Beware of what you desire, for you may receive it. -Chinese wisdom

 

I have to admit that the very prospect of an eager readership (as I have been made to believe) of my exploits has produced an anxious state these last few days, leading me to postpone and procrastinate, while at the same time entertaining ideas of abandoning the enterprise entirely.  It would appear, in the candid words of my dear father, that I might be “losing my verve”. With the first two binges of a three day feast consigned to the past, the next an aromatic anticipation away, and my self-imposed deadline (1800 GMT, Dec. 25^th) now unrealistic, may I invite you to join me for a stroll down memory lane?

 

The year closed on us in a snow-blanketed Berlin, with a sumptuous meal with friends and fireworks marking the passing of the baton from 2005 to 2006. A few days into this year, I received an email message bringing a job offer, and with it, a host of new opportunities. Ever one to embrace novel challenges, I joined the small team in the intercultures coordination office, where I work with a pool of intercultural trainers. Through training, our clientele is given the competence requisite for working and living effectively in a foreign culture.

 

In February, with Kyra in tow, I set off to discover hitherto unknown parts of London, but other than the Geffrey Museum in the East End, inanimate objects occupied a decidedly secondary position on the priority list when itinerary decisions were being made. From Kensington to Hampstead, Maidavale to Lambeth, Croydon to Wandsworth and points in between, we crisscrossed the British capital area, reconnecting with friends old and new. In rapid succession, Kyra and Jared turned 8 and 17, respectively, making their mother’s heart proud.

 

I exchanged my car for the ecologically sounder option of public transport in March, hoping to reap the benefits of not only an assuaged conscience, but the indirect advantage of increased exercise – something my creaking bones clamorously demanded. (I can’t honestly admit to observing much of a change.) At the end of the month, my first work-related continuing education training took me to Bad Bevensen in Lower Saxony, where for three days, with my peers in intercultural communication, our preconceptions and perceptions were challenged in the most reflection-evoking manner.

 

Goerlitz and Zgorzelec, its sister city across the Oder River on the Polish side, may have conceded victory to Essen and the Ruhr District in the competition for European City of Culture 2010, but as they say, any publicity is good publicity, so with another SMOOTH Moves Workshop successfully brought to a close, during the Easter break, we set off en famille to discover why. Now, why Goerlitz reached the final round was immediately evident in the remarkable architectural ensembles dating back as far as a millennium that lined the streets of the old town. Along narrow cobble-stoned streets and lanes that miraculously escaped the annihilating bombs of WWII, each successive façade more striking than the next, the town evoked a bygone era in a manner that seeks its rival. Façade, however, is the key word to explaining why there was no “cigar”. These same streets were eerily devoid of human life, and the poor souls who erred along them were hard pressed to find a restaurateur whose staff could cope with groups of over 2 people.

 

In the fair month of May, my annual solo peregrination returned me to Moscow and then on to as yet uncharted territory in Guangzhou (Canton), China. In Moscow, the warmth of the company of good friends surpassed anything else I experienced, with perhaps only the 2 hours spent in splendid isolation on Leo Tolstoy’s Khamovniki Estate (almost half of the time in the garden) providing anything to challenge it. While I browsed the halls and chambers of the wooden “cottage’, a very obliging warden provided me with anecdotal accounts of the great man’s idiosyncracies.  Guangzhou materialised as a green and bustling sister to neighbouring Hong Kong, both shopping paradises for anyone with the stamina to navigate their labyrinthine network of malls and markets (see separate account).

 

In June, self-professed “creative type” Jared produced some art pieces that drew the attention of a renowned art historian at a school exhibition hosted by the Robert Bosch Foundation here in Berlin. Composing “indie-electro-other” music also became more and more a passion for him. Otherwise, he seems to have rejected, consciously or otherwise, the prospect of a scheduled high school graduation in 2007, and by dint of sheer laziness, found himself extending his high school career by an extra year, in which he will no doubt grow wiser. The World Cup and the fabulous weather painted smiles (and flags) on the faces of often dour faced locals, but carnival atmosphere and Ghana’s exemplary showing notwithstanding, only the flying of a State Protocol sanctioned official Ghanaian flag and the donning of bangles in Ghana’s colours connected me with any of the furious footwork taking place on and off the pitch.

 

For all of July and the better part of August (come to think of it, that means the equivalent of almost one day for every week of this year!), I laboured alongside hired help to put the finishing touches to the oceanfront house my father has so selflessly built on my behalf over the last few years. Unfortunately, it was an undertaking that left little time for anything else, so the social calls that habitually populate a visit to Ghana were whittled down to the very bare minimum. The country was awash with a national pride that will stand it in good stead in the run up to next year’s 50^th Anniversary of Independence celebrations. While there, I suffered from a particularly jarring form of culture shock, a word that pops up with clockwork regularity in my professional dealings, but knowing what it entailed only partially eased the vexation of dealing with it! The house is just about done, landscaping and the annex remain to be completed, so if you have ever considered visiting Ghana, now is the time to plan for next summer’s housewarming!

 

In September, despite a previously voiced staunch resolve (it is one’s prerogative to alter one’s path to redemption, is it not?), I joined two groups that have since broken the monotony of an extra-familial routine given over to work and PTA activity (I accepted a board position early in the year), and afforded me an opportunity to meet Chancellor Merkel –who struck me as rather affable - while ensuring that my Russian receives the due attention it deserves. We attended a friend’s fairytale wedding in Hamburg, and Prague welcomed me for a weekend of girly fun with a dear friend.

 

Do forgive me the numerous dead end links on my website (none but one on this page are active) - it is my firm resolution to breathe life into as many as possible of them during the coming months. As a means to that end: in the very unlikely event that anyone of you still has a copy of the account I wrote of our trip to Japan in 2001 (emailed in late April or early May of that year), I would be indebted to you if you would reunite us! It may take some time to resolve a few technical problems, but eventually, you will be able to see pictures of the various things I refer to in this missive.

 

My “annuity” delivered, nothing but a short trip to Hamburg stands between me and 9 days on Sardinia, so all that remains is for me wish you pleasure, purpose and prosperity in all areas of your life in the New Year. May your actions speak louder than your words!

 

As ever,

 

Gladys

 

Berlin, December 26^th, 2006

 

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