Anyway- its done!

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The girl from Ipanema

One of my very good friends- Copacabana Else asked me recently to point out the very special way of german lifestyle or what I might think about it.
When I arrived during my recent stay in Berlin I was really afraid what might happen and to be honest- its worst case!
Not only that it is fucking cold, the peoples behavior is more than rude, but one could say that this is the very special charm of the city- so never mind. As I still own a small place in one of Berlin's so called hip quarters (by the way- if you wanna rent it, please drop me a line) I should have the "back home" feeling, but I do felt uncomfortable. I just dropped my stuff and went for a walk through the small streets around to see what might changed and how people behave in their environment. It seems to me that people especially in "my" area reached a certain level of lifestyle which one could call bourgeois, but indeed these peoples understatement creates a new form of well educated, family oriented, organic food buyers ghetto guys. Yeah you got it right- these people create their very own ghetto- even so people just thought ghettos are exclusive to jews or poor people!
The funny thing is that people in poor areas pretending to be rich when buying Dolce and Gabana copies and in famous ghetto Prenzlauer Berg they do buy rough looking outdoor clothes (fucking expensive!) for their next big track to the coffee shop around the corner. People here are not extraordinary rich (compared to other areas in the world for sure yes), but even within Berlin the ghetto guys of Prenzlauer Berg are mainly middle- class oriented and they arranged them self in their small world. I guess none of them took once a train coming from the suburbs in the morning. Their point of view is "straight" through in depth reports on real life in newspapers and magazines like Spiegel, Faz, or Sueddeutsche. The only "real" contact to the outside world is for example to get in touch with the vendors in the bakery shops or your dry cleaning.
My mum told me once while she visit me in Jakarta: "you can just understand peoples lifestyle if you feel the dust, the air pollution and the heat with your body!"
There is no heat, no air pollution and no dust in Berlin any more- so what should I feel?

Stay tuned for my upcoming in depth report on "sternburg"- ghetto Berlin Friedrichshain

Saigon

Love Circle:

Hanoi

This year I used to stay my very first time in Hanoi and I have to say I am kind of impressed. The vibe inside the City is really relaxed, besides the masses of tourists within the old quarter there are several areas around which you might explore while driving around with your motorbike. On weekends there is a "love circle" in the late afternoon. The youngsters driving side by side around the Hoan Kiem Lake downtown to get to know each other- kinky he?
So if you found somebody on the "love circle" you can go onwards to the West lake to rent a swan- this is real love baby!
Again- to rent a swan in Hanoi used to be the only reason for me to fly into Hanoi.
Many fellow travelers come to Hanoi to see "uncle Ho" but as I had vacations he went also on a spa trip to his russian friends- rest and relax uncle Ho!
Places to stay:
If you are into names- you should definitely stay at the Ritz. The Ritz is located in a small alley just one minute from Hoan Kiem Lake and around 5 minutes away from all the other tourists in the old quarter.
Nightlife:
Is there any real nightlife in Hanoi besides drinking beer on the street or the love circle on weekends? I guess not as the communists have to learn how to have some late night fun.
The main thing you could do after the sundowner is to have an amazing dinner as the food is fantastic. If you into vegetarian delights you should consider to visit the Com Chay Nang Tam restaurant. I never had so tasty tofu and saitan dishes- everything was so delicious.

Singapore

Recently I checked my flight statistic and as I have to trust my own numbers, I realized that Singapore is one of the places where I am quiet often even so just for a brief stop over. So what's so cool about S'pore? Right- its mainly the worlds best airport and the base of my favorite airline. Besides that fact I do like the City very much as the vibe is a mix of western and influences all over asia. If you wanna see an efficient and clean City have a look what Singapore has on offer.
Places to stay:
I got the chance to stay in many different hotels around Singapore. Due to my last stay and value for money I would recommend the Pan Pacific Club Floor in Pan Pacific Orchard. If you are on the cheap side there are plenty of other options around, for example Hangout Hostel or if you are looking for something special, go for s'pores red light district Geylang in one of the many Hotel 81. There you can have rooms for just a couple of hours and even the whole night. Design hotels are on offer as well- namely Naumi , which is the most expensive and newest one, midrange New Majestic Hotel and the "oldest and cheapest" option Hotel 1929.

