Showing posts with label hamburg. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hamburg. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

The Weight of Existence

Sounds of the Weekend






Went to a sushi restaurant called Jam Jam for lunch during their all-you-can-eat happy hour.  €11.90 per person, featuring a merry-go-round of sushi, noodles, fruits, and deserts. Pretty awesome when you didn't smack your hand against the glass doors trying to snag the plate you wanted.  



Muffin Vitamins



Mail was a pain, but it had to be done. Don't ask me how much my 6kg box of shinanigans cost me... alright it cost €47 but it had to be done, and having the goods inside was well worth it (just go with it and humor me). It cost €3.75 for each of these small packages and I almost lost it when they said they don't accept credit cards when I'm staring at the machine right there. Killin me Germany. So, note to self they don't believe in credit, only debit.  Ridiculous, and of course I'm debitcardless thanks to the ass in Ibiza.

After washing our hands of that madness, we headed to the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe costing €7 and finally accepted my credit card - I'm saving cash for the Train tix and groceries - where it's mostly ever only cash. Oiii god bless.  But there was a good handful of exhibits we wanted to see, and meeting up with another friend of Anna's we started with Steve McCurry and his breathtaking images over the years.



Hi.



McCurry's work blew me away. From Cambodia to India to Tibet and Afghanistan.  His story of finding the woman of his infamous Afghan Girl portrait 17 years later... To capture everything between tragedy, and joy, the painful and thriving, youth and age... I can only wish I could freeze it all the same when I photograph my travels, wanderings, everyday life.  

Nowadays, few can really just let an image be taken of them, without wanting to change themselves or wanting something in return.  Two extremes in a way, therefore altering any meaning the image may have had before. I suppose it's only fair, but at the same time, it would be nice to just trust how the dirt lays on your face, how the emotions shine in your stance, just, how you are - is perfect (otherwise the photographer will just say so anyhow haha)... in all seriousness, I just like to prove something, someone, somewhere exists.  So, shh. be still.

In a nutshell I envy McCurry and how he goes about his profession. To be able to blend in, and show so many diverse areas of life.  It's beautiful, depressing, enlightening, and heavy.  




Art Nouveau rooms for rent







Cairo Exhibit







Inside Out




The rest of the museum was a maze, but enjoyed running through the other exhibits like Name That Thing, Art Nouveau, Inside Out, Cairo, etc til our feet felt like they were going to fall off. Made our way through Humana, a sweet second hand clothing store before climbing the stairs back home (I think there's one in Berlin too?) A great selection of vintage and second hand, but definitely smaller than the Kleidermarkt. Shirts ranging €5 to€15... And if you're lucky you may get to even talk the price down. 

Anna helped me book my way down to Berlin, a 3 hour ride that cost €15 so about the same as a rideshare, but it all depends on the time and whatever you have too.  This is just from the Centralstation of Hamburg (ZOB) to the Berlin Central bus station (ZOB).  



Intimate shit back at the Karussell







CHOWDER




DANKE ANNA & friends. It was a short stay in Hamburg, but I don't think I could have asked for a better transition into Germany!  The people, the food, the art.  Dig it all. It's always refreshing to encounter people will similar aspirations... or let's be a little more broad, people with an aspiration in general. We are, who we surround ourselves with.  And, to me that means we can either drag each other down with fake rainbows and excuses, making a hole in the boat, sink beneath the surface ... or motivate and push each other harder to keep on the path we cut with our own machete! No more distractions.  More room for succeeding. Becoming the person you want to be means nothing if you aren't aware of the kind of person you are now.  

We aren't gettin any younger. 

KL


Monday, September 16, 2013

When Swans Attack

Karussell


Yesterday Anna, her friend Maxe, and I went to the Deichtorhallen, to check out the exhibition Visual Leader 2013.  It displayed the best of magazines and internet, original advertisements, creative websites, and photo series etc. So the nominees and winners of the "LeadAwards" were presented at Haus der Photographie − the best of what German magazines had to offer in 2011.  




Haus der Photographie

The back of Anna's head







Corey Arnold - Ein Grosser Fang

Jim Mangan - Bedu

Katrien Franken - I Am Near

It was a large exhibition, and no, I did not understand any of the labels, BUT that just made me push my observations.  Maxe helped me realize how articles/ads/photos were categorized  and what led to what.  So, there were other things to look for in these pieces or series to understand what it conveyed (and why it could supposedly be the best from 2011).  




Was gonna have a full day while Anna started school and such, so getting a day pass for €5.80 turned out to be worth it since I'd be using the S-Bahn, U-Bahn and buses.  Checked out the city center more today off Jungfernstieg (U2) where I finally got a sim card for a lil Nokia phone Anna has lent me (my German angel) - 10 credit for texting and calling (9 cents a minute // 9 cents a text).  There's plenty of Vodafone & O2 around so you can keep that in mind if ever you get a pay as you go phone around here.  Bigger shops, more suits, and lovely brands that I am such a sucker for - Monki, Weekday, & Cheap Monday... Oh Sweden steee will I ever escape you? 


Weekday

Creepin on the U-Bahn



Costs 50 cents to take a piss 

Met Anna after her doc appointment at Kleidermarkt, a vintage heaven I was sure to drown in if it wasn't so organized.  From Jungfernstieg, jumped back onto the U2 to Schlump and following clearly marked arrows to the Bus Stops all just around the corner.  Passing through Sternschanze on Bus 15 (they provide books on the bus, yes, books.  on a shelf for special lil you) straight to Max-Brauer-Allee in front of a wash center, it's a lil hidden across the street next to a moto shop.  I would've probably heard birds singing if it was a Wednesday, where there was a happy hour of 30% off! Ahh.  At this point, I just kept my glasses off so I couldn't see more clothes than I could afford.  But for €48 I had snagged 7 pretty amazing pieces of thread so I'm satisfied.

After went just back across the street to get make up supplies for Anna's work - where you had to ring the bell to get inside.  Such high quality, too many euros to risk getting robbed - it was pretty sweet.  007-makeup-life.

Kleidermarkt


Anna gettin her professional make up supplyyyzzzz


Back onto Bus 15 to get to Altona, a more diverse area of Hamburg (people-wise)kind of like a city within a city... so you have your shops, cafes, but also little garage sale-like stands in between with books and knick knacks, independent stores.  Snagged a coffee from Balzac, and Anna took me to a stuffed-potato place called Kumpir. It waaaassss delicious, €3.90 well spent. 


You have no soul, but you have an iPhone



Gelatin-free / Vegan gummys mmm



Baked potato with kidney beans, corn, mushroom, olive, jalapeños, lettuce



Anna running into chums 

Back at Jungfernstieg hunting swans




Anna pretending she has bread 

A prime dime couple of days; art, free candy, shopping (possibly too much), wine, potatos, chocolate covered gingerbread cookies (yes, chocolate covered gingerbread, you're bummed).  Kind of sad to know tomorrow is my last day here!  

KL