The second lockdown is holding on to our sorry asses and it looks like it will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. It’s a bleak outlook, I know, but what can you do other than trying to make the best of it, right? Did I just hear you say: “Shut up!”? Well, fair enough.
I think I’m not exaggerating when I say this whole corona era has been a mixed bag. While some of us have our sanity hanging on a thin thread by now, others finally got the time they needed for self-fulfillment. I’ve seen people falling in the abyss of mental unwellness, while others keep on trucking with their lives as if nothing has happened. People’s responses to the pandemic and the lockdown could not be more divisive.
But how are you doing, dear iHeartBerlin reader? We were wondering about this so we sat together with our cherished collaborator Sophia Halamoda with whom we authored the fabulous Like A Berliner book and created a brand new personality quiz to find out what quarantine type you really are. It’s fully illustrated by the lovely Sophia, so make sure to check out all the cute little details in the drawings. We hope they can brighten your day a little.
Whatever your end result of this quiz might be, always remember, we’re all in this together and there will be another, happier day. Whenever that might be…
by Frank | Pandemic
illustrations: Berk Karaoglu.
Berlin without its nightlife is like a bath with no bubbles. In other words, we won’t stand for it. And since nocturnal establishments of all kinds have been closed for weeks now, one just has to get creative. But what else can you do to channel that party animal other than perfecting your dance moves to a United We Stream DJ set? Well, aren’t we glad you asked!
Read on…
by Michalina | Stories
photos: Roger Sabaté.
Like countless others in early March, I certainly didn’t expect the extent of the impending pandemic. Fearing it would interfere with my long-awaited vacation, I actually stayed in denial of it for as long as I could. But the ominous news screens incessantly broadcasting Corona updates which had followed me across San Francisco ultimately proved fateful as I ended up booking an emergency flight back to Berlin.
Coming back in times of a worldwide pandemic made me consider Berlin home more than ever before. Having been here for over four years now, I’d already mused on the reechoing metaphor of Berlin as a lover and even written on staying committed to the city over time. As I was coming back, I’d ask myself whether experiencing Berlin in this bizarre Corona edition will affect my love for it. Certainly, I’d never seen the city like that: with deserted streets, sealed off clubs, and a ban on gatherings.
Read on…
by Michalina | Stories
photos: Robert Kleinfeld.
Berlin is a city, that is always busy, day and night. Usually. Of course, right now is an exception. These are unusual times. Even though most of us are confined to our homes, some of us still have a duty to keep on going outside to work.
Photojournalist Robert Kleinfeld is one of them. On the height of the Berliner’s discipline to stay insight he took to the streets to capture an empty city, empty subways, empty streets. It looks pretty much like the set for a dystopian movie where most of humankind has vanished. Only a few lonely souls left. It has such an eerie vibe that we never would have expected to see our beloved colorful Berlin in.
We don’t want to dwell too much on the situation. I think the last couple of weeks have given us plenty to worry and think about. But things will improve, we know it. Maybe not as soon as we hope, maybe not within a day. But soon enough. Let these captured moments of a deserted Berlin be a reminder of how fragile our world actually is, and that we can’t take the smallest things for granted.
Read on…
by Frank | Photos
Normally, he is the gardener of the house. I watched him year after year, half paying attention. Seeds, coconut-husk soil; add water and in a few months boom… Chilis. Too many to consume. Habaneros, Thai, Jalapenos, Scotch Bonnets. The heat lamp has been set for a few hours in the evenings, on an automatic timer. Every day it clicks on and off. I think maybe I will go mad. I think maybe this is a gift. In our apartment, I set up to work at our dining room table. It’s not the most comfortable set up. The hard chair cuts the blood flow, just above my knees.
One conference call has ended and tasks have been assigned. We have no idea when we will meet in the office again as a team. The dates keep changing. The company provides status updates, the chains of command feign bold ignorance. We’re never quite sure of what is happening at the top, that’s just how it is. They leave that part out of the marketing campaigns and new hire information packets. We are the masses, with seemingly no control. I look over at the seedlings. If I don’t water them, they will surely die, but how much water is too much? I have no direction and no green thumb. Instead, I have an internal lie detector, razor-sharp detachment skills, and Google.
Read on…
by Guest Author | Pandemic, Stories
While everyone and their mom are currently on voluntary house arrest (you better be!) we’re already running out of ideas what to do at home. It’s not that there isn’t an endless list of possible chores we could finally get to now that we really have no more excuses left anymore. But honestly, we’re close to losing our mind, so clearly now is not the time for chores…
It’s just been a week or two depending on when you started, but somehow now, time decided to pass really slowly right now, so we’re filled with nostalgia of better days and a real sense of withdrawal from all our usual activities and adventures in Berlin’s bars, stages and clubs.
While the club scene has successfully transitioned into the digital space with their United We Stream, we’re missing all the fun cultural entertainment from our favorite queer darlings from the world of comedy, drag, performance, and voguing. But luckily, those bitches ain’t sleeping, within a week many of them have come up with streaming alternatives to their regular shows and we are HERE FOR IT! This way we won’t miss the cute Darvish, the hilarious Daniel-Ryan, the fantastic Venus Boys and many more…
Read on…
by Frank | Events
There I was, in my Berlin kitchen, minding my own business. Preparing a salad at a leisurely pace when I noticed a round, gooey, grey, slimy, blob on one of the bio salad leaves (has anyone else noticed bio supermarkets are less hit by the panic shoppers?). On closer inspection, the blob turned out to be a very small, dare I say cute, slug. What to do? I considered putting it on my balcony but quickly thought otherwise as I didn’t want to put my darling plants, and recently sole companions, at risk. Perhaps I would wrap it in a small piece of lettuce and throw it out the window. No. Living on the 5th floor, that would be an unnecessary risk and irresponsible (like those teenagers throwing a Corona -no, not the beer- party at Pankow this week).
Read on…
by Guest Author | Pandemic, Stories
photos: Red Rubber Road.
One of our Uncensored Berlin artist duos has come out with a photo series that could not be more fitting for our current situation. It was actually done years before the pandemic and is part of the ongoing project Red Rubber Road by photographers AnaHell and Nathalie Dreier.
Back in 2018 Ana suffered from a serious illness and was kept in quarantine in the infectious disease isolation ward at the military hospital in Berlin for several weeks. Visitors had to wear protective gear which created quite the nightmarish atmosphere. This also inspired the idea to continue their Red Rubber Road series right there in the isolation ward on one of Nathalie’s visits. The staged self-portraits have a quite playful and humorous vibe which helped them to lighten up the oppressive mood.
The artists decided to release the series in light of the current situation to show the optimism that creativity can provide during moments of disease and isolation.
Read on…
by Frank | Art, Photos
