shade on Broadway

2009-06-29T22:26:00.000-07:00

On my way to meet friends for breakfast at the classic Clifton's Cafeteria in downtown Los Angeles. Steam tables, kitschy interior, waterfall and great pancakes.

The Los Angeles Theater at 615 S. Broadway built in 1931. Its grand French Baroque style stands out in a district with many now shuttered motion picture palaces.

Chicago - late spring

2009-05-25T23:33:00.000-07:00

Lake Michigan from the Hancock Building - I was captured by the blue green watery-ness that extended outward towards the horizon.

I love when cities see fit to invest in great public art. I was only in Chicago for a few days but I managed to visit Millenium Park three times...

The slowly mutating earnest face which eventually puckers and spits water out of the lips..

Another familiar site is the Cloud Gate by Anish Kapoor aka the Silver Bean.

Corncobs as Chicagoans like to refer to Marina City by Bertrand Goldberg. I was walking along Wacker Drive when it appeared like a vision of the future created in the 60s (which it is).

I chuckled at the butts of cars protruding from the parking structure on the bottom levels.

So worth the entrance fee to see the city from the top of the Hancock Building.

860-880 Lake Shore Drive by Mies van der Rohe -- tiny in comparison to the skyscrapers of today's Chicago.

Contextualism appeared in much of the architecture

During the architecture boat tour, the guide explained that the railroad sold the air rights to building developers who created structures that hovered just above the train tracks. Another classic example of this building practice would be the Metlife building over Grand Central Terminal in NYC.

Sears Tower -- still the tallest skyscraper in the U.S. We learned that an insurance broker will be leasing much of the building and in exchange the official name will be changed. So weird.

I also checked out the Cecil Balmond of ARUP (artist/engineer extraordinaire) exhibit called "Solid Void" at the Graham Foundation. Was pleased to have run into an old acquaintance who now heads the foundation... right time right place. The excellently curated exhibit has been so well received that they have extended its run to June 20, 2009.

Lower left corner shows one of his famous collaborations with Toyo Ito - the Serpentine Summer Pavillon in 2002.

In the lower right - another one of his famous collaborations for the CCTV building in Beijing.

It seems fitting that mirrored surfaces followed me from Millenium Park to his installation on the second floor...

Urban and Rural Trails

2009-04-20T23:51:00.000-07:00

Not in LA anymore---

Headed northward to the Central Valley to a picturesque little town called Springville. We stayed at the River Ridge Nature Preserve and enjoyed a few days of sun, biking, good food and nice company...

Went for a walk through the pastures beyond the ranch and admired the sweeping arc of the hawk in the sky.

Joined the boys for some bike riding -- marveling at having made it up the hill!

Then zipped down to the city of Exeter - surrounded by orange groves with a quaint town center.

How the menu of American classics have expanded..

Couldn't resist a little mirrored photography at the local tanning salon.

We returned back to LA after 2 nights in the Central Valley -- and resumed some urban hiking and biking.

Was stopped in my tracks by this gorgeous explosion of pink from the cherry blossom trees on Serrano Street near Griffith Park.

Made my way along a little green shaded path just off of Fern Dell Drive.

Then up to the heights to Griffith Park Observatory

-- here a view towards downtown LA.

These reminded me of the 'painted ladies' row houses in San Francisco.

Lightly situated on the ridge...

On the way home -- witness the roots asserting their steady persistent gain on the concrete sidewalk -

Beijing in late winter

2009-03-04T20:21:00.001-08:00

I had the fortune to spend a few days taking in the sprawling city (population over 17 million!)- with no chance of comprehending its scale I chose instead to dip into little pockets of everyday life. For instance, the mobile cart that fixes bicycles which I passed on the way to the Metro.

Strolling through Zhongshan Park next to the Forbidden City where the water in the lake is frozen over. A friend shared with me that when the water in the park near her home froze over, people (old and young) took to the ice in all forms of lashed together skis-chair combinations...

My attention was drawn to a clearing with a small pavillon around which people were milling about.

As I neared, I heard people talking to others about friends/family (?) and referring to sheets of paper upon which people were described. I later learned that its a form of collecting for needy causes. One older man had several of these sheets laminated and laid out on the ground. Unclear whether he gets a cut.

