Der Erste Mai

It is really hard to express what the atmosphere is like at this time of year in Berlin. On one hand, it's a giant party, with little-to-no rules, cheap alcohol & free music. It is also a serious time for political demonstrations and marches. It is also a huge draw for hooligans who come here each year for the rioting, car burning and window smashing. It is pretty exciting anyway. Last night, before the holiday today, Daniel and I sat outside and watched people streaming by looking for some kind of action. Regular folks mingled with drunk teenagers and bubblegum punks. Bottles seemed to fall from the sky occasionally and smash around us. You can't be certain that one won't hit you in the head by mistake. or on purpose. Odds are that one won't though and that's just the way it is.

Rather than show video of messy drunks and police barricaded U-Bahn stations which is also part of today, I took footage of the kick-ass party which goes down in Kreuzberg each year. It was really cool to experience. Even though tonight may end with some expensive cars burning and some bank windows smashed, the celebrations today are a great expression of how free, possibly the most free, life is here in Berlin. Any real democracy, by definition, should have some anarchy in it, shouldn't it?

The following video was taking this afternoon on Oranienstrasse in Kreuzberg-Berlin. We hooked up with some friends of Daniel's whom he met in Moscow at some point when studying there. 2 of them, Claudine & Adriane (i hope that's right) were really nice girls visiting Berlin from Quebec City, Canada.
Cool eh?

Der Erste Mai

Stay Tuned For:

Aurele's Visit Part II
(the photographic exposée!)

Things that are cool:

Postalworkers bicycles