Neukölln

September 2, 2014 0

Interview: Ali for (and from) Germany

In the wake of Germany's World Cup victory, much has been said about a renewed sense of German patriotism and its implications. While some have feared a connection to Germany's dark past, others have welcomed the discourse as a chance to shape a new sense of belonging within the country's evolving demographics. We've already written something about it here. But what a discussion on national identity means on the personal level is another story. Or rather many stories. Here's one... [Read More!]

April 30, 2014 0

Rave: the California Breakfast Slam Effect

Identity and belonging are closely intertwined with the foods we eat. The California Breakfast Slam, or CABslam, originally a pop-up breakfast establishment celebrating Americana classics like hash browns and maple syrup-drenched bacon, now hosts an unassuming 'Beta' restaurant space at the far edge of Neukölln's Reuterkiez. A visit allows for the giddy return to childhood memories that lead to goosebumps and pride, or a combination of both. Let's call this the California Breakfast Slam effect... [Read More!]

Orhan and Sophia pre 2014 Berlin half marathon

March 30, 2014 1

Interview: The Taxi Driver

Orhan was 5 when his father moved to Berlin in 1972. It was only one year before West Germany would halt guest worker recruitment from non-European countries to fill labor shortages after World War II. His mother followed 7 years later with his youngest sister and they lived in Rudow in southeastern Neukölln - where they still live over 30 years later. "They got jobs as cleaners in an office," Orhan recounts, "but they were fired!" he adds, snorting in laughter. I look up from my notepad, surprised... [Read More!]

December 20, 2013 0

Happy Weekend Review: An Old-New Christmas Market

Let's just come right out with it: It's hard to beat Christmas in Germany. Glühwein, cookies, classic lights, decorations strewn across homes and street corners, a calendar that expects, nay, requires you eat a chocolate per day... it's simply wonderful. Though I grew up in the US, my family celebrated Christmas the Teutonic way. I have more than fond memories of hiding the Buttergebäck and Lebkuchen in the laundry room from our Opa so he wouldn't devour them in one sitting, ripping open a human-size Adventskalendar in the course of one night made by our Oma... [Read More!]

December 11, 2013 5

Rave: a Colombian Culinary Homecoming

What role do embassies play in the lives of foreign nationals abroad? Beyond pure administration and diplomacy, cultural events that allow for a homecoming, a return to childhood, and a bringing together of compatriots might change how immigrants and expats live abroad and the involvement of embassies and consulates therein. The Embassy of Columbia in Berlin sponsored an event that did something just like this. A few weeks ago in Neukölln, Colombians and non-Colombians united over the genius of duck woven into starch - the duck, a true Berliner... [Read More!]

July 18, 2013 0

Rave: Education Per Square (Kilo)Meter

After all this talk about Nazis, N-Words, and negative stereotypes, I think it's time we had some good news around here, don't you?

Enter Ein Quadratkilometer Bildung, or "Square Kilometer Education".

Quadratkilometer Bildung (QKB) is an educational development and learning platform that addresses education on a regional basis, with a focus on disadvantaged populations. They call it "closing gaps". I call it common sense... [Read More!]

June 27, 2013 1

Rave: Neukölln’s Intercultural Day-to-Day

A Berlin restaurant with an American name run by a Tunisian who prepares Italian fare in Halal style? Anywhere else this collision of cultures on a plate would be considered poor marketing. In Neukölln it's more or less the norm... [Read More!]

May 9, 2013 8

Interview: Ali, Zoe, and the Gentrification Debate

Meet Ali and Zoe. You may have heard of them. Zoe takes pictures of Ali while walking down the street and posts them on her tumblr called What Ali Wore. They share a special connection, one reflective of a city in flux and a district in crisis. He, the assumed-Gastarbeiter (politically-charged term for 'guest worker') fighting against stereotypes and categorizations since arrival // she, the ex-pat fighting off armies of criticism for displacing the very people one considers a neighbor: difficult situations that have arisen not out of malice but out of circumstance, no matter the scale... [Read More!]