Adventures in Wheelville

Full Circle - Manhattan to Ljubljana and back again!

2011-07-20T00:01:00.005+02:00

New York has kept me wildly busy, more busy than I could have ever imagined. I wear many different hats working with many different organizations, but one of the jobs I recently took on is as contributing Blogger for Slovenian - American startup Zemanta. Last week posted my first piece; it is an interview I did with my boss, Tin Dizdarevic. Incidentally, Tin, who was born and grew up in Slovenia and Serbia until he was a teenager, first met me when he was visiting family in Slovenia last year, and the reason he knew of me is because of this very blog. Full circle, huh?

Click the pic above to read the interview!

Why don't more people live in liveable cities?

2011-05-16T01:51:00.003+02:00

Great piece from kottke.org a blog "about the liberal arts 2.0"..

I brought up a similar point in a piece I wrote last year.

image by Andreja Brulc

Why Don't More People Live in Livable Cities?

Those lists of most liveable cities...why don't any of the vibrant big cities of the world ever make the list? Because the lists don't take into account many important reasons why people choose to live in a certain place.

I spoke to Joel Kotkin, a professor of urban development, and asked him about these surveys. "I've been to Copenhagen," (Monocle's Number 2) he tells me "and it's cute. But frankly, on the second day, I was wondering what to do." So, if the results aren't to his liking, what does he suggest? "We need to ask, what makes a city great? If your idea of a great city is restful, orderly, clean, then that's fine. You can go live in a gated community. These kinds of cities are what is called 'productive resorts'. Descartes, writing about 17th-century Amsterdam, said that a great city should be 'an inventory of the possible'. I like that description."
Joel Garreau, the US urban academic and author, agrees. "These lists are journalistic catnip. Fun to read and look at the pictures but I find the liveable cities lists intellectually on a par with People magazine's 'sexiest people' lists."
Ricky Burdett, who founded the London School of Economics' Cities Programme, says: "These surveys always come up with a list where no one would want to live. One wants to live in places which are large and complex, where you don't know everyone and you don't always know what's going to happen next. Cities are places of opportunity but also of conflict, but where you can find safety in a crowd.
"We also have to acknowledge that these cities that come top of the polls also don't have any poor people," he adds. And that, it seems to me, touches on the big issue. Richard G Wilkinson and Kate Pickett's hugely influential book The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better (2009) seems to present an obvious truth -- that places where the differential in income between the wealthiest and the poorest is smallest tend to engender a sense of satisfaction and well-being. But while it may be socially desirable, that kind of comfort doesn't necessarily make for vibrancy or dynamism. If everybody is where they want to be, no one is going anywhere.

(via stellar and many emails)

Update: That Decartes quote above? He never said it.

Brainy, Bigmouthed, and Black....by the Brooklyn Bridge

2011-03-04T14:52:00.003+01:00

St. Cyril Slovenian church in NYC's East Village

Noticing a lag in this blog, the Powers That Be have elected to send me on long-term assignment to perhaps the most exciting city in the world -- NYC. I will try to keep you posted as to any of my experiences, things I read about, and goings-on that pertain to race, culture, Slovenians and/or other Slavs here, at home, and abroad.

Stay tuned.

Meanwhile elsewhere in Slavland...#3

2011-01-25T19:22:00.005+01:00

a view on the way to Prague Castle - 2009

While you're waiting for this blog to maybe one day come back to life, I strongly suggest you turn your attention to my fellow African-American sister in Slavland, Ms. Tinu a.k.a. Black Girl in Prague, who has just done something I've been DYING to do for ages...she started a podcast! Her first interview is with Prague-based American expat jazz singer Lee Davison and is sharp, smart, and funny. Just like her*!

Don't just sit there, click over!

*She's also a gorgeous girl, so y'all gotta start sending around the petition for her to add a v-cast component ;)

Meanwhile elsewhere in Slavland...#2

2010-12-14T10:03:00.004+01:00

I have other things I should be posting about and I hope I will find to do so in the next few weeks. But for now, I though I'd better post about this since people will undoubtedly be emailing me about this all day.

(Via The Times) Nigerian-born Polish citizen, John Godson, becomes Poland's first black MP

Congratulations to Mr. Godson and Powodzenia!

Wait! What? A Brother IS Mayor in Slovenia?!

2010-10-25T08:45:00.007+02:00

As the conclusion to our ongoing posts "Wait! What? A Brother Running For Mayor in Slovenia?!" (1, 2). I just want to report to you what the UK newspaper The Guardian has already splayed across their own pages....

DR. PETER BOSSMAN IS THE FIRST BLACK MAYOR IN SLOVENIA!!!!

As he said on BBC World Service this morning, "It will take some time to see if there will be any real change."

All who know me, know that I'm not holding my breath. I'm just celebrating.

Sara Rajh, architect

2010-10-20T10:51:00.004+02:00

Just came across another fascinating young Afro-Slovenian.

This lovely woman is Sara Rajh, a Ghanaian-Slovenian architect who enjoys the richness of her Hungarian, Slovenian, and Ghanaian heritages.

Sara Rajh with her husband, the academic sculptor Jürgen Rajh - photo credit

She was raised in northeastern Slovenia and now calls the Austrian town of Graz her home, but still works on projects in Slovenia and with family and associates in Ghana. Among her many endeavours has been: the establishment of a Slovenian association in Graz (which already had quite a large Slovenian population), working on the local radio station, organizing fund-raising exhibitions of Ghanaian jewelry/artistry, and developing an eco-farm in northeastern Slovenia (one of the most economically depressed regions in the country). All this from a woman that the articl e (Slovenian-language only) describes as "a true little miracle in a Slovenian countryside where no one had ever seen a dark-skinned person up close before."* Bravo and best wishes to you Ms. Rajh!

* As regular readers may have already noted, there is a lack of tact here, especially as regards race.

Yucky Tricks

2010-10-19T09:01:00.007+02:00

A weekend or so ago, The Captain's mom, The Captain, and I went down to a family vineyard in the Dolenjska region where she's from. From what she told me, we were going down to have lunch and say hello to family members; she talked a LOT before we left but that was all the information she really gave. Off the back of that information, The Captain and I got dressed up smartly, loaded up the car, and left.

...so you can imagine how perturbed I was when we pulled up to the vineyard, got out of the car, and were handed buckets, scissors, and gloves. CapMama turned to us and was like "You guys have a change of clothes, right?" Steam blew out of my head and -- despite the fact that this happens all the time* -- it took everything I had to keep quiet and go with the flow.

I walked up the steep hill into the vineyard with my brand new ankle boots on, angered about the state of my new shoes and frightened I'd fall down the hill.

After leaning against a fence post for 15 minutes watching everyone else work, I finally decided to jump in and help pick some grapes. It was nasty work, as this year's mix of weather coupled with the neighboring vineyards bout with mold (the neighbour, who probably inherited the damn vineyard, refuses to come out and pick grapes anymore and just leaves them to rot year after year) meant that most of the grapes were either dried like raisins or totally moldy.

Our job was to knock away all the sour grapes and pick out the few decent looking ones. Messy, stinky, yucky work.

I ended up taking my shoes and socks off so I could get a grip on the ground and not slide down the hill.

It ended up being the best decision; though I did have to contend with pesky people walking past me every few minutes with admonishments and "concern" that I would catch cold (catching cold seems to be the worst fate that can befall you in this country, geez.)

Anyway, after an hour or two of this cruel punishment, at least I got a good meal (pictures to come)....and, of course, this little blog post.

*Slovenians have a bad habit of not giving you necessary information unless you explicity ask for it. Problem being that you don't know what you don't know. Frustration!

Update on Wait! What? A Brother Running For Mayor In Slovenia

2010-10-11T09:16:00.014+02:00

Quick follow up to July's post Wait! What? A Brother Running For Mayor In Slovenia ....

According to news reports (Slovenian only), Slovenian-based Ghanaian doctor and politician Peter Bossman was in the lead with over 30% of votes after yesterday's election to become mayor of the lovely seaside town of Piran. The race will now go into run-offs against the current sitting mayor (who had just over 20%) of the vote. Here's hoping Dr. Bossman makes it all the way through and becomes the first black* mayor in Slovenia! Let's goooooo!

In further news, journalist Vlado Miheljak puts forth a more ambitious proposition..."Peter Bossman For President" and much mudslinging in the comments ensues! (Slovenian only)

*yes, say BLACK/črn not temnopolt/ "dark-skinned". Black comes in many shades (from light to dark) and is an experience, not just a state of melanin.

Venice Architecture Biennale 2010

2010-10-11T07:55:00.005+02:00

The Captain and I made it over to Venice for the Architecture Biennale. Here are a few pics:

The Belgian pavilion was my favorite hands down. It was full of used interiors.

this was a work table surface that sat next to a copy machine

a big foam model of the city in the dutch pavilion

a big strange spanish toy sculpture thing

a detail shot

another detail shot

the cafeteria

the polish pavilion

the egyptian pavilion

the serbian pavilion, which happened to be full of a group of friendly young serbians

American pavilion

Czech and Slovak was lovely

the Canadian exhibition was an interactive manmade plastic forest

Three Whole Years

2010-09-11T13:30:00.007+02:00

Today is the 3rd anniversary of my residence in Slovenia (of all places). Amazing where a little adventurousness, blind faith, love, perseverance (and a healthy helping of foolishness) can get you.

Call for proposals: Publication on "Integration beyond Migration"

2010-09-01T17:32:00.002+02:00

(via Black Women in Europe Blog)

picture credit

Call for proposals: Publication on "Integration beyond Migration"

As a reflection of the debates in the Member States, the current EU debate on integration repeatedly combines the issues of migration and integration by maintaining a restrictive approach to integration policy focusing primarily on the integration of Third-Country Nationals. As a typical example, the 2004 EU Common Basic Principles on integration have been developed within the broader framework of the management of migration and its consequences, and therefore primarily concern migrants and Third-Country Nationals. However, people from a migrant background born in Europe or people from a European minority ethnic or religious background can no longer be considered as migrants as they are facing an entirely different set of challenges and hurdles in their integration process - many of which are certainly more akin to the integration/inclusion issues faced by specific economic classes of the majority community (in terms of poverty, underachievement in education, etc.). The linkages between anti-discrimination, integration and social inclusion therefore need to be rethought to develop a new approach to this policy area and enhance policy coherence. It is important that EU integration policies not only focus on new arrivals, but on the social inclusion of all migrants and minorities, irrespective of when they arrived in the EU.

Deadline 2o September 2010. More details here.

Irena Yebuah-Tiran

2010-08-24T09:16:00.005+02:00

Picture credit

Not to turn this page into a Who's Who of Black Slovenians, but hey I think it can't hurt to show that the few black Slovenians and black people in Slovenia have done and can do remarkable things.

This vision of loveliness before you this time around is the lovely Ghanaian-Slovenian opera singer Irena Yebuah-Tiran.

Just the other day, someone mentioned to me that there was an old Ghanaian guy in Dolenjska who had settled down there and (much like every one else in Dolenjska) had started his own vineyard. A quick Google search led me to this 2004 story (Slovenian language only) on Mr. Robert Yebuah and then onwards to his talented and lovely daughter Irena. According to her website, Ms. Yebuah-Tiran has been training her voice since middle school and gained her Masters degree in Music from the prestigious Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria, and has performed in both Ljubljana, Vienna, and beyond.

