Just a dream

It feels like it all finished before it even started. And now... Now what? Back to the real world. Back to daylight, the sounds of the city, your alarm, some sun.

What happens in Berlin stays in Berlin. Because the memories are all a blur.

Let's do it all over again.

Moments of Introspection

Off to Berlin in exactly one week and one day.

Berlin has a special vibe that I haven't felt in any other place in the world. Money is not the main driving force behind the city. A combination of factors have made it what it is today: the people, the history, the music. Everything feels authentic. You don't feel ripped off in everything you do. It feels just right. You can be who you are, or who you want to be, and no one will judge you. There is an ongoing energy that makes you feel very much alive.

My Berlin Pinterest Board has been updated with new places I'd like to visit party in. I have also created a custom-made Google map, because I am a geek, which I may or may not share when we're back. I have been looking forward to next weekend for too long.

A weekend of getting lost in deep sounds and dark rooms. A weekend of getting lost in the moment (as the Innervisions crowd put it) and at the same time rediscovering yourself. It's one of the funny things about clubbing for hours - you can reach moments of profound clarity, because at the very moment that you close your eyes the magic begins to happen. It's only you, and the music, and the way you perceive it.

In a similar way, daylight saving time has prolonged the night and the hours of darkness every day, forcing us to spend more time in the dark. Ironically enough, sometimes we see things more clearly in the darkness, with our mind's eyes. Surrounded by people, yet experiencing everything alone, in our moments of introspection.

Tingles of excitement

The countdown has officially begun.

Ten days until crossing over the Atlantic for a bit of adventure, a bit of tourism, a bit of partying and a lot of eating.

I am notorious for being a little, ahem, overly decisive on what needs to be seen and done on holidays. Guess it's my nature as a planner (doesn't help that I do it for a living, either). Itineraries and outfits need to be carefully planned out, but I'm willing to let go this time and roam freely. Except for our time in the rainforest.

Google maps view of the Iguazu Airport 

For now, I've set up a Pinterest board which has been taken over by meat. I couldn't help it, and I'm not ashamed of it either. 

Study time!

Time to take care of unfinished business.

http://unlike.net/berlin

http://wikitravel.org/en/Berlin

http://www.xlr8r.com/files/magazine/pdf/XLR8R_101BCG.pdf

Club der Visionaere 

Berghain

(edit from the future: no photos of Panorama bar exist, and rightfully so. You should see it to believe it)

Tresor 

(photos look great but they're not mine)

Inside North Korea

AP Asia chief photographer and bureau chief were granted unprecedented access to parts of North Korea, in an attempt to offer a wider coverage of the nation in its isolated condition.

In some cases these can be appreciated more as artistic pieces than photojournalism, but viewing them still is a worthwhile experience.

Find them here.

I'm a-coming

photo courtesy of Savvas Stavrou