Google weather confirms: It’s been there for the past three days. Im-pos-sib-le. But look, it’s there, caught in the roof tiles of the Treskowstrasse 25 front building: There. Now do you believe me? It’s been there all along: The February sun. Have you noticed? As our studies resume, the world around us takes on a
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Getting Dirt-y with “Prost to Compost”
“So you begin to wonder if [the city’s] true passion is the enjoyment of new and different things, and not, instead, the joy of expelling, discarding, cleansing itself of a recurrent impurity… Street cleaners are welcomed like angels, and their task of removing the residue of yesterday’s existence is surrounded by a respectful silence, like
#1 Tell Me Something I Don’t Know: Brenna O’Brien
We’ll never know just how much we don’t know. To remedy our ignorance as best we can, we have decided to mine the wealth of knowledge held in the collective psyche of the student body and present it here in a new podcast series, “Tell Me Something I Don’t Know.” In today’s episode, Brenna O’Brien
Contemporary Arab Antisemitism in Berlin
When one thinks of Antisemitism in Europe and particularly in Germany, the first images that are likely to come to mind are those of skinheads or Nazis, or even individuals who regard themselves as bio-Deutsch (ethnically German – whatever that means). These people represent a valid threat to those of Jewish background. What many neglect
On Rediscovering Faith
My grandfather was not a Jew by choice. In 1930s Europe, being a Jew was a curse, and one that promised death. Born in the Jewish ghetto of Vienna, he was given the name of Erich Christian Schwarz, a triumphant effort at masking the family’s heritage through words. My grandfather escaped Europe by hope, beautiful
The Adaptation Period
To all new students: welcome to Berlin. As you make your way through the city, you will hopefully immerse yourself in the endless exhibitions and concerts, wide-ranging festivals celebrating all things from film to butter, engaging street art, striking museums adorned with (not uncommonly) stolen artefacts, shabby clubs that will reject you thrice in a
Ana’s Spilled Water
I stared through the open window. My lungs filled with the cold winter air, and an odd sense of hope invaded my soul. A small ray of light peaked out from behind the clouds and rested next to me. God then whispered through my right ear: “This year will be good, Ana. Not that the
On the Right to the Right and Why I Love Jerusalem
I love Jerusalem. I was born to the city and, as far I know, I am an eleventh generation to the city. My spirituality and lyricism begin and end with feeling the pulse of Jerusalem in ways that defy secular logic, in ways that I believe would make people who read this piece puzzled for