For Anne

 

I needed solitude, to say good-bye to my very, very dear friend. 

She takes a huge part of our life with her. 

I thank her for all the time we spent together: from our very first day when we met as freshmen we shared our highly exciting time as students, supported us when love or life became difficult, shared in our joy that we got from our children and our careers. 

More than 55 years of shared thoughts, opinions and emotions. 

Travelling together a lot we enjoyed incredible adventures:

during our week as "Bed and Breakfast for Garden-Lovers", or another time listening to the sermon of the Bishop of St. Paul's Cathedral which he gave to us members of the E.F.Benson society, followed by a gorgeous dinner in the Guildhall (London). 

After she did her Ph.D with 67 years (!) I surprised her with a stay in the carriage house of "Downton Abbey". Another time we followed the footsteps of Lord Peter Wimsey and Inspector Morse in Oxford, another time we enjoyed the centenary of the Chelsea Flower Show, or were "Puttin' on the Ritz" - just to name a few. 

Energy, empathy, joie de vivre, and so much laughing: 

I thank you for all that, my dear friend, 

I miss you. 

Going to Vienna and Eating a Sacher-Torte (the original)

 

Mind, Dear You: I didn't write "for" eating a Sacher-Torte. 

As you might have noticed, sometimes I have to fight with English grammar and jesters as "for / of / and with" - but I hope that you didn't believe for a second that Yours Truly goes to Vienna with the single intent to eat an original Sacher-Torte - that would be "too much" of snobbishness. 

For a while I thought about publishing that photo at all - I sit so crumpled that I can hear my late blue-blooded grandmother hiss: "Posture, girl, posture!" (She was oh so right). My red-blooded granny (note the difference in loving feelings) only would say: "Enjoy!" 

Which I did. 

And next time I'll write about the intellectual pleasures of Vienna. (After having polished off the whipped cream...) 

  

Edvard Munch. Magic of the North (Zauber des Nordens) in the Berlinische Galerie.

 

Dear You, 

I promised to tell you about the Berlin exhibition Edvard Munch. And though I will travel to Wien on Tuesday, I sit here in the early morning in Bavaria, singing a duet with "The Frog King":"What you promised you have to deliver". 

The Berlinische Galerie writes: 

Edvard Munch (1863–1944) challenged his contemporaries with the radical modernity of his paintings, especially in Berlin, where the Norwegian Symbolist exerted a big influence around the turn of the century. The exhibition “Magic of the North” is a partnership with the MUNCH in Oslo. It tells the story of Edvard Munch and Berlin, illustrated by paintings, prints and photographs.

Among the 80 exhibits you will not find "The Scream" (sounds like cultural names-dropping when I mention that I saw it a few weeks ago in "Secessionen.Klimt, Stuck, Liebermann" at the Alte National Galerie in Berlin.   :-). 

I'll just give you a few headers of the exhibition: 

"Scandal. Berlin. City of Art. Exhilaration. Scream. Collapse. Psyche. The North. Life and Loves. Digs and Homes." 

And photos of a few paintings: 

 

(This one evokes some drawings of my beloved Tove Jansson)

So: if you are in Berlin - and promise (!) to be not too impatient 

I recommend to visit the exhibition - 

you have time till 22. January 2024 -

Berlin then will do anything to shovel a footpath free of snow  for you: 

PS: I add a few words of Florian Illies' review in DIE ZEIT: 

"painting of negative resonances, of intrusive force fields which can make people lapse into silence through loneliness,  fear and jealousy - or scream."   

Britta's Thrill of Speed

Dear You, 

On Saturday I "hopped" to Berlin by train. 

Because I can. 😄 

I am now owner of a BahnCard 100 - which I think is incredibly expensive, but that depends on how often you use it. 

For one year from now on I can take every train in Germany - ICE, IC, Regio - and every public transport - bus, tram, underground, ferry etc I want without - and as often as I want to (haha: I might even consider living in a train!)- from now on, after bleeding a very big sum (in my eyes) - "without paying" anything. 

Son convinced me: such a card gives me spontaneity and freedom.(Hopefully no nervous breakdown - no: I see it as a chance to travel before I am no longer able to). 

I used it first to visit the Oktoberfest in München: my train was too late when it arrived in Nuremberg - but "One man's meat is another man's poison" - this time I got the meat: an ICE train coming from Hamburg arrived 47 minutes too late - and I could just hop in and arrived in Munich at exactly the planned time. 

(Our once oh so proud icon of punctuality has become a ruined business - so very often late, so often chaotic - since it got admission to the stock exchange). 

Thus I now could go to Berlin - and stayed in my huge flat for only 3 days (hahaha: part of that Me-time is cleaning...) - well: arrival day = half a day, leaving day: half a day... 

