On a lighter topic I finished reading the first issue of the promising publication called Offscreen Magazine by Kai Brach. When I first read about it I liked the premise of showcasing stars of the web community in a beautifully crafted printed matter. But that’s the sentiment I already shared with a bunch of the people I follow on Twitter. The segments I enjoyed the most were the deep insight of Jack Cheng‘s relation to his father and his ideas & advices, the portraits of Dan Cederholm, Hannah Donovan, Drew Wilson and Ryan Singer and of course, the little snippet on “local” design and development wizardress Kristina Schneider.

I read the magazine in two sessions, the print quality is stunning, the typography well chosen to fit the content and I really look forward to which extent Kai grows beyond himself with his little project. Good job so far, mate. Not an easy task. Treat yourself with this little gem & have a nice week!

You go out. You celebrate. With friends and workmates who luckily happen to be your friends, too. You drink. A lot. Too much. It doesn’t matter. You have a wonderful time. You drink more. You dance. You lose your friends in the crowd. You see a girl. She’s beautiful. You stare at her for hours. You’re suddenly involved in a conversation with her friends. You talk to her. You change the club. You’re not allowed to enter. She tells you where she’ll be tomorrow. You learn to know the night ends here.

Then you walk home. It doesn’t matter.

While I’m writing these few words I’m listening to one pretty decent mix from a Berlin guy called THE SECOND MOOD to whom I had the pleasure to listen (and dance) to some days ago in a club here in Stuttgart. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

To continue with what I planned to express, this week started with a little surprise for me which might not be big news for others but changed my plans for the following weeks probably to the better because I’m usually not the friend of big changes and decisions. And with said surprise I don’t have to think about all the stuff again any time soon. I promise to reveal those cryptic news next Monday so bare with me.

Anyhoo, I just wanted to tell you that you can rely now on what you see in front of you, no further mishmash planned, my life got a little twist and again I notice I really should continue to practice writing.

Two things that were totally worth discovering lately because they are both fun to use and you should check out for yourself:

• Clear by Impending
• Scriptogram by Andreas Pihlström

So long, enjoy your week and until next time (with a clearer mind).

Now that’s me turning the thought into some written words about a pleasant stay in Madrid in no particular order, just like it came to my mind, so please skim through so you won’t miss the gems on the bottom:

Yambala

Yambala is a little Mexican/intercultural flavored bar close to Plaza Mayor or Sol, the centre of Madrid. You usually expect the centre of a big city to be the tourist meeting point which it definitely is but walk down Calle Mayor, THE tourist street, pass Joy, THE tourist club, and just right after you passed it turn left into a little alley which leads to THE Churros place Chocolatería San Ginés where you should have at least one churro at 6am after clubbing and on another night turn left again around the corner to have some amazing cocktails or a Michelada before going out, at Yambala, owned by a dear friend of mine, Conrado who still should remember my name. (Picture Source)

Chueca

Chueca is one of my two favorite hoods or barrios in Madrid. It’s well known for being the gay centre of Madrid which makes it open, colorful and tempting especially for the younger generation (Disclaimer: I’m not gay but I loved it there :). There are so many cultural institutions, bars and places which I can’t mention here entirely but I’ll tell you a few in a bit. Oh, and there’s a festival (Gay Pride, e.g.) once in a while. (Picture Source)

El Tigre

El Tigre is a really small and always crowded (due to the tourists) tapas bar in Chueca where the young and quirky waiters (they l.o.v.e the ladies) serve you one plate of tapas with every glass of your 1€ beer. The clue: You usually can’t choose which kind of tapas you get and you get e.g. 5 entirely stuffed plates if you order 5 beers. Believe me. It’s not the most hygienically sterile place in Madrid but who would ask for that when you get your stomach filled tastily on a single 5€-bill. (Picture Source)

The Roof of Hotel Oscar

The Hotel Room Mate Oscar is a thoughtfully and neatly designed hotel on Plaza Vázquez de Mella in the heart of Chueca, not far from El Tigre neither. It has a kind of a posh appearance but as far as I know it’s not the most expensive hotel in town. I don’t want to recommend you the hotel itself though because of a lack of experience but the freely accesible terrace which you reach by entering the hotel lobby and a turn to the elevators on the left. The portier will lift you up to the terrace then where the drinks are exclusive (read: expensive) but so is the view over the rooftops of central Madrid. I spent some cozy and happy moments with friends in the evenings there. (Picture Source)

