Well, today I
moved back into my old-new home. La Belle Fifi returned from Los Angeles via
Hamburg, so I had to vacate her sweet flat, with its view of the woodpeckers,
Spertholt and Frau Specht, and its proximity to the shops of Gesundbrunnen and
the Shalimar and Cocos eateries, and head back to the dear old
Invalidenstrasse.
The Strasse is a
real invalid itself, at the moment. Like much of Berlin. The roads are, to put
it politely, ‘up’ everywhere. But nowhere more than here. OK, I understand
they’re renewing sewers, water mains, putting in fibre optics and god knows
what else goes underground, all at once. But I’ve been here for more than two
years, and the same trenches are STILL open. And to top it all, while the roads
are ‘out’, they’ve decided to do S-Bahn repairs, so with no cars and no trains available
here at Nordbahnhof, we are reduced to isolation, feet (with walking-stick) and
buses … I think Town Hall must be mad.
But I came back.
The Chinese have invaded my nice, former flat, but my landlord promised me
something better. So I arrived at no 134 today, sceptical but hopeful … and was
delighted. My new home is a virtual copy of the old, but (a) on the ground
floor, (b) not-quite-finished new, (c) much cosier … well, it will be soon.
I’ve put up my
pictures and my ‘Gerolsteiner Farm’, Paul and I did a Rewe-Run (with an
obligatory stop at Asman for a delicious-as-ever Indian lunch), and stocked my
cupboards … yes, they’ve taken on board all my criticisms of flat one, and I
now have shelves, cupboards and drawers to spare! …
Chick peas,
spinach, garlic, soy sauce, mozarella, saucisson, $45 dollars of cheeses, one
bread roll, maultaschen … I don’t have to eat out ever again! But I shall. This
is resto-land. Oh and some vinho verde from my favourite wine store!
I shall be happy
here. My friend Tibor has made a smashing job of putting this ever-so-new place together
(even though he failed tonight with setting up the telly, which I won’t watch
till Roland Garros anyway!). Paul got the brand new wifi under control … the
water is hot, the shower strong, the (puce!) bed comfy … what else does a man
need?
For tonight,
anyway.
So I’m back at 134
guys. Come and visit …
Oh, thats fine. Welcome back.
ReplyDelete