Category: Literature

Saints and monsters

It was with the greatest pleasure that I spent most of the first two days of December in my favourite European City, Freiburg im Breisgau, the “capital” of southwestern Germany´s Black Forest. I have in two previous posts briefly touched upon my last visit to Freiburg (Sign of the Times / Victims of the Machine)… Continue reading Saints and monsters

The past and other foreign countries

Much to my wife´s endless despair and frustration my personal library of books, DVDs and music keeps growing and expanding in our apartment, but this is one issue between us that I have difficulty apologizing for! I know that books, films and music can be easily downloaded onto our electronic gadgets, (what Ute would prefer… Continue reading The past and other foreign countries

Pedestrian on the Information Highway

There is a powerful short story, referred to in Fahrenheit 451, called The Pedestrian, by the late great sci-fi writer Ray Bradbury. A man regularly goes for a stroll through the empty streets of a big futuristic metropolis to observe and absorb the world outside his door. One night a robotic patrol car stops him… Continue reading Pedestrian on the Information Highway

Confessions of the Batman

A fortnight ago, before the breeze off Lake Constance turned brisk, Ute and I were visited by a denizen of the dark, a creature of the night. A bat had somehow found its way into our apartment. It was an hours-long struggle to get the helplessly lost and confused little fellow out. His visit (I… Continue reading Confessions of the Batman

Sunshine Sketches of the Wild, Wild East

“Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows.” This was the catchphrase for the 1930s US radio show, “The Shadow“, as well for the 1994 film of the same name, starring Alec Baldwin and Penelope Ann Miller. I was reminded of this phrase when driving back to Landschlacht yesterday after… Continue reading Sunshine Sketches of the Wild, Wild East

Eleanor of Arborea

“Sardinian women are amusing, so brisk and defiant. They have straight backs, like little walls and decided, well-drawn eyebrows. They are amusingly on the alert. Like sharp, brisk birds they dart along the streets. You feel they would fetch you a bang over the head as leave as look at you. Tenderness, thank heaven, does… Continue reading Eleanor of Arborea

The Devil’s Saddle and the Alligator

Often when one considers Sardinia one thinks of it as a playboy’s playground. Former PM Silvio Berlusconi is famous for the lavish entertainments (notorious “bunga bunga” parties) he hosted (guests included Tony and Cherie Blair) in his sumptuous Villa Certosa on the Costa Smerlada far north of the island near Arzachena. This coast’s cachet among… Continue reading The Devil’s Saddle and the Alligator