and so it begins

Ok, so a lot has happened since the last post! We had a really nice weekend-I don’t know if I mentioned it or not, but last Thursday was a public holiday in Germany, so it added up to about 4 days of vacay. The apartment was pretty full since Tommy and I were also staying here, but we had a good time and went out every night and spent the days being lazy and relaxing. Saturday we went out and sat by the river and listened to live music, and a friend of theirs came by with her friend from Quebec. It was kinda funny since Tommy insisted moments before they got there that I had to speak German the rest of the night…and then up walks the Quebecoise girl and she’s like, “Oh, I don’t speak German!” So Peter and I got to practice our French-I’m horrified how slow I’ve gotten, I kept trying to put in German words instead of French. Grr mélange des langues…

Sunday Tommy went back to his town (since he has a real job) and Peter and I hung out that afternoon and played guitar and sang and generally kicked it. That night we went to a Bier Garten (how German haha) along with Maria and I got a German pronunciation lesson (since apparently I can’t pronounce the ‘o’ or ‘ll’ sound properly, as evidenced by my incorrect pronunciation of “Toll!”) I actually learned a lot of German over the past 4 days, mostly since I’ve been hanging out with all Germans and asking them to translate a lot of stuff :) And they’ve been good about making me speak German with them as well as being incredibly patient with me being a total foreigner. It’s so crazy when you’re learning a language, it’s almost like being a little kid again. You don’t understand half of what everyone says, you’re pretty much lost when it comes to social interactions, and you’re always terrified when strangers talk to you. Fun city!

Monday was the first day of my internship (dun dun dunnnnn)! It went well though. I was supposed to be there at 9am, but no one was there, so I ended up waiting an hour and running into Matthias, the guy I share an office with. He’s like, “Oh, you’re the American! I recognize you from your picture!” (Since I had to attach a photo to my CV). Matthias is pretty nice, he’s in his 50s and speaks pretty good English, and he talks in this kind of serious way that always makes me think he’s worried about something (though that’s rarely the case). He introduced me to Verena, who’s my boss. She’s very stylish and kinda bourgeoise (she’s even got a ring), about the same age as Matthias, and very nice, though businesslike. Basically they work to promote the graduates of the university, especially contemporary artists. I helped to put together the materials for a Board Meeting-which included a lot of copy making and paper sorting. After work I met my landlady and got my keys and then went back to Peter's and made some dinner. Around that time a hellacious thunderstorm rolled on through...that sucked. I had planned on moving in that night but it was not happening. So, Peter and I stayed up and watched a terrrrrible American movie called "The Core" (dubbed in German) and then turned in for bed.

Tuesday was a bit different because I wasn't at the office at all. I met Matthias in Schöneweide and he showed me the studios and guest apartments the KHG keeps for its artists in residence and Fellows. It's a huge old building but the studio space is incredible. I met an American artist who was wrapping up his month long stay there, as well as a Bavarian artist who was living in the adjacent apartment. It's a pretty run of the mill studio apartment, except with a giant garage-like studio space attached by a side door. The studios are splattered with paint and art supplies, but it must be great to work in.

After some time there we met Verena in Mitte, where she gave me tickets to a premier of Based in Berlin, an art show that's going on right now. We got to go in before it opened (for free!) and peruse the show. The first venue was ok..there were a lot of examples of bad modern art, in my opinion, but the second location was much better. There are 5 total, but Matthias and I called it a day after the 2nd, after all we'd been running all over town all day so we were pretty tired. I went back to Peter's, packed my things, and thanked them for letting me crash. I'll miss being around them all the time! But now it was on to Charlottenburg and my new flat.

The flat is super cute, and I have a huge, light filled room with everything i could need. the apartment itself is beautiful and has so much charm and personality. i have to post pics soon! I share it with an Ecuadorian lady, her son, and a Swedish girl who's my age. It's a little unconventional, but it's very peaceful and nice and that's what I wanted. We share the kitchen, living room, and bathrooms, but otherwise I'm very much in my own space with my own privacy. It's great.

Today was back to work, and I spent a lot of time doing random things. I have my own computer so that's kinda cool. I basically do whatever they tell me haha. The best about today was that Melissa came to visit! She's studying in Italy this summer so she made a detour to Berlin :) One of the most awesome things about my room is that I have this pull out guest bed, so she's breaking it in for me. We met up after i got off work and had some wine and italian appetizers and then head into town to see the brandenburg gate, holocaust monument, and potsdamer platz. then we stopped for some amazing ice cream. that was maybe the best part ;) i had brownie caramel swirl and she had strawberry cheesecake. be still my heart!

Melissa's asleep now (jet lag's no fun) so I'll wrap this up and turn off the light so she can sleep uninterrupted. pictures coming soon, promise!