A new chancellor for Germany (not until Christmas at the earliest) and a female mayor for Berlin

It’s the day after the general election and we still don’t know who will succeed Angela Merkel as German chancellor, after 16 years in power. According to Olaf Scholz, the leader of the Social Democrats (SPD), it should be him, as his centre-left party won the biggest share of the vote (25.7%), albeit by less than two percentage points. However, according to Armin Laschet, the leader of the CDU, he should be the next chancellor, as his centre-right conservative party could still form a coalition government, for instance with the Free Democrats (FDP) and the Greens. 

Too close to call

As expected, the results were very close, and the new coalition government will most likely be formed by three parties and not by two, for the first time since the 1950s. The Greens and FDP will act as kingmakers. Although the CDU came second, it had its worst election result in history (24.1%). Meanwhile the Greens, led by Annalena Baerbock, had their best ever result in a national election (14.8%), although they didn’t perform as well as they (and I) had hoped for. Nevertheless, the Greens are now the third party in Germany, followed by the pro-business party FDP (11.5%) and the anti-immigrant party AfD (10.3%). The left-wing party Die Linke just about managed to get into parliament by securing three direct mandates, though at 4.9% it fell below the 5% threshold needed to get into the Bundestag. 

Let the talks begin

Over the next few weeks and months, the parties will be busy discussing possible coalitions. Last time round it took them until the spring to form a government. This time the hope is that they will find a solution by Christmas. In Germany, the coalitions have funny names depending on their colours. Scholz would prefer a “traffic light” coalition (red-green-yellow) between the SPD, the Greens and the FDP. However, other coalitions are still possible: “Kenya” (black-red-green), “Deutschland” (black-red-yellow), “Jamaica” (black-green-yellow) and grand coalition (black-red). Fortunately, none of the parties want to govern with the far-right AfD.

The election results by geography

If you break down the results by geography, the north of Germany and parts of the west are red (SPD), the south and the remaining parts of the west are black (CDU/CSU), while the east is blue (AFD). If you zoom in into the cities, most of them are green or mainly green. For instance, Leipzig is a red/green island in a blue sea, Munich is a mainly green island in a black sea, Frankfurt is a green island surrounded by red and black, while Cologne and Stuttgart are red/green. Berlin is green in the centre (Mitte, Pankow, Kreuzberg, Friedrichshain, Schöneberg, Charlottenburg) and red in the surrounding neighbourhoods. I find it rather ironic that people who live in cities seem to worry more about the environment than people who live in the countryside, but clearly this election wasn’t just about the environment.

Queues and chaos in Berlin 

There were long queues at polling stations in Berlin yesterday. In some cases, people had to wait for up to two hours to vote. Officially polling stations were open from 8 am to 6 pm, but anyone who was in the queue by 6 pm was allowed to stay and vote. Anyone who showed up after 6 pm was sent away. The elections in Berlin were rather chaotic: in some places the ballot papers ran out! Things were made even more complicated by the fact that the Berlin marathon was also happening yesterday so many of the main streets were closed. 

The Berlin election

As well as the general election, Berliners were voting in local elections and a referendum. As a non-German EU citizen, I was only able to vote for my local district council (not even for the Berlin parliament), so I only had one ballot paper and one box to tick, but German nationals had several ballot papers and six votes in total. As far as I know, it is not possible to have British and German nationality now that the UK has left the EU, but do let me know if I am wrong. In any case, I already have two nationalities, but I would be interested in acquiring a third one if it meant I could vote.

The first female mayor for Berlin

In Berlin, the SPD is the first party, while the Greens are the second party (up by 3.7% from the previous elections), followed by the CDU and Die Linke. Meanwhile, Franziska Giffey (still not quite sure how to pronounce her name!) is set to become Berlin’s first female mayor. Apparently, she is open to coalition talks with all parties, except for the AfD, but it is likely that Berlin will continue to have a red-red-green government. As the Tagesspiegel put it, “Berlin will keinen Wechsel aber mehr Grün” i.e. Berlin doesn’t want a change, but it wants more Green. 

Biergartens in Berlin reopen but schools remain part-time

Berlin is slowly emerging from months of lockdown. With the incidence number now well below 100, the emergency brake is no longer in place. So, no more curfew and no more appointments to enter a shop, though you still need to show proof of a negative Covid test, or you need to be fully vaccinated. 

