We arrived at dawn and the airport’s bustle belied the sleepiness of the city. Istanbul strikes immediately as a crossroads city. Dumpy tenements worthy of Eastern Europe mesh awkwardly with luxury condos, all eventually fading away into the city’s more ancient districts. The airport’s international arrivals board shows the city’s true nature, too. Flights were…
Month: August 2009
The Buttenheim Kerwabaum
Where there is a Bavarian beer festival there are also remnants of the Germanic pagan traditions. Today in Buttenheim we witnessed one of these old tribal traditions at the St. Georgenbräu brewery in Buttenheim. St. Georgenbräu also happens to be one of our favorite breweries in the area. This is why: Fashion historians might also…
Bitter, Sweet, and Smoky
It’s time for us to leave, and it’s time for me to whine. Right now there is a festival going on in Bamberg called Sandkerwa (pronounced Sand-Curve-Ah). At first I was angry that the fireworks that end the festival start at 10 PM on Monday–and we have to leave around 9:30. Seriously, what a bummer!…
All Good Things
When we first got here three months ago, the wheat was waist-high. Now the fields are fallow after the harvest. The sun shone but the summer was never warm. We got a lot of wind, and too much rain. Even August has been cool. The fruit trees that were once bare now bear purple plump…
Love and Barley 