Using a suggestion from a friend, I checked out Cafe Zarah at 42 Gulou Dongdajie in the Dongcheng District. German-owned and expat occupied, it served a lovely lime tea. I sat there watching the busy flow of pedestrians and cars outside and was tickled to hear nearly all the non-Chinese foreigners speaking Chinese with the staff. Many Chinese aren't even phased any more with foreigners speaking their language. They've had even come to expect it - a Russian friend who doesn't speak the language was on the receiving end of many a failed Chinese conversation. Poor Yuriy!

Took a walk in the valley of skyscrapers that is the Chaoyang District. Its probably hard to make out but the tiny beige building lurking in the shadows had the word (e-Tower) written on it!

Here is the CCTV tower next to the burnt shell of its partnering hotel. All around is red metal scaffolding.

Of course no trip is complete without a visit to the Forbidden City - the palace compound of the Ming and Qing dynasties (late 14th century-early 20th century). Breathtaking in size and scale.

I was only able to explore probably 1/3 of the grounds in the few hours I spent there. It looks empty in the pictures but these belie the massive number of tourists that were taking in the sights and photographing like mad.

This young woman also attracted some attention from photographers and tourists alike. I never found out who she was.

And in perhaps what might be typical Beijing Hutong (network of alleys and lanes that connected old style courtyard housing) directions -- I was instructed by a friend to look for the small alleyway between the bar and a tea shop, then continue past the public toilets and snake my way till I reached her door.

Her home has a small courtyard with one side being the bedroom area and the other side the living room and second floor study. Nestled between the Drum and Bell Towers, just off of the famous major north south axis (along which historically significant buildings are found - the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, even some of the Olympic Stadiums) - her home amidst other unrenovated homes in the hutong is a little oasis of breathing space. Particularly the stunning view from her roof terrace.

Her neighbors include an elderly gentleman who built a temporary structure on the second floor to house his pigeons. He dotes upon them several times a day and while I was there, I even witnessed a little pigeon flying. A practice that recalls to me the pigeon flyers on rooftops in Brooklyn and northern Manhattan.

One of my favorite places that I visited was Tiantan or the Temple of Heaven. Although it is a historically significant site (used as a site of worship for good harvests), it is also a very heavily trafficed park.

On the morning I spent there trotting around, there were loads of people engaging in all forms of kinds of activity (badminton, group dancing, hacky sack, walking forward, walking backward, singing, doing calligraphy with water, etc).

Every precious green space or lake that I visited had robust seniors earnestly moving about. It was endearing to watch and made me think about the culture of physical activity and communion that is so necessary as people age. Of course I realize I only observed those who are still fit and active - it was nevertheless a salient moment.

Another fun area to explore is 798 Dashanzi Artist District. Built on the site of a former military factory, it was used by artists for their workspaces. Its design was formulated in East Germany and has a curved then dropping line in the ceiling. It has since become a popular tourist destination with many bars and cafes also cropping up amongst the galleries.

Also made a point to visit the Beijing National Stadium aka the Birds Nest, which some locals have also dubbed 'Scrambled Eggs with Tomato' (because the colors resemble the classic Chinese dish).

The National Aquatics Center whose bubbles press against the surface.

Some other design features include the entrance to the Metro Stop which has traditional and non-traditional forms that line the pathway. Here the escalator is tucked away...

A contribution from a designer friend/professor who distilled the form of someone in the flying crane position for inspiration for the street lamps. He sought a simple and discreet design so as not to conflict with the grander shapes of the stadiums. [As a cost-cutting measure, only every other lamp is lit]

And last but not least - although I enjoyed the hospitality and good food to be found in Beijing including Peking Duck, lots of 'bings' (fried bread with herbs and filling), yogurt with azuki beans (THE accessory in the hands of all visiting the popular Nanluoguxiang hutong shopping area).... my favorite meal was shared with a dear Chinese friend who took me to her favorite 'hotpot' spot near her home.

