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The Goethe-Institut is the Federal Republic of Germany’s cultural institute, active worldwide. We promote the study of German abroad and encourage international cultural exchange.
Brianna Summers and other Berlin-based Australians blog about life and culture in the German capital, exclusively for the Goethe-Institut. #BiculturalUrbanite
Credit: Unsplash / hoch3media After four years, the Bicultural Urbanite blog is drawing to a close. Our blogger Brianna took a trip down memory lane to see what she learned along the way and ponder the influence of Australian expats in Berlin.
© James Reka Artist James Reka is a Melberliner. After cutting his teeth in Melbourne’s fledgling street art scene, he moved to the German capital to expand his horizons. Brianna spoke to Reka about working in Europe and his upcoming solo exhibition back home, in Collingwood.
© Milla & Partner Berlin’s long-awaited monument to the Peaceful Revolution of 1989 is finally being built. The large interactive sculpture will sit alongside the recently resurrected Berlin Palace.
© Brianna Summers Berliners have been stuck at home since November. As the lockdown drags on, weary locals are on the lookout for anything that will break up the monotony of their own four walls. Brianna has put together a list of activities that are still possible in the German capital.
© Brianna Summers Learning a foreign language unlocks other cultures, facilitates previously impossible relationships – and doubles your vocabulary. If you’re a word nerd like Brianna Summers, the opportunity to play around with language is bilingualism’s greatest appeal.
© Brianna Summers No markets, no parties, no nothing. This year Germans will celebrate a socially distanced Christmas during the country’s second lockdown. Inspired by recent events, our blogger Brianna penned a Berliner version of a famous Christmas poem. Enjoy.
© Jane Arnison Germany’s capital is in the middle of lockdown version 2.0. Berlin-based musician Jane Arnison gives her reflections on the year where everything stopped, and realises just how hard it is to neatly package it all up.
Photo credit: Thomas Trutschel/Photothek After 14 long years, the Berlin-Brandenburg Airport is finally open. Endless technical debacles, six postponed launch dates and a budget blow-out of around four billion euros turned the infrastructure project into a running joke. So what went wrong?
© Madeleine Watts Australian writer and bookseller Madeleine Watts finds comfort and community in Berlin’s collection of English-language bookshops, after recently arriving in the German capital.
© Brianna Summers Evictions are nothing new in Berlin, yet very few capture the public’s attention quite like the recent demise of Liebig34.
© Brianna Summers Berlin’s nightlife and arts scene have taken a battering this year. Clubs remain closed and all major art events have been scrapped or postponed. In response to the ongoing crisis, the city’s most famous nightclub has joined forces with the Boros Foundation to create a new and unusual stage for local artists.
Photo credit: Ethan Lee/Unsplash Berlin has a lot to offer start-ups: (relatively) cheap office space, a big student population full of ideas and a cultural willingness to try new things. For Sydney-based German Susann Noé, returning back there was a chance to compare two very different business worlds.
© Brianna Summers This summer many Germans are holidaying in Germany. The Baltic Sea coastline is rammed and short-stay rentals are booking out around the country. I too opted for a local getaway to avoid the virus-related risks of international travel.
© Brianna Summers To the untrained eye, Mauerpark looks like an abandoned lot. This grungy yet hugely popular green space is renowned for its sprawling flea market, open-air karaoke and historic significance. Now, thanks to the completion of a major redevelopment, there’s twice as much room to party.
© Cam Hassard Of all the enjoyable things about being abroad, there’s something deeply satisfying about tucking into a good book that’s set in the place you happen to be travelling through.
© Brianna Summers The coronavirus pandemic has prompted a rethink about how we should live, work and travel. Berlin is making the best of a bad situation by expediting further improvements to its bike infrastructure.
© ROH Tristram Kenton Celebrated Australian soprano Siobhan Stagg was in Sydney for concerts when the global shutdowns began. She flew home to Berlin and watched her calendar of performances crumble like dominoes before her eyes. The silver lining? She’s learned to unplug and discovered the theatrical talents of Mother Nature.
© Brianna Summers Desperate to escape my confined Corona-existence in Berlin, I have begun exploring beyond the city limits. Brandenburg cops a fair bit of flak for being boring and lifeless, but it’s actually full of attractive destinations for those in need of a green getaway.
© Luke Troynar After almost a decade of living in Berlin as an expat, a juicy PhD offer Down Under enticed me back to the homeland indefinitely. Shortly after arriving back in Australia the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc across the world, removing all reference to normality.
© Ulrike Keil After the coronavirus went global, governments around the world launched repatriation efforts to bring back thousands of citizens stranded abroad. Two friends of mine were among those caught out.
Credit: Julius Niehus, Wellenwerk Sydneysider Katelin Meredith has been living in Berlin for nearly a year. When the coronavirus closed off most of the city, she listed all the things she wants to do when life gets going again.
© Brianna Summers When you live 16,000 km from home, what foods do you miss the most? Supplying expats with edible memories is big business—and another form of German-Australian cultural exchange.
© Brianna Summers Berlin’s first reported COVID-19 case was diagnosed on 1 March, 2020. Since then, it’s certainly been a month to remember in the German capital. Infections have grown and Berliners have come to realise the extent of the crisis.
© Wesley Nel Even before the recent closure of Berlin’s theatres and galleries due to coronavirus, life in the German capital was getting tougher for artists.
© Luke Troynar Over the years, Berlin has increasingly become a hyped international hub for globalised living, a cool factor which can often overshadow the charms of the rest of Germany. I took a short trip north to get acquainted with the country’s second most populated city.
© Mathea Millman Germany is a world leader when it comes to up-scaling sustainably grown produce. Foodtech entrepreneur Anne-Kathrin Kuhlemann is now taking "bio" to the next level, with her organic fish farm in the heart of Berlin.
© Vijay Khurana Time away from Berlin helped Australian writer Vijay Khurana realise what he truly loved about it. One landmark in particular sums up his attraction to the city’s unique opportunities.
© Brianna Summers While many early co-working spaces were set up in the United States, Berlin also had a hand in the development of this global trend. Today the German capital hosts countless mixed offices, from creative community clubhouses to slick franchises.
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