New books | Summer 2018

Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

In the past few weeks I have been pondering over these lines by American poet Mary Oliver (from 'The Summer Day', appeared in New and Selected Poems, Vol. One) and still have no answer. Her simple question is thought-provoking, to say the least. I feel as if I haven't quite landed in Germany. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to move back to the Continent - the culture and way of living in this part of Europe suits me better - I just thought by now I would be more settled. I have been looking for a part-time job where I get a chance to improve my spoken German before taking on something more challenging but haven't found anything. A bookshop didn't even reply to my email. How ironic is that? The good news is that our oldest has finished her studies in Scotland. We went on a road trip to pick her up, took a ferry across the Channel from Calais and got to admire the White Cliffs of Dover again.

At this point I have a few drafts lined up but I wanted to end my blog silence with a list of new books. I'm excited about Michael Ondaatje’s novel Warlight, his first in seven years. If you like his work allow me to point out Eleanor Wachtel's recent interview with him for CBC Radio. Her podcast Writers and Company is one of the finest for book lovers.

New books:
· Warlight  by Michael Ondaatje (Vintage). The last book I read by him was Anil's Ghost, and before that, The English Patient. Liked both. You may already have spotted the cover in the blog's sidebar; expect to find it on a reading list in the near future.
· The Beautiful Summer  by Cesare Pavese (Penguin). A coming-of-age story that takes place in Italy in the 1930s. Originally published in 1949.
· The Years  by Annie Ernaux (Fitzcarraldo, translated by Alison L. Strayer). This is the UK edition of her memoir, which has already been published in the US. '[A] masterpiece memoir of French life' reads the title of The Guardian review. I was intrigued and intend to read the book, even though I have never read anything by the author.
· There There  by Tommy Orange (Vintage). One of two debut novels on this list of new books, set in a Native American community in Oakland, California, where the author himself was born and raised. This one is getting a lot of good reviews. Like the cover.

· 100 Books That Changed the World  by Scott Christianson and Colin Salter (Rizzoli). 'A tour of global history by way of history’s most important scrolls, manuscripts, and printed books, from Plato and Homer to the twenty-first century—100 must reads.' A book about books that could be fun to have on the coffee table. This one was published in the spring but I wanted to include it on the list.
· The Collected Stories of Machado de Assis  (Liveright Publishing, translated by Margaret Jull Costa + Robin Patterson). I honestly don't remember having heard of Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis (1839-1908), the greatest Brazilian writer, until reading Parul Sehgal's review in The New York Times. Hanging my head in shame. If you like short stories you will be happy to learn that the collection is 930 pages.
· A Place for Us  by Fatima Farheen Mirza (Vintage). A debut novel about an Indian Muslim family preparing for the wedding of their daughter. Editorial director Sarah Jessica Parker chose the book for her own imprint, SJP for Hogarth. I'm often wary when celebrities endorse something but I know Parker is a keen reader and she has recommended good books in the past. This Guardian Q&A with the author, a Californian of Indian descent, might interest you.
· The Outsider  by Stephen King (Hodder & Stoughton). And finally, a crime novel for the King fans out there.

Café Tölke in the Schnoor quarter of Bremen

In the spring I meant to share images from Bremen on the blog but things got in the way. Summer came early and on a warm Sunday I bicycled into the city centre and went for a stroll in the old Schnoor quarter. It was too sunny for photographing but I snapped this photo that captures the mood at Café Tölke, one of the first cafés I tried when we moved here. A small, charming place that specialises in cakes and pies. Once you have found a table and sit there with your coffee and Apfelstrudel you may get the feeling that as long as it stays open the world is going to be okay. That's the atmosphere of some cafés.

images by me, appeared on Instagram 05/03/2018 and 28/05/2018

Edinburgh: Waterstones bookshop & Calton Hill

Having visited Edinburgh on a few occasions last summer I can already identify with the late Alan Rickman's experience of the Scottish capital: 'I always feel that when I come to Edinburgh in many ways I am coming home' (source). We were there during the Fringe, when the city is bursting with life and culture, and created unforgettable memories. Waterstones on Prince Street, their West End branch, made it to our list of homes away from home: This four-storey bookshop is the bibliophile's Promised Land: it has a fantastic collection of books and a relaxing atmosphere, not to mention the W Café with its stunning view of the Castle Hill.

The Castle Hill seen from the W Café

To escape the crowded streets, we walked through the Princes Street Gardens from the Waverley station to Waterstones, enjoyed refreshment and stayed longer than we intended - we found time for Waterstones on each of our trips. Just behind the building, running parallel between Princes St and George St, is the charming Rose Street, a narrow street free from traffic with what seems like endless pubs and restaurants.