Check out her music on her Myspace page here and cheer her on!

Picture credit

As they say in Ghana, ayekoo! (well done!)

Best of

2010-08-23T10:18:00.005+02:00

Newsweek just came out with it's list of 100 Best Countries to live and Slovenia came in at 24. Congrats to Slovenia. The country is safe with a highly educated population and good life expectancy. No small accomplishment, of course.

That said, one has to interrogate how these lists are compiled and WHO praytell are they for? I don't think this list imagines that these conditions apply to just anyone who dropped out of the sky. It must be for the natives, most of whom are not going anywhere regardless of what this list says. I guess it would give them a boost of pride, which I guess is something. But what of the people that are looking at this list with an eye to moving to one of those countries? Can we get any glimpse into the life we would lead as an expat? Things such as access to services in multiple languages, the weather and environment, health care and social services, cultural events and resources, and importantly attitudes of natives towards newcomers/foreigners are what may be on the mind of a potential expat to that country. But I suppose that could be a hard thing to measure...Nonetheless in this globalised world, it would be nice to see one of those lists that gave more than a passing nod to the non-native's concerns and made this information useful rather than just a source of pride (or shame) for natives of the respective countries.

On a lighter note, the interactive tool is pretty neat on that site...check it out!

A Visit to the Volčji Potok Arboretum

2010-08-18T17:39:00.004+02:00

Dog water fountain. Curious, since I never see water fountains for HUMANS.

Meanwhile elsewhere in Slavland...

2010-08-13T19:26:00.004+02:00

Interesting news slightly late off the presses from Slavland North (aka Russia)

Jean Gregoire Sagbo Becomes First Black Politician Elected In Russia
KRISTINA NARIZHNAYA | 07/25/10 09:22 AM | AP

NOVOZAVIDOVO, Russia — People in this Russian town used to stare at Jean Gregoire Sagbo because they had never seen a black man. Now they say they see in him something equally rare — an honest politician.

Sagbo last month became the first black to be elected to office in Russia.

In a country where racism is entrenched and often violent, Sagbo's election as one of Novozavidovo's 10 municipal councilors is a milestone. But among the town's 10,000 people, the 48-year-old from the West African country of Benin is viewed simply as a Russian who cares about his hometown.

Read the rest here....

Congrats to Mr. Sagbo and Good Luck Brothaman!

Marvelous Merlene

2010-08-04T13:05:00.003+02:00

Long time readers may remember my post about Jamaican-born Slovenian-naturalized Olympic runner, Merlene Ottey, but few (including me) may have realized that old girl -- now in her middle ages -- was still running on on Slovenia's team. Two days ago, she became the oldest woman (at 50 years young) to take part in the Euro Championships, and though she didn't make it to the final of the relay she ran, she has no intention of slowing down.

"I don't see the end at the moment. My goal now is to try and qualify for the World Championships and as for the Olympics (in 2012) ask me after that," she said.

Go on, girl!

Daily Mail Online - Ottey fails at fifty... but don't rule her out of London 2012

Žižek on Charity

2010-08-04T10:18:00.002+02:00

I have a lot more posts to put up here and I promise I'll do it soon. But until then, have a look at this excellent dynamic animation of a speech by my second favorite Slovenian, Slavoj Žižek, on the ethics of charitable giving.

An RSA Project

Homesickness

2010-07-20T12:39:00.004+02:00

source

I found this interesting article on the condition of homesickness that describes the situation chillingly well. Thought I'd share with some of the other expats (and maybe even those who are in the same country but just miles away from the place they consider home), so that you know you're not nuts and you're not alone.

Here's an excerpt:

What Are You Doing Here?

A visitor is often asked, What are you doing here? It seems that in the question there is the suggestion that, because you don't belong here, there must be some good reason for you to be here. One can't leave home and just be somewhere else. People do leave their own homes for a variety of reasons: vacation, conferences, work, schooling, or resettlement. If they meet and get into conversation with inhabitants they are inevitably asked the purpose of their visit. We are all curious as to the reasons some people make temporary or permanent breaks with their home ties, perhaps with a sense of wonder regarding what would be deemed important enough to initiate such a violent separation of oneself and one's foundations.

Indeed, visitors too may privately wonder sometimes about their reasons for being somewhere, as did the Canadian woman who, while visiting the outback of Australia, suddenly came across a wild bull: "I stared at the bull which barred our passage on that dirt road. Its huge bulk seemed to rise out of the dust at me and say, `What are you doing here?'" Is the answer to this question worth the discomfort, the feeling of homesickness that may accompany it?

Nevertheless, visitors often strive to overcome aspects of this strangerness by making a space of their own where they find themselves. The hotel room becomes the inner space to which they return after venturing into the city to take a look around. It seems that the establishment of home (even if it is a temporary home) involves not only the "carving out of chaotic space a definite area set apart from the rest of the world" (Bollnow, 1961, p. 34), but also requires that one has a place from which to set forth and to which to return.

The establishment of a place to which we can return and feel a sense of ownness is indicative of what is missed in homesickness. Even if we recognize something as being similar to that of home, we still do not feel the sense of home, the sense of ownness, or intimate familiarity. According to Schutz (1971, p. 113), "the longing for re-establishing the old intimacy-not only with persons but also with things-is the main feature of what is called `homesickness.'" However, it is not enough to say that homesickness is a longing to reestablish old intimacies with things, space, and people. Home cannot be reduced to only people, places, and things; and therefore, to miss home involves something more fundamental to our way of being-in-the-world.

Read the rest here.

Wait, What?! A Brother Running for Mayor in Slovenia

2010-07-13T09:11:00.005+02:00

I was walking along minding my business, when I came along this story (Slovenian only) on a Mr. Peter Bossman, a black doctor who is running for mayor of the lovely Slovenian seaside town of Piran. Well, go 'head bruh!

Upon further inspection, it seems that he is being subjected to the haterism that plagues a black man anywhere he tries to do something good. In this case, he is being pressured to step out of the race by people who are claiming that he is addicted to gambling. Mind you, he is a doctor who works healing people from their own addictions, but they think that he -- most likely one of the most noticeable people in his town -- is sneaking around feeding some sort of addiction, while also trying to build his own political career (he is already part of the presidency of the local chapter of his political party). Hmm, dubious. They also tried to out him as having a child out of wedlock, to which he replied that that didn't fly in his culture and that he was indeed paying his child support. Then the people said that as soon as voters saw a black face on the campaign posters they would realize that they didn't want a black mayor.

Where is this coming from you ask? Well, according to recent polls, it seems Mr. Bossman is some fierce competition for the incumbent, Tomaž Gantar, and the existing structure is none-too-thrilled about the threat to the established order. I don't really know what this Bossman cat is all about, but a little change -- in fact a lotta change -- sounds good to me. If Bossman wins, I might have to relocate to the seaside and help him paint the town a lovely shade of brown!

Black Water

2010-07-10T12:36:00.010+02:00

Summer is here, a time that many people often associate with water sports and swimming. Many people, but not me, since I don't really swim. People here in Slovenia always react strangely when I tell them I don't really know how to swim and that I did not learn how to swim as a child. In fact, my mother and brother don't know how to swim and most of my black friends growing up did not know how to swim either. This doesn't mean black people can't swim*, it means that many of us simply never learn. The reasons are manifold, and many are outlined in this useful article from WNYC and this (more lengthy) survey report from the USA Swimming Association. From disinterest to fear to concern about damaging one's hairstyle, the reasons range from serious to inane and I have heard or been the deliverer of many of them, but I think the biggest issue is not learning as a small child, which is often the outgrowth of having parents who never learned or are afraid, no or limited access to a swimming people, and concerns about the costs of and time for swimming lessons.

Black Olympic gold medal winning relay swimmer Cullen Jones

In the past, I've posted about Cullen Jones, the black Olympic gold winner in swimming and his efforts to develop swimming education for young black American children (who are 13 times more likely to drown than white**), and I've also written about my efforts in learning to swim (efforts I'll maybe pick up again in the future), but I think it bears much more repeating. Not only to build awareness, but also to encourage tolerance and understanding in places where swimming is more the "norm" and action (by someone other than me!) in places where we can make a difference.

*Black people CAN and DO swim. All over the world. I have to say this explicitly, because I know some stupid person might read this and otherwise get the wrong idea. I've seen how quickly ignorant racist ideas fly around this country. BTW, here's a bonus to those same dummies, black people DO feel heat just the same as white people.

** Turns out a near-drowning was the impetus for Cullen himself to learn to swim!

A Thursday Thought Exercise: Dreaming of A Perfect City

2010-07-01T18:46:00.006+02:00

people second-lining in the streets in New Orleans

A friend on Facebook recently pointed me to this interesting Wall Street Journal article from last year where musician, artist, writer, designer, and one of my favorite people on the planet, David Byrne, outlines the elements of what would comprise his perfect city. As a person who is currently dissatisfied with where she lives but unsure as to where to go next, this is a perfect thought exercise for me. But I think I come up a little short since I have so many places I still feel like I need to visit before I could craft my Ultimate City. But for now I can still present you with....

Features of the City of My (Current) Dreams*

Size: Half the size of New York would be good. Maybe limited to the size of the three boroughs that I frequented the most -- Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn. Trim the fat, there's still plenty city there.

Density: The density of Berlin seemed just right to me. At around 3.4million (according to Wikipedia), it is less than half the size of NYC (and 1.5X larger than the entire country of Slovenia), which means you can usually get a seat on the subway and you don't usually have to fight for sidewalk space, but you still run into (or try to avoid) people you know on the streets. I also crave good people watching, something that this level of density offers.

Sensibility and attitude: It would be a mix of New York and Berlin. I'd take the Berlin laid- back kindness mixed with the grizzled and blunt attitude of an old school native Brooklynite.

Security: I always feel pretty safe in NYC, because there are almost always plenty of people out on the streets.

Chaos and danger: There is something about the organized chaos of New York City that I really love. You don't know what you will find around a corner. There can be a film crew shooting or a man taking a crap on a sidewalk. It makes for interesting cocktail chat and creative inspiration.

Mixed Use - Creative/Culture Areas: New York does this mighty nicely, with work/live space where artists can paint or sculpt all day and then have awesome loft parties or dance exhibitions or rock shows in the evening. Ljubljana has Metelkova, but it is too grungey for my taste (plus it is only one place, not an area) as are these kinds of spaces in Berkeley and San Francisco. When it's done well, New York does it really smashingly and that would be a nice feature for my dream city.

Transportation: My ideal city would have precious few cars and lots of bike lanes, buses, and subway lines...maybe some sort of congestion charge like in London to limit the number of cars in the center.

Public Space: I can't think of a city I've been to that really gets parks fabulously right (NYC does OK), but my dream city would have good green parks with ample space for exercising, walking animals, kids playgrounds, and public concerts and events.

Community: New Orleans does this gorgeously. The city is so many different communities laid on top each other in so many fantastic formations focused on art, food, music, activism, academia.... They may not have the greatest work ethic but they do have a strong party ethic and a wonderfully unique culture that hold people together in good times and bad.