Beer gardens and outdoor restaurants reopen for Whitsun

The Berlin government has decided to relax other coronavirus restrictions. Museums, outdoor cinemas, beer gardens, cafés and restaurants with outdoor seating, as well as outdoor swimming pools, have all reopened this week, in time for Whitsun (Pfingsten in German), though with limitations and proof of a negative Covid test or vaccination certificate required. Even the football stadium reopened to 2,000  Union Berlin fans yesterday. Shame about the weather, not ideal for outdoor swimming!

No change to schools

You would have thought that reopening schools would have been one of the local government’s priorities, especially now that children wear surgical masks all the time and are tested for Covid twice a week. Well think again. The Berlin Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family has decided that schools will not return to normal before the start of the summer holidays, regardless of the incidence number. The reason indicated is to avoid burdening schools with organisational changes so close to the summer holidays, which begin on 24 June. Apparently, it’s not worth disrupting the status quo “only” for five weeks. This means that schools will continue to function on a part-time basis, with pupils attending only a few hours a week.

Children and families 

Children in Berlin have not had access to regular schooling since mid-December. At the moment, all pupils in Berlin are allowed to go to school, but classes are halved so this means they are taught only for a few hours a day or a couple of days per week, depending on the decision taken by each individual school. As well as being extremely damaging to children’s education, social development and mental well-being, this model called Wechselunterricht also puts an enormous strain on families, because children have to be home-schooled when they can’t physically attend. Just to give you an idea, my son used to have 28 hours of lessons at school per week. Since the end of February, when schools reopened, he has only attended for 12 or 13 hours per week. The rest of the time he has been studying at home with me. 

Children have a right to education

In my opinion, children in Berlin are being denied their right to an education. It seems that it’s more important to boost alcohol consumption in pubs than to teach children in a school environment in the company of other children. My eight-year-old hasn’t seen some of his school friends for five months or has only been able to wave at them from behind school gates. I’m not the only one to be concerned about children’s mental health. A group of 27 pediatricians, psychiatrists and social workers have signed a letter to the mayor Michael Müller and the education senator Sandra Scheeres demanding the immediate return to regular school. They have witnessed a worrying increase in the number of children and young people suffering from depression, media addiction and weight problems in recent months.  

Sign the petition

There is an online petition asking for schools to return to normal, in view of lower incidence numbers. So far it has reached 3,400 signatures, which doesn’t seem a lot considering Berlin has a population of 3.8 million. Some parents are clearly outraged, while others seem to agree with the decision or are not too bothered. They’re simply holding out until the holidays. Some say it’s because incidence numbers amongst children are higher, while others point out that not all teachers have been vaccinated. This may be true, but it’s not the reason given by the senate. To me it is a matter of principle. Why can 2,000 fans celebrate and drink beer outside the stadium without any social distancing, when children can’t go to school normally? It seems absurd. What do you think? Will you sign the petition?

The new normal

It’s 7 am on a Monday morning and my son’s Covid self-test kit is on the breakfast table next to the cereal bowls and the mugs of tea. This is one of the latest developments in the constantly changing new normal. Since mid-April, school children in Germany as young as six need to self-test twice a week. These rapid tests have been especially designed for children and involve a shallow nasal swab. They're a bit uncomfortable but at least they're not painful! This is supposedly our last home test; next time will be at school. We are the lucky ones, since schools in Berlin are still open, though things are far from normal (surgical masks are now compulsory on school premises and classrooms, while classes are still halved and school ends earlier than usual). In other parts of Germany, however, schools have closed once again following the introduction of new measures to control the spread of Coronavirus infections. 

U-turn

While several European countries with similar or even higher Covid incidence rates have started relaxing restrictions, in Germany the emergency brake or Notbremse came into effect last Saturday. This is the latest attempt by the government to try to bring down the number of Covid infections during the third wave. They tried to shut down the country completely for five days over Easter but failed. The highly controversial move would have meant the closure even of supermarkets and grocery shops. A few days after the announcement of this plan, I received a WhatsApp message from a friend: “Have you heard the latest? They’ve scrapped the Easter lockdown! Was it all a joke?” I quickly got on to the Tagesspiegel website. In a video Angela Merkel was apologising for the mistake. I’m not sure what was most shocking: the sudden U-turn or seeing a politician admit they had made a mistake and were taking full responsibility.