W Café, a coffee house within the Waterstones bookshop

Victoria Street in the Old Town

In Edinburgh we walked all over the city centre: up to the Castle and down to the Grassmarket, up Victoria Street, along the Royal Mile, where we explored some of the courts, and off in the direction of Calton Hill. Up the stairs to Calton Hill we went to enjoy the spectacular view of the city. We even climbed the stairs to enjoy the view from the Nelson Monument. It was worth it.

The clock tower of the Balmoral Hotel on Princes Street, seen from Calton Hill

The Castle seen from Calton Hill, and to the right, the gothic Scott Monument

Store Street Espresso, Bloomsbury, London

Last week we went to London, where I got to see the Georgia O'Keeffe exhibition at Tate Modern - not a chance I was going to miss it! I needed a city trip before tuning into autumn. We dined at the Wild Food Cafe in Neal's Yard, walked in Covent Garden, Westminster and St. James's Park, and went to the Whole Foods Market on Kensington High Street, which always feels like our London food-home. The kids even asked, We are going to WFM, aren't we? And there was coffee. In the heart of Bloomsbury I had the best latte. I had promised a coffee-geeky friend to go to Store Street Espresso at 40 Store St (to be exact, it's part of the Fitzrovia district). It was a promise I happily fulfilled during our Bloomsbury/Fitzrovia stroll and the coffee shop lived up to my expectations.

I was under the influence of the Bloomsbury group upon entering Store St Espresso. We had walked from Bloomsbury St into Gower St and at No. 10 I spotted the blue plaque of Lady Ottoline Morrell. I knew it was there, yet my heart skipped a beat. She wasn't exactly a member of the group but she was a patron of the arts and if you have read the diaries and letters of e.g. Virginia Woolf you will know Ottoline. This was my state of mind when I ordered my latte.

It was a very warm and sunny day in the city and we had done a lot of walking when I sat down and had my first sip; it was superb. Store St Espresso is my idea of a good café. It has that minimalist, rustic look with industrial touches. The atmosphere is ideal; it's an unpretentious café. The guests seem to mind their own business, on their laptops, phones or reading. I guess some would call this a place for hipsters but while I sat there I noticed all kinds of people with one thing in common, there to enjoy their coffee.

The location of Store St Espresso is great. The street is quiet, close to parks and The British Museum. I urge you to grab a coffee if you happen to be in the neighbourhood. Well, I urge you to eat in. There is a great window nook if you like people-watching and in fine weather you can sit outdoors.

I am not done with my trip on the blog but during our stay I certainly got my London fix. My mind is still wandering the streets of Bloomsbury, thinking of Virginia Woolf and her circle of friends. It's also lingering at the Tate, admiring O'Keeffe's paintings. Fortunately, the Scottish summer turned on its charm when we got home, enabling me to start writing this on the patio with a cup of coffee, and finishing on a chair in the front of the house, next to the hydrangeas, while admiring the sunset.

How I love August days like these!

Whitby the historic sea front town

On Saturday I celebrated my birthday in Whitby, the historic, picturesque sea front town in North Yorkshire. The harbour splits the town into two parts, with the older located on the East bank. Whitby has old houses, narrow cobblestone streets from mediaeval times, beautiful shopfronts, colourful doors, taverns, cafés, sandy beaches and cliffs, not to mention the famous ruins of the Whitby Abbey, the gothic church on top of the East Cliff.

Whitby is probably familiar to those who have read the Gothic horror classic Dracula by Bram Stoker. Count Dracula is shipwrecked off the Whitby coast and comes ashore disguised as a black dog, and then the "fun" begins! After having been to Whitby I must say that it is the perfect setting for the tale.

The marina in Whitby and in the background the North York Moors National Park

The view from the 199 steps in all directions is simply breathtaking. When you look over the old red rooftops it feels as if you have travelled back in time or have entered a fairy tale. I can recommend entering the town from the steps, which have an adjoining donkey track (there is parking on the East Cliff by the Whitby Abbey ruins). When you walk down the steps you step right into Church Street (see my images below), a charming narrow cobblestone street, where you will find all kinds of wonderful shops, inns and cafés.

Everywhere you look there is something to photograph but on Saturday the town was packed with people, which made it difficult to snap photos. We drove to Whitby and on the way into town you have to pass the North York Moors National Park, which has a beautiful landscape.

Marie Antoinette's Patisserie in Church Street

There was only one thing I spotted in Whitby that bothered me (not for the first time). As we were walking in Church Street I saw the sign of Marie Antoinette's Patisserie with the phrase 'let them eat cake'. It's a phrase commonly misattributed to the Queen. She was supposed to have said it upon learning that the peasants couldn't afford bread. The fact is she never uttered these words; it was just French Revolution propaganda. It so happens that in my bag I had my copy of Must You Go?: My Life with Harold Pinter by Antonia Fraser (an early birthday present). A few years back I read Fraser's biography Marie Antoinette: The Journey, where she corrects the 'let them eat cake' story and I think it's my duty to do so too, in case you spot the quote in my photo of the sign.

