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For people like me who get sleepy during long drives, a three-hour journey from Berlin to Hamburg calls for one pitstop. The place Alvin chose was Schwerin, the capital of the state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Hello, there! I know it’s already the third of January and everyone on the internet has already finished their year-enders. However, the last few days of 2017 meant gatherings to attend, family and friends to see, and even a bit of travel.
One of the first things we noticed upon arriving in Berlin was the abundance of bear statues throughout the city. The city does have a bear on its flag but these adorable depictions of the animal seem to be something else – less ferocious and quite adorable. Almost every establishment has one of these two-metre tall bears standing on its hind legs. I was later told that they were called Buddy Bears.
‘Tis the season for giving and inevitably – receiving as well. As someone who has the worst luck in office Christmas-party tradition of the ‘gift exchange’, let me tell you that I’ve been in that same position you’re probably in. That’s why you’re here, right? You Googled ‘Is regifting okay?’ or ‘How to regift’?
I have this simmering anger that I’ve been trying to placate for the past couple of years. While inching nearer to my 30s has given me a more positive outlook in life that came with being able to let go (or in some cases, ruthlessly cut-off) of negativity, there is one topic that I can’t seem to just look away from. AND, I feel like I need to say something about it before we hit the new year. Every time I see someone posting about it on Facebook or another news article comes out about it, I find myself rolling my eyes. It just puts me in a bad mood. So what is this thing, messing with my zen, you may ask? It’s the hate against millennials.
It’s stupid, biased, and it does nothing whatsoever to help any of the generations that are currently trudging through life on Earth. It takes all of my self-control not to get into a comment war with someone posting unfounded, negative BS about my generation. Sometimes, I feel like I’m also betraying us. Should I have stood up for my fellow millennials and said something?
While Potsdam is practically palace-central, there’s one that I personally think is the best. Schloss Cecilienhof is a history nerd’s dream. With the significant role it played in Germany’s recent history, and even way before World War II, the one hour tour is definitely worth it.
Our previous posting in Kuala Lumpur meant that my husband and I would finally get to have our own home. A place where we could call the shots when it came to the furniture and the whole look and feel of the place.
Thankfully, we were on the same page when it came to what we wanted – something classic and cosy. It’s the same view I have with clothes: It should still look good years from now when I look at photos and I should love wearing them. In the case of our home, we must enjoy staying in it. After all, this is where we will be recharging after a long day.
It also must look presentable enough – fit to host my husband’s counterparts, diplomats from other countries. Spoiler alert: the pressure during the furniture and decor hunting paid off. In the span of our 2 years and 10 months stay in Kuala Lumpur, we’ve had over an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, an Ambassador, an Undersecretary, an Assistant Secretary, a couple of directors, and even members of the media. My hosting skills were really put through a major test. It was exhausting but made for really good memories.
One of the best things about Berlin is brunch. I love how it’s such a huge thing in this city – especially on weekends. It’s my favourite meal, after all. Breakfast food without having to wake up early plus mimosas? Why, count me in!
So, it’s only fitting that I do a series paying homage to my favourite Berlin weekend tradition. Our first stop? Brunchette by Dînette.
I’m in my 20s and I can honestly say that it now takes so much to make my feet hurt. And it’s all because of my love for some high heels.
It started years ago. Every time we would buy school shoes, I would try to get my grandmother to buy me something with a bit of a heel. High enough to make me feel like an adult, but not too high that would make my teachers at my (very) Catholic high school send me to the disciplinary office.
If there’s any award for having the most backlog, I’m pretty sure I’ll win it. So, here I am today trying to lessen my load. One article at a time. Today, I’ll be sharing about my visit to the Jewish Museum Berlin. My husband Alvin and I have been saving the museums for winter. We wanted to savour the sun all throughout summer (and what’s left of it in autumn) by exploring the city. However, when my friend Armi visited in August and said she wanted to see this museum in particular, I knew I had to go with her.