Dancing In The Street: New Orleans wins for this one with its impromptu and very fun second line culture, though Berlin comes a close second with its "Any Reason is a Good Reason to Dance in the Street" attitude. New Orleans wins for better music. :)

*to be continually updated as I travel

Top 10 Cities I Think Will Affect My Vision After I Visit Them
1) Sao Paulo
2) Barcelona
3) Tokyo
4) Hong Kong
5) Dakar
6) Johannesburg
7) Bombay
8) Stockholm
9) Istanbul
10) Chicago

What about you?

Saying Stuff Wrong

2010-06-29T11:54:00.003+02:00

As anyone who has ever lived away from home -- or, heck, even spent time in a multilingual family (both apply to me) -- knows, dealing with two different languages can get you mangling words, grammar, and complete sentence construction. Look, I am no language purist. I believe that language is a tool to convey your message, and you can use whichever words and phrases you need in order to get your point across. That said, I am a writer and an occasional English language proofreader and, as such, it still makes my eyes or ears burn when I see or hear blatant misuses of the English language. So you can only imagine how I felt during my recent visit to America, a friend pointed out to me that when I speak to the Captain, I not only take on a slight accent, but I also use funny expressions. I had been slightly aware of the modifications, but didn't know it was THAT obvious. Oh well, like I said, I guess that is one of the side effects of expatdom, and what better place to air it on this blog about my expat life. So, now, for your reading pleasure, here are

THE TOP 5 NON-WORDS AND GRAMMATICALLY INCORRECT PHRASES I NOW USE ON A REGULAR BASIS

1) "Thanks God" - Usage: "Thanks God we got here in time." Correct phrase: "Thank God"
2) "Let's go sit in the shadow." - Correct: "Let's go sit in the shade."
3) "Let's sit on the sun." - Correct: "Let's sit in the sun." (which I guess is still funny-sounding)
4) "This is very touristical." - Correct: "This is very touristic."
5) "She got a baby." - Correct: "She had a baby." (I actually rarely use this last one, because it really makes me cringe)

The last one also reminds me of a whole other list I could write of Slovenian appropriations of English words that are all totally wrong (like saying "yooohoo!" instead of "yahoo!"), but I'll save them for another day. I'm much more interested in hearing your language foibles. Do share!

Scratch That ,Slovenia

2010-06-28T11:36:00.002+02:00

Well I know I was all in favor of how humble the Slovenian players were the other day, but after watching the nervous way they played against England last week, I am going to have to sorta scratch what I said. When you are in competition, you gotta come with your game face. The field of battle is not the time to let your anxieties hang out. Slovenia certainly played hard and well, but I can't help feeling they could have done more with the right mind set. And so, I recommend that next time around Slovenia get a non-Slovenian coach.... May I present Mr. Ricky Bobby....

The Game, the Character, and My Finger on Things

2010-06-23T07:34:00.004+02:00

"The quality of England is clear. England, for me, are still a favourite to win the World Cup," he said. "But if we play our game tomorrow, I am sure we can get to the second round."

Sometimes when I am out of Slovenia, I just feel so itchy and eager to get back here. And then I am back home for a week and I am baffled as to what I so missed about the place. This morning, I read this article on BBC with reportage from a news conference with the Slovenian football team's head coach Matijaž Kek and team captain Robert Koren, and I just put my finger on it: I have become totally accustomed to and enraptured by Slovenian genuiness. I rarely deal with any jadedness or sarcasm; people generally say what they think or say nothing at all. At the core, I find the national character to be humble (sometimes too dangerously to the point of utter self-deprecation,but...), the character is such the antithesis to anywhere else I ever find myself that I find myself coming back for more (for better or worse).

If my eyes don't deceive me, that's what is reflected in the above article, and I am glad to see it magnified on the world stage. Now let's get out there and (despite the Charlie Brown jersies) get some gooooooooooooooooooooaaaaals. Gremo fantje!

Triage, No Man's Land, and The Festival of Film

2010-06-19T15:29:00.009+02:00

Way back in 2001, I was a student participant at the Telluride Film Festival (in beautiful Telluride, Colorado), and somewhere along the way I was told to go along with someone to pick up a Bosnian director by the name of Danis Tanović, who was there to screen his magnificent film No Man's Land. In the car, I made brief small talk with Tanović telling them I had just made the acquaintance of a good Slovenian friend (aka The Captain). Danis was surly and of few words and somewhat jokingly asked me what about Bosnia, and why didn't I have a Bosnian friend. I told him I'd get one. We got to our destination, I watched his incredible film, and tried to keep an eye out for something else from him. I never managed to catch any of his other films until I went to the website of our local uniplex a few weeks back and noted he had a new film and it was headed my way.

So, last night, I pedalled over to said trusty neighborhood cinema to catch Tanovic's latest, Triage. I stepped in and requested a ticket and the girl at the ticket window informed me that I'd be the only person in the theater. I guess she thought she would dissuade me from coming in and then she could round up the boys and every one could go home early. No sirree. I replied that being alone in that theater was nothing new. If I had a euro for every time I sat alone in the Radovljica Kino.... well I could at least buy myself a reasonably filling dinner. So I flipped my ticket to the ticket-taker (not sure what he's there for, but anyway) and went in to see the flick.

Triage mostly takes place in 1998 Ireland and focuses on a very skeletal young Irish war photographer played by the charming Mr. Colin Farrell (who lost like 40 some pounds for the role) who is dealing with personal strife resulting from an assignment in Kurdistan gone terribly wrong. It is at times lopsided and forced, feeling sort of more like a play than a film, but the actors (Farrell is joined by the lovely Paz Vega, the dignified though slightly unconvincing Christopher Lee, and our beloved Branko Đurić once again proving the weird film belief that former Yugo people are the right choice whenever you need an actor to be somewhat ambiguously ethnic) and the art direction somehow pull it together into a credible and compelling little story that just barely misses being cliche.

The last thing I saw Farrell in was In Bruges, another nice little film and I really admire him for challenging himself by taking these sort of projects that are doomed to fly mostly under the radar. I think he is just getting better as an actor, and I highly recommend catching Triage when it comes your way.

BTW, Danis if you're out there, I have a few Bosnian friends now. But I imagine you'd say I ought to have more. With pleasure!

Who Even KNows Where Slovenia Is?

2010-06-16T20:07:00.003+02:00

While I am of the mind that anyone who can't be bothered to go to Google Maps and find out where Slovenia is is basically a lazy cow. I am also OK with people making Slovenia the butt of these kinds of jokes, because it really isn't an insult to the country, it is more about making fun of a funny "foreign-sounding" word and it really is funny.

Grumpy in Wheelville

2010-06-12T09:05:00.006+02:00

I have oft been accused by people -- mostly those people who barely read the blog -- of being totally negative and down on this country. While I may be quite down on this country, it is with good reason, and frankly I believe there is something to be said for airing the negative perspective. And now, my belief has been backed up with cold hard science.

((via BBC News) Feeling grumpy is "good for you"

Professor Forgas said: "Whereas positive mood seems to promote creativity, flexibility, co-operation and reliance on mental shortcuts, negative moods trigger more attentive, careful thinking, paying greater attention to the external world."

The study also found that sad people were better at stating their case through written arguments, which Forgas said showed that a "mildly negative mood may actually promote a more concrete, accommodative and ultimately more successful communication style".

(click the above link to read the whole article)

So there!

German Blacks - A View Ahead

2010-06-07T10:52:00.009+02:00

"My, but you speak excellent German - flawless grammar, perfect accent. Keep up the good work!"

I just heard a great piece on BBC Radio's The Strand about the dynamic young Afro-German theater troupe Label Noir Berlin that is presenting their unique view of racism in German. The piece resonated with me while filling me with an old familiar feeling of dread. Amongst the few other black people I know here in Slovenia, all of them (including me) are very concerned about having children in this country where people are so ingnorant, insensitive, and totally unsophisticated especially when it comes to matters of race. So to hear that young native-born Afro-Germans are still struggling through people approaching them and assuming they are foreign (and thus stupid) really worries me. I look to Germany to get a sense of what Slovenia might be able to achieve in the decades to come with regards to social change and integration, and while some of what I see is promising some is just cause for dismay. Despite my hand-wringing, I must say that I am inspired by these young actors's hopefulness, humor, and perseverance considering the low level hostility from ignorant Germans and the high level terror in the face of very real threat of racist violence from white supremacists -- all remnants of vehemently racist institutional policy. While I'm still not sold on having children here, at least if I do, I can point them in the direction of Label Noir Berlin as inspiration to push the conversation about race, space and belonging even further.

"We wanted to address certain issues of identity and 'Heimat' [the German word has more gravity than 'homeland'] without any self-pity," said Lara-Sophie Milagro, artistic director of the theater production company Label Noir Berlin and a member of the cast. The disturbing encounters portrayed on stage "are things that happen to us, but they don't define our lives 24 hours a day," she said. "We're not victims."

"Theater ensemble serves up snapshots of German racism" (via Deutsche Welle online)

Hello American !

2010-06-01T17:27:00.004+02:00

In the weeks since I returned from America, I have been a bit in the doldrums and very discouraged about my life in Slovenia. This is a tough place to be a foreigner and particularly tough for a former New Yorker, who just spent a three-week vacation having a fabulous time in New York.

Today as I walked down the fair streets of Wheelville in the same spot where I met my best friend over two years ago, I saw two men rolling down the street -- one on a bike and one on a skateboard -- and I called out to the skateboarder, "Where are you from?" He immediately hopped off and told me he was from Germany and told me he was here working on a solar plane project but was, alas, leaving tomorrow. I told him I was from America and was married to a Slovenian. He told me that the head of the plane project was the man who'd sped off on the bike, Eric Raymond, and as he hopped onto his skateboard in pursuit of Mr. Raymond he instructed me to Google "solar plane" and I'd find out everything. I bid this friendly German "Schuss" and walked home. As I neared my house, I saw Mr. Raymond and yelled out "Hello American!" but he kept right on riding. I must say I've had little success with Americans in Europe, but I don't mind. They are forgiven.

So, unperturbed, I followed the friendly German's instructions and discovered the link to this fascinating project where these adventurous Americans are putting together planes that run on solar power. It is happening right here in my neighborhood in Radovljica, and I never even knew. That is somewhat encouraging, and I hope there are more things like this for me to discover, more things like this to ease my discouragement and frustration away...

Read about another blogger's visit to the Solar Flight workshop here)

The Return

2010-05-21T11:56:00.004+02:00

Sorry things have been so slow for so long. The Captain and I had a very important date.

I'm back in Wheelville and will now try to be more diligent about posting.

Greetings from the American South

2010-04-19T16:23:00.001+02:00

Wondering where I been? Well, here's a clue:

Big River Man - Martin Strel

2010-03-22T06:31:00.004+01:00

Yesterday I went to see an interesting little film, Big River Man, about one of the most incredible Slovenians to ever live, Martin Strel, endurance swimmer. To date, Martin has swum the length of the Danube, the Mississippi, the Yangtze, and most recently the Amazon. And he has done this all after the age of 45.