We ordered the half neutral flavor and the spicy Sichuan style hotpot with various goodies like duck intestine (more delicious than I had thought), greens and veg of many ilk, thinly sliced beef and two types of noodles (sweet potato wide noodles and a special made-to-order flour noodle - see video). Another special feature was the 'dry spices' that is in the small white bowl that contained sesame seeds, healthy doses of chili flakes, cilantro, scallion, peanuts and other stuff I couldn't make out. One takes a ladleful of the neutral soup and mixes it up into a paste and we used it as a dipping sauce. Amazing.

I captured the making of - where the young man energetically and rapidly twisted and spun his arms to pull out the noodles - but sideways. So turn your head and click play if you're interested. She doesn't order these noodles that often cause she feels bad for the exertions that they have to go through...

The messy delicious aftermath.

Kreuzberg Döner Tip

2008-12-04T21:03:00.000-08:00

Tekbir Döner
Skalitzer Straße 23

Don't let its modest exterior fool you -- its one of the best in Kreuzberg. The steady flow of customers, the savory smells that waft down the block are guarantees of warm sizzling lamb and great service.

[clearly outdated photos - as the short sleeves and outside dining indicate warmer temperatures]

Catwalk - Weimar

2008-11-20T07:15:00.000-08:00

In November, I was fortunate to spend 1.5 days with a friend in Weimar. I was going to do an official city tour on the second day, so when I arrived, she took me to other interesting spots off the tourist track. Of course it is the illustrious home of Goethe and Schiller but it bears the markings from the Nazi era and the DDR time - and of course the changes since the reunification. It makes it a small but fascinating city.

Who wouldn't be interested in looking like they belong on this catwalk?

At the Bauhaus University

An older gentleman has a store on the ground floor where you can rent household items for 5 euros for as long as you want -- vacuum cleaner, table and chairs, shelves, etc. He rescues these old items and restores them to use. Love it.

A gallery that focuses on preserving slides. On can make an appointment to look at the slides or bring slides in to be added to the archive.

A beautiful ruin. I saw several abandoned homes sagging under disrepair amidst functioning homes.

ACC Gallery where the walls are moved and rebuilt for every new installation. A friend attends weekly talks here in one of the rooms and its always a bit of a puzzle how to find your way to it. With each new installation, the size of the room and the path to it changes!

On old factory grounds one finds a movie theater, old storage tower and this funny tram.

Clearly some hippies had their way with the tram..

And underneath a busy overpass...

Oh happy day!

2008-11-06T03:57:00.000-08:00

And where was I??

We split our time between the raucous and lively bar atmosphere of White Trash Fast Food. Its a restaurant/bar/club in Prenzlauer Berg that prides itself on having a menu with 'an attitude'. You know - where the burgers are 'served with a side of whoopass' kind of place... Amusing but noisy.

And the Babylon Mitte theatre with bedsheet of a projection screen outside for those who didn't get tickets (sales and communication were poorly organized). People outside were mostly friendly and excited. I guess you would need to be in order to hang outside a theatre at 4am watching election results.

I highly recommend staying up all night once in a while. Inky skies that were deep purple and blue -- police cars shooing the taxis clustered around the theatre -- the heady alcohol inales that Gluhwein early in the morning offers..

House of imagination

2008-10-08T14:21:00.000-07:00

Torstrasse 166
Haus der Vorstellung
www.torstrasse116.de

Sponsored by Hornbach, a building on Torstrasse has become its own attraction by inviting artists to create site-specific pieces. An eye-catching and funny piece from Chiharu Shiota.

I enjoyed this room with its poster of world maps and the opportunity for visitors to amend them with their own comments. Not sure exactly who the artist is but perhaps Christine Rebel

Harald Smyka - his concept used really simple materials -- overhead projectors from which he would ask visitors to be models for the work. Sketching lightly upside down with a marker, he would create a portrait. He would then put the completed ones up and one could see that he created these scenes in the apartment, putting figures next to each other, although they had not shared the space together at the same time.

Artist at work. Subject was taking her work very seriously and sitting very still.

Finished product

He's up next!

Signage and Facade, a brief walkthrough

2008-10-05T02:55:00.000-07:00

Taken from the top of Viktoria Park in Kreuzberg. I often wonder how the erecting of the TV Tower must have appeared from this outlook point.

Another project but from the mid-late 70's -- the Czech Republic's Embassy on Wilhelmstrasse. Just up the road from the launching point of the Die Welt balloon and just south of the British Embassy. Apparently the interior is of a similar style of the color spectrum of the times (red, orange... you get the picture).

