ferry rides

did you know you can ride various ferries in berlin with a simple s-bahn/u-bahn ticket? i love doing it for a day out, preferrably for a picnic, weather permitting (although i have had perfect picnics in stormy weather, not much is stopping me.)

bear in mind though, that these ferries are shuttles, so you must leave at the other end, and if you want to go back straight away, board again. may seem funny, but otherwise the ferries tend to fill up with passengers taking round-trip after round-trip. and there are not too many seats, so go a little early to queue on the pier (say 10-20 mins in advance, 40-45 mins in summer and on sunny days - i'm not kidding you).

check out the BVG (berlin public transport) website for timetables. also note, some ferries only run in the summer. the one across wannsee runs pretty much all year. i once took the ferry in deepest winter, going through drifting ice.

news and a question

well, hello, it's been a while.

quite a few things have happened:
i've been on holiday to france
nylon korea has featured an interview with me and introduced this blog (a huge thank you, nylon!)
goldhahn & sampson has their new cooking classes up for booking
an exciting tomas saraceno show is opening tonight at hamburger bahnhof, museum for contemporary art

since it's been a bit quiet here lately, i thought i'd ask you what you would like me to feature here - more cafés and restaurants, or shops, or art events and galleries, or walks and random discoveries? anything goes, let me know!

(oh, and before i forget: the images show an evening playing boules with my friends this summer. berlin can be lovely.)

glimpses of berlin

the other day at the botanic garden.

the sun is out! surely a good time to start the beergarden season. prater, anyone?

vineyard fest in baruth

a couple of years ago, a group of friends decided to plant a vineyard in baruth (mark), an hour from berlin. this might sound surprising, given the northern climate, but in fact, baruth has a history of wine growing that has its roots in the 17th century. today, the vineyard in baruth is one of the very few operating vineyards in this part of germany (most of them being much further south).

every year in september, the small organic vineyard is having a little fest, and i always wanted to go but somehow never could. wouldn't it be a great place to spend a saturday afternoon? so here's a little teaser and directions (if you take the train from berlin, it's a one-hour journey). see you there?

baruther weinbergfest (vineyard fest in baruth)
saturday, 4 sept, 14-19.00
mühlenberg, baruth (mark)

all pictures courtesy: I-KU – Institut zur Entwicklung des ländlichen KulturRaums e.V.

wannsee

well my dears, this weekend is going to be hot. on a whim, i'm off to the baltic sea. for those of you who stay in berlin or come for a visit: head to the wannsee! pack a little picnic, a towel and your swimsuit and don't forget the sun lotion. take the s-bahn or regional train to wannsee station and walk down to the ferry or take a bus to pfaueninsel or glienicke. then just walk along the lakeside and find yourself a spot to sit down and enjoy. you may also like these tips for a ferry trip to kladow or a cycling tour to sacrow.

and of course, there's biesenthal, if you prefer.

happy weekend!

art biesenthal 2009

for some reason i missed this event last year and i so want to go this time. art biesenthal is a small, privately organised art event outside berlin. the open weekend on 15 and 16 august sounds like the perfect resaon to take a look. the garden is open, there'll be a barbecue, a party and the opportunity to bring your own picnic - and just enjoy. obviously you go because you want to see the art - but i guess with this kind of programme you might even be able to convince a few friends to come along who feel a bit so-so about contemporary art. in any case, the line-up this year is quite impressive, artists include alicja kwade and via lewandowsky. what i find so fascinating about this place, is that it is an old building in the countryside not far from berlin (a 45 min train ride or drive away) that has been completely overhauled by an contemporary architect. which means, in this case, that only the facade of the old building was kept and a new building attached to its back. to me, that has a sort of movie set quality. very clever.

all pictures in this post: courtesy biesentahl.org. if i manage to go (this is one of the rare occasions where it would be really handy to have a car...), i'll post my own photos - and that's a promise!

art biesenthal 2009, 18 july-27 september 2009, open weekend 15-16 august, sat 12.00-24.00 h, sun 12.00-19.00 h, with barbecue, music and party, find more info here (including directions)

summer break

summer break until mid-july. i'm off to the south - have wonderful holidays or days at home!

photo taken at sacrower see (sacrow lake): take the ferry from wannsee to kladow, turn left at the landing and cycle towards sacrow (in this case, a map might be useful). once in sacrow village, turn right just after the nursery (garden supplies), follow the street until the end, then the path through the woods. at the steep stairs down to the little beach, leave your bike (unless you want to carry it down). chill on the beach or order pizza and ice cream at the italian restaurant nearby (or both). take care and see you in july!

five a day - greengrocers in berlin

berlin wouldn't be berlin without its many, mostly turkish and asian greengrocers. they are almost everywhere and i love shopping there. 

turkish greengrocers will usually not only offer a wide range of fruit and veg (and don't forget, they are good for you...), but also a selection of fresh mezze like tabouli, houmus, olives, as well as mediterrean dry or canned goods like bulgur, tahine, chick peas etc. oh, and turkish bread! most turkish greengrocers are based in the western districts of Berlin, but you can get lucky and find some in prenzlauer berg or friedrichshain, too.

asian green grocers, on the other hand, usually stock local produce as well as asian greens, roots and herbs like pak choi, ginger, coriander, thai basil etc. plus very often a range of frozen sea-food, spring rolls and fish. my neighbourhood asian greengrocer's doesn't stock too much fresh produce but the biggest selection of asian dry goods, sauces and pastes i've ever seen outside a wholesaler's. 

so no matter if you live here and have just finished doing your shopping list (what about a thai green curry for dinner tonight?) or are here for the weekend and plan a day out with a picnic (your chance to get some mezze, turkish bread and fresh fruit) - go on, head for your next greengrocer's, you know you want to...

the ferry from wannsee to kladow

this is one of my favourite day trips ever. 

from s-bahn stop 'wannsee' you can walk over to the ferry pier. the ferry to kladow is marked 'BVG-fähre' (BVG being the berlin transport services) and leaves every full hour. the best thing is, you can use your s-bahn ticket. be there early, though, as particularly in summer the ferry is full up easily and it's all on a first come, first served basis ...

the ferry trip is roughly twenty minutes, enjoy! once you're in kladow, you can go for a walk. head to the right leaving the pier for the old manor house and the public park, where you can have a picnic or take a bath in the lake, if you're brave enough. the sandy parts on the water front are tiny though and few and far in between, the best thing is to just go with your picnic and something nice to read and see what spot takes your fancy.

alternatively, you can settle for one of the beer gardens right next to the pier or turn left and walk up to 'la riviera'. nice views onto the lake, but definitely not chi-chi. rustic and slightly run-down pizza place.

the ferry back from kladow is always half past the hour, but make sure you catch the last one (around 6.30pm in the summer). check time-tables on the BVG site.