Spring is here, and the pace of Club activities is picking up! Excursions in and around Berlin await us, interesting restaurant visits, book and film groups, walking groups—take your pick!
GET OUT AND EXPLORE
Tuesday, 9 April A tour of Lichterfelde West, one of Berlin’s oldest villa colonies, with its remarkably diverse mixture of architectural styles. We will visit one of Berlin’s most outstanding private art collections, in the Lichterfelde home of internationally renowned painter and graphic designer Achim Freyer. The collection includes works by Picasso, Matisse, Beuys, and Dali, in a dialogue with relatively unknown artists.
Tuesday, 16 April A Zoom conversation with nonfiction book coach Nicole Pope. She worked as a journalist and foreign correspondent for well over two decades and later as an editor and professional writer for NGOs and international institutions. Now she helps aspiring authors fulfill their dream of writing a book, acting as their mentor and sounding board.
Tuesday, 16 April A visit to the Pankow Museum, where we will see its collection of mechanical musical instruments, made by Italian craftsmen in the bustling industrial Berlin of the 19th century. We will enjoy a demonstration of barrel organs, music boxes, pianolas and orchestrions in the Pankow Museum. An ‘original’ organ grinder will explain how these instruments were made and where they were played.
Thursday, 18 April A visit to the ‘Gardens of the World’, with its many beautiful theme gardens: the Balinese Garden, the Chinese Garden, the Korean Garden, the English Garden, the Italian Renaissance Garden, the Christian Garden, the Oriental-Islamic Garden, the Jewish Garden and the Japanese Garden—the last, with luck, in cherry-blossom time!
Tuesday, 23 April A tour of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Auswärtiges Amt). After a long wait, we have finally arranged to visit this institution. We will be given a tour of the historic building itself, followed by a visit to the cafeteria, where we will be able to ask questions of our tour leader.
Friday, 26 April A visit to Einstein’s summer house in Caputh, built in 1929 following his own ideas and requirements. The site, overlooking the lake, was an ideal position to enable him to sail on the lake and walk through the forests.
EAT, DRINK, AND ENJOY
Saturday, 6 April A visit to Winterfeldtmarkt in Schoeneberg, the largest and most famous weekly market in Berlin. Here you can buy high-quality fruits and vegetables, as well as flowers, cheese, household items and clothing. We top off the visit with a stop at the popular Cafe Berio.
Thursday, 11 April Stop by for a drink after a long day, and bite to eat if you like, at our Casual Evening near Hackescher Markt.
Friday 26 April Lunch at Mr. Hai Noon in Wilmersdorf. The restaurant offers a wide array of sushi and inventive Asian fusion cooking, with new influences from Japan, Vietnam, and Southeast Asia.
BOOKS AND FILMS
Wednesday, 17 April The Biographies Book Group will discuss Astrid Lindgren, the Woman Behind Pippi Longstocking, by Jens Andersen. Unwed and pregnant at the age of 18, Lingren was obliged to have her baby in Copenhagen and leave him there with a foster mother. Her experience led to stories like Pippi Longstocking, about how children overcome loneliness.
Monday, 22 April The Science Group will discuss on Zoom And Then What?: Despatches From the Heart of 21st-Century Diplomacy, From Kosovo to Kiev, by Catherine Ashton, the first High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, as well as the chief coordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy within the EU.
Monday, 29 April The Afternoon Book Group will discuss The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng. (This is a Zoom meeting.)
Film Buffs, a WhatsApp group, meets on an ad hoc basis, at times convenient to participants, to go to the cinema together.
STAY FIT WITH WALKING GROUPS
Saturday, 13 April A brisk hike from S-Bahn Station Friedrichshagen through the busy shopping street Bölschestraße to the Spree. We will cross the river through the Spreetunnel and proceed through the large forest on the other side, along the Spree, to the old town of Köpenick.
Every Wednesday A walk around Schlachtensee
Every Thursday A walk around Tiergarten
CRAFTS, LANGUAGES, AND GAMES
Monday, 8 and 22 April English Speakers
Tuesday, 9 and 23 April German Speakers
Wednesday, 10 April French Speakers
The Club has multiple Mah Jong groups that play regularly, as well as a crafts group that meets at participants’ convenience.
