Flat hunt update: 12 viewings down - the rejection from the 11th was the hardest to take especially as I was shortlisted as one of three potential tenants out of 15 or so...All seemed to be going well with the 10th and 11th viewing but, as someone succintly informed me at a birthday party last Friday, "It's harder to find a room in Hamburg than it is in London"...
On Saturday I went out with Kasia and Nina (who I met the previous week) for a beer at Kulturhaus 73 (an alternative bar in Sternschanze, an increasingly popular destination for partying tourists) followed by a dirty drum & bass night at Hafenklang club. Drum & Bass for the entire night is backbreaking so much so that my back is still hurting now...nonetheless we danced the entire night with utmost intensity and vigour, with some much needed breaks outside by the river...the rest of the crew came for a brief period before heading off to the Reeperbahn, whilst Kasia and I stuck it out until 6am when the fish market by the river bank was already in full swing...a quite unique clubbing and post-clubbing experience in Hamburg...
As things seem to get better here with meeting people and establishing a social circle in Hamburg, another failed flat acquisition seems to be lurking round the corner...
Tuesday 24 November 2009
Tuesday 17 November 2009
Nightclub dabbling
8 viewings down...no luck...it seems like finding a room in Hamburg is proving to be my main task here and working for the practice almost feels like a side issue...
Nonetheless I went out last Friday with someone I met a month ago on a night out, Daniel, who brought along his Masters cronies (Alex; Andy & his visiting friend Martin from Lausanne; Nino from Georgia, a girl btw; and a Polish girl, forgot what her name was!) for what was to be a night of music of all sorts...
1. Buttclub, Hafenstrasse 126 - what Daniel and I expected to be an Eastern Bloc/GDR party was in fact a DJ giving a talk about the 70s/80s punk music of East Germany before the Wall came down, with a quick spin of the vinyls and archive footage being played...an informative, chilled-out musical walkthrough with a couple of beers and salty/sesame stick snacks to boot too...
2. Daniel's friends came to Buttclub in dribs and drabs and once the talk ended we went to an Irish Pub (of all places) where a live band was belting out cheesy classics, which churned my stomach for about three-quarters of an hour...
3. Went next door to another club which played some FWUNKY 60s soul and rock 'n' roll followed by a surprisingly entertaining live band karaoke session...'Born to be Wild' was a highlight lol...
4. Briefly went to a German party songs club, 2nd time I've been there with Daniel, and even though he seems to be up for just about anything, it was a bit shit...tho air guitaring 'Can't Stop' by RHCP with Daniel's mate Alex was pretty fun...
5. Daniel and Alex departed the scene early, with the others catching the U-Bahn back home, whereas I was up for more, so I went on my bill to a club called Uebel & Gefahrlich where the Cocoon Birthday Party raising the roof, headed by old-timer Sven Väth...who in all honesty, was shit...the club however was pretty insane, you had to climb a spiral staircase to this concrete bunker at the top bearing over the city...
6. So I left disappointed looking to go home when these two girls, who were similarly as disappointed as I was, asked me where Ego (another club) was, so we got a taxi to the red light district, and discovered that the club was closed...and finally we ended up going to another alternative/underground club by the name of Golden Püdel right by the harbour-side...and after about half an hour of low-lying techno we decided to call it a night...
...such is the convulution one experiences on a night out in Hamburg...
Nonetheless I went out last Friday with someone I met a month ago on a night out, Daniel, who brought along his Masters cronies (Alex; Andy & his visiting friend Martin from Lausanne; Nino from Georgia, a girl btw; and a Polish girl, forgot what her name was!) for what was to be a night of music of all sorts...
1. Buttclub, Hafenstrasse 126 - what Daniel and I expected to be an Eastern Bloc/GDR party was in fact a DJ giving a talk about the 70s/80s punk music of East Germany before the Wall came down, with a quick spin of the vinyls and archive footage being played...an informative, chilled-out musical walkthrough with a couple of beers and salty/sesame stick snacks to boot too...
2. Daniel's friends came to Buttclub in dribs and drabs and once the talk ended we went to an Irish Pub (of all places) where a live band was belting out cheesy classics, which churned my stomach for about three-quarters of an hour...
3. Went next door to another club which played some FWUNKY 60s soul and rock 'n' roll followed by a surprisingly entertaining live band karaoke session...'Born to be Wild' was a highlight lol...
4. Briefly went to a German party songs club, 2nd time I've been there with Daniel, and even though he seems to be up for just about anything, it was a bit shit...tho air guitaring 'Can't Stop' by RHCP with Daniel's mate Alex was pretty fun...
5. Daniel and Alex departed the scene early, with the others catching the U-Bahn back home, whereas I was up for more, so I went on my bill to a club called Uebel & Gefahrlich where the Cocoon Birthday Party raising the roof, headed by old-timer Sven Väth...who in all honesty, was shit...the club however was pretty insane, you had to climb a spiral staircase to this concrete bunker at the top bearing over the city...
6. So I left disappointed looking to go home when these two girls, who were similarly as disappointed as I was, asked me where Ego (another club) was, so we got a taxi to the red light district, and discovered that the club was closed...and finally we ended up going to another alternative/underground club by the name of Golden Püdel right by the harbour-side...and after about half an hour of low-lying techno we decided to call it a night...