Spotted on Hagelbergerstrasse

My favorite store window on Falkensteinstrasse. It makes me long to have a project involving wood shellac. Its never dusty. The paintbrushes are always pointing up jauntily. Bottles propped up. Everything placed just so.

Mies van der Rohe Haus [and the catch of the day]

2008-09-22T00:19:00.000-07:00

Lemke House
Hohenschönhausen, Berlin
www.miesvanderrohehaus.de

The house was designed for the Lemke Family by Mies van der Rohe. According to the sweet chap working there, the family lived there from the late 1930's till 1945, after which they were relocated by the Russians. This area later became the quarter for many Stasi prominents, including Erich Mielke (former Head) who lived next door.

Its a modest L-shaped house with a lovely rolling back lawn that affords access to the small Obersee. We took a short stroll around the pond and came across some older gentlemen fishing. One fellow showed us a picture of his latest catch (an eel) and as he flipped open his wallet, I glimpsed another matter of fact photo of an older woman standing in bra and panties! His other catch our friend joked...

It sits amongst a funny mixture of new and old 6-story apartment buildings, 1-family houses with yards, and a tower/church like structure at the corner. The house is open for visitors every day except Monday and the entry is free. Its worth the 25 minute tram ride from Alexanderplatz -- enough to feel really removed from the center of the city.

Yorckstraße Bridge

2008-09-17T02:58:00.000-07:00

Spotted on the border between Kreuzberg 61 and Schöneberg.

We don't just want a piece of the cake, we want the whole bakery

For those Berliners feeling the retreat of sunny days

2008-08-22T03:53:00.000-07:00

Rome
late July

A city with some interesting oppositions.

Witness Line A of the metro --

Line B...

Or windy streets that make you think you will get lost quickly- but in fact Rome is so chock full of sites and sounds and big monuments, that one can find the way back or happen upon another monument (Trevi fountain! The Colosseum! The Pantheon!)

And even the littered aftermath of the market at Campo dei Fiori

One side of the street -- groups of men sitting in the shade...

The other side, the extremely festooned Campidoglio

The quiet reverie and peace inspired by St Peters Cathedral in the early hours.

Here this ornate grating reveals its true purpose when prayers are in session below. As I walked by, I heard chanting and singing by a group of voices.

And later on in the afternoon, men holding fake purses in their arms, readying themselves to scatter when the police roll by.

Porchetta in fresh baked bread by day..

Or slow-baked eggplant and tomatoes topped with crispy breadcrumbs consumed on a farm just outside Rome..

Shifting to nighttime in the softly buzzing Trastavere..

And one of the hotspots to gather with friends and hang out at night -- the Old Bridge Gelato storefront across from the Vatican... taken several strokes past midnight.

Moving away from the touristy center -- time for a little fascist architecture. The EUR (Esposizione Universale di Roma) District was begun by Mussolini in 1939 and with the start of the war. Its expansive and unwieldy scale suddenly brought me back to an attempt to explore downtown Albuquerque in the middle of the blazing hot afternoon. Of course the monuments of EUR are a

After this blazing introduction -- a warm and lovely evening spent in the former ruins, now Teatro Marcello in the old Jewish ghetto.

A piano concert under the soft pink sunset.

To close - one of my favorite images. Something about the bumpy pyramidal surface, the wooden shutters, the sprayed E on the metal corrugated gate and perhaps the propped bicycle made me stop and take notice.

5 days in Ljubljana

2008-08-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

Along the canal near Trnovo and Karkova (just south of the city center).

For some, a romantic weekend might entail 5 days on a beach, discrete hotel staff leaving fresh towels and refreshing the bowl of fruit for you -- For us rather - we took a less conventional route but it was no less special.

