Berlin is nice. I like the city, I like the people. Housing market is a pain though, still haven’t found a proper permanent residence. Taking a few days off, visiting a Danish island with my family. It was 34 years ago, that I first set foot on that island.

Why Berlin? That question I got a lot recently and it actually encloses two questions: Why put an end to my travelling and why choose Berlin as final destination? The former has been addressed in a previous post, written somewhere over the icy shores of Greenland, and doesn’t need much addendum. Which leaves the question of why I chose Berlin as a place of residence. Over the course of the last ten years I have lived in various cities in different countries.

Final for now, no next move planned. Staying in the… alternative part of the city.

Norway is a rich country, made rich by oil. Interestingly, it is now a leading country in renewable energy - good way to invest all that oil money. From what I’ve been told, 80% of all energy in the country comes from non-fossil sources, mostly hydropower. The country is so rich, even the bums are wearing suits. It’s amazing how many electric vehicles are driving in the streets. I wonder where Germany would be in that regard if it hadn’t been held back by it’s automobile lobby for such a long time.

So there I was, in Canada. Thinking about what I was doing there, in Canada. Every day. I didn’t come up with an answer. I felt like I wanted to leave though, there wasn’t much doubt about that. But having spent a fair bit of time and money on the visa and the flight, I thought that just leaving might be a waste. Maybe I would regret leaving. But I couldn’t think of any reason why.

Montreal or “Mon réal”, as they pronounce it in French. So square, every street is a straight line.

At a sandwich store yesterday, I order in English. The guy behind the counter is big, with a coarse face. Somebody you’d see as a bad guy in a James Bond movie. While we wait for my order, he asks if I speak any French. “Only a little bit”, I reply in French. A smile lights up his big face, he reaches over the counter and shakes my hand. Everything here is in French.

Montreal has been quite bearable so far, with sunshine and blue sky every day. There are signs of the harsh winters around though. Half the city can be reached underground and any door leading from the big complexes to the outside is designed to keep the cold outside. It’s a big western city, so in that regard its rather boring. The people are generally friendly though and the Asian food is very good.