...such is the convulution one experiences on a night out in Hamburg...
Thursday 12 November 2009
Tuesday 10 November 2009
Patiently waiting...
Just like the start of every Formula 1 race waiting for all the red lights to go out, everyone here in Germany waits at the kerb staring patiently and intently for the green man to illuminate...being born and raised in London means that I automatically walk faster than everyone else here, and it also means that I reach the pavement on the other side first, almost without fail...but it's pretty admirable that people are very obedient to the rules here, as Germany is well-known for...
Looking for a new room is tough, but I've become accustomed to the implicit restrictions imposed upon me by the family...I was ranting my ass off in my last post, but both the family and I mutually understand that we're in each others' way and that my tenancy is only temporary...a waiting game, this certainly is...
Work has come to a momentary standstill this week...I await the briefing of new projects we seem to be acquiring almost every other day as well as resuming the ones previously...besides looking for a new room during lull periods I've found myself designing the practice's Christmas cards, so my role as "Marketing Chief", if you will, at least gives me something different to do...
Looking for a new room is tough, but I've become accustomed to the implicit restrictions imposed upon me by the family...I was ranting my ass off in my last post, but both the family and I mutually understand that we're in each others' way and that my tenancy is only temporary...a waiting game, this certainly is...
Work has come to a momentary standstill this week...I await the briefing of new projects we seem to be acquiring almost every other day as well as resuming the ones previously...besides looking for a new room during lull periods I've found myself designing the practice's Christmas cards, so my role as "Marketing Chief", if you will, at least gives me something different to do...
Saturday 7 November 2009
The hunt begins
So:
1. I'm not allowed to use the washing machine
2. I'm never sure of whether I can cook in the evenings
3. I stay in my room to avoid disturbing the landlord, who doesn't seem to have any time to help me settle, is always stressed, who refuses to eat any extra portions of food I cook, who doesn't seem to want to converse anything at any great length with me...and is in a family situation which is quite frankly, odd and complicated...
4. There isn't an opportunity to meet young people and make friends.
What does that amount to? A shit time at home.
What does one do? Grit his teeth and starts looking for another place. I've already viewed 4 places and intend to view more...as my boss aptly put it, I came to Hamburg not just to do architecture, but to experience Hamburg...
Apart from that, work is great - it's been the consistent highlight of being here so far. Now I just need to mend the other bit...my life. My landlord may be taking the smile off my face at the moment, but she will not take away my FREEDOM!
1. I'm not allowed to use the washing machine
2. I'm never sure of whether I can cook in the evenings
3. I stay in my room to avoid disturbing the landlord, who doesn't seem to have any time to help me settle, is always stressed, who refuses to eat any extra portions of food I cook, who doesn't seem to want to converse anything at any great length with me...and is in a family situation which is quite frankly, odd and complicated...
4. There isn't an opportunity to meet young people and make friends.
What does that amount to? A shit time at home.
What does one do? Grit his teeth and starts looking for another place. I've already viewed 4 places and intend to view more...as my boss aptly put it, I came to Hamburg not just to do architecture, but to experience Hamburg...
Apart from that, work is great - it's been the consistent highlight of being here so far. Now I just need to mend the other bit...my life. My landlord may be taking the smile off my face at the moment, but she will not take away my FREEDOM!
Tuesday 3 November 2009
Sweet like chocolate
My boss loves chocolate - there's never a day without him devouring the most exquisite varieties of chocolate...in fact he's actually designing a chocolate factory, how cool is that?
It's been a week since I moved into the family home and things haven't been as sweet as chocolate - personal space is turning out to be a restriction and not having my own laptop (and thus, internet) to entertain me in the evenings means that one resorts to reading...a lot. More importantly however, is not having ample opportunity to meet people of my age group...
Last Friday night I decided to go out to a club called Waagenbau in a vain attempt to meet new faces...what I did know for certain however, was that some minimal techno Scheisse was going down...and I have to admit, you haven't been to a rave until you've been to Germany. I've never seen such euphoria from the entire dancefloor anticipating each drop of a beat or bassline, but more pleasantly surprising was the camaraderie between strangers and the enthusiasm with which they enjoyed the music...everyone was just out to have a good time and it was infectious. It was sweet indeed.
It's been a week since I moved into the family home and things haven't been as sweet as chocolate - personal space is turning out to be a restriction and not having my own laptop (and thus, internet) to entertain me in the evenings means that one resorts to reading...a lot. More importantly however, is not having ample opportunity to meet people of my age group...
Last Friday night I decided to go out to a club called Waagenbau in a vain attempt to meet new faces...what I did know for certain however, was that some minimal techno Scheisse was going down...and I have to admit, you haven't been to a rave until you've been to Germany. I've never seen such euphoria from the entire dancefloor anticipating each drop of a beat or bassline, but more pleasantly surprising was the camaraderie between strangers and the enthusiasm with which they enjoyed the music...everyone was just out to have a good time and it was infectious. It was sweet indeed.
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