Though if you should be seeking a romantic room in which to bed down for the night, then I wouldn't recommend the choice we made in Bed and Breakfast. It was clean definitely but located a little out of the city center and in a drab 6 story apartment building. We shared the accommodations with the older woman who runs the 'B n B' out of her 3 bedroom apartment. As an apartment rental it would have been fine, but she would drop in and out like a spider inspecting the web and staying the night, leave slightly weird notes addressed to her 'Ghost Guests' or 'Gespenster' and urge us to try her homemade cheese. She spoke with a fairly rapid pace punctuated at times with her throwing her head back and laughing at her own jokes. It was the mark of someone who speaks alot and fills the room with her voice without ever hearing or engaging in a two-way conversation. One photo that might give you a better impression of the immediate surroundings of where we were staying is the photo of where we parked our bikes at night.

But after retrieving the bicycles - we would head into the lovely city center. Classic shot of the famous triple bridge which earned its two pedestrian bridges care of Joze Plecnik. Why widen the bridge when you can build two extra arms?

Secessionist style architecture to be found everywhere -- here the now closed Centro Merkur.

Plecnik designed the long central market building that was one of our favorite destinations for an espresso (90cents) and a small inexpensive but drinkworthy glass of wine (also 90 cents!).

Here looking out from our cafe into the bustling market square.

We enjoyed the various seafood options that a country with a coastline on the Adriatic sea can boast.

Delicious grilled seafood with a squeeze of lemon and a slurry of butter, oil, garlic and parsley.

As well as the home-cooked goodness at Pri Skofu in the Karkova area (just south of the touristic city center).

Their lunch menu has three options all between 6-7.50 euros and includes a large bowl of soup (nettle, pumpkin or leek), radicchio salad, a substantial main course and a dessert (cake with raspberries and coconut or bananas and chocolate mousse). We each had wine and coffee with our leisurely lunch and it came to 20 euros including tip! We loved it so much we went their two days in a row.

The first time we had the rissotto with rice and buckwheat and vegetables and the pasta bolognese.

The second day it was a substantial order of beef with sweet cabbage and potatoes slightly mashed with browned onions. If I lived in LJ I would become a regular guest at the family owned restaurant.

We also sampled the Movia vineyard offerings in their small tasting bar next to the Town Hall.

A visit to Castle Ljubljana from which a sweeping view of the city can be attained.

The city registry is also located there so there were many boisterous weddings taking place when we went up that Saturday afternoon. And photo opps! What we thought was hysterical was the strident tone of the photographer ordering the groom to hold his hands just so, the bride to turn a certain angle and then kiss in order to capture the perfect moment of wedded bliss. Of course it leads to moments that this photo captures -- the hapless lighting assistant, the bride's strained upside down pose and the groom's exaggerated smile.

We countered this by visiting a friend who is involved with a squatting community called ROG in the former bicycle manufacturing factory by the same name. There we sat and drank Lasko beer from the can, talked politics and social movements, experienced a blackout cause the generator ran out of oil and then danced in a sweaty club in the other squatter turned legit community called Metelkova.

ROG by day - located in in a prime spot in the city center right along the river, its existence is under threat by the city government which wants to convert it into housing...

The Social Center from which projects for improving the rights of Bosnian construction workers (they live in tucked away dormitories with many to a room) and other organizing efforts take place.

On the walk to Metelkova - we noticed a public art graffiti theme being carried out over several blocks..

Metelkova by day -- they have a famous hostel Celica that was a former prison, a handful of bars, cafes and artists studios.

And a yurt - occupied by a Russian man who had embarked with our friend on a 3 month driving tour from Slovenia to Kyrgyzstan (our friend's home country) and back! In the only car that could make such a 20,000km drive - a Russian offroad vehicle, the Lada NIVA-- its advantages include 4 wheel drive and the ease of finding spare parts anywhere in that part of the world.

Other interesting sights..

Here for the blind - It not only makes noises to signal when to walk, it also indicates that there are two lanes of traffic heading one way, and one lane heading the other. We even saw more detailed signs where there are more lanes and even a traffic island being shown!

Near a school..

We stumbled on this during our last day on our way to the train station. This was in a small courtyard adjacent a church.

Then the 14 hour train ride back to Berlin via Munich through the stunning Alps.

Riverside

2008-07-27T16:02:00.001-07:00

Sometimes you have to follow a hunch...

A few enterprising young men had set up a makeshift bar just where Falkensteinstrasse meets the Spree River.