Relax:


If you are looking for an urban retreat- Sentosa is your place to be. You always thought "Strandbad Wannsee" in Berlin is artificial, than you never been to famous resort island Sentosa. Take the monorail from Vivo City mall near Harbour Front mrt and you will be in a few minutes at the tropical beach in between one of the busiest harbour's in the world. I do go there always before leaving or the airport to catch some sunshine and have a last swim in the sea. Sentosa is not only a beach resort it is also home of famous zoukout party.

Nightlife:
Nightlife in s'pore is not as hedonistic as in Jakarta for example, but still there are several options to hang out for a couple of drinks. A friend of mine is living in S'pore at the moment and he recommends Supperclub. Other options are Homeclub at Riverwalk which is near the entertainment area Clarke Quay or Zouk. The famous Ministry of sounds is closed.

Berlin

Hi folks! I might be back in Europe for some appointments very soon. I am afraid as I found this online. Its german, but indeed simply right from my heart.
"Alles ist unglaublich sauber und super verarbeitet, poliert, massiv, wertvoll und in Schuss - es ist beeindruckend. Unheimlich, was hier an Werten herumsteht. Die Menschen fahren ihre teuren und geputzten Autos über teppichgleichen einwandfreien Straßenbelag, Kleidung ist gewaschen und gebügelt. Alles sitzt und steht, Organisation ist alles.
Dagegen besteht der Rest der Welt aus Pappmaché, Sperrholz und irgendwie zusammengeschusterten Notlösungen. Nur sieht das dort keiner.
Aber gefällt’s mir hier? Nein. Langeweile macht sich breit. Wenn ich den Fernseher anmache, wenn langsam die Erinnerung wiederkehrt, wie schlecht deutscher Humor und Umgangsformen sind und was die erschreckende Sprachunfähigkeit angeht bekomme ich Angst!
Deutschland im Herbst ist das Land ohne Himmel. Können sich das Menschen in anderen Ländern überhaupt vorstellen? Hier wird es morgens “hell”, aber der Himmel bleibt eine graue Suppe ohne Tiefe, ohne Fixpunkt- Deprimierend. Nicht, dass ich nicht nachvollziehen kann, dass der Herbst seine Reize hat aber in der Kombination ist mir das hier alles viel zu viel."
Stay tuned and keep me up to date if you are around.

X-mas in Hong Kong

In certain areas I try to be a little traditional or develop a kind of tradition. One of my new "traditions" is to stay in Hong Kong during the x-mas holidays. To be honest I do like the idea to meet up with some friends and enjoy the days off together. Hong Kong is a perfect place to do so as the climate is kind of cold, but you are still in an asian metropolis. Even so you are not able to join every year the x-mas trip to Hong Kong the city has enough on offer during the whole year.
Places to stay:
In most cities around the globe I do have "my place" where I use to stay always, but I try to give you an idea what is on offer, which mainly depends on your budget. My favorite place in Hong Kong is Langham Place- this is a 5 star skyscraper hotel located in bustling Mongkok district. Mongkok is more "traditional" than the tourist areas around the harbour front and trust me, you will have excellent views from the 36th floor on all over Hong Kong.

If you wanna indulge yourself go for the Mandarin Oriental- you can't do anything wrong besides paying a certain amount of HKD. For Design oriented guys I would recommend the Jia by famous Phillipe Starck. If you are on a shoestring go for
Chungking Mansions on Nathan Road. This is kind of an institution in Hong Kong- great location but dirt cheap!

Nightlife:
Besides x-mas eve, where you might stay with your friends in your hotel room and let the room service prepare the late night supper and a bottle of wine, Hong Kong is an amazing place to go out for dinner or just to a bar.
If you are looking for a place with a view I would recommend Aqua Restaurant Roma/ Spirit on 30th floor located in One Peking Road in Tsim Sha Tsui. Even if you don't wanna spent so much money for dinner- simply go there and enjoy the view with a drink in the bar, which is well worth the HKD. Another cheap option to have a nice view is to pee somewhere.
Best toilet with an amazing view is still found in the well known restaurant Felix in the Peninsula hotel.
If you are looking for the James feeling check out a bottoms up bar, but I guess its not easy to find one nowadays. The entertainment district is on the "other side" in Lan Kwai Fong. Check out Yumla for dancing.
Sex:
I found this video online which is kind of a running gag in Hong Kong- but have a look by yourself.

