Clara in Germany!

 It has been like pure summer this past week, but today Northern Germany finally gathered its wits and continued on its rainy path. So I decided to turn back to my old ways as well, and head out to the tried and true Hamburg Kunsthalle (art hall). The newest exhibition was on feminist art movements in the 70's. Each piece was freshly bubbling with rage and beauty, as if it had been born the moment I walked in. Afterwards, I wandered up a floor, to find myself surrounded by the swoops and swirls of the impressionism era. Cindy Sherman and Cézanne are good company for a rainy day.

Last week, my fellow CBYX adventurers and I got together in Hamburg for our half-stay camp. We toured Hamburg inside and out, from the haven to the highest point of St.Mikeal's church. Waking up at 8:00 every morning, there was no sleep to be had. Just plenty of loudness in public settings. And binge watching of American comedians. And storms of cuddles. And sugar. Once an American, always an American, I suppose. Buddies!  Elbetunnel SOPHIE! My fellow Vermont girlie.

Another Saturday, another art museum. And this spring-like Saturday, I went with my friend Maria to the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe. We checked out an exhibition on tattoos, and the content ranged from photography, to ancient inking tools. And boy, does looking at people get their skin cut up with dark stuff work up an appetite! So naturally, we headed to the Portuguese corner of Hamburg, and enjoyed Natas (Sugar. Egg. Heaven.), while thanking our lucky stars that we didn't get tatted up in the Dark Ages, because in the Dark Ages, they just used sharp enough rocks stuck to sticks. Which they seemed to use for everything really. JEEZ Dark Ages, clean up your act.

February left us very gracefully on this sunny Saturday. I have a monthly train card, so what better way to use up my last day of the month than head into Hamburg, and check out some art? Out of all the great museums in Hamburg, I opted for the Deictorhallen, in particular, the photography section. The theme of the exhibition was simply young photographers, so it made way for vibrant, erratic viewing. After I got my photography fill, I just wandered around in the city, and enjoyed the fact that it was not raining.            

Mailboxes are for people who have given up in life. Mail HOUSES are the way to go! ADORABLE . "Trespassing forbidden. Valuable pigstock"....this is a sign that graces our local slaughterhouse. Look at that sassy lil cartoon pig! He is embracing murder like a champ! DELIGHTFUL.  6 euros for a pint of Ben and Jerry's? AWWWWW!  This door. IT HAS A FISH DOORKNOB. And if that wasn't enough, check out the golden old lady head smack in the middle! Discomforting? Yes. But what's cuteness without a little terror?

In Northern Germany, every 10th grader goes off into the working world for two weeks, and is an apprentice (oh! fancy!) in a job of their choosing. Since I would most certainly botch anything associated with filing and phone calling and calculation-ing, I decided to help take care of Germany's young generation instead. Bring on the babies. Even in pre-school, a warm and pleasant mid-day meal is seen as sacred. No German zero year old would be caught dead with anything less than an artisan glass and a full set of silverware. A sippy-cup user would be unpopular among his or her peers. Baby food? You crack me up. Tiny humans here take part in the pyramid of Germanity (Potatoes, Bread, and Meat), just as much as anyone else. Of course when you give a 1 year old a full potato (That's a new children's book title if I ever did see one), it is intimidating, and may result in a frantic attempt to wear said pota...

At concerts, I am used to being pushed, shoved, and heavily sweated upon by strangers. So naturally, this Monday when a few friends and I went to see alt-j in the Hamburg Sporthalle, I prepared myself for battle. However, my experience was an actively comfortable one. I had a space,enjoyed a cool breeze or two, and was not once subjected to the bodily fluids of my fellow concert goers. I didn't even have to pull the "Oh, you gotta let me through, my little sister/brother/ easily confused friend is at the front all alone!" People simply stepped aside, beer in hand, and wished me a pleasant,forward bound journey. The stuff of miracles. Alt-j wasn't too bad either. For the entire show, each band member stood strictly in their designated spot, as if they were waiting to be beamed up by Scotty. But that robotic distance worked in their favor. Like aliens fresh out of their spaceship, learning slowly how to...