Emergency Brake

As Germany is made up of 16 federal states, and each one can choose its own restrictions, Angela Merkel has been struggling to get every state to play by the same rules, hence the nationwide “emergency brake" law voted by the German parliament last week. This is applied when the seven-day incidence rate rises above 100 cases per 100,000 residents for three days in a row. For the first time the measures include an overnight curfew from 10 pm to 5 am (you can still go for a jog until midnight). Non-essential shops are still open, but if you want to go shopping you need to make an appointment and show a negative Covid test. If the incidence rate is above 150, shops are only open for “click-and-collect”.  You can still go to the hairdresser, but again you need a negative Covid test. Children under 14 can still play sports outdoors but only in small groups and their trainers need - you guessed it - a negative Covid test! If the incidence rate reaches 165, schools have to close and switch to home schooling. At the moment, the incidence rate in Berlin is around 135. So fingers crossed!

Test, test, test

While many businesses are struggling to survive or are having to close permanently, Covid test centres are in high demand, judging by the queues outside. These days you need a negative Covid test for most things, except going to the doctor’s or the supermarket. 

Pandemic fatigue 

After over a year of Covid restrictions and changing rules, more and more people are feeling fed up. This time last year the German government was being praised for its prompt and competent response to the pandemic. Now confidence is wavering and more people are bending the rules, as it gets increasingly challenging to keep up with the changes. The other day as I was reading the latest news over breakfast my son asked: “Does the information change every day?” “No, darling. It changes every hour”. Whether it’s about which mask to wear (FFP2 is compulsory almost everywhere these days, but in some places and situations you can still wear a surgical mask), vaccines (initially AstraZeneca was administered only to the under 65s, but now it’s only for people aged over 60 due to concerns over blood clots), schools (open or closed?), tests (self-test or test centres? PCR or rapid test?), social contacts (one household or more?) - the list is endless – we’re being confronted with constantly changing rules and information but no long-term plan in sight.

Fake news, protests and satire

Fake news and conspiracy theories about coronavirus and vaccines are rife. What coronavirus? It’s all an invention. Did you know that the Astrazeneca jab can turn you into a monkey? Meanwhile, protests by Querdenker, or Covid deniers, are getting louder and more radical. Police have been investigating a “death list”, which has been circulating on the internet, with the names of German politicians who voted in favour of the emergency break. Last week a group of German actors who posted satirical videos making fun of the coronavirus restrictions came under heavy criticism and were accused of being Querdenker. Many of these actors have withdrawn their videos from the campaign’s website called Alles dicht machen (close everything down) after the videos were praised by the far-right party AFD. Despite the growing disgruntlement, there is still strong support for a hard lockdown in Germany, according to the polls.

The coldest April in 40 years

These days whenever someone asks the question “How are you?” it is generally followed by a pause, as the person stops to think. It’s difficult to know how we feel after 13 months of disruption to our lives. The weather is not helping either. Although it looks like spring, with pink and white cherry blossoms brightening up the streets and the days getting longer - it doesn’t feel like spring. This has in fact been the coldest April since 1980. We can only hope that things will improve in May. At least the vaccination campaign is picking up momentum, as doctors (GPs and specialists) have started vaccinating in their surgeries; until recently Covid jabs were only given in designated vaccination centres. I’m still hoping the summer can be saved and we’ll be free to travel and visit our families, but it will take a miracle!

Humour in coronavirus time

This week I watched a documentary on Arte called Viral Humour - Telling Jokes in Corona Times. It shows how humour can help us through hard times and how it evolved through the pandemic. Some of the jokes are very funny. I recommend watching it if you feel like a laugh. 

From lockdown through flockdown to touchdown

The worst months of the year are over as far as I’m concerned. 

January was a very dreary month; it felt as if it would never end. Lockdown fatigue was at its highest and it wasn’t easy to find reasons to feel cheerful. February, on the contrary, provided some well-needed distraction from the coronavirus pandemic, courtesy of the unpredictable Berlin weather. This was in spite of the lockdown and in spite of the absence of the Berlin Film Festival (if all goes well, we will have the chance to watch the films in cinemas in June!). Carnival is never a big deal in Berlin, so we didn’t really miss it and we could still eat Pfannkuchen. This year there was a new variation: the Impfung (or vaccination) Pfannkuchen, with a complementary syringe.

First, we had an extremely cold spell in early February, with snow showers and temperatures plummeting to as low as -18ºC, turning Berlin into a winter wonderland and a playground for winter sports. A new word was born: Flockdown (a combination of Schneeflocke – or snowflake - and lockdown). All the snowy slopes were taken over by kids and adults sledging downhill. Some people were even seen skiing on the white city streets. Smiles returned to Berliner’s faces and the sound of laughter could be heard again. Sledges and other sliding devices were completely sold out (online and in shops where you could click and collect; the retail sector remained closed). 