The story behind is pretty funny, as a guy went to a park in Hong Kong at night and used one of the exercise machines for a kind of sexual workout. One of these workout machines look like a table with a hole in the middle. So it was late at night, nobody was around and he was horny. But the poor guy got to be stuck in the hole for about 4 hours before calling the police to rescue him. The rescue workers even pulled in a injection to pull him out- thats why the guy is crying and you can see the blood, but it doesn't work. So they had to buck the whole fitness table!
Transport:
Public transport is easy to use, cheap, fast and reliable. Do buy a rechargeable Octopus Card to pay for your rides on boat, mrt, bus, tram and even for your grab and go stuff at 7 Eleven. To and from the airport use the very fast and comfortable Airport Express Train.

Jakarta

Jakarta is one of the most amazing places I used to be. For most of you fellow readers the city has nothing on offer- its just a dirty huge city. Most of you might watched the movie "the dark knight"- jakarta is more or less the same- you never know what happens next and its not easy at all to draw a line between good or bad. This might be the fact why Jakarta is so exciting. On the other hand living conditions like air pollution, flooding and all day traffic jam could be kind of exhausting after a while- nevertheless Jakarta's beauty could be seen during night time. Especially on weekends the hedonist crowds escaping their daily business- even so they don't do anything besides shopping.
Places to stay:
Since my first stay over in Jakarta I use to return to the very same place as always, namely to Alila Jakarta. This is not really a posh place, compared to the other options available in Jakarta, but indeed value for money and nearby famous club Stadium.
Please be careful when choosing your place to stay as traffic jam in Jakarta is highly time consuming- so choose your place to stay near the place where you have to go daily on business. For long term you might check out "Kemang" area- but you have to be Bule! This area is also very popular for dining and bars at night.

Nightlife:
First thing to keep in mind- besides this is a mainly muslim country everything you might wanna see or you might wanna experience is possible!
To prepare yourself for an exciting weekend in Jakarta- relax before leaving for dinner or the first bar as the party starts late in most places. There are several options:
Last time a very cute person took me to a very nice italian restaurant and I was really impressed by the quality of the food. Bars are plentiful- so check out Kemang area, or look forward the re opening of the Mandarin Oriental. Other options would be Blowfish or Dragonfly- these a places "in between", kind of restaurant, club and bar. If these places are out of your budget or you just seeking for something down to earth head for any street hawker- i can strictly recommend the night "Warungs" on Jl.Pecenongan.
Last bar before leaving for your first club should be Red Square. This is Jakarta's first russian vodka bar located in Senayan area- right across the parking lot for the entrance to X2, where you might go later on.
There are many clubs around- so I will name just a few as I simply just spend the time until I will head to Stadium.
For example go for Embassy, Retro, X2 and there is even a queer venue called Heaven.
To be honest I am seeking for real hedonist nightlife. Therefore I head to Stadium Jakarta- one of the most famous clubs in town. Most people will tell you they won't go there, but this is indeed the place to go! I guess the place is run by the indonesian army and it is full of everything a "dark night" has on offer: prostitutes, drug addicts, queer, business people, some western people and for sure a huge crowd of people seeking for entertainment for the whole weekend as this is a 24/7 place.
The dance floor is on level 4- on the other floor you can drink, sing and fuck. Nightlife in Jakarta is up to you!

Transport:
To and from the airport i would strictly recommend to take a taxi- they are cheap and reliable! If you are a first timer go for Blue Bird. Outside of the arrivals hall there are several companies waiting for costumers. Just ask for Blue Bird and tell the guy where you wanna go- he will organize a taxi for you and will hand you over a paper with the taxi number for your record. Please have small change ready as you have to pay the toll fee. If there is no traffic jam or flood you should be able to reach most places in jakarta within one hour.
During the day i would recommend to use the Trans Jakarta bus service whenever it is possible- as it is cheap and often much more faster than a car during the rush hours- which is more or less the whole day!
At night be careful when using a taxi and ask for using the meter.