I had always planned to delay my November trip to Berlin until after the midterms, and wow, am I glad I did. To celebrate yesterday’s election results in the midst of my fellow citizens has been a joy beyond imagining. There are still horrors to come, no doubt\u2014we have not gotten rid of the central villain and his devious henchmen yet\u2014but to know that a sizable majority of Americans (including Texans! including South Carolinians!) are absolutely fed up with this administration is satisfaction enough for now. I haven’t felt this good about my native country for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Friday I will arrive in Berlin for the first time since my book about the city came out. (I’ve been told I’ll even be able to see Berlin Before and After<\/em> stacked on bookstore tables, a thrill I have yet to experience here in the States.) I have a full schedule planned, including three operas, seven concerts, several photography shows, the usual round of art exhibits, and a number of dinners with friends\u2014and that’s not counting the unplanned parts, which Berlin specializes in. So I thought I would try something new on this visit. Each morning, starting on Saturday the 7th, I will try to write a post about what I have seen or done or discovered during the day before. If I can keep it up, perhaps I will end up producing my own modest portrait of the city that was so beautifully captured by Franz Hessel, Joseph Roth, and Billy Wilder in their journalistic accounts from a century ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I had always planned to delay my November trip to Berlin until after the midterms, and wow, am I glad I did. To celebrate yesterday’s election results in the midst of my fellow citizens has been a joy beyond imagining. … Continue reading