Hopping down we found ourselves having the most perfect look out onto the waterfront. For 1.50 euros you get a large Becks and if lucky a deck chair from which to enjoy the view.... The Oberbaumbrücke, the TV Tower in the distance, the slowly morphing colors of the Universal sign, the shimmering reflections on the water and the dim glow of stars overhead.

At one point the partygoers across the river set off these red lanterns floating into the warm night air. We watched them drift in the wind - taking them over our heads and heading southward. It was unexpected and magical - and one of the best nights of my summer so far.

Out East for a Weekend

2008-07-25T10:18:00.001-07:00

Birthday weekend!

Friday: We headed out to visit old friends in Torun and Warsaw last weekend. The weather was a bit spotty but we did manage to enjoy the particular nature of Polish outdoor seating.

Although these enclosures distance you from the setting -- when it started pouring rain, we were thankful to have our little perch to have our coffee without getting the least bit wet.

I admire the effort it must have taken to craft cushions to fit these otherwise ugly chairs...

I was craving a savory breakfast treat --

And I got it! Cabbage and mushrooms inside a nice bun.

Our friend told us that the Polish version of Foucault's Discipline and Punish has this prison in Torun's city center on it. The panopticon live - yikes!

Saturday: From Torun its 2.5 hour ride to Warsaw.

Our friends live near the pink layer cake on the map - otherwise known as the Palace of Culture and Science - a so called 'gift' from the Soviets as my friend remarked.

We arrived to enjoy a dinner of deep-fried pierogies - homemade and delicious!

Sunday: The next day we set out for a small city tour. We visited the Centre for Contemporary Art at the Ujazdowski Castle and then took a short yet careening tram ride to the old center of town (Stare Miasto). A pleasant day spent in the company of sweet friends.

Monday: We set out to visit Praga - the area across the Vistula that is transforming into a more gentrified area. We dodged the rain in a bar tended by a sweet young woman making homemade felt brooches. Joining us at the bar were a requisite older couple smoking intensely and a rather amorous Asian pair smooching in the corner.

Then back to the center of the city...

Walked an interesting stretch in the city center from the recommendation of "Poland in Your Pocket" guide -- Electoralna street which turns into Chlodna. Along the way - an old markethall. Our friend told us that the tram get flushed with older residents of the city gripping their bags and elbowing their way through the crowd.

Then over to a cafe which reminded me of how a certain aesthetic finds its way all over the place. Mismatched furniture. Slim young men manning the espresso machine. Electronic music. Earnest discussions over beer, coffee and cigarettes. Reminded me of a beloved cafe/record shop Halcyon in Carroll Gardens that we liked to visit before it closed down.

This was across the street from the cafe -- a concrete slab marking the wooden bridge connecting the 'smaller' Jewish ghetto to 'bigger' ghetto.

Last stop is a gallery/museum that had the plans and models for the new contemporary art museum to be built next to the Palace of Culture.

Then off to the stark and impressive Warsawa Centralna for the night train back to Berlin.

cinco de julio

2008-07-13T10:47:00.000-07:00

Feast of the Amerikas
July 5, 2008

We might all get our passports taken away -- but it might just be worth it! We celebrated the 4th of July on the 5th of July with representation from the US, Germany, Austria and China. With the help of an enterprising Mexican named Adan - we had fresh corn tortillas and a delicious array of spicy and flavorful sauces (chili/mango, salsa habanero, and something else that was something with chipotle). The picture does not do the sauce justice.

Here the trusty Adan with my friend -- we heralded his delivery with a quick warming of the tortilla and a taste test of the carnitas that the boys had been prepared. Adan declared he had never heard of an American in Berlin who had tried to make carnitas. He pronounced them good, though a little dry.. before he left he dispensed a little advice. Use some beef or pork broth during the second stage in the oven.

Adan has a website where you can contact him to make an order. He makes delicious corn tortillas (20/bag for 3 euros), the most wonderful sauces - and for an additional cost, he even delivers them! This is our second time ordering and we were not disappointed.

http://mexikatessen.spaces.live.com/

All in all, our buffet included a spicy corn and sweet red pepper salad, sauteed slivered red cabbage, rice, beans and salad. We even managed to have room for the chocolate chip cookies bought by other friends.