After several days of freezing temperatures, all the lakes, rivers and canals in Berlin froze over, including the lake in Weissensee, which turned into a temporary ice rink, with skaters performing pirouettes and ice hockey players competing in serious matches. We even saw a family, presumably hungry after all the ice-skating action, grilling sausages on the frozen lake! The police, however, were not convinced that it was safe to tread on the frozen surfaces and their helicopters flew low over the lakes at the weekend to send people away. 

One week later, climate change alarm bells were ringing. Temperatures soared to +18ºC and the sun was shining. Berliners could hardly believe it. They ditched their woolly hats and scarves for their picnic blankets and flocked to the park (over 5,000 people congregated in Mauerpark on a Sunday afternoon). The police this time were busy trying to keep order and making sure the coronavirus regulations were being observed. For instance, it is still verboten to drink alcohol in parks in Berlin. Meanwhile, the birds were very confused by the sudden swing in temperatures and cranes (in German Kraniche) were heard emitting their distinctive calls while migrating north.

The end of February saw the first relaxation of the strict lockdown measures. Primary schools reopened, to parents’ delight, but only for pupils in years one, two and three, and classes were divided into two groups. In some schools children go every day for three hours, while in others they attend for two or three mornings a week. My son now spends half the week at school and half the week being home-schooled; this is known as Wechselunterricht. The situation is similar to when schools restarted after the first lockdown last spring, but there are some differences.  For instance, it is now compulsory to wear a face mask everywhere on school grounds, including in classrooms and in the playground. Meanwhile, nurseries are reopening on 9 March and more pupils will also go back to school next week. 

Hairdressers and barbers reopened on 1 March and queues quickly built up outside their shops, as people were desperate for a haircut. The lockdown has been extended until 28 March so everything else is still closed, but there will be some relaxation from next week. For example, from 8 March, up to five people from two households will be allowed meet, with children under 14 not counted.

By the way, Flockdown was not the only word to be invented during the pandemic. The Leibniz Institute for the German Language has compiled a list  of over 1,000 new words coined over the past year. These include AHA-Regel, which I have already written about, Coronaangst (anxiety about the coronavirus), Coronaeltern (parents challenged by the Covid regulations) CoronaFußgruß (foot greeting to replace the handshake), Coronaparty, Fashionmaske (fashion face mask), Homeclubbing, Klopapierhamster (toilet paper panic buyer), Querdenker (Covid denier who doesn’t follow the restriction measures) and overzoomed (stressed out by too many Zoom calls). I’m surprised there isn’t a word to describe a parent exhausted by the challenges of home schooling. Are you feeling homeschooledout? 

Finally, one of the highlights of the winter lockdown for me was watching the Mars landing. We were glued to the NASA YouTube channel on the evening of 18 February, as we followed the Perseverance rover approach Mars and then successfully touch down on the red planet. It was more exciting than any show I've seen on Netflix lately!

We are what we eat

Banksy, Tesco Value Cream of Tomato Soup*

Do you know what you're eating?

Recently I’ve been paying a lot more attention to the ingredients present in the food and cosmetics that I purchase. I’ve always been reasonably careful about what I eat and what I put on my skin and, more importantly, what I feed my son and what he rubs on his skin. But after watching a documentary on the tv channel Arte called "La grande malbouffe" about processed foods (malbouffe in French means junk food), I realised that I have not been concentrating enough on the labels on food and cosmetics. 

As a food expert points out at the beginning of the documentary, the food industry is not transparent. Anyone who has tried to interpret the ingredients listed on food labels will know that reading and understanding these labels is not easy. The list of ingredients is often long, while the writing on the packaging can be misleading. Also, certain additives and enzymes are not considered as ingredients if they are used as processing aids. 

Thanks to the documentary, I discovered a mobile app called Yuka, which “deciphers product labels and analyses the health impact of food products and cosmetics”. As well as telling you whether a product is excellent, good, poor or bad for your health based on a number of criteria, and whether something has too much salt or sugar, it also lists additives and lets you know whether they pose any risk to your health. 

My son and I spent the rest of the evening scanning products in our cupboards, fridge and freezer. There were a few surprises in the kitchen: for instance, we discovered that while some types of fish fingers from a well-known brand (Iglo in Germany, Findus in Italy or Birds Eye in the UK) are considered excellent, one variety contains additive E450, which poses a high risk to health. Presumably the presence of this texturizing agent is the reason these fish fingers are considered “unsere knusprigsten”, i.e.  our crispiest sort, as it is stated on the package.

