Back in Vancouver...

I'm sitting here at the table listening to the Slits second album "Return of the Giant Slits" on the turntable while Saoirse does her homework and Veda puts Anders down for the night. We've been back for two weeks now and it has been a whirlwind of illness, rehearsals, shows and Christmas decorating. Usually we have a floor to ceiling kind of tree but we're a little more cramped then previous years so we've opted for a three foot tree that resides on the turntable shelf next to the stockings.

Our last month in Berlin was wrought with frenzy, emotion and Mr. Minsch but we also made two trips out of town for Veda Hille shows. The first was München where we stayed at the Bayerischer Hof, quite a fancy pants hotel where the late Michael Jackson stayed when he hit the town (as was evidenced by the memorial in front of the hotel entrance). I was weirdly uncomfortable as the staff were always trying to carry your belongings for you and we had to walk to the pool in our robes as they had no change rooms. After his initial trepidation Anders loved splashing about in the pool and there was a spectacular view of the downtown core with the midday sun washed across the rooftops. As there was no second bedroom Anders slept in the enclosed front entrance but since he was teething and getting up so often I ended up sleeping on the floor beside his crib with my hand through the bars to soothe him back to sleep.

So, high points, pool, amazing dinner and breakfast (although, at the restaurant during dinner Anders had such a large poo in his diaper that it leaked through his clothes and on to my arm without me realizing it. Then I walked through the super fancy hotel lobby, almost made it into the elevator alone but at the last second a well dressed businessman stepped in and was visibly uncomfortable with the smell), low points, poor show for Ved, bad sleep for me, no free internet and two hundred euro opera tickets (we didn't bite). The other show was in Bremen which deserved full marks all around. We had a short but lovely time with Veda's friends Petra and Volker when we first arrived, after which we found some new kreisel to swell the ranks. Back at the hotel Anders and I wrestled on the bed and chased each other around the room and had so much fun. This time he slept in a crib in the spacious bathroom and we managed a much better sleep, Veda had a great show and came back to the hotel super happy, there was free internet so I skyped with Saoirse and then ended up watching an episode of Criss Angel Mind Freak dubbed in german featuring our friend Bro Gilbert who was working on the show. That was unexpected and cool, so basically it was a win win win trip for us.

Our final days in Berlin were spent trying to spend as much time with our new friends and not think about coming back to Vancouver. I was whinging about it so frequently that Veda was annoyed and made me stop, though it turns out it was in order for her to have a chance to whinge about it. It's all about balance I suppose.

Oh, oh oh! I almost forgot that Veda had a really great show at Lagari in Neukölln, performing a run through of some of the songs and dialogue from Leaky Heaven Circus' upcoming production of Peter Panties, written by Niall McNeill and Marcus Youssef. Our good friends Manfred and Amanda sat for us so I could have a night out and see the show. The crowd was really into it (both the Veda set and the Peter Panties numbers) and the cast of Josepha, Reimar and Tim really brought the noise. Did I already say it was excellent? Our neighbours Josh and Rona came as well and it really felt like home. Afterwards I stayed and drank shots of korn with everyone until I checked in with the sitters and found out that Anders was up and Pigi was helping out. I quickly cycled home and put him to bed. What a good night.

During this time we also had friends from Canada come to Berlin as well, Ida Nilsen and her partner Jay came and played some shows, and John K. Samson as well. I was mostly home with Anders but Veda had some good times with these folks. I did get out to see Ida's show at Studio Upstream in Weissensee (located in the northeast of Berlin and a bit of a hike from Kreuzberg) I managed to get drunk and stay out until four in the morning. I cycled there but Willem and his girlfriend Nic wouldn't let me cycle home on the little shopper and gave me a ride. Nic's friend Anna said it was too dangerous to go so far on such a bicycle. Basically laughing at my ride...whatever...

Speaking of the little shopper, it is now in the capable hands of the great Manfred Naescher. I wanted to bring it home but it just didn't make sense for Vancouver. It only has one gear, which is fine for Berlin but wouldn't be great for the hills here. I sure miss it though...

We did manage to finally make it out of the house briefly with Daniel, Pigi and Zoi. We all went out to the Gendarme Markt but it was cold and rainy and really crowded so we didn't stay long. Even with successful kreisel purchasing it was hard to enjoy the market. It's too bad there never seemed to be a convenient time to get out of the house together in all the time we were there. I miss them although by the end I think perhaps we were becoming a bit of a burden and they needed the space back. I could be wrong, I hope so.

Since being back in Vancouver I've been trying to pinpoint what makes Berlin such a great city in my mind and I think I've got it. Cities are an organic entity, growing, changing. I feel like Berlin is a city that gives to its people while expecting little. Through its plentiful and varied events, art galleries, parks and playgrounds and interesting markets and shops it feels bustling (in a good way). It also feels full of hope for the future and jumps in with both feet forward, at least that is how it seems to me, with its history I suppose it can't help but surge towards the future full force. I won't go on an anti-Vancouver rant but I will say that it is a conservative city that doesn't seem to try very hard to give to its people, but expects so much. Having a great location is not enough, and with all the arts funding being cut provincially and federally it seems like giving to the people is not going to happen anytime soon. In the end I guess I'm embarrassed to be a Vancouverite right now so our homecoming feels cold, if it weren't for our friends and family there wouldn't be much reason to come home. Hopefully that will change. The End.