h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Thank you for the Christmas card and the WhatsApp on my birthday. I'm guessing you had my old work number.

Hope you had a good Christmas. We're off to Berlin for NYE - a 20s party (inna Babylon Berlin stylee I guess) and after that it's all hands on deck for my new job.

Have fun. Berlin is the best place to be at New Year. We were there for the New Year of 1980-81 (or around then - I didn't have any kids anyway) and the friends we were staying with had a collection of old musical instruments (I'm talking shawms and such) and he blew the old "posthorn" out of the window at midnight - absolutely everyone was looking out of their windows.

My very first New Year in Germany, when I was au pairing, the parents were out and I was babysitting and they told me not to forget to look out of the window at midnight. I thought maybe they had put some champagne on the balcony for me. But when I opened the window, I saw fireworks going off. To think that that was something really new to me at the time....

As I said in my card, I may make London on the 27th now.

Hope you had a lovely Christmas and all the best for the New Year, New Job and New Life without gruesomes!

Forgot to mention that I wasn't aware of Babylon Berlin (or is it Berlin Babylon) but our eldest gave us the DVD's for Christmas so we sat down and watched the first 2 episodes. It was very difficult to follow and I hate watching things on our TV. Especially when we realised that either the TV or the DVD player cut off the subtitles (half the thing is in Russian).

I have managed to set it up so you can see the subtitles, but it automatically adjusts itself back after a few seconds. So the best thing will be to watch it again on the laptop, maybe projected and over the loudspeakers. But I don't want to subject myself to those 2 episodes again. Love the visuals, which, apparently, they put a lot of research into, but some of the script, gestures, etc., seem too modern.

Berlin was great - the 20s party was spectacular and our hotel was around the corner (it was in the Wintergarten) so we could walk back afterwards. I always like Berlin although we realised this time, having been in a rather good old-style pub - that West Berlin as was is disappearing and won't be around for much longer. Which is a shame.

After the first aborted attempt to watch the box set of Babylon Berlin, I have now started again watching it on my laptop (with headphones). It's pretty intense, I can't watch more than 2-3 episodes without having to turn to cats on youtube for light relief.

The lead (Volker Bruch?) is really good, and it all looks amazing. Hope there were no shootouts or shattered aquariums at your Berlin do?!?

nothing like that - but they did play the song from the Babylon Berlin nightclub which is great.

I really loved the end of S2 - can't wait for S3

In the hopes you will see this - and apologies that I totally forgot before, we'll be in Speyer tomorrow (we're travelling down to visit a friend in Sandhausen to go to the Pokal match on Friday)

So we're going to the Technik Museum in Speyer tomorrow - not sure when we'll arrive or if you're that close. But we thought maybe we'd zip into town (the cathedral is quite close to the museum?) and have a coffee/ice-cream/beer or whatever. If you fancy/have time - do you fancy a short-notice quick meet up? It's just me and

if you do - easiest to contact me by phone. But you only have my old number. If you email me on firstnamelastname at gmail dot com we can swap numbers?

Hi Sho - sorry, I've only just read this (Posted 19 hours ago). I have sent an e-mail as requested (not sure which version of your first name you meant, so I used both).

As I am so late, I have most likely missed you, but thanks for thinking of me. Would have loved to have met .

Have a great time and a safe journey back.

I'm pretty sure I'll be back down that way sooner or later. I hadn't seen the friend I met up with for 17 years...
The Technik Museum is amazing though. I can't believe I've never been before. And so we did the Sinnsheim one too before heading for home.

There was an event there recently with Alexander Gerst the astronaut. I was in England at the time, but would have loved to have seen it. I love the Technikmuseum, too!