Carmen ballet (Hamburg)

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I went to see the Ballet Teatro Espanol's flamenco production of Carmen playing at the Hamburgische Staatsoper. I expected to enjoy a Spanish take on the famous opera with whims of castanets and passionate boot stomps interspersed throughout singing. Well. There was no singing and no shortage of stomping (and clapping and angry whooping) to punctuate the non-existent singing. Flamenco, flamenco, flamenco...and only two minutes of castanets in the first act.

What transpired on stage in the second half of the show I do not know. I left at Intermission. Maybe if I'd stuffed aspirin tablets in my jacket pocket instead of crunchy almonds to snack on I might have had the nerves to stand the rest of that bull fighting bangy yelping cacophony. I didn't so I didn't.

The dancers were superb. I, however, did not anticipate nor desire to see a non-stop stomping production. They stomped my ass right out of there.

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Just a little bit of history repeating (Berlin)

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PAT GRAHAM, AP SPORTS WRITER: The families of Jesse Owens and Luz Long took in the long jump final Saturday at the world championships from the box where Adolf Hitler once sat for the 1936 Olympics.

It was inside the Olympic Stadium, with Hitler looking on, that Long, the German long jump great, famously befriended Owens. (continued)

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The infamous Reeperbahn sucks (Hamburg)

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Hamburg's Reeperbahn Avenue was probably the shit back when polyester and 8-tracks ruled but now it's just shit. As far as its red light district intrigue goes it is still the locale for smut and sleazy thrills but I wouldn't unzip my fly in that district to take a piss let alone penetrate anyone. Holy snikes!

At night it is tacky, crowded and loud. From every building protrudes cheesy neon signs bright and big. In the day time the Reeperbahn is plain tacky and, worse, ugly because there isn't night to cover it. The "sexy girls" posters are all faded and resplendent with hair dos from the '80s. So un-sexy. My hunch is the girls are desperate Eastern Europeans or other waifs ensnared by the Russian mafia. And they either look old or under fed. I couldn't possibly contribute to white slavery.

I wouldn't unzip my fly in that district to take a piss

One bar absolutely refused me entry due to the color of my skin. The supposedly private party was open to everyone else in our group which included two Bavarian girls, two white southern males from Atlanta, two Englishmen and an English girl. We were all offended and went to the claustrophobic 99cent Bar instead, where all shots cost just ninety-nine cents; and I played Sinatra's Something Stupid on the jukebox. But, of course, as every non-black person and homosexual informs me, racism no longer exists.

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Meininger City Hotel (Hamburg)

One of the coolest hostels you can stay in is Meininger Hostel. As one fellow traveller put it, they don't know whether they want to be a hotel or a hostel...and that sums it up nicely.

Meininger Hostel is a chain of upscale lodgings for budget travellers be they modern backpackers---who, let's face it, expect more for their money in regards to comfort and modernity than hippies of yesteryear---or young tourists on holiday. Note: during my stay there were also several guests who were either "family," "group," or just plain older so it is not all about students in between school terms.

During my visit to Hamburg I stayed the entire time (about a week) at the Meininger. I was a walk-in and was able to secure a bed. As I re-booked or extended my stay every morning, for the first four nights I must have stayed in about three different dorm rooms on three different floors (it has six floors)! I couldn't really count it as a nuisance since I was just glad to have a place to sleep but, aside from that, the hostel/hotel was great. The place is within walking distance and easy to reach from the Altona subway station (S1); when all else fails just look for the red M.

The youthful German staff are fluent in English (and other languages) and quite professional and polite. They really aim to make you feel welcomed. This is probably due to the "hotel" mentality. Everyone with whom I spoke marveled at the (affordable)chicness of the hostel. We were all impressed and pleased. I paid between 15-19 euros for each night's stay.

FREE Internet is more appealing than shilling out money on a perfect stranger who probably won't hit the sack with you

The hostel provides FREE wireless but you have to pay otherwise; there is FREE luggage storage and use of the kitchen. A buffet breakfast can be had for four euros and use of the laundry is about 5 euros. There is a swank bar and two commons areas in the lobby but I did not notice much socializing between guests. For one, the drink prices are rather high considering you can walk around the corner and buy your coffee or alcohol for a third of the price; and two, most guys were busy surfing online. Sorry girls but FREE Internet is more appealing than shilling out money on a perfect stranger who probably won't hit the sack with you.

I loved the rooms. Each---each---room has its own separate toilet and shower and television. Every bed is equipped with a reading light and linen and, get this, because the bunk beds have wooden frames they don't squeak. A tall locker corresponds with each bed and, like the door, is activated by the electronic key (so one needn't worry about a padlock).
One morning I spotted a bed bug approaching my backpack and killed it with a vengeance! The cleaning staff of the establishment are on the ball so the bed bug had, doubtlessly, hitched a ride from a fellow traveller. I've had no signs of the monsters since so am grateful I killed the bloodsucker before it had a chance to strike and reproduce.

