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The Walker Evans Exhibition
Walker Evans: I think I was photographing against the style of the time, against salon photography, against beauty photography, against art photography. A photographer friend invited me to join her at the Walker Evans Exhibition in Berlin last week. I had never heard of him but apparently he is extremely famous. The website is confusing and I ended up going to the wrong place. When I finally got to the right place, the queue was enormous! Luckily, they were all waiting for the David Bowie Exhibition… Eeep! Right, so let me tell you all about it. Walker Evans (1903 – 1975) was one of the biggest photographers in the 20th…
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Friday Links
Clap your hands… With all the ice bucket challenges going on, here is an interesting article on charity giving. Great information explaining cakes in Germany. Some very true facts about the amazing things you learn from living in Japan. I was also horrified at Zara’s outfit.
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Sadako and her 1000 paper cranes
I want to fly away… Many of my Japanese friends and also foreign friends who have lived in Japan have never heard this story, so today I will share the story of Sadako. It’s not a happy story, but one that needs to be told. Yesterday I wrote about Hiroshima and the atomic bombing on August 6th 1945 at 08:15. I will always remember the date and time, because when I worked in the Town Hall in Japan, every year at that precise moment, the mayor would make an announcement and every single person would stand up from their desk. There would be a moment of silence and my colleagues then…
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Hiroshima
May it never happen again… As you all know, when we arrived in Japan, we jumped on the first train that came along towards Hiroshima, to eat Okonomiyaki. This is probably the most famous meal of the city, but Hiroshima became famous in the world for a very different reason. It was during the final stages of WWII that America dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. On August 6th 1945 at 08:15, an atomic bomb detonated in the air above Hiroshima and Japan was never the same again. Around one third of the population of the city (about 75,000 people) died and a similar number were injured. Japanese officials…
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Matcha Frappachino
You give me reason to live… There are so many wonderful things about Japan. Seriously, I could spend a whole lifetime telling you about them and I would still need more time. BUT this is my most favourite thing that money can buy in the land of the Rising Sun. Matcha Frappachino from Starbucks (plus a hot cinnamon roll). For those who have tried it, you are already converts. I know. There is nothing to dislike about this most miraculous of drinks. Some might think it’s a weird green iced tea with cream, but it is so so so SO much more. Green tea is already one of the most amazing…
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Making a Zipper Pouch
Zip it… As I said already, I have been on a crafting frenzy this week. I am constantly found sitting in front of the sewing machine, making little bits and bobs and dreaming of making a dress that fits me absolutely perfectly. I’m sure it’s do-ABEL, but I’m a very impatient person and I want things done fast, so I’m just hoping I have the patience to keep up this lovely new hobby I have found. I have randomly found myself surrounded by people who sew and are very good at it. However, all of these people told me that zippers are scary, difficult, should be approached with caution etc.…
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Getting my craft on
Wishing on a star… It’s been a crafty week indeed. My Japanese grandmother and her friend fixed the sewing machine – great news! I was trying to make a T-Shirt a few months back and every time I would sew a straight line after two or three centimetres, the thread would catch and break. We tried all kinds of techniques to sort it out but in the end I gave up very disappointed. Now the machine is in working order again, I have been going crazy! I shall show you a few of the lovely things I have made over the next few days, but for now I shall share the…
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Friday Links
Hear me roar… OMG SUSHI SOCKS!! Yup – I need to get my hands on these now! WOW! The face-kini is the new fashion accessory… don’t think it’s my kind of thing though… I love this hilarious blog about an American man in Germany – apparently he finally sat down to pee… Ten tips to see if you are turning German made me giggle! And that’s all for today! What have you been reading? 🙂
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Grandmother's Visit
Come one, come all… It’s been a busy few weeks, we went on another holiday to recover from Japan (hehe) and then my grandmother visited us with a friend for a week, so sorry for the lack of posts. Jason’s been getting very involved in his boardgames and I have been getting my craft on, as the grandmothers fixed my sewing machine, so now there is no stopping me. Photos will come soon. This is just a super short message to say hi to you all, we haven’t forgotten you and we shall be posting more regularly again! For now, here is something awesome you can do in Berlin that’s very…
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Friday Links
This post made me happy – living in Berlin is definitely absolutely amazing. But I do agree – there are no interesting jobs here and even though we have only been here a year, you can tell that Berlin is rapidly changing… Here are 5 things Germans do that are pretty annoying to the rest of the world (why why WHY do you wait at the lights when it is red and there is not a car in sight???). Possibly the coolest dragon festival in the world? It’s on until the 17th, so go and see it for yourself if you can! And it’s a bit grim for a Friday…