Sick. I’ve been sick for a week now. Worst case of strep throat EVER. I really thought I was going to die. I just lay miserably in my bed, unable to sleep, eat, read or watch any movies.
But I have the best friends and they took good care of me. They brought me candies & antibiotics & ice cream.
Only picture of the week: comfort food #23567 toast alla pizzaiola. Maybe the picture doesn’t show how delicious this actually is.
BASEMENT party. And we partied with these crazy bastards: Matias Aguayo (Kompakt/cómeme), Mijk van Dijk (nufank files), Michael Aniser (Nöisekolln), MALANDRA JR (Where is Jesus/cocoon ,sud beat), Milan (radio mars/moving schoneberg), Josh Tweek (Louche), Val Tyne (B8), Joolz Zedrummer (B8), Kia (tut gut), Sun Antonio, Alladin K (StayFree, tut gut), whyalexwhy, Emmanuel k (stay free, tut gut), Valentino 45 (Can’t Git Enuf), Creed and stone (odd socks).
National celebrations should refresh the sense of belonging to the same national community, but, honestly, I’m never sure about what unites italian citizens, rather than dividing them.
A little update: last weekend, for the first time in history, our 87-year-old President Napolitano has been re-elected for a second term as head of state, as our parliament has proved unable to agree on a successor. After two months of political void, Enrico Letta, the former deputy leader of the centre-left Democratic party, was asked to become Prime Minister. He accepted and he is currently trying to form our new government in order to proceed with a series of key reforms, and namely the voting system. Not much to celebrate, as you can see.
Going back to national celebrations, the 25th April is the day in which, in 1945, the resistance defeated Nazi-fascism and set the basis for Italy as we know it today. Weaken and exhaust institutions mentioned above included.
The relevance of the 25th of April has always been quite contested, as some sustain it is a factious and fractious celebration, the message of which is twisted by political parties and ideals that are no longer the same or no longer exist. This keeps disturbing me. Aren’t the Italian Constitution and its values valid for everyone without distinction? The Constitution of the Italian Republic is the first result of the principles leading the resistance movement: democracy and freedom. I know that freedom is a different concept than liberation, however, if some can’t recognize themselves in the partisans’ actions, freedom is nevertheless a condition resulting from that same resistance. I feel that we are losing touch with the most important celebration of our Republic, and this can only remind us how much our national identity is still in crisis.
To those out there that today said the 25th of April is dead, I would like to remember that some of those partisan are still alive and, today, they are celebrating and remembering those values they fought (and we should all stand) for: democracy, freedom, political engagement and participation.
So, happy 25th of April and happy Liberation Day, Italy, in its most honorable and pure meaning.
I still remember the second I stepped down that plane with my backpack and that huge suitcase. I know, even a little too well, that I didn’t have any specific plans, but I remember I was full of certainties. 100% sure some things will never change. And instead, surprise, they do.
You emigrate full of hope, in love, ready to live the dream, and you understand in one second that everyone’s alone, no one owes you anything, not everybody likes italians (especially germans), being economically independent is an hallucination and means fighting, as there will always be someone who speaks more languages, has more experience, a PhD more than you out there. So, maybe nothing new, but better to know it before.
However, I must say that most of what happened to me (after quickly acknowledging all of the above) turned out as a bunch of pretty comical, hysterical, entertaining, sparkling, priceless, odd, queer, mysterious, perplexing, unusual, exceptional experiences. Which I guess are just as precious as all the fantastic people I keep meeting everyday in this fucked up place.
So, here it is, my year in pictures. It’s probably more useful to me than to anyone else, but for some reason it feels right to set all this to “public”. I changed my mind about one million things that are here, went through almost a new phase every time I was choosing 3 pictures for the week. It was a tough year, and basically what follows it’s the expression of my most instable me ever. Anyway.
Lastly, I was supposed to post only 3 pictures every week, but sometimes I got carried away a little bit.
As I still feel this city is making me going through a violent brutal and uncontrollable second adolescence, this song seems appropriate.
So, here’s a story from A to Z You wanna get with me, you gotta listen carefully
Yes, I’ve just quoted them, and now, Ladies and Gentlemen, April, 2 2012 – April, 2 2013.
Marilena even prepared the eggs to add the right Easter vibe to the scene.
Composition: waiting for the spring I deserve, oder (I’ll drink my-self to death).
Me enjoying my Easter holidays. Gone klubbing with the best KreuzNeukölln clubbing team ’till 7am + getting ready for an amazing day at a Spa. Wearing a bikini = health issue = life.
Probably the best April’s fool of all time.
Me and my friend Marilena spent the entire day at a textilfrei spa in Ludwigsfelde. Like in the best adventures, we realized that everybody was naked only once we paid for a one way ticket to the biggest nudist hell I’ve ever seen in my entire life. Probably the worst place for us, hungover chicks, arriving from da city with our hoods and sunglasses. How pathetic. Anyway, I think that wandering around, from the saunas to those Easter(n) themed swimming pools, 100% naked, among hundreds of naked germans in their 70s, can be noted down as the most authentic german experience I’ve done so far. That bikini was only worn 20 minutes, aka until everybody was pointing at us and they said we had to leave, if we wanted to keep our swimming suits on. Rules and germans, you know. Looking back, this picture is quite accurate.
Sigh.
Before leaving Ludwigsfelde, we agreed that this experience 1) taught us that there’s no age limit for genital piercings 2) will definitely give that missing touch of naturist openness to our cvs, and 3) that thanks to it, the sentence “I want to take our friendship a step further” has just gained a whole load of profound new meaning.