I just read a post by Philip Van Hoof discussing his decision to not travel to the US. Having read many of his other politically-oriented post, I’d say we have quite similar political views. I take issue however with this last post however; not because of the political views expressed but rather the action (or lack thereof) taken.

First a little background. I left the US in 1999 largely due to my discontent with the American system. Bill Clinton was President at the time. I lived in Berlin, Germany until very recently and also spent quite a bit off time in the Sweden. Ironically, I moved back to the US at a time when the worst President in history is in office. The system and the President have only gotten worse. So why am I back. Basically just to get my education.

Actually, what I wanted to mention was the experiences that my wife, Annika, had when she told friends she was applying for a greencard to the US. Most of her friends responded with open disapproval. They couldn’t realise why someone like Annika would want to go to a place so backwards and with such a militant regime in power. Most all of the people who responded like that had never been to the US. Those who had been to the US where much more understanding of her decision.

A nice parallel when I hear people take this line is to ask them if they’d go to Italy (this was when Belesconi was in power). Most would answer positively and many admit that they had just recently been there. When you ask these same people if they thought Belesconi was more or less as bad as Bush, they’d mostly agree. There seems to be a double standard. Also with this logic the UK should be a no-go zone as well.

Another thing is that the US has a very large progressive community. Bush does not have the support of the majority of Americans. Nor does he or his regime give even a small picture of the US. It’s the diversity in the US that I longed for when in Europe. I believe you are only doing yourself a disservice when you cut yourself off from a full understanding of the US. For all its fucked-upness, I most admit it’s a very stimulating place.

To close I’ll quote, as well as I can remember, what an Iraqi who had asylum in Sweden said to me when I apologized to him for my countries bombing of his country. He said to me, “You know, it’s not about what those in power do. It’s us the people like you and me talking now. You have nothing to apologize for.” I still felt like I needed to apologize but what he said is exactly right. We can’t let the politics, no matter how fucked up, or lines drawn in sand separate what should rightfully be united: People. Polorization plays right into the hand of the neo-cons.

That said, if you want to refuse to come into the because of the finger-printing eye-scanning mumbo jumbo, I’m all with you.

I mentioned a few posts back that RyanAir also thinks the security measures at airports are a farce. Well, it also seems like they have a sense of humor about it. The following image can be found through this link.

The caption is “NEW AIRPORT SECURITY PROCEDURES, PUT FUN BACK INT0 FLYING”

UPDATE: Just noticed this was on Boing Boing.

Just read Chris Toshok’s blog entry about his experience with airport security. In it, he had the bravery to confess he had taken a bottle of visine on board. I commend you for you bravery Chris.

As it turns out, I also have a confession to make.

About a year or so after the September 11th attacks, I inadvertently took a Leatherman multi-tool on board my flight across the Atlantic. After I arrived home from the airport and started unpacking, I discovered it. It was in the front pocket of my carry-on backpack. I would have thought something like that would have been very easy to spot.

After looking at and thinking how crazy it was that it got through, I got this huge sense of relief that they actually didn’t find it. I had visions of marathon interogations and some FBI agent grilling me about why I had it. I’d be saying, “I forgot it was there.” He’d say, “Who are you working with?” And that would go on and on till they were convinced I was harmless. Of course, the plane would be grounded and the airport would be shut down. You know, the usual stuff they do when someone forgets they are carrying a camping tool with sharp edges.

Also in line with the subject of this entry, the RyanAir boss also thinks the security measures are a farce.

Last night Annika and I went to the Adidas Arena to watch the Italy vs. USA match. The Arena is made to look like the Olympiastadion in Berlin and holds about 10,000 people who can watch the action on 2 not-so-big screens. The Arena is located on the lawn between the Reichstag and the Kanzleramt and just a few blocks from the new main train station (Berlin Hauptbahnhof.) It was actually quite nice there. You get a more stadium-like feeling than at a normal viewing because the supporters play off of each other better and of course there was the “wave”.

We left just before 11pm. The area looks really impressive at night. Makes me feel homesick when I think about leaving Berlin next month. I’m of course American but I’ve lived here since 1999, met my wife here and this feels like home. I’m not sure if San Diego will feel like home but I’ll give it a try. Annika’s really looking forward to move anyway.