I must warn you that, while the film has a fascinating subject, it is deeply deeply flawed. The basic construction of the film is choppy and shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the main characters -- Martin and his son/trainer, Borut -- and instead of trying to work through that misunderstanding it decides to make a mockery of them and Slovenia and geez, almost anyone. There is almost no one in this film who doesn't come out looking like a bumbling idiot. The filmmakers asking/allowing Martin's (none too bright) son to narrate the film was also a big mistake, not only was Borut uncharismatic as a narrator, but frankly I have to say that unless a Slovenian person knows English really really well, their personalities just don't come through and they just sound robotic and well...Borat-y. I think the producers would have done well to hire a interpreter and let Martin and Borut speak Slovenian for most of the film, they probably would have talked more and said more interesting/coherent things. Most glaringly, there were such gaping narrative holes in the movie, that Strel himself would probably find it daunting to get across. That said, the reason why I still recommend Big River Man is because of the glorious images of what this story is simply about: Martin swimming.

The footage of him floating, gliding, stretching, and splashing himself down the Amazon in absolutely beautiful. While on dry land, his massive body (the result of bad food and hard drinking) moves ungracefully and somewhat aimlessly; in the water he is at home, the weight of the world -- his troubled past and uncertain future -- is lifted, and he is pure poetry, understandable in any language. Pick it up if you can, and let me know what you think!

A Black Man Takes A Hike

2010-02-22T22:09:00.005+01:00

The next time someone here displays surprise that I never took hikes or went "into nature" before I moved here, I am going to send them this video. Too funny!

Black Hiker with Blair Underwood from Blair Underwood

Carneeeeeevaaaaal!

2010-02-16T15:44:00.009+01:00

After our trip to lovely Murska Sobota, we figured that since it was carnival weekend and since we were passing through Lower Styria, we should stop in Ptuj which is the oldest city in the country (established by Celts!) and also Slovenian Carnival Central. This is the place where they have these awesome kurents (pagan characters that are meant to scare off evil spirits) and I finally got to see them in all their crazy pagan costumed glory.

The carnival was a good time like a mini Mardi Gras and it gave me hope that at least some people in this country know and want to have a good time.

Photo and video evidence follows:

Pippi Longstockings (or Pippi Langestrumpfe in German) was a popular costume

commentary on the economy and the country's (low but slightly increased) birthrate

Some commentary on last year's controversy about whether muslims could build a mosque in Ljubljana

alas carnival seems to be the time for people to really crack out the racism and on top of all the "Indians", "Jamaicans", and even "geishas" that I saw, there was this "gypsy caravan" of people with their faces painted brown. Ay yi yi. Ironically enough, just a few miles away some Roma people were actually having an international conference just a few days before. Here's to their continued struggle in the face of this kinda crap.

Love and Obstacles - the tour

2010-02-16T15:00:00.004+01:00

Ever since I read the short story Love and Obstacles by Bosnian writer, Aleksander Hemon, I've been curious to visit Murska Sobota in northeast Slovenia. So this Valentine's/Carnival weekend, The Captain and I headed up there. I really enjoyed myself walking around colorful and sadly sorta abandoned Murska Sobota and we even took a short ride over the border to Hungary where we had (of course) goulash, got shaken down for a few euros by some crossing guard lady who tried to explain stuff to us in Russian, and retreated back over the border after realizing that their language was so incredibly different from the handful that we were familiar with that we might get totally lost.

Here are some images so you get the idea.

Murska Sobota

just across the border (a 20 minute drive or so)

the goulash was eaten

we also had this dödölle (fried potatoes and onions with sour cream) which was excellent along with some yummy meat

too much decoration in hungary

more Murska - this was one of like three diferent "Bar Africa"s that I saw in this region. what gives?

alongside our hotel

Valentine's dinner at the restaurant. It was heinously bad

Murska Sobota, an aerial view

shamefully weird valentine dessert in Murska Sobota

All in all, I am grateful for the opportunity to see more of the country and I am glad I went. Thank you to all the super friendly people of Murska Sobota!

Hey Everybody It's....

2010-02-09T21:05:00.003+01:00

A Gratuitous Picture Post!

last weekend we went on a walk around Šobec...

at some point we also went to kranjska gora and watched a bit of popular Slovenian rock band Siddhartha. They are really pretty awful.

Cities and Ambition

2010-02-02T14:47:00.004+01:00

source

Most of the time when I try to talk about what frustrates me about living in Slovenia, it just comes out in a big blob of anger and resentment towards the country and its inhabitants, but that's not really what I want to say. What I really want to express is what programmer and essayist Paul Graham writes about so eloquently in his piece "Cities and Ambition".

*

An excerpt:

How much does it matter what message a city sends? Empirically, the answer seems to be: a lot. You might think that if you had enough strength of mind to do great things, you'd be able to transcend your environment. Where you live should make at most a couple percent difference. But if you look at the historical evidence, it seems to matter more than that. Most people who did great things were clumped together in a few places where that sort of thing was done at the time.

You can see how powerful cities are from something I wrote about earlier: the case of the Milanese Leonardo. Practically every fifteenth century Italian painter you've heard of was from Florence, even though Milan was just as big. People in Florence weren't genetically different, so you have to assume there was someone born in Milan with as much natural ability as Leonardo. What happened to him?
............................

No matter how determined you are, it's hard not to be influenced by the people around you. It's not so much that you do whatever a city expects of you, but that you get discouraged when no one around you cares about the same things you do.

Black and On The Sunny Side of the Alps

2010-02-01T14:28:00.005+01:00

Just "discovered" this provocative short film while cruising the 'nets. It appears they got an all-black cast to play Slovenians. The director (and local dude), Janez Burger, was trying engage Slovenian people and get a sense of how racist/tolerant people were, so he took money from the national film fund telling them he was making a "promotional movie" for the country and shot this. Too good. Gotta get my hands on it. And this picture kinda needs to be a fixture on this site.

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT (from their VERY NOISY, BE CAREFUL website)

‘ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE ALPS’ used to be the slogan of a promotion campaign of the Slovene Tourist Board, which wanted to present Slovenia in the best possible light – as a beautiful sub-alpine country, full of hospitable and friendly people. However, recent racist and xenophobic events present Slovenia in a far darker light. It is most concerning that racist and xenophobic rhetoric is being used also by political elites, but even more concerning is the fact that their populist tendencies find fertile ground which helps their political credit to grow. This film is a reaction to the increasingly bizarre situation in my country. A film about a typical Slovene family, which would never find shape if finance officials knew that this is the first Slovene black-African film.

ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE ALPS is a film about Slovenia. About a beautiful country where happiness, joy, mutual understanding and tolerance prevail. Nobody ever says anything to hurt anybody. A neighbour is always ready to help his neighbour. Birds sing merrily, red carnations blossom on balconies and there is an inviting smell coming from village kitchens. The sun always shines in this country. The sun also shines from the hearts of the people which makes this country the sunniest in the world. Even sunnier than Africa.

Speak More Now

2010-01-30T11:04:00.005+01:00

Related to language learning, but on a lighter note, I wanted to share this interesting New York Times article about language learning resources online. While there is predictably not as much in the way of Slovenian there are the big ones -- French, Italian, Spanish, and even German, so I can continue the studies I started in Berlin -- as well as a useful list of free and low-priced options.

Now to find the discipline to keep up with the courses....

The Climb

2010-01-19T17:34:00.005+01:00

For a while now, I've had this silent agreement with myself and now I think I'd better make it public so that I will have extra eyes on me, making sure I keep to it. Here it is:

I will not take a job teaching English.

Slovenia is a tough and uninviting place for a foreigner looking for a job. Just like America, if you are from south of here, the country will open its doors to you if you want to do the tough and yucky stuff, join a road crew, clean toilets, work the late shift on an assembly line.

If you are from due north of here, then you're probably coming from the home office in Vienna or Dusseldorf. A two year assignment and a cushy corner office.

If you are from anywhere else, it is a pretty tough slog. But if you come from a country with a popular language, then-- you're in luck! -- your brain and your tongue are your ticket to low waged and insecure day labor! Yes, you can be paid a couple euros an hour to better the lives of Slovenian business men and students, to watch them step on your head as they climb their career ladder, while you dangle on the bottom rungs. Yes, you!

Look, I'm sure teaching English has its charms, and for full disclosure I will say that I spent a month or two tutoring a friend in the language, so I am a bit familiar with how it goes and know it isn't the worse thing ever. But, howsabout if I just want a normal salaried job? What then?

I know of a tiny few foreigners who have normal office jobs, and while I was happy for them that they were in the right place(being married to the right people to bring them in to the organization) to get such positions, I wasn't envious because I was content to keep on freelancing while I patiently waited for my own "career" or interesting position to come around the corner. However, after two years of being here, I'm beginning to get skeptical and am starting to set my sights lower. After all this time, I'm beginning to think I'd be happy to be neatly folded into a company, with a punch card, regular payroll, water cooler chats and whatnot. Oh cruel irony, Slovenia, what I dreaded most in America has now become my greatest aspiration.

I am trying not to be bitter and hold anything against this place. I don't think the founding fathers of Slovenia ever had any lofty ideas of this country being a place where people could come from other places and make their fortune. Heck, I don't even think they want it to be a place where the natives have much of a shot at making their fortune. This is a place that lives on workplace discrimination. A place where someone at a job interview told me "It might be nice to have a black person," knowing full well I had no legal recourse.

So what's in order? Social change! How do we get it? By activism, marching in the streets, signing petitions, and maybe -- and this is where I can contribute -- by refusing to teach English.

new year, same old Wheelville

2010-01-16T08:13:00.005+01:00

fireworks at Lake Bled (taken by me)

Happy New Year to everyone, from us in Wheelville!

Things have been fairly same-y, except for the fateful visit of my mother to our fair corner of the world. It was a really lovely trip, albeit cold and snowy in parts. Here's to hoping she'll be back soon!

Bigger is Better

2009-12-21T08:26:00.005+01:00

According to a recent report, this small and (somewhat) insignificant country has shown small but not insignificant growth in the last year. The population has grown 0.8% to a whopping 2,042,335, and about 9,000 foreigners have moved to the country in the past year.

Welcome to all the new born and newcomers who contributed to the growth of this little slice of the planet. May we all make something more of this place!

The Holiday Devil

2009-12-05T12:32:00.007+01:00

So today I went to the supermarket and there were just finishing up some big children's party. As I walked out of the story I noticed several children's drawings of what appeared to be the easter bunny. I wondered why in the world they'd hang pictures of him at a time like this. I came home to find The Captain's niece and nephew gnawing on a bread version of what appeared to be the rabbit from Donnie Darko.

I neared this baked monstrosity for a closer inspection and was informed that this creature was called "Parkelj". Grandma went on to inform me that he was some bad guy who hung out with St. Nicholas (or Miklavž as he is called here) came after bad kid on St. Nicholas's holiday (which is actually today).

Internet research revealed more about this Parkelj guy who is known to our cousins the Austrians as Krampus....

Krampus is a mythical creature who accompanies Saint Nicholas in various regions of the world during the Christmas season. The word Krampus originates from the Old High German word for claw (Krampen). In the Alpine regions, Krampus is represented by a demon-like creature accompanying Saint Nicholas. Krampus acts in conjunction with Saint Nicholas; the latter gives gifts to good children, while the Krampus gives warnings and punishments to the bad children.

What...the...hell? Catholicism is wild, this shit is scarier than Freddy Krueger....and at times it's very near the line (over the line?) towards racist.

