Daily Archives: 24. März 2011

Invitation to Jazz

Don’t know how you are, but when it comes to going out, I cannot say no. I just cannot say no. They don’t call me Duracell for nothing!  And, as I’m new to Berlin, I love doing new things, discovering new places and attending all sort of events. But, what I love even more, is attending these events for free.

So, just in case you like tips, like I do, here comes one!

Imagine it’s Wednesday and you’re in the mood for some live jazz, a glass of cold beer or a hot cup of tea. Then you should just take your jacket and go to B-Flat, a small bar located in Mitte, on 13 Rosenthaler Strasse. It’s true, they have great jazz every weekday, but on Wednesdays you can enter free of charge!

Here, more or less famous performers come and improvise. Most of them know each other, just like in a family, but some play there for the first time, so the sound is always fresh and exciting. The saxophones, the cello, the piano, the flute and the drums create a perfect fusion and a perfect atmosphere.  It’s really fun! I’ve been there for the first time for a birthday party! It was crowded but, somehow, cozy. I remember one of the performers dedicated a song to our friend that was just turning 25.

Last night a 10 or 12 year old boy played the piano in a fantastic manner. Even the other performers from the stage, some of them about 60 years old, were amazed by the talent of the little boy. His parents, sitting at a corner  table, were overwhelmed with enthusiasm. You could read the pride in their eyes.

If you really want to enjoy the music, you should be there around 8.30pm. Starting 9pm you may not find a place to sit, because it’s getting really crowded. But even so, the music is great and the people very nice.

Details here: http://www.b-flat-berlin.de/




I was a grandmother

I was 72. My daughter was a man, a Polish engineer, and my husband was Tomoko, my Japanese colleague. She or he, don’t know how to put, was 76 too.

It was really fun to play that game yesterday in class. Because yesterday we were not just colleagues, but part of a very large family.

The mother (my daughter) had to decide where should the family spend the holiday. Of course, we were trying to make her decisions harder:  I (the grandmother) wanted to go to Japan to perfect my Japanese language skills, my husband (the grandfather) wanted to make a trip around the world. The three kids – Daniel, Alba and Cristina – dreamed of something different. Daniel wanted to visit Africa and have a bit of adventure, while the girls tried together to convince the mother to go to the Caribbean Islands. How could you resist to your 12 and 18 year old sweethearts? Meanwhile, the uncle hoped to visit Italy and   the unemployed father of the family – Alexandra – wanted to spend the holiday somewhere in Germany.

Indeed, mom was in a difficult situation, which made us all laugh a lot.  Eventually the grandparents (me and Tomoko), made a compromise – we’ll go in our worldwide trip on our own, but the trip will start in Japan. For the sake of perfecting my language, remember? We would also take the dog with us, the dog being our Ukrainian colleague. The boy will go to Africa by himself, the girls will go to the islands (the grandparents will support their holiday because they were cute) and mom, dad and the uncle will go to Italy and, maybe, find a job for the unemployed father in some Italian hotel.

And this is how, instead of a big happy family holiday, we’ve all split to different destinations and the father, in spite of the holiday mood, had to go to work. Haha, great choices mom!