Sunday 29 April 2012

Berlin to Dresden... 200k in 2 weeks?

... So I have sat down to write a dosen times in the last few days but I find myself staring at the screen not quite knowing how express in words what has been happening. The last few weeks have been totally mad, amasing and incredibly challenging. We left ruddersdorf over two weeks ago and have finally made our way to dresden last night. So yes the pace is a little slower than when I was on my own but with 12 people riding bikes of all sizes packed with all kinds of strange implements, some of which are breaking on a daily basis nothing is simple. The first few days were particularly slow as we got used to cycling as a group but we had great fun wild camping in forests and next to lakes. I organised for the group to stay at the Steiger missions base (where i'll be living in a month) near Meissen. I ended up cycling ahead of the group and arriving 2 days before. After Bering together 24/7 for 3 weeks it was really great to have some space to myself. The group finally arrived on Tuesday afternoon in Meissen and we played our first street show together in the market place. It was great to perform together and we made over 100 euros and got given pizza too. Staying with the group at the centre was great but also quite challenging. I found myself caught between too very different value systems which was intensified by misunderstanding. I actually spent 2 days feeling really quite stressed. It was a really good lesson though in communication. We talked afterwards as a group about what it means to respect and each other when we have disagreements and different values, I am reminded again that love is so much bigger than values and ideas. I waved goodbye to the guys at Steiger yesterday morning and rode together with stephano to join the others in Dresden, it was such a beautiful ride along the Elbe but being the first real day of summer it was completely packed, like a bicycle highway. We arrived in Dresden at 5pm and made another show on the street then we headed to the river to watch the sunset and then made fire shows with beepboxind under the bridge watching an incredible firework display. This morning me and Flo headed to church, I didn't understand a word but we had a great time chatting on our way home. Tonight we will go to an alternative church that meets in a factory and then make our way out of the city in the cool of night... so now to the river to enjoy the sun!

Saturday 14 April 2012

We're on the Road!!!

So after 3 weeks in berlin we finally got all the bikes fixed and left the city on the next stage of our crazy adventure. the Last week or so has been really busy. We had a big going away party last thursday in the factory space we were staying in. It was a crazy night, there were about 200 people in total. We had loads of different bands playing, arial acrobatics, clowns, stiltwalkers, a dancing (and pooing and weeing) elephant, bicycles and musicians hanging from the ceiling, fire shows and a bizare walk through theatre peice in wich i was hiding as a 10ft high bird creature caught in a cage. The event finnished at about 6 in the morning! We had a day off on easter day so i found an english speaking church to go to, one of the guys came with me too which was cool, once we got over the high school musical style stage show it was really great fun... the rest of the week has been spent in the workshop (which is a steal container in an urbarn vegatable garden) mending and preparing our bikes. My tricycle has had a complete makover, and is now sporting a rainbow of yellow, orange, red black and blue! it also has a srtonger frame and a new front wheel so hopefully it will survive the journey: I am now also carrying a giant birds head and costume so the bike is even higher packed then before.

So on thursday at about 6pm we finaly set off from Berlin, we were quite a sight pedelling through the city on our crazy bikes full to overflowing, mine wasn't even the fullest! we cycled into the night and arrived at a circus caravan settlement in a small town called Rudersdorf just east of Berlin. The place is amasing there is a huge circus tent in the centre and it is surrounded by wagons and caravans and interesting woodend structures. This is where I am writing from now. I has been so beutifull being out of the ciry and back in nature again. yesterday we went for a walk to a big lake in the morning and had a 'swim' (run in run out as quickly as possible) we watched as a fisherman made a big catch who then gave us the fish to take back for dinner. i had the Job of hitting it on the head and gutting it. It was quite a humbling experience, so often what we eat is packaged and prepared so you can hardly tell it was a living thing. It was srangly sad and baeutiful to exerience the whole proccess. We then cooked the fish on the fire and ate it with vegatables and salad we found the night before in the supermarket rubbish containers... It was a Feast!

We will be here for the next few days and work on our show and should hopefully leave on monday morning and make 4 days ride south towards Dresden. And we should pick up a few newcomers on the way too.

I can't quite express how amasing it has been to adventure like this. I love it! There have been hard days and i'm sure there will be more to come, but what a joy it is to follow the dreams of your heart...    

Monday 2 April 2012

From old school to old factory...

Yesterday we waved goodbye to our friends at 'kubiz' the old school we've been staying at the past week. It actually turned out not to a squat but just a very fluid community house project. After an action packed week learning clowning, physical theatre, juggling, dance and even quantum physics, it felt strangely good to be packing my bike up again this time with even more stuff including a giant paper mâché birds head. We were quite a sight as the 3 of us cycled across Berlin one tall one wide and one long all packed full of stuff. We arrived outside an old disused factory which we will be performing in at our going away party on Thursday night. This is also to be our home for the next week but amasingly we have been given a really nice studio apartment next door to stay in. So Last night I came home after an afternoon clowning and passing out flyers on stilts and had a long hot bath, I can't tell you how good that felt. To top it off too I got to sleep in a bed! (admittedly alongside 2 others but on an actual mattress!) So we have 4 days now to prepare and rehearse for out performance on Thursday, between now and then I have to Finnish building a giant bird costume to be warn on stilts. So I am feeling right back at home doing last minute crazy building!