I have more questions than answers. Why would anyone let their kids accept anything from St. Nick if this is the kinda company he keeps? What in the world have I gotten myself into? This is supposed to be a jolly time of year....isn't it?

help.

Thanksgiving and Slovenian Peacekeeping Cakes

2009-11-27T10:23:00.015+01:00

the groaning table at our Thanksgiving party last Saturday

On the heels of the report of my first successful Thanksgiving here in Slovenia,* some New York friends sent along an interesting an article from the New Yorker (abstract here) by a woman who's cooked Thanksgiving in seven different countries. It was a harrowing tale, and one section especially jumped out at me:

"The worst was a dinner I put together in Södertälje, Sweden, in the fall of 1975, for the families of three Yugoslav workers from the local Saab-Scania factory. It wasn't the food that failed. My cranberry (well, lingonberry) sauce was good, and the turkey, fresh from my babysitter's boyfriend's mother's oven, across the street, even better. But my guests, as history soon showed, didn't really think of themselves as Yugoslavs. They though of themselves as Serbs, Slovenes, and Croats, and, while, they had always been agreeable and even effusive when we talked alone, they were not in the habit of breaking bread together. The conversation was, putting it nicely, strained; it flowed with the slivovitz that the men had brought, and each of them brought two bottles. They were close to brawling when the Slovenian's wife opened a box of homemade pastries -- flaky, buttery, mille-feuilles layered with thick whipped cream.** Peace returned to the kitchen table in my borrowed flat and lasted until, flushed with compliments and brandy, she smiled at the Serbs and Croats and said, "Slovenians make the best cakes."

* Super holiday party. 15 people strong. Juicy turkey, gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, and more!
**kremšnita without a doubt

Lovely London Town

2009-11-25T07:42:00.004+01:00

Last week, your fateful narrator took a lovely jaunt to the dreary but sparkling and wonderful London. It was food, friends, family, more food, and fun! Here are some images from my wanderings.

early morning Camden

massive amounts of donuts in Camden Town

(for you dad!) a weimaraner on the counter of a laundrette in Croydon

pieces of the Parthenon at the British Museum

at the Palm Tree jazz bar in Dalston where the cutest little old lady was on piano

something greasy and huge in Camden

the Lord Mayor's Parade - an old and annual tradition

a narrow London street

Camden Lock - the Horse Hospital side

celebrating my birthday at the National Gallery's cafe - two free scoops of ice cream!

a performance at Institute for Contemporary Arts

cupcakes at Old Spitalfield's Market

me under a rainbow in ASDA's car park - Mitcham, Surrey

RIP Tomaž Humar

2009-11-18T11:08:00.005+01:00

Tomaž at Kolovrateater last year (taken by me)

I came home from vacation (more on that later) last night to find that the wonderful Tomaž Humar had died. An intrepid mountainclimber from our region of the world, he had insane drive and never stopped pushing himself, even after nearly dying in the mountains of Pakistan . I was lucky enough to meet him last year at the opening of Kolovrateater when The Captain spotted him and slinked up to get a little fanboy.

Tomaž seemed remarkably laid back considering all he'd been through and accomplished. I thought after the horrors of the Pakistan experience, he'd hung up his gear, but alas that was not the case. He headed back out this year, but despite his best efforts, Tomaž didn't make it through this last climb (in Langtan Lirung in the Himalayas). Really sad, but he'll will be remembered by thousands of fans, family, and friends.

You can read more about him and his final climb here.

Warm Moments

2009-11-06T16:10:00.003+01:00

I finally got around to taking these pictures off my camera. The Captain and I got the chance to go down to Piran a few weeks ago. Ahhh, it was so warm at the beginning of October. What a difference a month makes!

a Ijubljana moment

2009-11-06T16:05:00.002+01:00

A meditative little moment a few weeks back in the tunnel from Ljubljana's Tivoli Park. The city recently "cleaned up" the graffiti in the tunnel and I'd been complaining that it felt lifeless and dull, but this guy brought a nice warm energy to the place.

The city is coming up aces these days, really growing on me!

Bosnia's War Babies

2009-10-30T08:22:00.003+01:00

photo credit

OK, OK, I know I don't live in Bosnia, but hey, it's not that far. So I've been interested in the comings and goings of Serbian war criminals from the Hague.

If you are not clear about what went on down there, I highly recommend this painful but informative BBC Radio piece called "Bosnia's War Babies". They've only presented Part 1 (so far), but it gives you a good insight into some of the horrors that were perpetuated there not so very long ago* and how difficult it will be to pursue justice when there are thousands of perpetrators walking free.

*In fact, near enough ago, that I don't understand how anyone could get out on "good behaviour".

Culture Day of Shame

2009-10-23T21:24:00.010+02:00

One of my pet slogans for this country is "Slovenia: Underachieving in our Underachievement", and today I was given just another reason why that is.

I went to a friend's house today for a little visit. Her teenage son came into the room and I asked him how school was going. He informed me that today was Cultural Day at school and they'd all gathered in a hall to watch...wait for it.....

Gran (muthaf%&#in') Torino.

If you have not seen this movie, here is a synopsis. Clint Eastwood plays Awful White Supremacist (which is, curiously enough, what he plays in real life too). A nice Asian family (Hmong, to be specific) moves next door. Awful White Racist has a negative interaction with the son of the Asian family. Awful White Racist then takes on the son as a helper and tells him and his family awful racist things. He continues to be awful and racist until someone (probably angry at the incredibly racist, infantile, and horrifically stereotypical way that people of color were depicted in this awful racist film) finally shoots him. The End.

Here is the 2 minute version of the movie

Slovenian School Systems - A Bunch of Dimwitted Underachievers Committed to Churning Out the Next Generation of Underachievement --- For You!

Nora Chipaumire in Ljubljana's City of Women

2009-10-20T13:49:00.004+02:00

On Saturday, I took my friend Pat from Zimbabwe into Ljubljana to see a dancer from Zimbabwe. The performance was a shortened lower-fi version of Nora Chipaumire's Chimurenga.I thought it was a little too short, but The Captain thought that 30 minutes was all he could handle. Pat found it very moving, as did I.

Anyway, we met up with Nora (who was gorgeous) afterwards and then this other guy from Zimbabwe showed up and there was this impromptu Zimbabwean lovefest and Pat was teary-eyed since she hadn't seen any other Zimbabweans since she had to flee the country (and landed in Radovljica) a few years back.

Thanks to Mesto Žensk (City of Women) for organizing the event and facilitating the Zimbabwean expat lovefest.

Nora again, because...why not?

Family Ties

2009-10-16T07:48:00.006+02:00

Go over to Pengovsky's place for a really great and informative post of the exciting new proposed changes to the Slovenian Family Code. Fingers crossed it goes through and gives me one more thing to make me feel proud of this place (despite its shortcomings).

The Danger of A Single Story

2009-10-10T08:25:00.004+02:00

In response to this, but also something to keep in mind when reading this blog.

Thanks for posting this Whitney!

Starck in Slovenia

2009-10-09T20:30:00.004+02:00

When I saw world-renowned industrial designer Philippe Starck on the local news the other day, I had to do a double and triple take. What was he doing in Slovenia carousing with Slovenian people? Save for a few bright outliers whom I hold very dear, Slovenia is, sadly, the home of much drab and uninspired design. BUT I guess that will soon change, since Starck, the high-king of all things design, recently announced a partnership with Riko, a company famed for...wait for it, wait for it....pre-fab houses.

Turns out Le Starck is working on environmental and stylish pre-fab houses with the company, and I, for one, would gladly get in line to cop one.

I'll let you know when we get it delivered, and you can swing by and see us here in stylish Slovenia!

Read more about the partnership here.

See his TEDtalk below.

The Gaze Or "On Becoming Something The Natives Must 'Get Used To'"

2009-10-05T11:49:00.006+02:00

I am trying to formulate some thoughts on something. Some intelligent way to put this.

Some days I don't want to go out at all because I don't want to be looked at. No, well, some days I don't want to go out because I don't want to be gawked at, glared at, so obviously and disrespectfully remarked upon.

When people say they are not racist, I wonder if they know what that means and how they can be so certain of what their gaze says. What it means for their face to turn towards mine, for their eyes to run over my face and my being, with a look of curiosity, annoyance, even disinterest. Those things mean something, those things can sometimes mean the difference between going to the supermarket today or putting it off until tomorrow.

I am amazed how people here will stare, intently like children. When I stare back they just carry on staring, utterly shamelessly, until their eye is finally distracted by some other concern. My eye contact has gotten immeasurably better, steadier, because of this.

The other day my friend, a gorgeous young African girl, told me she went to the doctor's office here, and the doctor walked into the examining room and exclaimed "My God!You are SO DARK!"

Those things, the big and little things, that little line, that mark in the sand, where on one side lies ease, and on the other side sits troubling discomfort.

In Solidarity

2009-09-25T07:52:00.003+02:00

members of Afro Plus in Moscow

When I went home the first Christmas after moving to Slovenia, a family member came up to me at a holiday party and beckoned for me to "say something in Russian", when I told him I didn't live in Russia, he just laughed. Throughout the night, many people came up to me to "ask me about Russia", and I still come across people (old friends who find me on Facebook, long lost family members) who seem to think I live in Russia or thereabouts. In many people's estimations any country ending in "ia"=Slavic=Balkan=Eastern European= somehow Russian. While I won't deny that there certainly must exist some vague Slavic similarities between Russians and Slovenians, this ain't the same place and it's nowhere near it.

And after reading this article, I couldn't be happier.

(BBC) Africans Under Siege in Moscow: Nearly 60% of black and African people living in Russia's capital Moscow have been physically assaulted in racially motivated attacks, says a new study.

While Obama is busy making buddy with Medvyedev, scores of black folks on Moscow streets are looking over their shoulder every two seconds in fear. It's horribly ironic.

All this is not to say that Slovenia is perfect on this front, it certainly isn't but I feel more than safe walking down the streets, and pray that one day soon black people in Russia will be able to say the same.

Of All The Bad Ideas...

2009-09-25T07:32:00.006+02:00

Yesterday night, I was walking through the center of Ljubljana when I came across UNICEF's latest campaign, "Help Get Rwandan Kids off the street". The first image I saw was a big sticker over a bus shelter which featured the slogan up top and then a "Rwandan person" laying down writhing in pain at the bottom. I thought "Hey, this is dumb" and then walked off.

When I walked a little further I came upon this little fella.

A cardboard cutout of a Rwandan boy supposedly called "Eric".

The street ahead was filled with these young'uns. It was beyond bizarre.

I even saw a stack of back up "kids" laying in a side alley in case the originals got vandalized or someone decided to go Madonna with one.

They weren't joking when they said "get them off the street". The direct implication being, "You, nice white person, give us some money and we'll get these black kids out of your way."

