Laundry

Clothes dryers are very rare here - most people have a washing machine and then hang their laundry to dry. Finding, buying, and installing a rare appliance sounds like a lot of work, so we are following the trend. We did invest in a spiffy drying rack and some cheerful clothes pins, pictured here with a full two loads of laundry:

...and I'll try to find something more interesting to post tomorrow!

Dishwasher... And old school trams

Our big accomplishment of the weekend was installing the dishwasher. It looked easy from the instructions, but required trips to both IKEA and the hardware store. The empty spot next to it will hopefully one day contain an oven and range....

And from David (on his trip to the hardware store), a picture of an old-school tram they were running on the tracks today:

Blankets

In Berlin, sitting outside is so popular that instead of bringing people in as soon as the weather turns cool, restaurants instead put out blankets so you can stay warm outside!

At AIP

I don't start at the Astrophysics Institute until a week from Monday, but I dropped by today to check it out. This is one of the buildings on the campus - the one I'll be working on is more historic than modern.

Welcome

Today I went to the Ausländerbehörde (where visas are processed) to get my work permit and blue card straightened out. Everything was super easy and should be processed relatively quickly (and I have a temporary document while it all goes through).

It draws a strong contrast to the experience of refugees that are currently in Germany or trying desperately to get here. I am feeling my privilege - white privilege, western privilege - that allows me to so easily travel between countries in search of a temporary or permanent change in my life. I do hope that this welcome is truly for everyone:

Street art!

We saw these murals as we were headed out to some delicious pizza in Prenzlauer Berg. It seems to span the usual range of murals/street art, all in one go.

Delivery

This pan-asian restaurant is down the block from us, but we see its delivery vehicles - the vespa and the smart car all around the neighborhood. Sometimes I think about asking them for a ride back home, since it's on their way. The little vespa + delivery box is probably the most common type of delivery vehicle around here.