The youthful German staff are fluent in English and quite polite. They really aim to make you feel welcomed

Although I spent most of my time in Germany in Berlin I didn't learn about Meininger Hostels until I went to Hamburg. Turns out Berlin has three of its own! Although they are slightly more pricey than some independent hostels it is only sligtly and, yes, a guest gets his money's worth. Look for the red.

Meininger City Hotel Hamburg
Goethealle 11
Hamburg (Altona) 22765
website

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Cool day in Hamburg

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And now the weather is back to it's typical Germanic character: gray overcast, cool, and a steady threat of becoming more inclimate. Yesterday was about the hottest day all around. I was in Hannover in the morning, returned to Hamburg in the early evening, and, according to an email from Berlin, the temperature was the same: HOT.

Just now I glanced at the television and caught a bit of the athletic games going on in Berlin: Gray skies and mist there just like here. Funny how the weather is the same all over.

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Hot day in Hamburg

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It was finally a hot, hot day in Germany. Sweated from just standing. A summer day like I'm used to! And all it took was the near arrival of September.

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Berolina Backpacker (Berlin)

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Since I spent most of my time in the former East Berlin where my friend stays I made a point of booking a hostel in the former West Berlin. Charlottenberg, to be precise.

The Berolina Backpacker is a very nice hostel. Not shabby at all. Located within walking distance of two main metro stops (U7's Wilmersdorfer Strasse and S-Bahn's Charlottenburg) the hostel is a hassle-free reach for backpackers. The building and rooms are very clean and presentable, and the staff are patient and speak English. It's clear work goes into maintaining a tourist-friendly establishment for Westerners and that's a good thing.

Unlike some motherfuckers this hostel does not hike rates on the weekend

Typical of most old school architecture, high ceilings and large rooms dominate the character of the building. Dorm rooms range from three to five beds! with only a euro or two separating the cost difference. I stayed two nights in a 5-bed dorm for 13.50 euros/night. They maintain standard seasonal rates (March-November and November-March). Unlike some motherfuckers this hostel does not hike rates on the weekend. My room was clean, spacious, and ready for sleeping...and a good thing, that, as I was tired for a nap. Each bed has a night table with electric lamp (and multi-language Bible) and a standing locker.

In the neighborhood are a few table dance clubs. Hello!

The hostel does have FREE computer access but only one computer---and half of the computer is behind a glass partition...but it has fast connection. Laptop owners have it better: FREE wi-fi downstairs and even in some rooms depending on reception. Although not much, a fee was attached to every other service besides luggage storage like use of the kitchen which was a tad off-putting but, like I said, the charge wasn't ridiculous so maybe you won't mind it.

In the neighborhood are several nice dining restaurants, a modern mall, Woolworth---the store is still extremely popular outside of America---and a few table dance clubs. Hello! It's not the most sociable hostel but I slept well at the Berolina Backpacker and found the service wonderful.


Berolina Backpacker
Stugggarter Platz 17
Charlottenburg, Berlin
10627
+49 (0)30.3270.9072
facsimile: +49 (0)30.3270.9073
info@berolinabackpacker.de
website

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Pfefferbett Hostel (Berlin)

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After some weeks of staying at a friend's place I went back to hostels. The first one I stayed in was Pfefferbett Hostel. Being in the same neighborhood (Prenzlauer Berg) it was nearby and I wouldn't have to carry my bags a great distance. Aside from needing to travel lighter I was glad the hostel had some vacancies.

Pfefferbett Hostel is centrally located and easy to reach...sort of. Directly across the street from the Senefelderplatz metro station (blue line U2)---which is just two stops from famous Alexanderplatz---the hostel is nonetheless situated in the far back of a terrace space up a small flight of stone stair. There is a sign out front but it is a small poster. The hostel would do better to plant a big ass red arrow--or its cute bear in a beer barrel logo---out front on Schonhauser Allee directing backpackers up the stair.

all aspects of the hostel were pleasant, clean, professional, comfortable

Inside, though, is all modernity. Hostel living has come a loooong way and Pfefferbett Hostel is one of the many testaments to it. Brightly lighted with chic, trendy furniture, coffee bar, and hip music playing, the lobby is truly welcoming. Staff speak English (as well as other tongues) and wear uniform T-shirts.I found them all to be professional and cheerful; the Spaniard was a bit too cheerful (psst, take it down just a teeny notch). This atmosphere engendered socializing. Beers and drinks were priced okay so guests were happy to stick around and socialize in the hostel. There is also a back patio with trees and flowers as well as an outside front space under awning. For recreation, guests have the choice of playing pool, ping-pong, and I believe board games could be borrowed.