I am annoyed by this on two fronts, first the idea that the black presence on Slovenian streets is posited in this way -- some sad, dirty, unfortunate character who needs handouts from white Europeans. Secondly, considering there are almost no black people in this country and many Slovenians can't help but stare and isolate the black people they do see, I can't imagine this ploy working. As a matter of fact, I think it far more likely that the cardboard kids will get tired of being gawked at and having their hair touched and just up and walk away...

mountain retreat

2009-09-18T08:42:00.000+02:00

oasis at Jezersko

composed

2009-09-17T08:43:00.000+02:00

window box - Jezersko

Madonna

2009-09-16T08:45:00.000+02:00

well-composed Madonna in Podčetertek

Caffeinated

2009-09-15T08:47:00.001+02:00

The Captain got an espresso and then another espresso. From our weekend at the spa in Podčetertek.

Klein aber mein

2009-09-08T09:46:00.006+02:00

There was a nice little interview with Slovenian film director, lecturer (at the very cool new private art academy here called AVA) , and blogger Andrej Košak in D magazine of Sunday's Delo newspaper (their decent attempt at producing a Slovenian version of the NY Times magazine).

Košak was the director of popular Slovenian film Outsider, and he splits his time between Berlin and Ljubljana. He comes off as a really cool guy in this interview (tell him to call me for a coffee some time!), and I think he has some very illuminating thoughts on president-day Slovenia .

Here are some of my favorite excerpts from the interview (wonky translations by yours truly)

a screenshot from Outsider (which I guess I should now watch)

Berlin in three Slovenian words?
Velik, odrpt, multikulturen (Big, open, multicultural)

Ljubljana in three German words?
Klein, aber mein (Small, but mine)

Do we Slovenians know how to enjoy ourselves?
Slovenians are not wild partiers, but then we always go away with the feeling that we haven't gotten our money's worth. I adore the French, whose lives revolve around good food, sex, and art.

How do you enjoy yourself?
In work. When I am working, I feel like I am living one-hundred percent. Otherwise, I consider the French prescription: good food, sex, and art.

What sort of prime time program does Slovenia need?
A program that would cultivate Slovenians, let them know what is happening in art around the world.

Politics is....
interesting to talk about, but best to stay out of. I am a big adherent to the idea that the the amount of politics on television should be reduced to a reasonable limit. In Slovenia from 6pm to 11pm, television is dominated just by politics. This doesn't happen anywhere else in the world, even during socialism it was much less.

Three things that were better during former-Yugoslavia?
Ljubljana, Zagreb, and Belgrade in the eighties. Great people and seriously big artists (goes on to name a massive list of artists and events)

Three things that are not worthy of Yugo-nostalgia?
The Yugoslav army, rizi-bizi, and Zvečevo cognac.

Haiku du jour, s'il vous plait....
Life is a bitch, a way too short.
(note: this part was already in English. I think it should say "but way too short", but I can't be sure)

Why I Never Have Anything to Post About

2009-09-06T09:30:00.005+02:00

75% of the conversations I have these days

Slovenian Person (usually a woman, men don't talk to me as often): How long have you been here?
Me: Almost two years.
SP: You speak the language very well.
Me: Thanks.
SP: Slovenian is a very tough language.
Me. Yes. Yes it is.

I feel like I should just make up some cards with this on it and give them to people. I think the flipside of the card should say,"In the rare event that you'd like to continue this conversation, I'll be just over there, smashing my head against the wall."

August 31st - International Day of the Disappeared

2009-08-31T08:26:00.001+02:00

photo info

(via B92 blog) SARAJEVO -- The International Committee of the Red Cross data shows that 15,655 people are still listed as missing from the Yugoslav wars in the 1990s.

The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), based in Bosnia, said on the occasion of International Day of Disappeared marked this Sunday, that 40,000 people are estimated to have disappeared in the wars in former Yugoslavia, 30,000 of those in Bosnia.

This organization also said that its data showed there are between 8,000 and 10,000 unsolved cases there, and 12,000-14,000 in the region.

"On International Day of Disappeared it is important to stress that the problem of the missing, and the human suffering accompanying, it is a universal problem of human rights," said ICMP chief Catherine Bomberger.

All Quiet on the Whelville Front

2009-08-28T09:06:00.004+02:00

Mariachi setting in Ljubljana

Sorry I haven't been posting much. There really just hasn't been a heck of a lot going on. Or maybe I haven't been thinking much about the things that have been going on.

I've been working a little and putting more time into driving since I STILL am shaky on the whole enterprise. These days, I am actually eager for my lessons (The Captain has now taken the helm as my instructor), and I can see my goals coming slowly but surely into view. This time, I am gonna stick with it until I get there.

I recently had a new (but good) friend come to visit me from Berlin and it got me thinking about a lot of things. We had a lot of good and interesting (and sometimes hilarious!) chats and we really just connected. One day, we were in a cafe and a couple in hilariously awful outfits strolled up, and she and I just looked at each other and started cracking up laughing. It was wonderful. I don't have that connection with any of my friends here. That's the good stuff, the stuff that I hope will come in time....

Since my friend and I are both Americans who are living the expat life at the moment, talks and thoughts did tend to focus on that. While some expats are here in Europe with a definite expiration date, a clear feeling that they want to live in America, yearly trips back home. I don't have that feeling, I don't have that urge. I even mentioned to my friend that I think that when I have kids, I'd like to send them to Ghana on a regular basis so they can learn the language and be familiar with family and culture. She asked how it would work being "tricultural" and I told her that I think I'd just cut the American part out a bit; meaning I probably just wouldn't be taking them or sending them to America much. I was trying to think about why. Am I denying some part of myself? Am I harboring some sort of chauvinistic animosity towards the US? I don't think it is any of that. I think I am fairhanded toward the country, it has definite plusses and minuses as any other. It's definitely a neat place, it's the country with places that I know best. It's the country where , when I speak, I am best understood. I will always be plenty American and pass that along to any kids I might have, since that is what I am and the only thing I can honestly bring to the table culture-wise. I guess there is some idea that I could equip any children I might have with things that would help them combat that Non-Belonging feeling that I've grappled with so much. Maybe Non-Belonging is sometimes just part of the human condition?

I haven't formed any one real coherent thought to express what I am thinking, what might be the reason, but here are a couple thoughts:

One idea surrounds around the fact that, as a black person, I kinda feel more or less uncomfortable everywhere.

I miss my family and friends, but they are not necessarily centrally-located in one American city or anything.

I do miss shopping and cultural events and bookstores and certain foods, but I am unsure whether that all is worth building a life around.

There is also the fact, that I don't think I was very successful at America. I am not sitting on top of the world here in Slovenia, but I think I am doing considerably better.

So, I don't know what the truth of the matter is -- probably a little from column A and a little from column B. Do you have similar or divergent thoughts about your expat experience? Hey Mom!! You are an expat, any thoughts? Do share!

Moving Up

2009-08-12T19:14:00.005+02:00

On a slightly off note, I just wanted to congratulate my lovely Aunt Genevieve who was recently named Ghana's new ambassador to France.

As they say in Ghana, ayekooooooooooooooooooo! (means something like "well done", but better).

Speaking In Tongues

2009-08-04T12:20:00.004+02:00

A friend turned me in to this New York Public Library lecture by one of my favorite writers Zadie Smith, on the topic of speaking in many ways and having many voices in your ear. It is complex and thoughtful, moving from Shakespeare to Little Wayne to Obama to Pygmalion to Eliza Doolittle.

Listen if you have a moment.

Summer

2009-07-23T10:07:00.004+02:00

We've not yet been to the seaside, but we've been enjoying summer nonetheless. Here are some images.

David Byrne!!

2009-07-14T09:55:00.004+02:00

On Friday, I had the distinct pleasure of getting to see David Byrne live in concert here in Ljubljana.

There was a lot of back and forth about whether I was gonna go and it really came down to a few hours before the concert where I was racing out the door and to the ticket counter, but it was WELL worth it. David Byrne is one of my favorite artists and people (see his blog here) of all time and has been a big influence on me. It was an honor and a pleasure to see him in concert and I promise I will never hesitate on something like that again. My face was hurting from smiling and cheering. Bravo!

Here is some footage from Belgrade

and another from Vermont

Down in Dolenjska

2009-07-07T10:52:00.003+02:00

I went down to see a friend in Dolenjska (reminder:I live in the northwest corner of the country) about a week or so ago. Here are some images.

scarecrow

Letter to the Bosses #1: Poletje promet je

2009-07-06T10:02:00.002+02:00

Dear People Who Run Slovenia,

Now is the time of year when the common greeting of "Hey, how ya doing?" gets dropped and is replaced with "When are you going to the seaside?" Considering this annual inevitability results in so many tens of thousands of your fair citizens (as well as tourists passing through) burning loads of gas and clogging up the roadways, I humbly suggest that you please start organizing some more environmentally friendly alternatives.

How much trouble would it be to run some regular trains and busses down that-a-way? You could offer tickets at a family-friendly (and maybe slightly recession-friendly) price and let people leave their gas guzzlers at home. Not only would it be environmentally-friendly but wouldn't it give a national sense of pulling together for the good of all? I think so!

I hope you consider my proposal.

Until next time, I remain, your humble resident,
Camille Acey of Wheelville

Jose James

2009-07-04T22:30:00.004+02:00

Late last night, The Captain and I had the distinct pleasure of going to see my favorite singer, Jose James, live at Klub CD (which is a kindy sucky space, but....) in Cankarjev dom in Ljubljana* . The show was magical from beginning to end. I tried to take photos but my hands were trembling from the good vibes. So, instead, I'll post this video of Jose from last year with the (also fantastic) Soil & Pimp Sessions from Japan.

Support this man. Buy his music. Go to his shows.

*"In my opinion, the greatest gift to Slovenian art would be -- and here comes my terrorist side --to place a giant bomb under Cankarjev dom, while all the cultural workers are gathered there." - Slavoj Žižek

Happy Independence Day- Amurrkah

2009-07-04T12:55:00.000+02:00

Happy Independence Day to all my American readers. Be careful with those fireworks, now!

So Magnetic

2009-07-02T10:32:00.002+02:00

The other day I went with to visit my friend at her family farm in Dolenjska (lovely photos to come soon!), and I saw this magnet on the fridge and figured it needed to be shared with the world because...'what the hell?'

Booked!

2009-07-01T07:39:00.001+02:00

A great find from the local used bookstore here in Radovljica

One of the greatest pains of being an expat here in Slovenia is that I have a very difficult time getting my hands on books. Before coming here, I was a passionate patron of the very fantastic New York Public Library and I have always been an avid reader.My father is also a voracious reader and (former?) book collector who raised me with a fine appreciation for used bookstores and the dusty-smell of an old edition. In fact, my first job was at a library, and I've actually worked at six libraries all together.

So, when I finally decided to move here "for good" I had to very tearfully say goodbye to a great many of my books at my old flat in Brooklyn. These days I am not only scrambling around for my next read, I am also often scrambling for a place to be around old books. Luckily, we have such a place here in Radovljica and I have found quite a few special finds (see the one above) in both Slovenian and English.

Luckily I just came across this fantastic site, Bookstore Guide, which features reviews of great bookstores across Europe. After checking that it had my favorite place in Berlin (and probably one of my fave places in the world!), Another Country bookstore, I knew the site was legit. Of the three stores they mention in Ljubljana, I've been to two and will soon be checking out the third, looking for my next fix.

Steering My Life

2009-06-30T09:00:00.004+02:00

Since coming back from Berlin, I've been very frustrated with Slovenia and Slovenian people for all myriad of valid and invalid reasons.