Malasaña (Metro Tribunal)

Not far away from Chueca is my second (second as in equally great) favorite barrio called Malasaña. It’s the artisan hood where a lot of artists and hedonists live and spend their time. You can find a lot of small shops (second hand, handicraft, etc.), cafés and bars there and I’m going to introduce you to 1,2,3 of them but you should definitely take a stroll through the small alleys and discover it on your own. It’s totally worth it and you’ll forget time in a snap. (Picture Source)

La Lolina, the forgotten Café & Ojalá

Gotta confess the Madrileños still pretty much fancied the whole Retro schtick when I was there, particularly in Malasaña (see: second hand), and I’m usually not quite a fan of all things retro but that little spot La Lolina at Calle del Espíritu Santo is just sweet (and the waitresses are Amélie-like cute

There’s also a nice outdoor café right across the street and on the left of Lolina where they serve deliciously good homemade Vermouth but unfortunately I can’t remember the name which sucks.

Right next to that one is Ojalá, a bar/restaurant (chain?) with chalkboard walls in the bathrooms so you can protocol your stay. They serve a good alround breakfast for a moderate price but it’s not that madrileño in particular.

Nasti, Tupperware, La Via Lactea

Okay, you spent a wonderful afternoon and evening in the barrio of Malasaña so what’s up next? Maybe going out in one of the uncountable clubs in the same area. Most of them have to close at around 3-4am as a governmental restriction but from time to time they give a sh*t about that and leave the doors open until 6 o’ clock. Equally random is the entrance fee of some of those clubs but never high up to 10€ like in the bigger clubs around Gran Via or Sol.

Nasti (Oh, you gotta hear the Spanish pronounciation…) is a little venue in a dark cellar floor where the musical variety is pretty vast – I experienced everything from Indie Rock by DJs to Live Gameboy-8bit-Electro.

Tupperware is a quirky small club on two floors with mixed music also spanning Alternative, Classic Rock and Electro, nice guests, cheap drinks and I always had a fun time dancing inside.

La Via Láctea,The Milky Way or The Woodstock Bar is a old pub with a billard table which is weirdly often occupied by young people who dig the Classic Rock music they play inside. Cheap drinks, an occasional game and friendly people.

At the end of this section about the neighborhood of Malasaña I mustn’t forget to tell you about the now forbidden Botellónes which still take place here and there e.g. on the two most prominent places in this barrio Plaza Dos de Mayo and Plaza San Ildefonso. You huddle with some of your best friends, BYOB or buy beer illegally for 1€/can from the cruising street vendors (despicably called Chinos) and just hang out sitting on the ground of one of those places talking, laughing and having a good time till the police crashes your party and you gotta fan out. No worries, in one year I got caught not once. (Picture Source)

Gran Via & Calle Fuencarral

When you hear/read about Madrid or played the Europe Edition of Monopoly once you probably know the main boulevard of Gran Via. It’s the 5th Avenue, Champs-Élysées or Olgastraße (excuse the little local pun) of Spain so you and all the other tourists can find every imaginable famous fashion, fast food or coffee brand along the lines of this street. Demonstrations and festivals also take place there. If you fancy some swag besides the usual path have a look on the Gran Via of Chueca, namely Calle Fuencarral which leads you orthogonally from Gran Via to the barrio of Chueca. You’ll find clothes, kitsch and brands probably not known to you before. (Picture Source)

Plaza de España & Templo de Debod

Gran Via on its lower end leads you straight to Plaza de España, a rather large square with gardens and a monument surrounded by the cities largest skyscrapers. A nice place to rest some time and enjoy your fresh brewed Starbucks coffee from around the corner. After your rest you should take your time to fully enjoy the area around the pyramid of Templo de Debod, rebuilt a long time ago as a gift from Egypt and surrounded by even more beautiful gardens which give you a stunning view over huge parts of Madrid. It’s a 5min walk from Plaza de España and also a preferable place to meet friends in the evenings and chill in the green grass. (Picture Source)