Bun cha bitte

2008-06-02T14:24:00.000-07:00

Dong Xuan Center
Herzbergstrasse & Industrie-Gebiet, Lichtenberg

Such fake flower abundance can be found in the unlikeliest of settings.. in an old industrial area in Lichtenberg. Since spending more time in the eastern districts of Berlin, I was fortunate to get a tip from a social worker in Hellersdorf about a Vietnamese marketplace where one can score an abundance of Asian goods.

Fake flowers aside, the halls themselves have stalls and spaces where one can buy cheap clothes and shoes, fruits (hello mangosteens!) and vegetables, as well as a number of restaurants. The clientele and shopkeepers are overwhelmingly Vietnamese with small number of other groups, such as South Asians manning a few clothing stalls and a few Europeans doing some bargain hunting.

But when I saw and smelled the smoke billowing from this outside grill -- I knew...

Bun cha -- one of my favorite warm weather foods. Not the best one I've had in my life but my craving was fully satisfied. I did appreciate the fact that the herb/salad plate included red leaf lettuce, cilantro, as well as the more elusive shiso leaf.

Of course no trip would be complete without buying some juice with some floating suspended bits in it!

What's not to love?

2008-05-29T15:31:00.000-07:00

Borough Market
London

The bread is first toasted, then comes some olive oil, then nestled in is the chorizo, rucola and roasted red pepper. Its worth the wait I promise.

This is a fairly dated entry so the art exhibitions have likely moved on... but I had such a lovely visit that it was fun just revisiting with the images.

I stayed with friends in Kentish Town -- a dear friend who I've known for ages who just added a PLUS ONE to his beautiful family.

This was snapped as we walked along the high street...

down towards Camden Market

where we shared a delicious flavorful vegetable curry.

But it wasn't all food and drink...

I saw this great exhibit about sleep at the Wellcome Collection. Part of their permanent collection (perhaps?) is this great video. The artist took 15 second videos of children (instructions were "express yourself in any way you like") and then returned ten years later to do the same. The young people were shown their childhood video and then asked to do another sitting.

I also saw the collection of medical devices and objects that were collected by the eccentric Sir Wellcome. *** (see footnote)

Stopped in at Haunch of Venison art gallery -- tucked away in a tiny street, conveniently called Haunch of Venison. A street that one can only find with the London A-Z firmly in hand.

Mother and child -- I can see the resemblance.

No visit is complete without a trip to the Tate Modern.

La Maison Tropicale! Displaced from its home... and sitting on the banks of the Thames outside the Tate Modern.

I was also fortunate in my timing to catch up with some other friends at the Architectural Association where there was an exhibit with student and alumni pieces.

Here's an entry from my good friends at f-u-r.de -- alluring no?

Some other fun stuff --

Before the AA, I visited Denmark Street with its multitude of guitar shops.

Then had a quick beer at a rockin little joint nearby...

Then spent a nice Sunday afternoon strolling along the Regent Canal before I flew back to Berlin.

*** My last visit to London was nearly 4 years ago when I visited the Sir John Soane Museum. Yet another dare I say 'mad hatter' (which I use with the greatest of respect) whose collection of objects reveals the fruits of a deeply probing imagination. Highly worth visiting.

Time for a little vista over Berlin

2008-05-29T14:45:00.000-07:00

Geodätenstand
Technical University Berlin

Spent yesterday evening watching a film about surveillance cameras in the city called "Every Step You Take" (2007).

It was organized by some nice folks at urbanophil.net and took place at this remarkable location at the TU-Berlin.

High above (by Berlin standards) -- and somewhat tricky to find - -

You can see from Tiergarten all the way to the TV Tower.

I guess its used as a classroom during regular hours - hence the tables and chairs. I like how this one guy took a small moment to recline before the space filled up.

Dancing in the streets of Kreuzberg

2008-05-10T08:01:00.000-07:00

But before I get to this fitting close to a sunny afternoon spent biking around Kreuzberg on the weekend of the Festival of Cultures and the Pfingsten holiday. A few pictures of the various entertainment on offer near Blucherplatz.

Kinderinsel

A really earnestly dark metal cover band in Görlitzer Park of 12 year old boys. Before he moved into the next song, he prefaced it by saying, "And now we going to do something a little more serious and heavy - a Slipknot song" And he proceeded to growl into the mic...

