So, Edmund de Waal covers this history at length in White Road, but during the 17th and 18th centuries in Europe, rich people collected Chinese and Japanese porcelain like crazy–like it was toilet paper during the pandemic; like there was a zombie apocalypse on, and the only things that could stop zombies were teacups. SoContinue reading “Ceramics Saturdays: The Porcelain Cabinet at Charlottenburg”
Category Archives: goldeneagle
Field Trip Fridays: Charlottenburg
Not the most auspicious day to visit the sprawling Neoclassical Prussian castle and grounds, but it was still interesting, particularly the little exhibition of German Romanticist paintings in the New Pavilion. I’m sure Germans consider Caspar David Friedrich schlocky, but man, could he paint. And since my working definition of art is “Things I can’tContinue reading “Field Trip Fridays: Charlottenburg”
Berliner Dom
The largest Protestant church in Germany dominates the Museumsinsel in the center of Berlin. The site of the Hohenzollern dynastic crypt and one church or another since the 1400s, it now boasts a hulking Baroque Revival cathedral built at the turn of last century by Emperor Wilhelm II. It’s not a pretty church. Constructed onContinue reading “Berliner Dom”
Field-Trip Fridays: Wollparadies Fadeninsel
My knitting needles finally arrived today (let’s not talk about how much I paid to have that box shipped to me), and so I went to a yarn store today to get ready for my next knitting project. Wollparadies Fadeninsel is on Oranienstraße in the cute, hip neighborhood of Kreuzberg. The staff were *super* friendlyContinue reading “Field-Trip Fridays: Wollparadies Fadeninsel”
Field-Trip Fridays: IKEA with Lucky
I did this when I lived in Münich–try to take a day trip every Friday to somewhere new and interesting. Fridays worked well because my collaborator had to take the train back home to her family that day, and museums, national parks, etc. were less busy on Fridays than on the weekend. So, I’m tryingContinue reading “Field-Trip Fridays: IKEA with Lucky”
Hey, it’s the Sun!
Not the ball–that’s the Fernsehturm 🤣. But the reflection on the building next to it proves the sun actually came out today for a hot minute (sorry, Cassandra)!
Capsule Pantry
I’ve done a couple of extended stays abroad for research and community work, and as I love to cook, this has presented me with the problem of how I can do so without investing in an expensive pantry that I am likely to have to throw out (or rehome with friends/neighbors). So, I’ve come upContinue reading “Capsule Pantry”
The Philosophy of Packing
I really admire people who have put in their 10,000+ hours to become expert at some particular craft or art. I am not those people. My friend Jen and I were just talking about this last night–how we’re both too interested in too many things to dedicate the time it takes to become really expertContinue reading “The Philosophy of Packing”
Los Angeles
I had to go to LA to apply for a visa at the German consulate for my upcoming research residency in Berlin, and even though I was only going to be there for a little over 24 hours, I planned to eat some good food and learn a bit about the area where I wasContinue reading “Los Angeles”
One good thing about time changes
When I fly west, I’m actually up early enough for sunrise. Which, when you’re staying on the east coast of Oahu, is a good thing.
The Rookery 