The rooms are niiiiiice. High ceilings all around and uber comfy mattresses and covers. Hadn't slept on clouds like that since my stay at Auberge L'Apero. Constructed with wooden frames none of the bunk beds---six---in my mixed dorm room squeaked. Each has its own reading light and tiny shelf to hold things like a watch, bottle of water, ear plugs, etc. Dorm beds rented at 20 euros. Motion sensors turn on the hallway lights and there is plenty of hot water!

I enjoyed staying here because all aspects of the hostel were pleasant, clean, professional, comfortable, and affordable. FREE computer access and FREE wi-fi can't ever be beat. There are three public terminals and all were in fast, working order.



Pfefferbett Hostel
Christinen Strasse 18-19 (inside the courtyard on Schonhauser Allee 176, shown above)
Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin
10119
+49 (0)30.9393.5858
website

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The Kennedys (Berlin)

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Touring The Kennedy Museum, officially called simply The Kennedys, was a refreshing and inspiring venture. Berlin has so much to offer to every recreational taste---gritty art and music; classical art and opera; "green spaces" and parks; saunas, gymnasiums, bars, shopping and loads of museums and other historical sites---that a tourist might decide against bothering with something as un-cosmopolitan or un-German as a museum dedicated to an American president. WRONG.

"Ich bin ein Berliner"

That declared sentiment resonated and remains memorable because it was a pledge to freedom and democracy for all over the world; not just America with its hamburgers, Mickey Mouse, front yards; not just to prosperous Western world; but also to East Germans repressed by concrete division. President Kennedy's brief visit to Berlin became more than a blimp on a world leader's travel itinerary.

And the museum is more than a nice stop. Maybe because the items on display are NOT so old as what one encounters in traditional city museums they feel more personable. Behind glass cases are President Kennedy's dress shirt, Hermes briefcase, memos (handwritten and typed), as well as personal effects of other relatives including Eunice Kennedy Shriver, brothers, Robert and Edward, and Jackie O. There are so many enlarged photographs and the entire layout feels bright, minimal, streamlined. Even the bathrooms are subtly marked and "hidden" behind wall paneling. A bookstore with a colorful catalog adorns the vestibule.

Currently, the museum has devoted a small space highlighting---celebrating---President Obama's comparative meteoric rise and grasp of the world's imagination. Some of the photographs even show the two men in similar poses.

All my life, people have told me that my father changed their lives, that they got involved in public service or politics because he asked them to. And the generation he inspired has passed that spirit on to its children. I meet young people who were born long after John F. Kennedy was president, yet who ask me how to live out his ideals. Sometimes it takes a while to recognize that someone has a special ability to get us to believe in ourselves, to tie that belief to our highest ideals and imagine that together we can do great things. In those rare moments, when such a person comes along, we need to put aside our plans and reach for what we know is possible. We have that kind of opportunity with Senator Obama.... I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans.

Caroline Kennedy (Jan 2008)

Admission: 7 euros (student rate 3.50)
museum website

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Calling the green fairy

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An absinthe bar? Oh my! As a fan of drinking and Vincent Van Gogh I had to try this U.S. prohibited drink. I went to the Absinthe Bar in Prenzlauer Berg yesterday evening. It was still early---8:30pm--and very uncrowded. The bartenders, surprisingly male, spoke English. I was tired and ready to return to the hostel when I finally found the bar but, hey, when in Berlin.... The drink was presented to me like so: a glass of green liquid (absinthe) on a saucer with stirring spoon, one sugar cube, and a box of wooden matches, and a shot of water on the side (for mixing with later). I clumsily mimicked the German-language picture gram and arrived at the finished product. The taste still struck me as Jagermiester-esque, which is to say, Yuk!---next time I'll request three or four sugar cubes---and think licorice in liquid form tastes like shit but I finished it after three sips and took my leave. Can't say that I was visited by any green fairy but I was smiling a lot more than before...so I guess the stuff is potent. If I start painting flowers are presenting whores with body parts, then we'll know something is up.

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I like strawberry beer (berlin)

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I'm not a big beer drinker. Don't care much for the stuff. One of the things I absolutely like about Berlin is Porter's strawberry (and cherry) flavored beers. You may think these are foo-foo concoctions for women drinkers but you're wrong. Porter's Edebeer (strawberry) and Kirsch (cherry) are not at all malt liquor beverages; they are actual beers infused with fruits in the brewing process...and quite popular among male beer drinkers. I prefer the edebeer beer slightly more than the kirsch one; unfortunately, more stores carry the kirsch flavor...so I have to remember my "spots."


More of a whiskey and cocktail drinker, myself; but, hey, when the Sun is hot---and, at long last, it is summer weather in town---and the thirst strong, there's so little like a democratic yield to cheap beer to satisfy that lip-smacking satisfaction. Porter's cost 1.20 euros. In fact, I've gotten into the habit of packing an empty beer bottle (glass deposit of .08cents) to exchange for a chilled filled one. Hello!

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