Low Club

So now that you’re close to Plaza de España and it’s late evening to midnight why not head up a little further to the West and get a glimpse of my favorite electro club in Madrid called Low? I had my longest, most joyous and intense nights there with a lot of booze and sweat. You got expensive entry fees (when you don’t enter at ridiculous times where nobody’s in there yet), grumpy bouncers and cheap girls behind the bars but the musical choice is one of the best in the city. I saw Steve Aoki, the Bloody Beetroots, some Ed Bangers and alike, shared Vodka and a smoke with them. Sidenote: I met a girl at 3am on her last night in Madrid there who made me fly to Amsterdam days after. So that’s that. (Picture Source)

La Latina

La Latina is, how you could guess by its name, the Latin quarter of Madrid with the majority of immigrants living there in not the greatest wealth and therefore not in the most exquisite homes. But this barrio has its own sweet charme with foreign restaurants, small shops (especially one good old photo shop for all your mostly analogue needs), drugs unfortunately (so it’s not that cozy there in the night) but most importantly one huge flea market every Sunday called Rastro which is worth a stroll one time at least despite of the large amount of people. (Picture Source)

Notice btw. the shop sign on the right of the picture above – that’s where you get the best tapas to strengthen yourself for the long walks but prepare for a long queue.

Other cultural stuff (Parks, Gardens & Museums)

If you are in Madrid once in your lifetime you have to pay a visit to the huge park of Retiro, just because it really IS huge and relaxing, next to the wonderful antigue train station of Atocha with its looooooong botanical garden right in the middle of the station with palms, cute turtles swimming in little ponds. A comparibly small oasis in the heart of that gigantic metropolitan city.

And then when you want to take a wider view on the Royal Palace from a green spot in the hills go to the Campo del Moro but beware: it’s also the usual spot where the hookers serve their clients. In the bushes on wide fields, you see? (Picture Source)

There are – of course – also three big museums in the city for those rainy days or longer stays with contemporary and historical art and permanent and temporary exhibitions, better have a look on their websites before: Museo Nacional del Prado, Museo Reina Sofía and Museo Thyssen – Bornemisza. (Picture Source)

As a special little treat you should definitely check out the cultural centre La Casa Encendida, supported and funded by the bank Caja Madrid in Lavapies, where independent concerts and other cultural events take place for a small fee or even for free.
The terrace is also a fine spot inbetween breaks where you can also BYOB. (Picture Source)

—

These are of course not all the wonderful things to discover in this great city but the ones I could remember after roundabout two/three years of absence. I also plan to edit this article regularly when new places pop up in my memory or if friends from back then would like to contribute.

More pictures by friends and me are available her:

• Camille’s Flickr
• My Facebook Pictures
• My Flickr – There are more sets from my time in different Spanish cities, too.

So hang on and hopefully enjoy your stay when you plan to spend a really unique time in my temporary hometown where I definitely had one of the most intense and character changing experiences of my life.

Overall and most importantly: Have fun!

I like to write – which doesn’t mean that I shine in writing in particular. Contrarily the act on refinement of my own words and noticing the own clunky sentences enable me to look on what I produce from another perspective and further give me a chance to reflect on thoughts in their rawest form.

I like to write – because it’s not the field I’m the expert in. Again that creates the necessary distance between the content I wanna write about and the natural pressure I put on myself when creating a personal output that can be viewed and critised in public. With a beginner’s mindset the benchmark’s pretty low.

I like to write – the mind wanders, usually in a distraction-blocking environment, time on your side and in good company or isolated on your own in a little bubble.

I like to write – and that’s why.

I can’t believe it but it’s actually already two weeks ago that Nadja and I went on vacation to visit the beautiful city of Paris, France. It was her first stay there and it’s been a year ago when workmates and me have been there to attend the OFFF 2010 conference.

Needless to say it was another experience than the last time and gladly I’ve just recently bought a new lens for my trusty camera of choice, the Ricoh GXR. The A12 lens sports a fixed focal length of 28mm with a F2.5 aperture and I gotta say it’s a pure joy to use. All the pictures in this post are from the trip and if you want to see the whole album, head over to the corresponding Flickr set.

We spent four days in a lovely apartment in the suburbs of Paris and I want to use this chance to emphasize the amazing first-time-experience we had with the private renting (startup/)service airbnb (and please do me the favor and don’t use one of those horrible copycats like wimdu or 9flats, thanks).

