Germany continued...

On Friday night, while out and about in Berlin, my cell phone was drunk dialed no less than eight times by a Swedish woman. She wouldn't stop calling so I passed her around from friend to friend and everyone had a go at talking with this woman. Finally, she said that she just wanted to "wish Martin a happy birthday." Now, this sort of thing has happened before. While at the farm I accidentally text messaged a wrong number. The return texts I received were quite bellicose and belligerent. I wonder who these Swedes think I am? It's a mystery but apparently I'm an asshole who just had a birthday.

I spent a sunny Saturday cruising around the city by myself. I saw many things that I had not bothered to visit last time: a photography exhibit by Hiroshi Sugimoto at the New National Gallery, the victory column, and the back of the parliamentary building. It was basically a day spent reading all around the city with time in between spent taking photographs. Where there once was sunlight, a particularly favorite street of my was darkened by the skeletal beginnings of a new office complex. I crossed the Spree in front of the Bode Museum and watched part of a open-air performance on a theater boat. Beside the boat swam a family of eight swans. For dinner I stopped at my favorite cafe, the Oranium, and had Brie toasted with a sesame coating and served with spiced salad, jelly with cream, and a slice of watermelon. Perhaps I dined above my status, but it was my one and only sit-down meal in a Berlin restaurant for the trip.

For the rest of the time, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, I was with Gabi and Felix, her son. We worked on weeding and mulching the garden, Felix and I watched youtube videos together, we went shopping, saw a movie, ate our meals together, and went to a lake for a swim. We baked some brownies and were thoroughly stumped as to what the German equivalent of Vegetable oil would be. We settled on sunflower oil, which still had a bit of a taste - the search for the perfect oil goes on. My last day in Berlin, Gabi bought herself an awesome skirt and me a rockin' jacket. There is no other way to describe this piece of clothing. It is simply too original! After Felix had gone to bed, Gabi and I had a glass of "bio" wine over some "girl chat." Even though we both had to get up early the following morning, we stayed up, burning the midnight oil.

And THAT was my trip to Berlin. When I got back to Sweden, it was with a rush of good and elated feelings. Travel is happening a lot lately. If you haven't been watching the calender, perhaps you missed the fact that I return to America next week. I don't really know what to think about that exactly. Good to be home, good to see family? I will only be at home a short time before starting a new chapter of my life in Austria. Ah, how time keeps pushing onward.