The biggest surprises, however, were in the bathroom and bedroom, where we discovered several products that are considered to be bad for our health. All of the creams I had recently bought online from The Body Shop, for instance, turned out to contain endocrine disruptors or potential endocrine disruptors. The strawberry body butter even listed a carcinogen as one of its ingredients, while others contained allergens and irritants. I did actually write to The Body Shop to complain, but they insist that the ingredients in their products are safe. Nevertheless, I won’t be taking this risk, so I have decided to return the unused creams.

This brings me to an interview I heard on the radio yesterday on Newsday, which is broadcast on BBC World News. Shanna Swan, an environmental and reproductive epidemiologist, was talking about her new book, called Count Down. In the interview Swan argued that over the past decades there has been a «decay in the reproductive health of men and women». A major reason for this significant decline is the chemicals present in the environment which disrupt the body’s hormonal systems, i.e., endocrine disruptors.

Since I have become more aware of the potential presence of harmful or toxic substances in food and cosmetics, I have stopped buying certain products and found healthier alternatives. Next time you head to the supermarket or the pharmacy, or purchase something online, make sure you read the label and, if in doubt, scan it. Your health and your children’s health will definitely benefit.

 *The picture is from the exhibition "Ritratto di ignoto. L’artista chiamato Banksy" (Portrait of the unknown. The artist called Banksy), at Palazzo Sant’Elia in Palermo, October 2020.

Life in lockdown: look on the bright side!

With all the doom and gloom out there, it may seem difficult to see any positives right now, especially for those of us living in lockdown. In Berlin, we have been in full lockdown for a month and a half and have at least two more weeks to go, if not longer. For anyone having to deal with home schooling (mostly mothers, but some fathers as well), the winter lockdown feels like an eternity. Nevertheless, there are some encouraging signs; we just have to look for them.

January is over

The worst month of the year, especially if you live in Northern Europe, is finally coming to an end. February is arguably not much better, but then it’s only one month to go until spring. We all deserve a t-shirt “I survived the January lockdown”! 

The days are getting longer

Just over a month ago it would be dark by 4pm, but now it’s still light at 5pm. That’s definitely an improvement. Time to celebrate!

The lockdown measures are working

Although it’s been and continues to be an absolute nightmare, the strict lockdown is already having an effect. In Berlin, the number of active Covid cases has fallen to November levels. Two of the lights of the Corona Ampel, i.e., traffic-light coronavirus-warning system, are still red (number of new infections and number of beds in intensive care), but the one corresponding to the reproduction number (or R value) is green. We’re starting to see the light!

We have several vaccines

The vaccination programme is painfully slow (only 2% of the German population has been vaccinated so far) and we are facing delays in vaccine deliveries. The EU is currently in a dispute with AstraZeneca and Pfizer over supplies and is introducing export controls on coronavirus vaccines made within the EU. Let’s not forget that 95% of all vaccinations so far have taken place in just 10 countries, meaning that people in low-income countries don’t have access to vaccines. Still, just the fact that several vaccines are available is an amazing achievement. Until a few months ago it wasn’t even clear whether it would be possible to develop an effective vaccine against Covid. One day in the not-too-distant future we will hopefully achieve herd immunity. 

If you need a further boost to your morale try any of the following

Exercise – go for a walk, join an online workout, follow a keep fit video, anything to get you moving. My son and I bought a skipping rope this week to exercise indoors because it was so cold outside! If you are allowed to leave the house, try to make the most of natural light and go for a walk whenever then sun comes out. 

Meditation – there’s lot of mindfulness apps to get you started and most of them have free sessions. Headspace is even on Netflix; it might sound like a contradiction (meditating while watching telly), but I found it quite relaxing and I enjoyed the graphics. If you have trouble getting to sleep, it might be more helpful than watching a thriller.

Escapism – there’s nothing like a good book or a good film to help you forget about your worries. I’m a fan of period dramas, but I realise they’re not everyone’s cup of tea. There’s one series that has attracted a lot of attention recently. I’m talking about Bridgerton. If you haven’t watched it yet, it’s quite entertaining. 

I enjoyed watching Far from the Madding Crowd, Thomas Vinterburg’s adaptation of the Hardy classic, also on Netflix. 

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo is one of the books that helped me get through the spring lockdown and is a really good read. It follows the lives of 12 characters, most of them black British women, all very different but in some way linked to one another.

