Cold weather makes for good pictures

I feel a bit awkward about this picture. It was really a "turn and shoot," with my pocket cam. I cropped it and leveled it. But I like it, a lot. After a lot of long, grey cold days, crisp air makes everything look good. As does enjoying it with a girlfriend who is tugging your arm to move on because, "It's cold!" 

The snowy expanse to the left is where the Palast der Republik, a key cultural and political center for the east, before reunification, once stood. It was an ugly, iconic, monolithic building that they began demolishing when I first arrived. Because it was filled with toxic materials (asbestos, etc.), they had to dismantle it piece by piece. The final elements were only recently removed, making this picture more meaningful, as this view hasn't existed for years. (The Palast was built on the site of the king's castle, a facsimile of which will now be built on the empty site.) More, and more accurate, info here: Palast der Republik

Quick Observation

In the US, they sell Christmas cards that say Merry Christmas in many languages. Adds a cosmopolitan flair.

Yesterday I got an email card from a friend here. She wrote, "BUON NATALE, FROHE WEIHNACHTEN, JOYEUX NOEL, MERRY CHRISTMAS."

What makes it meaningful, to me, is that she wasn't showing off. She is Italian, lives in Germany, works in an English-speaking office, and converses with her husband primarily in French.

As Eddie Izzard says, "I think if we can make it work in Europe, it's almost a blueprint for the future of the world. If we can get all these countries, with all their languages, coming together to work in some shape or form, then the whole world can work. And if we can't get it working in Europe, the world has got no chance. Those are the stakes."

My friend is certainly trying her best!

Hey, we beat North Korea, at least!

WorldPublicOpinion.org

"The average percentage saying that the US is having a positive influence has increased from 31 per cent a year ago to 35 per cent today while the view that it is having a negative influence has declined from 52 per cent to 47 per cent."

So....now slightly less than half the world thinks we are a negative influence. You take what you can get and call it progress, I suppose.

There's some great info on this site. Well worth spending some time poking around. Warning, though: If you're American, and have any self-awareness (or sense of shame) whatsoever, you will find it depressing. Hopefully not surprising, but definitely depressing.

My German compatriots, however, can celebrate (gut gemacht!), and I can take some solace in their ability to rebuild an international reputation that was, by most counts, pretty crappy not all that long ago.

Let it snow!

I don't have pictures yet, but it's snowing!

I used to make fun of my east coast friends for saying that you need to have seasons, but after a gorgeous autumn, and now walking out and finding the street truly covered in snow (not Boston style, but still a good half-inch dusting), I am starting to agree.

And since my snow tires are still in my friend's basement, 20 miles away, I guess I won't be driving for awhile. German law says that if you have an accident without appropriate tires, you're automatically at fault. (Which makes sense.) Last year it barely snowed at all, though, so I didn't feel pressed to change them this year. My bad.

And Nicole is going to be mad that I didn't cover the BBQ in time.

But nevertheless, I can't ignore the child-like glee of, "It's snowing!" Maybe it's because I spent my first 18 years in a place where it decidedly does not snow, or maybe it's because snow covers up a lot of ugliness, and, in this case, comes just at the right time to make the leafless trees look pretty again.

Whatever the reason, Berlin looks pretty tonight. Now just give me a month to get tired of slipping on the sidewalk.

August Catch Up

Two big events in August that I drafted a post for, but never posted, due to challenges getting the pictures aligned. As you can see, I've now just given up. Apologies!

Nicole knows a wonderful family, whose son, Ralf, is an accomplished musician and singer. As a result, I got to go to the "Night of 1000 Voices", a choral festival held in one of my favorite squares in Berlin, the Gendarmenmarkt. Berlin doesn't actually have very many "squares", in the traditional European sense (due, in part, to how the city was planned and, in part, the war). This is one of the gems. It was a wonderful show, in a beautiful setting, and I thank Ralf, his family, and Nicole, for the opportunity.

Ralf then outdid himself by inviting me to a Hertha BSC football game. Football being soccer, and Hertha BSC being Berlin's beloved team. They play at the Olympic Stadium, and it was my first time seeing them, and my first time seeing the stadium in person. We capped that off with a wonderful dinner at a great Italian restaurant.

Both events were monumentally great (although Hertha tied 1-1).

Thanks to everyone for continuing my cultural education, even if I do look like a fool with a long football scarf around my neck.

Go Pato, Go Pato

Most people know I'm a strongly committed atheist. But when I see something like this, I have to share it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7VII-u7hqY&feature=related

For context, Pato is a huge reggae star, and has been around forever. I was a fan in the 80's if that helps provide perspective, and have seen him live twice.

The joy he shows here transcends the debate, and is just plain fun. And let's face it...that's worth a lot these days.

Spain

I spent the last 10 days in Spain with my mom. My legs hurt. She may be a bit older than me, but boy can she walk. We did Barcelona, one of my favorite cities, Bilboa -- for the Guggenheim -- and San Sebastian, an incredibly charming beach town with a reputation for tapas that is well deserved, especially if you're armed with recommendations from a local. Overall, I believe the count was 9 out of the 10 must sees in every spot covered, with fun, random adventure thrown in for good measure. A wonderful trip.

Pics are here: http://travel.webshots.com/album/567243150EkZUCN

Silliness

I actually didn't mean for this blog to get so political. But even 3000 miles away, I can't seem to avoid the silliness. Part of me feels completely vindicated...I have said all along that McCain does weird things just at the right time. This one is weirder than I could have predicted. But dragging a pregnant 17 year old girl into it. Not cricket. There's a reason I don't watch soap operas, and this is it. Have some respect for personal lives, people, or did we lose that with the Patriot Act?

Biden his time

I saw Biden speak after his 1988 presidential run and remember being impressed by his intelligence and sense of humor. Pleased to see him back on the ticket.

I found this video, from his short-lived run this time around, which encapsulates both qualities quite nicely:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XberX_t-WvI

Follow-up

I got a real kick out of this Obama quote, cited in a recent New Yorker article:

Marty Nesbitt remembers Obama’s utter calm the day he gave his celebrated speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, in Boston, which made him an international celebrity and a potential 2008 Presidential candidate. “We were walking down the street late in the afternoon,” Nesbitt told me. “And this crowd was building behind us, like it was Tiger Woods at the Masters.”
“Barack, man, you’re like a rock star,” Nesbitt said.
“Yeah, if you think it’s bad today, wait until tomorrow,” Obama replied.
“What do you mean?”
“My speech,” Obama said, “is pretty good.” ♦

Talk about confidence. I don't actually have much to say about the speech itself, but what a great quote.

If there's anyone reading this who still hasn't seen the "pretty good" speech, it's here.