Why not longer? 

Well, Son had on the Tag der Deutschen Einheit (Day of German Unity) a decadal birthday, and being invited of course I wanted to join. So I returned - and enjoyed a beautiful Birthday Party. (Brain still works: I recognised a man who asked: "Do you know who I am?" "Of course", I said, "you are Niklas." I have a very good memory for faces - last time I had met him was the day they got their A levels of their grammar school... "Well, I doubted because I have less hair these days" he muttered - yes, yes, maybe - but I don't suffer from less imagination :-) 

I am highly interested if I will use my card the way I want to. In Berlin I was very happy: I could visit the exhibition on Edvard Munch - and will tell you in the next post. 

Yours Truly

Britta

The Oktoberfest - die Wies'n - in Munich 2023

 

Dear You,  

can you imagine that Yours Truly was for the first time in her life (and she is no greenhorn anymore :-) on the Oktoberfest in Munich? 

I went in the early afternoon - many people already there, but not so many drunks. 

Beautiful traditional costumes - Dirndl for the women, Lederhosen for the men (and Wow, they show off) - and of course floods of beer. 

The sun shone on a bright Bavarian blue sky - and for a moment I hesitated if I should repeat one of the joys of my childhood and youth: going around in a carrousel. The are even bigger than in the olden days - and signs generously offered "Half the price for people over 60!" What a chance! 

                                               

Fasten your seatbelt - you'll need it! 

And up you go - you'll have a beautiful view over Munich! 

Up, up !!! 

Even that might be enjoyable - what kept me back was that they fall with enormous speed back to the ground (you have to trust the labourers who build up the plant). 

And you have to trust your heart...

Well, after some consideration I preferred these hearts: 

Though there were many exciting alternatives: 

"O'zapft is!"  - that is the traditional shout for the Oktoberfest (= die Wies'n) and means: "The beer cask is tapped!" 

PS: And after two "Maß" = 2 Liter beer (and I only have to smell at the crown cap to become VERY bold) - I might change my mind and go up ... 2024 maybe... if Tom or Tasker join in, that is... 

Living Like Miss Read

 

  

  Dear You, 

imagine that you possess a crystal ball, put a record on your antique record player, hum along with the Rolling Stones "I went to see a gipsy, to have my fortune read" - and then tell me that I eventually would be part of Bavarian village life - AND enjoy it.

 

If ever there was a City plant it would be me.

 

And now I watch for the second time in my life how two with colourful ribbons decorated trees - felled the day before - are heaved up against the very blue Bavarian sky. The sun smiles benevolent, the fire brigade plays a brass song, the village people cheer - and then the  "Kär'wa" starts. 

It is a parish fair - and in such a small village as this - yes, Tom: no shop, no café, that's why Yours Truly had to buy a car, 511 inhabitants - you soon know almost everyone, and that is nice. 

Two days from afternoon till midnight you can sit on wooden benches and talk, eat cakes or Bratwurst, drink coffee or beer and feel good. The children enjoy it immensely - they sing ("I am a village child and proud of it") and rehearsed a dance, (and no: the two blonds in the photo above are not part of the triplets) and afterwards they run around while their parents are deeply engaged discussing the state of the world and drinking beer - and last year at night young men from another village came and nobbed the Kär'wa tree - revenge for the same crime the young men of this village committed the year before.  :-) 

All those joys I didn't know in a huge city. (And I very seldom drink beer). 

Yours Truly,     Britta  

                                                

If you wondered about the title:      

 

 

Royal Cauldon "Victoria", England. Est.1774

 

Dear You, 

yesterday I went to the "Graffelmarkt" in Fürth - a flea market which takes place twice a year. "Graffel" is dialect and means: "stuff" - well, actually I try to down-size my "stuff", hahaha... 

But the weather was fine, the little red train is on the rail again (after a month off absence - they try to repair the rail network of the Deutsche Bahn). 

In Fürth, hundreds of roaring football fans clogged the way out of the station - "singing" and spurred by beer, beer, beer. I thanked God that I am tall and not shy, thus I managed to part the beer stinking crowd. 

The photo below gives a wrong impression, many visitors came to the market. 

I enjoyed to visit normally private little yards behind the houses. 

When I was tired, I followed intuition, a staircase up to a little place. And there I found something! Not valuable, but soothing the heart :-) 

In Berlin I have - beside my Spode - an (incomplete) vintage coffee service by Royal Cauldon, Victoria - I found it about 20 years ago when I still lived in Hamburg. In Fürth stood a few remains, e.g. a funny butter dish, but in my long life I learned to "think before you buy" (at least most times) and so I "only" bought three egg cups and two porridge bowls. 

They will join their "family" in Berlin soon!