I am having a breakthrough here now. A breakthrough that I've had many times before in other situations, but always forget to re-apply:

You get out what you put in.

I need to open myself up to this place more. I am not sure what that is going to mean, but I hope that putting that intention out there will make it more clear.

What you plug into your inner GPS is where you will arrive in your life.
- Ian Lawton

I'll keep you posted!

Andrea Lee: Today's Summer Reading, Tomorrow's Lifestyle?

2009-06-27T20:09:00.005+02:00

Andrea looking gorgeous, probably in some fabulous villa

A friend recently told me about the Black American expat writer, Andrea Lee, who moved first to Moscow many years ago and now lives in Torino, Italy where she is married to an Italian count(!). She has written a number of books (both fiction and non-fiction, which seem to range from classy to trashy) about expat women, and she has also been a contributing writer at places such as New York Times and Vogue. My friend told me that this might be something for me to aspire to and it all sounds good to me!

Check out this interview with her here on NPR, while I hunt down her books for some good summer reading and a little inspiration.

Happy Indendence Slovak --erm, I mean Slovenia

2009-06-25T08:52:00.003+02:00

Happy Dan Državnosti (I'm sure Pengovsky has a suitable explanation over here).

But, Slovenia, now is the time for the real hard work!

This Way In

2009-06-17T20:58:00.003+02:00

"Top ten emerging markets - A.T. Kearney

According to the latest Global Retail Development Index from management consultants A.T. Kearney, the economic downturn has made emerging markets increasingly relevant to global retailers."

I read this on the Just-Food Daily Food News feed yesterday and thought to myself "Wouldn't it be great if Slovenia was in that top 10?" Then I shrugged it off, thinking there was just no way.

But today, something dragged me over to have a glance at the report and LO and BEHOLD, there is Slovenia at number 9. While I don't want the country to turn into an awful free-for-all, I can only hope that this means that Ben & Jerry's pints, foreign language bookstores, reasonably priced eyeglass retailers, better stocked grocery stores, and more cheap (but good) clothing outlets are on their way.

I am happy to oversee any Gorenjska branches.

P.S. I am no snobby expat. I am American, see me shop!

Being Back

2009-06-16T12:21:00.005+02:00

I'm slowly getting used to being back in the wilderness.
We had some friends visit this weekend. It made me re-appreciate the place.

wild strawberry picking at draga

at Peričnik Waterfall

don't i look super fit here? he he

at Vrata

at Mostnice

at Vrata

Peričnik

at Bohinj

Berlin Diary #Final (for now): Wheelville Guide to Berlin

2009-06-10T14:50:00.011+02:00

For your travelling pleasure (and so I don't forget), I'm posting a guide to my absolute favorite places in Berlin. I will keep updating as I remember stuff.

Books
Another Country - Riemanstr. 7 (Kreuzberg -U7 to Gneisenaustr or U6-7 to Mehringdamm)
It's kinda the best place in the world ever. Do go there for Friday night dinner party, yum!
Motto - (Kreuzberg - U1 to Gorlitzer Banhof) actually more of a magazine shop. but full of interesting reads

Clothes
Garage - clothes by the kilo, Ahornstr. 2 (U1-4 to Nollendorf)
Mauer Park Flohmarkt(Prenzlauerberg, U8 to Bernauer)
Razzo's Second Hand, Sybelstraße 25 (Charlottenburg, S to Charlottenburg, U7 to Adenauerplatz), also just wander around this hood it is FULL of second hand shops
Think Shoes, Kantstr. (Charlottenburg, U7 to Wilmersdorf or S to Charlottenburg)
Vamp Star - Schwedterstr. 22 ( -Prenzlauerberg) - run by real cool Japanese dudes with great designs for a good price. they also have a booth at Mauer Park every Sunday
Second Hemd, super cheap- Prinzenallee at Bellermanstr. (Wedding - U8 to Pankstr.)

Culture
Circle Culture gallery - Gipstr 11 (U8 to Weinmeister)
Festsaal Kreuzberg (Kreuzberg - U8 or U1 to Kottbusser Tor)
Haus der Kulturen der Welt (Mitte, S1,2,25 to Unter den Linden then M100 through Tiergarten)
Maxim Gorki Theater - Am Festungsgraben 2 (Mitte)

Food & Drink
Anchor, nice little bar on Kottbusser Damm (Kreuzberg - U1/U8 to Kottbusser Tor)
Cafe do Brasil, brasilian (Kreuzberg - U7 to Mehringdamm) super yummy buffet!
Ho Vang, fantastic vietnamese (Mitte - U2 to Rosa Luxembourg Platz)
Hotel, nice little bar - Marianenstrasse 26 (Kreuzberg - U1/U8 to Kottbusser Tor)
La Femme - multiple locations in Wedding and Kreuzberg, good brunch!
Mustafas Gemuse Kebab, killer chicken and veg doeners right outside the station (U7 to Mehringdamm)
Pagode, thai - Bergmanstr. (Kreuzberg -U1 to Gneisenaustr or U7 to Mehringdamm)
Pasternak, great Russian brunch buffet on Sundays, Knaackstrasse 22-24 (Prenzlauerberg - U2 to Senefelder)
Room 77, burgers and nachos - Griefstr. 77 (Kreuzberg -U8 to Schonleinstr.)
Vor Wien , nice bar/venue, Skalitzer 44 (Kreuzberg, U1, U8 to Kottbusser Tor)
White Trash Fast Food , good American food, Torstr. 201(Prenzlauerberg - U8 Rosenthaler Platz)

Gifts/Shopping
Alte Schoenhauser Allee - The whole street is worth a look, in fact roll down Neue Schoenhauser Alle when you're done (Mitte, U2 Rosa Luxembourg, U8 to Weinmeisterstr.)
Butlers - Hackescher Markt (S to Hackescher, U8 to Weinmeisterstr.)
Harry Lehmann perfume shop, Kantstr. 106 (Charlottenburg, U7 to Wilmersdorf or S to Charlottenburg)
KaDeWe (Kaufhaus des Westens), famous old department store, it's all about the upstairs food hall!, (U1-3 to Wittenbergplatz)
O.K. , cool kitschy tchotchkes from around the world- Alte Schonhauser Allee (Mitte, U2 Rosa Luxembourg, U8 to Weinmeisterstr.)
Rossman - various locations, they have great cosmetics and other little nice things to give as gifts

Sites
Berlin Zoo
Brandenburg Gate
Hauptbanhof
Humboldthain Park
Hackeshcher Hohe/Markt
Mauer Park
Potsdamer Platz
Tiergarten
Treptower Park

Things I Wanna Do/See Next Time
Badeschiff
Berlin Unterwelten (Berlin Underworlds, tunnels under the city!) tour
Cocolo Ramen - Gipstrasse 3 (U8 to Weinmeister) - I passed by this place and even through the closed fence, I could smell them making the noodles from scratch!
Ha My restaurant
Helmut Newton Museum
La Scala
Panorama Bar
Rock Cafe Halford (U5 to Frankfurter Allee)
The Shy Chef
Soylent Bar - Friedrichshain (U1, S to Warschauer)
Stasi Museum
Tacheles
more galleries in general
more flea markets
more music, shows, dancing!

Useful Online Resources
bvg.de
exberliner.net
iheartberlin.de
berlin.unlike.net

Overrated Things
Curry 36 and currywurst in general (it's disgusting!)
Ku'Damm shopping area (they have the same shops all over town with less crowds)
Monsieur Vuong, vietnamese restaurant

Real Cool Slovenia

2009-06-10T09:49:00.003+02:00

+

+

+

=

No sooner do I get home then I discover that not only is my favorite singer Jose James coming to Ljubljana but so are Sinead O'Connor and David frikkin Byrne!

My dear lord. What is going on? I am not sure, but you won't catch me complaining. Just off to queue up and spend all my money on tickets!

Update: I also see that CocoRosie, Royskopp, Morcheeba, and Medeski, Martin & Wood are on their way. Welcome, welcome all!

Berlin Diary Number 10: Berlin in My Bones

2009-06-10T08:27:00.011+02:00

I think the thing about being anywhere for a month is that you have, at once, the feeling that it is gonna go on forever while at the same time the superego reminder that your time is running short and that you cannot plant roots. Favorite haunts are filed away as travel tips for others, the maps in your head, the ways you learned to burn your trail through the place will quite possibly have to be relearned when you return. Your last days become frantic dashes to reconnect for one last time with the people and places you liked the best, but you can never get to them all and you know it. And so I was in Ostbanhof station on Sunday morning, having parted ways with the last of my Berlin last-nighter all-nighter buddies (who were heading out to a disco at 6am), thinking about meeting up with one last friend at a bar a few stops away, when my body just said no, when I realized I had to let go, pack my bags, and catch my flight.

Sloshing through rainy Berlin streets to the shuttle to Schoenfeld unto checking in my overstuffed luggage. Catnapping in the terminal and then up, up, and away.

The Captain was at the airport to get me and drive me the rest of the way home. His face was like a dream. I couldn't remember all the contours, I just thought "WOW, who is this hot guy picking me up at the aiport? Lucky me." But then we talked and joked, and I remembered the tones and the Familiar and the sun was shining (ahh, sunshine) and we drove and drove and then I was HOME.

Upon arising from my first night back in my own bed (ahhh), my heart lept because I was right where I wanted to be. But as the morning turned into afternoon and I plowed through my luggage explosion, I couldn't help but sidle over to my computer and type in a quick cheeky search:

"cheap flights berlin"

Details filed away in my brain. I will undoubtedly be back, and back, but soon.

Here are some pics from my last few days in beautiful Berlin.

on Bergmanstrasse

my trip to KaDeWe

last day with friends from German class

at a dentist's office on Kottbusser Damm

at my local U-bahn station

last day with friends from German class, aw memories!

My super cool classmate (he's a brotha from Philly) made fried chicken for my last day. It was FANTASTIC!

last brunch - La Femme on Badstrasse

last dog walk

Humboldthain Park

Humboldthain Park - Rose garden

i dashed to Harry Lehmann perfumerie for last minute gifts

beautiful shop

at Ostbanhof - 5.30 am, full of party people

Berlin Diary Nummer Neun: Carneeeeval!

2009-06-05T08:22:00.003+02:00

Some people are lucky enough to go one carnival in their lives. I've already been to two this year. The first was in Venice, and the second was last weekend here in Berlin. Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to attend the four-day dancing in the street debauchery of Karneval der Kulturens. It was parades and bands and music and of course tons of drinking and bootyshaking in the streets of Kreuzberg in the name of multi-cultism.

Here are some images and video!

Trendy Slovenia

2009-06-03T09:11:00.003+02:00

Soncna Hiša

Just a sidenote: Yet another article in the NY Times about Slovenia. This time on trendy (and expensive!) boutique hotels. Check it out here!

Berlin Diary #8: Dancing for the Revolution

2009-06-03T08:43:00.007+02:00

So desperately missing my Southern Slavic peoples, on Saturday, I tried to go see this Yugo New Wave event at Maxim Gorki Theater. Infortunately, I arrived late and was turned away by one of the ushers who said "Sorry, you know we're German. You're ten minutes late."