Skirted along the Landwehrcanal.

Then watched some bocce games underway - the Vietnamese-German guys were giving folks a run for their money!

And then on my way home - came around the other side of Görlitzer Park....

I heard them before I saw them. The explosive rhythms of salsa. And then just on the corner, a makeshift set of speakers and a group of people dancing and grooving in the late afternoon sun.

Amsterdam in 36 Hours

2008-05-02T04:42:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to visit this fair city to attend a conference that brought together sociology and geography students of both Humboldt University in Berlin and the University of Amsterdam.

Day One
I arrived on a balmy Sunday afternoon and after dropping off my bags - I wended my way through the canals to a table overlooking the Amstel at Cafe de Jaren - a classic Amsterdam cafe institution.

After a satisfying snack of slices of lox on brown bread - I embarked on a ferry ride out to visit NDSM - Werf. It is former abandoned docklands that lie northwest of the Central Train Station that have been in the process of redevelopment since 1999 by various groups including artists, architects and entrepreneurs. www.ndsm.nl

I suppose the development has been going on for a while, thus the arrival of MTV also demarcates yet another developmental trend. However much you might lament that, another friend smartly noted that the ferries now do travel more frequently between Central Station and NDSM.... opportunity leading to increased access.

The containers are being used as housing for students - as living quarters are rather scarce in Amsterdam. It looks really fun but I've heard it gets pretty stuffy in the summer - in spite of being right on the water.

Fortunately there are lots of nice places to hang out. Wandering around I found Cafe Noorderlicht.

Kunststad offers over 7000 sqm of space of containers and workshops stacked on top of each other.

Along with some nice amenities in the shared spaces - the interior streets and corridors within this large building.

Not really sure what this is all about - but I think it has something to do with electric cars?

Day Two
We were invited by the conference organizers to have dinner at Club 11 ( Oosterdokkade 3-5 ). Its located on the 11th floor of an old 60's style building that housed the offices of the Dutch Post.

Its famous for its panorama of Amsterdam. Here a view to the new-ish land called Java Islan developed for high density living and noted for its architecture.

The restaurant itself is not too shabby either.

Day Three
We also strayed out of the city center for a tour led by a female architect to Oosdorp - an area West of the city that is experiencing urban renewal.

As you can see, the destruction of old housing --

And literally across the street..

With a large non-native Dutch population and all the paranoia and unrest that that brings from the area's newcomers -- this somewhat failed effort of the city to draw people from the dense and difficult housing market in central Amsterdam to relocate to Oosdorp has led to some newer buildings being gated. Very strange.

My last evening was spent in the company of a friend who recently joined the faculty at the University of Amsterdam. Here perusing the delicious food options at the Indonesian takeaway spot across from his home.

I was in Amsterdam on March 29, the day before the elaborate and raucous celebrations accompanying the Queen's Birthday fest. A sea of orange clad party-goers filling the canals and streets. We opted for a quiet evening of tasty Indonesian food, chased by some red wine and Suze liquer on ice - though we flirted with the idea of going to the Drag Queen Olympics with such sports as 'racing 100 meters in stilettos' and 'distance throwing of handbags'. I learned that the winner of last year's 100 meter dash completed it in 12 seconds. When you think that the World Record is something like 9 seconds, that is quite a feat. I think he might have been a ringer though... Impressive showing nevertheless right?

Titus Matiyane Cities of the World

2008-04-23T05:33:00.000-07:00

AEDES
U-bahn: Savignyplatz

Titus Matiyane "Cities of the World"
Feb 2008-May 1, 2008

Beautiful and lovingly created maps of different cities of the world. The panels show a birds eye view that provide a visual commentary on the structure of cities all around the world. The artist generates these amazing maps with a nod towards an encyclopedia format - where interesting facts are also highlighted.

As of 2001
number of ambulances = 43
number of ambulance calls per annum = 45,254
number of fire engines = 48
number of fire calls per annum = 3005

Here's some more.

I love the use of glitter for the Shanghai skyline.

Some shaky video in case you're interested. It gives you a sense of how long and intricate these maps are.

You enter through the cafe next door where you can also get a glimpse of old architects deep in conversation and even older waiters who bring you your beverage of choice.