The Berlin Perspective: ‘The Berlin Rain is my California Sun’
Photo: Imanuel Marcus
‘Ich bin ein Berliner.’ Therefore Currywurst is my Sushi. The ‘Quasimodo’ is my Warner Theater. The bike lanes are my Autobahn, ‘Aldi’ is my ‘Trader Joe’s’ and Oberbaum Bridge is my Key West.
Berlin, May 2nd, 2020. Update: June 1st, 2021 (The Berlin Spectator) — Neukölln is my Brooklyn, Kreuzberg is my Adams Morgan, the Spree is my Potomac. Tegel is my Heathrow, Tempelhof Airfield is my test track. Hasenheide is my Prospect Park, Tiergarten my Central Park. ‘Tretpower Park’ is my ranch, ‘Viktoria Park’ is my Rocky Mountains.
Arc de Triomphe
The Berlin rain is my California sun. Berlin’s hot July days are my beach vacations. The ‘Berliner Ring’ is my ‘495’. ‘KaDeWe’ is my Harrods, the millions of kebab stands are my Taco Bell. ‘Bergmannstrasse’ is my Connecticut Avenue, ‘Potsdamer Platz’ is my Hollywood Boulevard, and Brandenburg Gate is my Arc de Triomphe.
The Berlin Wall is my history lesson, Museum Island my Smithsonian. ‘Tegeler See’ lake is my Tidal Basin, ‘Wannsee’ is my Atlantic Ocean and the puddle in the park is my pool. If Brandenburg an der Havel is my Annapolis, what is Potsdam? If Berlin is my universe, the rest of the world is just décor. Well, not really. Besides: I’m a Hamburger. With cheese and onions.
Tear It Down
My bicycle is my Mercury Grand Marquis. The ‘U-Bahn’ is my horse, the ‘S-Bahn’ my Boeing 747, the bus is my air-conditioned retreat and the ICE bullet train is my Amtrak.
Read my lips: ‘Ich bin ein Berliner.’ Aren’t we all? Tear down this Wall if you haven’t already. Over and out.