Charlotte In Berlin

After a brief hiatus (and a looming name change???), the pod returns to discuss the most dominant cultural phenomenon of the summer: "Barbenheimer." "Barbenheimer" fondly refers to the two diametrically opposed films released on the same day, Greta Gerwig's "Barbie" and Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer". However, in this episode I am going to argue that these films actually address the same subjec...

I revisit "The Fashion One" to reflect on how my personal style has evolved over my year in Berlin, and how it has reflected my state of mind throughout my experience. I’ve been through many an aesthetic crisis, and I realized I wasn’t always staying authentic with how I expressed myself through fashion: from trying too hard to be an Edgy Fashion Girly or abandoning personal style altogether. I di...

This week I'm talking about the Writers Guild of America strike, and how streaming and AI are leaving writers without fair compensation for their work. I go into the history of labor rights in Hollywood (including the Academy Awards' unlikely origin story), why creative professions are often subject to exploitation, and whether making it in Hollywood is truly the American Dream - or a mere myth. ...

This week I am talking about poet, activist and philosopher Audre Lorde: her legacy in Germany, and her little-discussed impact on German feminism and racial justice. Widely credited with coining the term “Afro-German”, Lorde’s work amplifying the voices of Black German women poets and writers helped to rewrite a feminism that was largely centered on white women. Her writing from the city of Berli...

Coffee, the "most widely used psychoactive substance in the world", has led us from religious ceremonies to saving our sanities during COVID, and from the humble bean to the monstrous Frappuccino. As in religious rites in Yemen and (probably) your street corner, coffee’s journey through time knits together addiction, political activism, capitalist world domination, war, labor violations, and clima...

(met gala takes start at 40:15) karl lagerfeld (who is german). may day protests in berlin. my met gala best and worst (and the designers that won the night). against the equation of "fantasy" with thinness in the fashion industry. recession-core. cats. it’s a fun one. digressions take the form of a few questions: did cruella influence the met gala red carpet fashion just as much (if not more) tha...

a MAJOR comeback story: from barter to billionaire I present to you the German Economic Miracle: how Germany's economy went from being literally in shambles after World War II to dominating the world today. In the span of less than a year and due to the contributions of two key players, Germany was an overnight industrial success. I wanted to understand the economic principles behind this success...

Interview with Nico recapped at 38:24! Follow Nico on IG: @nicolasblanchadell @safelightpaper @safelightberlin This week I'm sharing why magazines are a particularly special medium: from advancing political ideologies to sharing art and promoting young artists. I was lucky enough to interview Nico Blanchadell, Editor-In-Chief and Creative Director of Safelight Paper, a "slow photography" magazine...

INTERVIEWS Find Emily's work on IG: @flowerpowertatts Find Pablo's work on IG: @pabloferrukt I interviewed two tattoo artists this week, Emily (@flowerpowertatts) and Pablo (@pabloferrukt) on their work, their attitudes towards their art, and how they build community through tattoo art. Emily is a young traveling artist known for her cute, feminine flashes and Pablo runs a studio in Berlin with 8...

This week is Part 1 of my two-part series on tattoos in Berlin! Tattoos are an “anthropological constant” according to German tattoo scholar Ole Wittman: from the body art of prehistoric humanity all the way to the famous tramp stamp. Seeing so many tattoo artists in Berlin made me want to investigate why it thrives here, and this led me to the fascinating history of body art. I discuss Issey Miya...

Your girl has been on the go. I've been seeing lots of cities recently: some I've never been to before, and some I've loved dearly. In the past few weeks I got to show my home city of London to someone who had never been before, went to Copenhagen for the first time, revisited Paris with an old friend, and more. Here are my guides to spending day in Paris, Berlin, Copenhagen, London, and finally,...

Today I'm talking all things German nudism. Last week, Berlin officially allowed all women to bathe topless at public pools, a massive win for the culture at large. After a trip to a co-ed sauna which shocked my little anglophone brain, I wanted to learn more about the Freikörperkultur, or Free Body Culture, which originated in the late 19th century. These origins are shrouded in mystery and debat...

This week I go into the history and legacy of world-famous German design (think wire armchairs and sans-serif fonts). Inspired by a very *aesthetically pleasing* trip to Copenhagen, I explore how and why the famous Bauhaus school, shut by the Nazis in 1933, left such a long-lasting impact on design and architecture. I discuss where we see Bauhaus in everyday life, from IKEA to the iPhone, and even...

hallo, we are back! I’ve been feeling more than a little reflective recently. As my time in Berlin just hit its halfway mark, I wanted to share a little about what I’ve learned moving somewhere new. This episode is for anyone in their early-to-mid-twenties, anyone experiencing a big life transition, or anyone struggling with simply the weight of it all. I go into making friends as a “grown-up”, fi...

*shockingly, the title was clickbait* This week I'm bringing you a deep dive into techno music in Berlin, from its beginnings in Detroit to the mythic dance floors of the Berlin techno bunkers. I discuss interviews with the founders of the world's most famous clubs like Tresor and Watergate, and with Berlin's first techno DJs. Most importantly, I go into how techno music became one of the most imp...

hallo leute  This week I am talking about Germany and the US's decisions to send tanks to the Ukraine. I ask why tanks are so important when they were invented over 100 years ago, and discuss why Germany and the US waited so long to send them to combat. I also dive into the potential historical tensions swirling around Germany's decision, and ways you can help the war effort. Digressions are (pred...

Masc cheese? Femme potatoes? How do we navigate German's built-in gender binary? This week, I go into how Germany grapples with their lack of clear non-binary gender pronouns. I discuss how Germany voted against using gender-neutral terms in government, why making up new words in German is super hard, and ask how language still reflects a patriarchal hierarchy? Digressions include a Freudian relat...

Let's discuss some of my favorite albums of 2014 – sorry, I mean 2022. While I am by no means a music expert or journalist, I love thinking about how music fits into our larger cultural landscape. While artists like the Arctic Monkeys and the 1975 brought us into a new era of Tumblr-girl resurgence, others gave us some truly groundbreaking albums (MOTOMAMI, RENAISSANCE). Digressions include Taylor...

The Fashion One. We dive into the history of Berlin's vibrant fashion scene from prohibition to punk, and what people are loving in the city today. I discuss shopping as a feminist networking tool, introduce my personal style crisis, and reaffirm how the Second World War made everything so much worse. Digressions include a discussion of "babycore" and a fated encounter with a Berlin influencer......

Welcome to Charlotte in Berlin! In this episode I introduce myself and my favorite (and least favorite) things in Berlin so far. Follow along your girl's journey through the pod: as she navigates the epic highs and lows of a new city, waxes lyrical on identity crises galore, and shares some insights on The Culture. Digressions include Berlin's best bar, Bumble friends gone wrong, trying to act chi...