The new Berlin Hauptbahnhof is really going to change the city I think. It is aready impressive to look at and has turned an area that had been dead since I arrived into a quite pleasent place to hang out along the river while seeing the sights or preparing for a journey by train. In the next couple years a lot will change for the area just to the north of the station, I think. It will probably turn into a Fisherman’s Wharf type thing but I I guess every major city needs one of those.

Oh yeah, the match ended in a 1:1 draw. There were 3 red cards though.

A couple nights ago I got back from my week-long trip to Bodensee in the south of Germany. The weather didn’t play nicely however and I spent most of my time reading rather than riding my bike around the lake. The last 2 nights were especially bad. There were only 2 days with half a day of sun and the temperature seemed to fall a degree or 2 each day.

As I usually do when camping in less than nice weather, I went to the movies to pass the time and get warm and dry. The first film I saw was X-men 3. I really like X-men movies although this one was the weakest of the 3 and had lots of room for improvement. I’ve always liked the idea of taking on special powers.

The 2nd I saw was The Da Vinci Code. Man, Ron Howard screwed this one up. It was just bad. The pace was way to fast (especially at the beginning), many important details were left out that were in the book (one of the cryptex passwords was “sofie”, her brother was also at Roslin, etc.) and I saw at least 3 instances where it seemed as if Robert Langdon was trying to mollify the catholic audience. In the book I got no sense that Robert Langdon’s character was trying to play to the catholic crowd.

The third and last film I saw was As in Heaven. I really liked this film. It’s a swedish film that was nominated for best foreign film at the last Oscars. It really makes you feel good although it’s not necessarily a happy movie. I strongly recommend this film.

As mentioned earlier, I also read alot. I read “The Da Vinci Code” during the first 2 days. I think I’m the last person on earth to read it. It’s a really fun book, a real page-turner.

I then moved on to Philip Roth’s “American Pastoral.” After reading The Da Vinci with it’s suspense, the pace of American Pastoral was a bit of a shock and it took time to settle into it. It’s one of those books that you need to reflect on and maybe read again to enjoy it thoroughly. Basically, it’s about America and the pent-up emotions that we build-up to maintain face.

And lastly, I’m working through Haruki Murakami’s “Kafka on the Shore” now. I truly love this book. I’m not finished yet but I simply love the way the stor(y/ies) is/are told in the book. I’ll be getting more of his books to read later. As a sidenote, it’s strange that as a white kid from The South it’s hard to imagine the charecters as being Japanese although I know that the story takes place in Japan. I have no problem imagining white, black, hispanic or even asian-american characters. I guess everyone is influenced by their surroundings. Now that I’m nearing the end of the book, I’ve chiseled into my head the image of Japanese characters into my head.

It’s been so long since I’ve read non-computer books. It was really refreshing. I didn’t use a single computer or the internet all week. I hadn’t done that for years.

Soon many people will be coming to Berlin for the 2006 World Cup. For many it will be their first time in Berlin, so I thought I’d provide a tour of the places that I’ve found interesting in my 6 years here in Berlin. Some you will have heard of while others may be new. Bold links lead to a satellite map provided by Google Maps while most other links lead to a Wikipedia entry.

Culture:

• Museumsinsel (Museum Island) is a collection of some of Berlin’s best museums; The Pergamon, Altes Museum (Old Museum), Neues Museum (New Museum), Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery). It also incudes Lustgarten (Pleasure Garden), Palast der Republik (Palace of the Republic) and Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral) and is located in the heart of Berlin.
• Checkpoint Charlie was a border crossing while the city was devided. It is now home to the most interesting exibit about the Berlin Wall.
• Neue Nationalgalerie (New National Gallery) is the city’s largest modern art Museum.
• Hamburger Bahnhof is one of the best places for Modern Art lovers.

Sightseeing:

• The Brandenburger Tor (Brandenburg Gate) is THE symbol for Berlin. During the Berlin Wall era it lay in no man’s land. You can now move freely (when there is no building) around its pillars.
• The Reichstag is home to the German Parliment. With the addition of the glass dome designed by Sir Norman Foster it has become a tourist magnet. Go early to avoid lines.
• The Fernsehturm (TV tower) is the tallest structure in Berlin and has a rotating cafe. It offers the best view of Berlin from above. For the World Cup the sphere at the top has been decorated as a football.
• Gendarmenmarkt is located in Mitte and is home to the Konzerthaus (concert hall), the Französischer Dom (French Cathedral) and the Deutscher Dom (German Cathedral). A statue of Schiller is the center piece of the square.
• Potsdamer Platz (Potsdam Square) lay in no man’s land. Once the wall fell the real-estate was the most sought-after in Berlin. It was the largest construction site in Europe throughout the late 90’s and early 00’s. It is now a maze of modern architecture. In the 20’s, it was the busiest place in all of Europe and even had Europe’s first traffic light.

