Feb 18, 2013

"ein Frühlingsgefühl" / Herne Hill


Its nice to live with the seasons. While its winter, I always kind of forget that 
there is something else and how it feels when its not cold, wet and grey. In German, 
we have this beautiful word Frühlingsgefühl which means "spring feeling". Since 
last thursday, the weather is incredibly nice here. Although its a bit early for 
that in german dimensions, there are some "spring feelings" around. 

Yesterday, I started to say good bye to my "key-places". One of them is Herne Hill. 
I took the picture above in Lido Café. It describes perfectly the Frühlingsgefühl
the sun is shining, the sky is blue but the pool is empty and so are the trees and there is also one of these heating lamps helping the sun to warm up the people. 
But you start to get the feeling how life will be when it gets warmer, how everything will be green and full of life. 

Herne Hill was one of my recreation areas. In the beginning, when I lived in 
Streatham Hill, I walked there by foot on sundays, later I took the bus from Peckham. 
The area feels a bit like Prenzlauer Berg in Berlin. Young academic families, 
nice cafés, a farmers market on sundays, everything looks like a "good life". 
Sometimes I find it very relaxing to be at places like this. Part of my visit were: 
the wide view from Brockwell Park on the city, Antonias yoga classes on sundays
fruit scones from Ye Olde Bakery,  the nice atmosphere in Herne Hill Books, a walk 
over the farmers market, a look at the offers of Herne Hills Oxfam store. 
(After all that, it is always good to leave the bubble again and return to Peckham reality. More later.)