Moving, Part II Thursday, 29 January Getting settled continues to rule our lives. More workers, more deliveries. Among the latter, endlich, our hook-up box from Kabel Deutschland. The job's not quite done and they'll have to come back, but Saturday morning I was able to e-mail and google to
Moving Elsa and Someone Else, Alt-Treptow Wednesday, 21 January If you want to block out the horrors of the world, move into a Berlin apartment. Germany may be the strongest economy in Europe but it takes over a month to get the telephone, internet and television hooked up. Like getting a
Rooting for the Centre Wednesday, 14 January It's been a rough week for the world. In Paris, I sat in front of the television feeling as if I had received a physical blow to the head from a cold, metal object, causing a bruise. Le Monde headlined its Friday paper "Le
Endless Rhythm Wednesday, 7 January The week of New Year seemed a good time for some home-town tourism. Why not visit the recently re-opened Musée Picasso? As we arrived at the handsome hôtel particulier in the heart of the Marais, it became obvious why not: at the left side of the cobbled
Swaddled Thursday, 25 December Attempts in France (minus Alsace-Lorraine) at being gemütlich at Christmas time, such as Christmas markets, just seem fake. Decorations in Paris always nudge into the gaudy and/or the tacky. Along the boulevard St Germain, near our apartment, trees have been surrounded in lights to look like
One Lucky Dog photo by William Fleming Wednesday, 17 December Double birthdays: my sister Catharine (greetings across the blogosphere!) and Elsa. Obviously I know it's my sister's birthday but how do I know about Elsa, the abandoned dog? For those of you who don't know her rather
Tradition Tegeler See, St Nicholas Day Wednesday, 10 December Christmas is taken very seriously in Germany. It is approached, perhaps not suprisingly, in an orderly fashion. The last Monday in November (in Berlin at least), Weihnachtsmärkte open throughout the city. Come December, children receive their Advent calendars and begin cutting paper
Leaves, Memory,Leftovers. And Keeper's Nose Last Saturday in Prinzlauer Berg, I could not resist picking up this leaf, a flash of colour in an otherwise very dreary landscape. This past week, cold has decscended on Berlin. And with it, that unrivalled Berlin grey. There are no such trees in our corner of France (at least
Closer to Home Wednesday, 26 November Our current temporary lodgings in Kreuzberg, as I noted on 20th October, bear many similarities to our first temporary lodgings in Mitte. There’s the Denkmal, or historical monument status (here being a former hospital; there being a former Jewish seminary), the paucity of cupboard and closet
Elsa in Uferland Tuesday, 18 November There was some worry that after a stretch in France, Elsa would have to start all over again in Berlin. Wouldn't another temporary apartment that had no familiar smells provoke renewed angst? Wouldn't she say Oh,no! More bare wood floors and leather
25 years Monday, 10 November Most everyone my age, at least those living in Europe, remembers where they were. I was sitting at home on the rue Tournefort, two children upstairs asleep, husband away, watching the eight o'clock news. Like many others, I remained glued to the television late into
Up and Down Sunday, 9 November Saturday morning, one day on the wane Sebastian is worried that I might have to go into marketing rehab. This week I sent over 200 emails to friends and acquaintances, alerting them to publication of my book. By 6.00 each evening, I had a head like
Beautiful Weekend in Berlin Sunday, 2nd November Kreuzberg, Saturday morning The sun has been shining and if it weren't for the oblique angle of the light and the turning, falling leaves, one could think it spring. Both lovely and disturbing. But the real reason it's been a beautiful weekend in
Writing As one of my novels is about to appear on Amazon, Sebastian K., who's done basically everything, says people would like to know about my writing. So here's a quick history. In the beginning When I first began writing, I was frightened and perplexed. Frightened that
Back to Berlin Monday, 20 October We tried going via Frankfurt, instead of threading the needle between Cologne and Düsseldorf. It made no difference in time or on our nerves: driving the Autobahn is horrible, as noted in blog entry from 1st April. In this new, temporary place on the Grimmstrasse, there are
Posterity Friday, 17 October We drove out to Normandy today to look at some work we're having done and to pick up our German car for the drive tomorrow. Elsa left her mark.
Proof Saturday, 4 October Sebastian K., who has been helping me in the publishing process (or I have been helping him, might be a more accurate description of the pecking order), sent me the first test copy of Someone Else from Berlin, where he lives. It arrived yesterday and quelle émotion,
Looking for home, Berlin Monday, 29 September Back from a whirlwind week in Berlin, where we were looking for another temporary flat because the one we are buying is not (nowhere near) ready. Coming Home (http://www.coming-home.org/), which helps people like us looking for short-term rentals, proposed four or five places. It
La Rentrée, in Denial Thursday, 25 September After a slothful summer, the French wind back up, which in Paris at least translates into becoming very impatient and grumpy. The quintessential image for me of a Parisian during la rentrée is a tanned face in a small, sporty car (or these days, alas, just as
Elsa, a French dog in Berlin Elsa, chez elle Elsa is a French dog, une Parisienne, from the top of her soft, cocked ears to the tip of her feathery tail. Though of lowly origins, she carries her fine-boned frame regally, wears her extravagant golden coat with panache and gazes confidently at the world through Cleopatra
August Friday, 5th September Everyone who knows anything about France is aware that the country moves into low gear starting le 14 juillet (Bastille Day) and is in neutral by early August. Some might say this year the country never got moving again at the end of August but that is
Good works Tuesday, 1st July My daughter Georgina and son William have just left for Zimbabwe, where their father grew up. Since 2009, Georgina has been supporting the Emerald Hill Orphanage in Harare, via her NGO, ZOF. It aims to fund technical training for Zimbabwe orphans, so they will have a skill
Paris and beyond Saturday, 21 June End of the first day of summer, the summer solstice, here in Normandy. After much rain, this has been a picture perfect day. I skip many weeks because time has been moving faster than I can see. In Paris, there are so many friends to cram into
Home Wednesday, 14 May Worth getting up every morning at 6.30 and walking Elsa the dog via this... And this...