Amsterdam Noord: Colour Candy
The old industrial northern part of Amsterdam is developing very fast, but in the meantime you can enjoy the creativtiy that pops up at every corner. Hopefully it stays Amsterdam’s creative playground for a while.
When I took this picture it was pretty cold and windy. So we stopped at Café Noorderlicht (NDSM-Plein 102, 1033 WB Amsterdam) afterwards for a hot, fresh mint tea. I fell in love with this cosy, alternative place. The wind was kept outside and the sun touched my skin through the glass house. I felt like a plant in a greenhouse…
One day I would like to have my own living container by the sea with a full glass front and a round hole in the roof above my bed to look at the stars. In the meantime I use the mini container DS designed by Kuno Nüssli as storage place in our apartment and as constant reminder…
More places I like in Amsterdam Noord you can find here
Art for the eyes and for the soul
1. Kinfolk No. 12 – the Saltwater Issue is my favourite one. Makes you dream of life close to the sea and gives you an insight of what pepper thinks of his dominant counterpart salt.
2. Paper Cactus: little souvenir from labofem in Istanbul living in our sleeping room. Hopefully this little fellow starts rooting in spring.
3. Carnival season: Wodden doll (No 12) designed by Alexander Gerard 1953. Vitra Design made them come back to life. Gerard’s passion was travelling and getting inspiration from other cultures. Mmh, where do I know that from?
4. Bucket bag by Kvinna - my new material love
5. Banana Yoshimoto’s “kitchen”: Salinger meets Japan. Yoshimoto’s language lets you dive deep into the Japanese soul although it is pretty tough how many strokes of fate her protagonist has to bear…
My new material love
My new bag is made of only one ingredient: black leather. I love the original leather smell. Makes me feel connected to nature and that lightens up my day. Or how the German hip hopper Max Herre would say: “I liebe Dich, weil Du sowohl high class als auch Straße bist”.
January: Keep in touch Spaceteam
Tracklist
1. Spiralen – Tocotronic
2. Partis de rien (feat. Fabe, Haroun, Mokiess & Koma) – Scred Connexion & Fabe
3. La saga – IAM
4. Light your Fire – Dellé (Seeed)
5. Sundara Karma – Flame (Roosevelt Remix)
6. This is the life – Amy MacDonald
7. Aish Tamid – Matisyahu
8. Cast a shadow – Jens Friebe
9. Can you feel – ComixXx
10. Some kind of Nature (feat. Lou Read) – Gorillaz
11. Blick nach vorn – Max Herre
Merhaba Istanbul
Winterwonderland wasn’t planned when traveling to Istanbul for New Year’s, but it was magical seeing the palm trees and cactus plants covered in snow and the steep streets becoming slides. Snowmen of all kind conquered the streets sitting on pathways in front of a shop, welcoming the guests of a car park or taking a rest on a litter box.
We discovered mainly the European part of Istanbul, namely the Beyoglu neigbourhood. It’s amazing how the character of an area can change within a street so I got the feeling that Galata and Chihangir were more small little neighbourhoods instead of belonging to one – Beyoglu.
Weather can change rapidly and can be extreme during winter. We had it all: Perfect blue sky with wintersun to snowstorm to dark grey sky for the whole day to heavy rain that turned the steep streets into rivers. I would now say: lined rubber boots are the way to go.
Some households still rely on flying carpets for transportation as the city rapidly grew from not even 3 Million in 1980 to more than 15 Million in 2015, but the metro network didn’t grow with it.
SLEEP
Home away from home: Manzara Apartments. First and last view of the day when lying in bed of the apartment “Arif”: The Bosporus. Made me feel real cosmopolitan.
Do not miss the rooftop terrace with an amazing 360 degree view over Istanbul. If you want you can have breakfast prepared by Manzara served at their gallery, it was really tasty. We ate there on our first day. The gallery also sells little gifts from local artists and agricultral cooperations to bring home.
EAT
The Turks love to sleep in on weekends which pleased us loads. The best in winter time is to sleep in and then start the day with an extensive breakfast in a cute little café. My two favorite ones were these:
Hipster Breakfast at Dandin Bakery (No:A, Kemankeş Karamustafa Paşa, Kılıç Ali Paşa Mescidi Sk. No:17, 34425 Beyoğlu/İstanbul, Türkei; Phone:+90 212 245 3369)
Dogaciyizcom (Kılıçali Paşa Mah.Kasatura sokak No: 16/A Beyoğlu/Cihangir/İstanbul; +90 212 243 8190)
Pretty authentic little Turkish café in a calm sidestreet. When we came there it felt more like visiting friends for brekafast than visiting a café. The ground floor is usually stuffed with a lively student crowd.
Take the Turkish Breakfast with an extra Menemen (scrambled eggs Turkish style) – it is stunning. The whole table is covered with small little bowls from home made fig and rosehip marmelade, honey with honeycomb to eggplant mousse, hommus to different sorts of cheeses and olives.
Other food you should try while in Istanbul:
Salep (warm, runny vanilla custard e.g. at Mado, 186 Istiklal Caddesi, Istanbul Beyoğlu); Manti (Turkish tortellini, I love the ones at Dai Pera, Yeni Çarşı Cd. No:54,34433,İstanbul; +90 212 252 8099); Gözleme (try the sweet potato one at Hala Manti, Evliya Çelebi,34433 İstanbul)
VISIT
Istanbul Modern (Karaköy, Meclis-i Mebusan Cad., 34433 Beyoğlu/İstanbul; Phone: +90 212 334 7300; closed on Mondays)
The building and its location directly at the seafront are amazing and futuristic, so don’t miss it.