Friends – even if you might not be able to see them in person, you can still text, email, call or video call your friends. They will be just as happy to hear from you as you are to hear their voice.  

Creativity – try doing something creative… cooking, drawing, colouring, writing a diary, writing a blog, writing a story, playing an instrument… whatever you choose to do, you will feel the positive benefits. 

Finally, a word of warning, don’t spend too much time on social media!

Surviving the winter lockdown

#StayatHome

So here we are again, only this time it’s worse. We’re in the middle of the second wave of the Covid pandemic and the situation is serious. For the first time since the beginning of this crisis all three traffic lights of the coronavirus-warning system for Berlin are red. The number of Covid-related deaths in Germany is at a record high. The lockdown measures have been toughened once again and even stricter restrictions are expected to be announced next week. 

Unless you keep a steady eye (or ear) on the local news, it’s impossible to keep up with all the changes. The Tagesspiegel App has become my bible. At the moment we can meet only one person from another household (children are now included in the calculation). We are not supposed to leave the house unless we have a valid reason. We are also not supposed to leave Berlin, or at least we can’t go further than 15 km from the border into Brandenburg, our neighbour state. 

The spring lockdown was bad enough, but the winter lockdown is on another level. Winter in Berlin is always a difficult time of the year. I’m not just saying this because I grew up in Sicily. Even native Berliners struggle with the long, grey and dark days, when catching a glimpse of the sun for just a few minutes feels like a miracle. Now that we spend most of our time at home, the days and weeks are a blur. They all seem to be melting into one long week. It feels surreal. Is this really happening or is it all a bad dream? 

Schools have been closed for a month now and the whole school situation has been terribly mismanaged, with conflicting information and backtracking on decisions. Home schooling is proving to be an even greater challenge than during the previous lockdown. Finding the assignments for the week is a bit like a treasure hunt, as the information is uploaded on different websites or arrives by email. Excuses to avoid studying include “I’m hungry”, “I’m tired”, “my arm hurts”, “I need the toilet” and my favourite “my pen exploded”.  Today I read in the news that home schooling and working from home are not compatible. How insightful.   

The online learning platform called Lernraum Berlin (the website that all teachers and students in Berlin are supposed to use) is totally unreliable and keeps crashing. On several occasions, we’ve had to resort to alternative websites for videoconferences. I’m starting to wonder if the people responsible for Lernraum Berlin are the same ones that were managing the construction of the “new” airport.

Talking of Berlin-Brandenburg Willy Brandt Airport (BER) airport, it has been back in the news this week, as employees have reported suffering electric shocks while checking passenger luggage! You couldn’t make this stuff up.

On a positive note, and to parents’ relief, the playgrounds in Berlin are still open, at least for the time being (this wasn’t the case in spring). Usually, playgrounds are deserted at this time of the year, but not now, as they are currently the only place where children can let off steam. 

If you are looking for distractions to survive the winter lockdown, here are some recommendations. 

This week I’ve been watching British sitcom Mum on the Arte App (where you can watch films and tv series in the original language without subtitles). It’s a slow-moving “comedy” with a great cast about a recently widowed, middle-aged woman called Cathy. It has funny moments, but it also makes you cringe. Some of the other characters are quite horrible and you do wonder how Cathy manages to stay so calm and gentle. 

I also watched the documentary Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable on Netflix . It tells the inspiring story of surfing champion Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm in a shark attack while surfing as a teenager, and made a comeback against all odds. 

Also on Netflix, the documentary The Social Dilemma will put you off using social media forever, or for a while at least.

I’ve been reading A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin, who has been praised as “a literary genius” in recent years. It’s a wonderful collection of short stories based on events from the author’s diverse and itinerant life. Whether they are based in laundromats, classrooms or the emergency room, Lucia Berlin tells vivid stories with humour and compassion.  

I’ve also been reading The World’s Worst Teachers by David Walliams with my son. Plenty of funny moments in these gruesome stories about the 10 worst teachers in the world, with great illustrations by Tony Ross.

Finally, I’ve been listening to the podcast called The Writer’s Voice, where New Yorker fiction writers read their short stories. A great chance to hear a good story told by its author.

*The poster (pictured) tells Berliners to wear face masks and to follow the Corona-rules. It is a play on the words rumgurken, which can be translated as "hang out" and comes from the word Gurke, i.e. cucumber and Rübe, which means turnip or carrot but is also used to describe an ugly nose.