The apartment belongs to a young, warm French couple who didn’t only provide us with shelter, cozy sheets and leftover food but also with amazingly valuable tipps and hints for local, tasty dining, bars and nice spots for a night out. So besides the really cheap and comfy accommodation, we got additional service which we didn’t even think about to ask for. Did I mention they even left us their laptop to look things up and get directions? All in all a perfect example of mutual trust and respect. If you plan a travel to Paris make sure to consider hanging out at their place instead of in a pricy hotel in the city center.

Don’t hide yourself in anxiety because of the recent news regarding the airbnb fraud I’m definitely going to book my next accomodation there again. Especially now that they learned from this fiasco and got you covered in every case: airbnb safety policies

To end that resume – we had a blast and I hope you got a little glimpse on it. Enjoy your weekend.

Anyway – what I try to express is, that crashing against that little wall put me in a mood of self reflection.

Is my own perception of me and my skills obscured by some false cockiness or arrogance which would be the least what I want?
Because I tend to ignore and neglect people with an exceptional need to define themselves by the noise they generate to promote their ego often obscuring the pure essential body of their small output.

Is it the other way round and I’m too quiet when doing good work?
So accomplishments on my side fall short because of the sheer amount of work produced in the environment I act in.

Did it turn out just the right way it was supposed to be?
A little lack of skills and a fixed focus on basement, structure & technology neglecting communicational essentials seem to be the parts I have to work on. I don’t know but I guess as almost always — time will tell.

Am I basically doing the right thing? I truly believe so because it still is the work I feel joyful about most of the time. Because of the people, ideas, creativity and finally still the never ending challenge.

Then you tend to move especially those to the very end that mean the most and where you want yourself to have a clear mind, to be able to focus on what you expect from yourself and to do this one particular thing as good as you can.

But scrap that. I myself often focus more on postponing than to actually get my ass up and just do. So here we are.

I’m happy to be able to say that my current state of life is not determined mostly by work any more as it was for a longer period of time now. Sure, there were always friends and family around but most of my friends work with me and your family is there for you if you need them but you rarely want yourself to need them anyway. So things have changed for some weeks now, there’s a special someone who helps me to keep my mind distracted from what makes most of my day which still is the thing called work. It’s those little moments besides daily routine that keep you afloat and sane and there are few words to express how much I appreciate and enjoy those. I really do.

In the following days—holidays in Germany—I’ll try to read this highly acclaimed book by Scott Belsky, founder and CEO of Behance, called MAKING IDEAS HAPPEN (Amazon) and hope to get some new input and motivation out of it. I hope to give you a little review here on this place when I managed to read it to the end.

The week after friends & workmates and I are going to attend OFFF 2011, a design conference in Barcelona which I already enjoyed last year in when located in Paris and I hope to bring some great memories with me (I promised more photos and you’ll get them). One meet-up I really look forward to is with Eike König of HORT, a graphic studio/collective of young and creative likeminds. They’re going to host a little vernissage on the day of our arrival in a small venue in Barcelona and are also going to speak at the conference later.

I guess that’s it for now, a litte peak into what I’m currently up to. Anticipate another update in the days ahead or after the trip to Barcelona. Until then: take care.

Disclaimer: It’s late—really, really late.

I was able to enjoy Sunday though with some relaxing hours in the sun and under a tree the park, light, good food afterwards and an entertaining and relaxing evening with friends at Palast der Republik in the city centre. Unfortunately I couldn’t capture those moments with my new toy (a Ricoh GXR, a wonderful instrument) because precautiously I left it in the agency before partying.

Fear not there will be plenty of pictures in the near future as I hope to stick with my plans.

Yesterday I finally managed to get back to this little side project I run with a dear friend and ex colleague of mine, Christoph Noe to tweak the layout a bit.

LIVE/LOVE LIFE is basically a photo blog which both of us occasionally fill with new content deriving from our experiences living in two different cities – Munich in his case, Stuttgart in mine.   We both agreed on that this polish and the renewal of the Cargo subscription should be kind of a kick in the butt to get things going once again as the last upload of photos took place in November last year.

So besides a different layout and theme expect more visual content to appear in the following days to weeks. It would be a pleasure for us if you follow it.