It's taken a little while to put it all together and I thought that a street post would be a solid kick off to the Berlin Journals, besides the taste I threw together last November. If you're going to Berlin, I'd suggest the former east side, it's relatively cheap, and not so prepackaged. Lot's of street vendors and open markets, fresh fruit & vegetable spots, and shwarma huts, and a healthy variety of small stores, thrift shops, and the like. Well, at least that's what it was around Leopoldplatz minus a general department store or two on the corner. Generally though, it was a good spot to set up camp for the two weeks we were there, it felt grounded and tangible, the people were nice to talk to and for the most part not dismissing, and the outdoor markets coupled with the shwarma spots combined to create an olfactory cornucopia not much unlike that experienced back home on St Lau or along St Caths at times. Hell, I was hanging out with random people, homeless war vet amputees and other vagrants on my first day in waiting for Meor to arrive from his connect in Paris. Good times slugging back some tall boy local pilsners trying to get my basic German correct so I could at least survive until I hooked up with homeboy. Suffice it to day I made it out alive my first day in, slightly tanked after slamming back a bunch of beer in the sun and causing shit that I didn't even understand with the gutter crowd. Good start.
Getting around is relatively easy and there is a lot of activity on the streets so this is really just a drop to what's out there. Maur Park is a pretty chill spot. We stopped to paint and chill at the semi legal wall during our first full day in. It's a long ass wall that sits atop a hill that overlooks the rest of the massive grounds the park covers bordering a soccer field. There's a market and a bar in it and at night folks come out to play music and drink. That night these three guys just set up a traveling band from out of a trailer they towed with their bikes, lights and all.
Stolen memories.
More to come soon. I got some fresh stuff from Montreal streets to post soon too including some shots from the mural fest happening on St Laurent in the plateau. Stay posted.