I took some photos of the Whitby Abbey, which I might share later. As I said earlier, there were so many people in Whitby that day that made it difficult to take photos. This trip was also a pleasure trip for the family and I wanted to spare them; it's no fun continually having to stop walking while someone is photographing. The idea is to return to Whitby on a weekday and go for a stroll with the camera while they relax on the beach.

Kember & Jones deli café in Glasgow

Yesterday we took a trip to the Scottish city of Glasgow and I fell head-over-heels in love with its West End district. Somewhere in the heart of this beautiful and laid-back district, with cafés and restaurants on every corner, I turned to my husband and asked him: Where has this city been all my life? At 134 Byres Road we found Kember & Jones deli café and when I opened the door I was home. We got a table upstairs with view over the ground floor where we took in the wonderful atmosphere of this place.

I never write any of those 'my week in Instagram' posts on my blog (sorry folks, I find them pointless) but when I took the camera out of my bag to snap photos of the West End district to share on the blog, I realised that I had left the battery in the charger at home ... duh! Luckily my husband had his phone with him so I was able to snap these two at Kember & Jones and share them on Instagram. This only means that I have to return to Glasgow one day.

Back to the café. Personally, I cannot stand it when my latte is served in a large glass. Dazzled by the café's rustic interior style, I forgot to ask how they served it at Kember & Jones and it arrived in a medium-sized, vintage-looking glass, which didn't bother my latte-soul at all. More importantly, it was good! I ordered a sandwich from their menu with roasted vegetables, hummus, spinach and harissa chilli dressing, with beans and salad on the side, and it was heavenly. When I thought this café couldn't enchant me anymore I found pretty much all the cookbooks on my wish list on display on the ground floor (Sunday Suppers by Karen Mordechai and A Kitchen in France: A Year of Cooking in My Farmhouse by Mimi Thorisson, just to name a few, and I added to it The River Cafe Classic Italian Cookbook by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers). This café is simply a charmer.

As a final note, let me just say that if you ever travel to Glasgow or have a stop-over, don't make the mistake of staying only one day. I could spend days in the West End district alone. In fact, I think I could spend days just enjoying the cafés, restaurants and scenery on Byres Road.

A road trip to Luxembourg City

Hello again, how have you been? During my blog break we took a spontaneous road trip to Luxembourg with a short stop in London. As soon as we drove into London, I realised how much I had missed it. By the Marble Arch my heart was beating faster and at Hyde Park Corner I felt a sense of thrill (the area is part of my London comfort zone). The London stop was way too short for my taste but in the evening, as I was standing on a deck of a ferry, breathing in the refreshing sea air and admiring the White Cliffs of Dover, I was feeling more than content.

Why the London-intro to a post on Luxembourg? Compared to my London excitement, arriving in Luxembourg after eight months away took me by surprise. As probably most of my blog readers know, Luxembourg was our home for more than a year and the move to the UK last November was done in a bit of haste. I didn't really have the time to say goodbye to the city. Without dwelling much on such thoughts I sometimes wondered if perhaps I wasn't quite done with Luxembourg, but as I walked its streets again - I could have done so blindfolded and still found my way - I realised that I was indeed done. I loved seeing the city again but there was nothing I was holding on to; if my destiny with Luxembourg was once entwined it had been disentangled.

I hope my tone of voice doesn't come off as negative. My old city, Luxembourg, is a place worth visiting and I would especially recommend it to those who enjoy city life but aren't fond of big and noisy cities. Luxembourg is small and quiet (probably boring for those seeking wild nightlife) and in the city centre, you not only have narrow cobblestone streets but also a beautiful landscape. You can walk down into the Pétrusse Valley and at certain points, you almost have to remind yourself that you are in a city.

My son and I went for a walk in the valley and ended our walk in the old quarter, Grund, where I took these photos before sitting down at a café. (See more photos of Luxembourg.) To me, this part always looks more like a set of a fairy tale than an actual place where people live. From what I have heard it is very expensive and mostly inhabited by foreigners, which I find rather sad. The fact is that Luxembourg has one of the most expensive housing markets in Europe. Even some of the foreigners working there, and some citizens, choose to live on the German, French, or Belgian side of the borders where housing is cheaper. We actually thought about doing that; we thought about moving from Antwerp, where we lived before, to a place in the south of Belgium. I'm glad we didn't and instead got to experience living in Luxembourg.

Paris: one year ago at the Palais Royal

I woke up this morning with Paris on my mind and when I looked at the date I remembered with a smile that I had arrived in Paris on this day, exactly one year ago. It so happened that I had some photos in my files from that trip that I hadn't posted on the blog. The one above shows the mood at Le Nemours café, which is right by the Palais Royal in the 1st district. We didn't sit down to have coffee, as we had just enjoyed a lovely lunch and dessert at a restaurant on the Left Bank. But it was pouring down rain and the Palais Royal passages surrounding the gardens provided shelter.