Parks:

• Tiergarten (Animal Garden) is Berlin’s largest and most central park. It gets it’s name from the Zoo located in the south west corner. It is bordered by many of Berlin’s most visited tourist destinations.
• Gölitzer Park is located in the multi-cultural borough of Kreuzberg. It’s a great place to relax and people watch.
• Volkspark Friedrichshain is located on the border of Prenzlauer Berg and Friedrichshain. It is home to an open-air movie theater and is great for taking walks along the tree-lined paths.
• Mauerpark (Wall park) is located on the border of Prenzlauer Berg and Wedding and was formerly the no man’s land between the Berln Wall and the residential area. It’s were you want to go to hang with the drum-playing, fire-throwing crowd. On the weekends it’s home to one of Berlin’s best flee markets.

Memorials:

• The Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas (Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe) is Berlins newest memorial. It’s located only steps from the Brandenburg Gate.
• The Soviet Memorial in Tiergarten is located between the Siegessaüle and the Brandenburg Gate.
• The Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche (Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church) is located across from the Zoologischer Garten (Zoo). Its tower was destroyed by the bombings during WWII and has been left in that state to remind us of the destruction of war.

Shopping:

• Kaufhaus des Westens (Department Store of the West) or KaDeWe for short is the largest department store in Europe. It’s located on Tauenzienstrasse, an extension of Ku’Damm.
• Kufürstenstrasse or Ku’Damm as it’s known is the premier shopping mile in Berlin and one of the most famous in Europe. It’s located near Zoologischer Garten train station. You can find lots of stores from designer labels here.
• Friedrichsstrasse is quickly becoming the Ku’Damm of East Berlin. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall it has slowly been gaining the prestige that it once had.
• Hackescher Markt includes Hackesche Höfe, a series of courtyards and it’s surroundings. It’s thriving with trendy shops and galleries. It’s one of the “coolest” places to be.

Sports:

• Olympiastadion (Olympia Stadium) will be host to all World Cup matches in Berlin. It usually is home of theHertha BSC Soccer team as well as the Berlin Thunder American football team.

Boroughs:

• Prenzlauer Berg lies in former East Berlin and was quickly populated by many young people once the Wall came down. Due to this, it is now home to many young families and even had the highest birth rate in all of Europe at one time.
• Kruezberg is home to the largest Turkish population outside of Turkey. It’s historically one of the most politically radical parts of the city and home of the annual May Day riots. It’s a must-visit for anyone coming to Berlin.
• Mitte (Center) is the city center and where you’ll spend lots of your time while sightseeing.
• Friedrichshain is now home to some of the most vibrant night spots in the city. Most bars and cafes are located in and around Simon-Dach Street. It’s also where you’ll find Karl-Marx-Allee, a wide, soviet-style boulavard that leads to Alexander Platz.
• Charlottenburg was the “center” of West Berlin. The city’s main shopping street and one of its main train stations (Zoologischer Garten Bhf) are located here.
• Schöneberg is located in the former West Berlin and has been known for its gay and lesbian scene.
• I’ve only described the most central boroughs here. Other boroughs are Pankow, Wedding, Tiergarten, Weißensee, Wilmersdorf, Spandau, Steglitz, Zehlendorf, Tempelhof, Neukölln, Treptow, Köpenick, Marzahn, Hellersdorf, Lichtenberg, Hohenschönhausen and Reinickendorf.

Excursions:

• Potsdam is a small town to the south west of Berlin. It’s major tourist draw is the Sanssouci Castle, summer palace of Frederick the Great.
• Wannsee is the largest body of water in Berlin. It also has one of the longest inland beaches in Europe.
• Müggelsee is to the Ossies (East Germans) what Wannsee is to the Wessies (West Germans).
• Spreewald is a short trip south east of Berlin and known for it’s network of irrigation canals. You can cheaply rent a canoe and paddle for hours on end. It’s designated a biosphere reserve by UNESCO.

This is a work in progress. I know it’s missing lots. If you have a suggestion please leave a comment.