GETTING AROUND
I would recommend to buy an Istanbul Card directly at the airport. You can charge the card with money and then access public transport. Driving by cab isn’t expensive, so it’s also a good option. Keep in mind though, traffic in Istanbul can be crazy and it may take three times longer than going with the metro and walk. Here you can find a list of approximate prices for a taxi ride.
December: Winter?
TRACKLIST:
1. Fourth Of July – Sufjan Stevens
2. Un Jour Comme Un Autre – Degiheugi
3. Mar (Lo Que Siento) – Bomba Estereo
4. Sprinter – Torres
5. Jungle Drum – Emiliana Torini
6. Marcia Baila – Rita Mitsouko
7. You Got the Love – The Retrosettes Sister Band
8. Urlaub Im Grünen – Denyo
9. Mein Nachbar ist ein Alien – A Tribe Called Knarf
10. Le Temps Est Bon – Degiheugi
11. Walk like an egyptian – The Puppini Sisters
12. Über 20 Geschichten – A Tribe Called Knarf
13. Come Closer – Dj Zebra
14. Madres – Daymé Arocena
15. Just – Trio Medieval
All about the moon
Just thought of the song “Small town moon” by Regina Spektor when I looked out at the sky with the christmas tree candles reflecting in the window…
I hope you all have a peaceful christmas with your beloved ones.
November: Don’t be a bore, be a dinosaur: Raaaw Raaaw
Tracklist:
1. Je suis à vous tout de suite - Michel Leclerc & Baya Kasmi
2. Can’t rely on you – Paloma Faith
3. Nicht Nichts – Annen May Kantereit
4. Take Care – Fading Frontier
5. Oh Boy – Kai von Glasgow
6. Pitto – Mono Desire feat. Manu Delago
7. Ever or Not – John Roberts
8. Fading Nights – Parra for Cuva feat. Anna Naklab
9. Wicked Games – Parra for Cuva feat. Anna Naklab
10. G.O.M.D. – J. Cole
11. Spatz – Moritz Krämer
12. Taller – Foreign Fields
Getting comfy at home: Autumn books
Winter is knocking on the front door: The last leaves have been blown away from the trees in front of my living room and today I woke up with the first snowflakes falling down. Time to make yourself comfy at home with some good books and bringing the green into the home and tummy.
Fried small green peppers: What a lucky coincidence today at the supermarket when I found these small peppers that I ate frequently in summer at the Baskque Country in Northern Spain. The perfect snack. Jut fry them in the pan and add some ground sea salt in the end. I like them most warm.
Winternähe by Mirna Funk (only published in German so far): Ein Bild mit Hitlerbärtchen gepostet auf Facebook und Instagramm – der “Gag” von ein paar Bekannten auf einer Party wirft Lolas Leben durcheinander. Wer bin ich und wer entscheidet darüber? Lola, die bei ihren jüdischen Großeltern in Berlin aufgewachsen ist, begibt sich auf die Suche nach sich selbst in Berlin, Tel Aviv und Thailand. Sie durchleuchtet ihre Familiengeschichte, findet sich als Anklägerin der Bekannten vor Gericht wieder, sucht ihre jüdische Identität bei einer jüdischen Gemeinde in Berlin und reist zu Shlomo , ihrem Geliebten in Tel Aviv…Lola durchlebt all das überwältigt von Gefühlen der Angst, Traurigkeit, aber auch des Glücks…
The Weekender: Looking at the cover makes me want to go and buy lots of plants straight away to put some life in the flat as life outside is disappearing at the moment. After reading the article about the shop/café “Rag and Bone Man” (Briesestr. 9, Neukölln) I am making plans for my next trip to Berlin.
Löwen wecken by Ayelet Gundar-Gohsen (Original title: Leha’ ir Arajot): It happened after a long day of work at the hospital: Etan drives fast in the dark when he knocks over the man on the highway. Etan’s wife, a chief detective, has to solve a new case: death of an illegal immigrant after absconding. One day later a black young women stands in front of Etan’s door and tells him that she is the wife of the dead illegal immigrant. What would you do now? Etan’s parallel life starts that slowly destroys everything that he has lived and worked for so far…
Das Liebesleben des Nathaniel P. by Adelle Waldman (Original title: The love affairs of Nathaniel P.): Nathaniel does his best to be a sensible, metrosexual man who understands the women who he is going out with. Though he can’t help that feelings are insulted when he breaks up his affairs and relationships when it comes to the point of taking over responsibility. The reader accompanies Nathaniel’s thoughts and life when drifting through Brooklyn’s hip cultural scene. Will he make it to bind himself to another person in the long run?
October: Wolf in sheep’s clothing
Tracklist
1. Starman – David Bowie
2. Goin’ to the Party – Alabama Shakes
3. Feel like we only go backwards – Tame Impala
4. Tainted love – Imelda May
5. 21,22,23 – AnnenMayKantereit
6. Ces bottes sont faites pour marcher – Eileen
7. Laika – Camel Power Club
8. Circlesong 6 – Peter Power
9. Hmm Hm Hmm – Feathered Sun
10, Nuages – Johannes Brecht
11. Never Cro Up – CRO
12. Kein Bock (Feat. Sido & Jan Delay) – Denyo
13. Bye Bye – CRO
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