So Sunday morning, I arrived a full half hour early to see (and finally meet in person!) my esteemed colleague and all around cool-dude, Janez Janša, in discussion with Anton Cramer about the history of Eastern (Communist, Socialist) dance and the questions of what and how to preserve and what that preservation might look like. I brought my new friend Jenny along and she actually got to jump on stage for a quick demonstration of contact improvisation.

A good time was had by all, and talking to Janez reminded me of how much I am ready to go back home!!

Berlin Diary Number Seven: Tasty Cake for Shruggers

2009-05-30T12:55:00.007+02:00

When I first moved to Slovenia, I was determined for the country to get "on the map". Almost every person I spoke to was completely baffled about Slovenia, they had no idea where it was, what language was spoken, or why I would want to live there. I was frustrated and angry, but when I shared this with Slovenian people they just shrugged. I couldn't get it....until now.

Being here in Berlin has made me realize what a burden it can be when people know about you. I walk down streets and sometimes hear more American accents than German ones, and frankly the quality of people that gravitate here to live runs the gamut from genius to the other dredges. I adore Berlin, but I feel like a person could live here for a long time and barely get any sense that they were in Germany. I also am getting rather agitated by the lack of actual WORK (i've scarcely met anyone with an actual job) that seems to be getting done here...Oh and the congestion and the pretenstion and I don't even wanna mention what a bother the tourists can be....

So, the other day it just clicked for me.

Who cares if no one knows where Slovenia is? Not I! There is so much just purely special about the country that anyone who dared to care would and could know about it. I am happy to live in a mysterious land that only more discerning people can find on a map.

Slovenia is like a wildly tasty cake; while we who live there are willing to share, if you don't know about it or do know and don't want a slice, then it just leaves more for those of us with good taste!

Dober tek!

Berlin Diary Number Six: It's Some Pics!

2009-05-27T16:05:00.002+02:00

Here are some newer images from here.

he insisted on this photo

Berlin Diary Entry Number Five: An Apology

2009-05-25T01:44:00.004+02:00

I woke up about an hour ago because I heard some commotion outside the window. Emerging from my lair, I began to to see emergency lights and smell burning rubber. The dog and I drifted outside where we saw firemen hosing off the last bit of a car on the sidewalk in front of the building two doors down. Needless to say, the car was burnt to a crisp. Berlin is crazy.

Anyway, sorry I haven't posted. I haven't been neglecting the blog. I've been collecting material.

Last night on the way back home from a punk concert, I saw a group of young men walking a baby lamb down the street and laughing their heads off. I wondered where they could get a live lamb. In the city. At such an hour. Then I went home and drifted to bed. I think this place is kinda crazier than New York.

OK, well I have more to report....but not right now.
But soon.
I promise.

If you need more to read, here is a NY Times blog post about how "Slovenians like to party".
The post doesn't even have the dignity to be in the fiction section*.

*Please note: if you are a Ljubljanacan/ka, who wants to write in and argue with me that Ljubljana is indeed a legitimate party town, please ensure that you have been and partied in three or more of the following cities first, then we can talk:

London
Berlin
New York
Los Angeles

I'll even accept Belgrade since I've heard (and believe) that they truly know how to party there.

Berlin Diary Entry Number Four: An American Hairwolf in Berlin

2009-05-14T11:29:00.001+02:00

The other day as I was noodling around a memorial at Potsdamer Platz set up with a few old slabs from the Berlin Wall, I ran into a group of Polish tourists (cue Polish jokes here). One of the women gestured at me with her camera and I went to grab it thinking she wanted me to take a picture of she and her friend, but noooo. She wanted me to take a picture where I was standing with her and a friend. Apparently despite standing there in Berlin with an authentic piece of Berlin history, taking a picture with me would be a greater reflection to everyone back home that they'd actually been somewheres. I explained to them in the "Pan Slavic dialect" of just yelling out simple words in Slovenian til I saw some recognition in their eyes and explained that I didn't live in Berlin, but it didn't matter to them. Another one went in and grabbed a handful of my hair and her friend leaned in to snap one more photo for the road.

They were right on the money by picking me. I am impervious to stupidity. I just use it for blog fodder.

Berlin Diary Entry 3: Coming Through

2009-05-13T22:57:00.002+02:00

Another reason why Berlin is great is because people pass through here. I have overlapped with so many people coming from Western Europe, leaving back to the states, here and there. They fly into my life and then back out, but I am the better for all those long or short encounters. Sadly the trade winds almost never blow through Slovenia. I am hoping my being in Slovenia will produce an adequate magnetic force to pull more interesting and fun people from around the world in and around...I need them, Slovenia needs them.

Here are some of my latest photos.

Hackescher Markt

Weinmeister Strasse

beautiful food at the Brazilian restaurant

the place to go for the best of the wurst (curry wurst is wretched, one of the worst things to ever cross my lips)

Charlottenburg is garden-y and bourgeois. Like the Park Slope of Berlin

a mysterious installation at rosa luxembourg platz

international vat of mystery at the Kreukolln Turkish market

it's been coming up fluffy Simpsons clouds like every day

quite possibly the best doner in town. yum!

this is criminal

Potsdamer Platz

P.S. In an effort to minimize my tinges of homesickness, I've been listening to Radio Student all morning. Thank God for internet radio!

P.P.S. This place is incredible but I kinda feel like my eyes and brain need a break. Trying to cultivate a napping habit.

Berlin Diary Entry Number Two: Karma Chameleon

2009-05-11T10:06:00.003+02:00

Of all the nicknames I had as a child, Berlin is really bringing one to mind: chameleon.

The other day a friend was in town and I met up with him and gave him a tour of a few neighborhoods I'd visited. We also went to lunch where -- despite any formal German training -- I was able to order my meal in German. As we were padding through Kreuzberg, my friend exclaimed, "It's like you live here!" and in fact he couldn't believe this was my first visit and that I'd only been here about a week. I don't know what it is when words, languages, directions, geographies come to you fast and easy. Is it absorption? Adaptability? Confidence? I'm not certain. What I do know is that I am done being modest about this talent.

While I may not speak Slovenian perfectly (and honestly, who does?), I think I can confidently navigate through situations I find myself in in Slovenian (and Slovenia), and this is only after about a year and a half and only one week of formal education in the (very difficult) language. So, yes, I admit I have a knack for these things. That said, today, I start my first day of German language instruction. It will be a month-long course and I am setting my sights high. I have a strength and a willingness, and there is no reason why I can't be an ace number-one casual German conversationalist by the end of this month. No more denials of what I'm good at, now I'm shooting for the stars*!

*Sidenote: Star Trek movie was AWESOME. A+++

Berlin Diary #1: Berlin So Far

2009-05-09T07:12:00.004+02:00

So, as previously mentioned, The Captain drove me up here and we got to hang out for a few days before the fleet called him back. We first went to the zoo, and then we wandered. The zoo was a mix of joy and sadness. I hadn't been to the zoo in probably 20 years, and while it was great to be so near to these animals it was also saddening to see their prison conditions. Maybe I'll just stick to seeing animals on safaris and stuff....

Anyway, here are some images from our trek through the wilds of Berlin.

I got to go on a tour of a massive, state-supported artist workshop. Berlin loves the arts!

then i got to eat lovely food that i'd helped cook

little me, big tv tower

museum island

lots of great street markets here!

Brandenburg Gate

May Day rally

Potsdamer Platz

as you can tell, the Captain likes these low angle shots

Lego World!

Kreuzberg

selecting a tasty thai dish at Pagode in Kreuzberg

Obama and German Spiderman in Kreuzberg (Spidey is asking if can get his face on a US banknote since he put Obama's face on the comic book cover)

this was organized by one of my new friends

i went to one of the last days of the exhibition

and to the reading of conceptual writers. this guy Robert Fitterman was great, you can read part of one of his pieces here. very good!

The Captain and I having the worst burgers ever

So far, Berlin gets two exuberant thumbs up from me, and I wish the people who ran Slovenia would come here and take detailed notes.

Berlin Diary: Entry Number Zero Point Two

2009-05-07T14:02:00.003+02:00

Here are a few images from the hour or so we spent in gorgeous Dresden.

I had a brief run-in with a gang of living statues where they tried to shake me down for undeserved Euros, but otherwise the trip was lovely and uneventful. Dresden, like Munich, has an oddly sterile feel to it, since it is almost entirely new (having been famously bombed to bits during the war), but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

these people were doing an anthropological excavation.

the aforementioned gang

first wurst of the trip!

Berlin Diary: Entry Number Zero Point One

2009-05-06T16:59:00.000+02:00

So I'm here in Berlin. Geez, where to start? That 's the question here every morning. So much to see, do, smell, taste! I'm overwhelmed by the choices. So I better start at the pre-beginning: the journey here.

My trusty Captain was kind enough to drive me up to Berlin and that ride included a two day stay in Prague and then a brief hour trek through Dresden. Here are a few images from those days, with captions.

Prague to the left. Jesenice to the right?

lots of places were being slowly restored

apple bacon knedl, duck, cabbage - yum

your trusty guide

we went and saw my friend Lawrence's play

It was a staging of the Descent of Inanna

huge history wall on the rise and fall of communism

Czech national bank

beautiful African-looking statues near Prague Castle

cue knuckle sandwich joke

down with Obama and the Czech police

yer average crazy hippies in the park

big pink synagogue!

chilling at the park, before dark

Dresden tomorrow, and then (finally!) Berlin.

A Visit to Swimming Cities

2009-04-26T18:19:00.006+02:00

This afternoon we finally went to Ankaran to visit our friends from Swimming Cities of Serenissima. Here are some pictures!

If you want to see them before they go, you have until 10th May.

walking around Radovljica

2009-04-15T06:45:00.001+02:00

Once upon a time, I had big plans to become a filmmaker. After a few years of dabbling, I kinda let film go by the wayside.

However, these last few weeks I've been noodling around with video. Here's my latest masterpiece. Maybe this is the start of a comeback? Enjoy!

Walking around Radovljica from Camille Acey on Vimeo.

(if this freezes, watch the lower quality version on Youtube)

Two Other Updates

2009-04-13T08:56:00.002+02:00

Update#1
For those of you who read this post with interest, I just wanted to let you know that I succeeded in finding not only one great black girlfriend but TWO. They both have quite different backgrounds from me, but we can come together over the experiences we've had living here, our general experiences in the world, and our mutual love of life! I am so grateful for these special new friends.

Update #2
Thanks to any and all who lent any support to the intrepid young artists of Swimming Seas of Serinissima, they report that they have found housing and are now beginning to build their boat at the marina in Akaran. More info here.

Wheelville - an update

2009-04-13T08:37:00.004+02:00

tractor - Mlaka (near Radovljica), Slovenia

I know it has been kinda quiet here at Wheelville (sorry Drago!) and I apologize for that.

BUT you'll be happy to know that we have actually been busy working and raising funds for an AiW trip to Berlin. Yes people, the editors here at AiW decided to send me on an all-expense paid trip to the hippest city in Europe in order to give this blog a much needed pump of blood.

So for the month of May, I will be presenting the Adventures in Wheelville - Berlin Diary, where I will take a sidewise glance at Berlin through the lenses of someone who has been taking a sideways glance at Slovenia. Incredible stuff, eh?

Stay tuned!

Radovljica - Easter Sunday