A Voracious Sentence

“Come away with me, Sabina, come to my island. Come to my island of red peppers sizzling over slow braseros, Moorish earthen jars catching the gold water, palm trees, wild cats fighting, at dawn a donkey sobbing, feet on coral reefs and sea-anemones, the body covered with long seaweeds, Melisande’s hair hanging over the balcony at the Opera Comique, inexorable diamond sunlight, heavy nerveless hours in the violaceous shadows, ash-colored rocks and olive trees, lemon trees with lemons hung like lanterns at a garden party, bamboo shoots forever trembling, soft-sounding espadrilles, pomegranate spurting blood, a flute-like Moorish chant, long and insistent, of the ploughmen, trilling, swearing, trilling and cursing, dropping perspiration on the earth with the seeds.”

~~from “House of Incest” by Anaïs Nin

Three Cities

Date: 24.7.09 – 20.8.09

Route: Vienna – Lutherstadt Wittenberg – Potsdam – Berlin – Prague – Vienna

I’m in Vienna. Been here for about a month now. More said on that later.

I took an interesting week tour up to Germany and Czech. First up Andreas’ and Theresa’s Catholic wedding in Wittenberg, where Martin Luther spent most of his years working and living. The ceremony was followed by a garden party with arranged seats, games, rock music, and a talented fire dancer later on in the night. I spent the following day touring the old streets, art exhibits, famous personages’ houses, and brilliantly crafted churches and towers. Then it was off to Potsdam with the slow-tempered brother of Andreas, name of Matthias. He lives in an old Victorian house with ancient cellar and rooftops and, through a clever chance of luck, all by himself. He introduced me to the gilded gardens, tea parlors, and palaces of Sanssoucci.

That Tuesday I took one of the notoriously efficient and expensive German trains up to Berlin, the modern city that still hangs its past heavily in its branches. Stayed with the fun, no-nonsense and lovable Maria as a couchsurfer, visited the Film Museum, the Wall in Potsdamer Platz, East Side Gallery, Checkpoint Charlie, Bauhaus Gallery, the SS Outdoor Museum, the Holocaust Memorial Maze, and Alexanderplatz where a trio of cellists and violinists were serenading the streets with waltzes and tangoes. Also the MOST AMAZING STREET in Berlin, the artistic and grungy Oranienburger Straße, where artists huddled up together in their swaddling colors and tools to create the odd shape and form.

It was next to Prague, where I stayed at this huge student dorm on the eastern side. Made friends with the young bartender there who is studying mechanical engineering, we exchanged card games and language tips. Prague must be one of my favorite cities ever, old, archaic, slithering with culture and history, slanted with an attitude, pulsing with graffiti and smelling of something like rose petals, river, and old piss. Perfect. Walked around early, 7am before the city was awake, through the old and clean Mala Strana, and the sun still white-gold with dreams. Bought some metal earrings for a friend from the sleepy-eyed jeweler on Charles Bridge. In the new city visited some traditional dark and dank pubs, tried some delicious onion soup, afterwhich I just had to visit the Museum of Communism. Came out feeling very patriotic towards Czech herself, haha!

Vienna herself is a multifaceted, white-gray city, a clean shock from the grungy streets of backwater Prague; I am quite in love with this city. Strolling through the streets of Old Town, swimming in the Danube, checking out the bookstores, the gardens behind Stephansplatz, enjoying street performers, exploring the Oper Haus, biking at night down the jewel-bedecked Ringstrasse. Enjoying Wurstknodel, Wiener Schnitzel, Sachertorte…

Vienna seems to cling to its history, proud and illustrious, the whispers of the Jung Wien clinging to the cafes. Kleiners Cafe, my favori. I hope I come back. I know I will come back.