Life in a foreign country · 30. April 2020

Life in a foreign country · 28. February 2020

I wish I could say that I was surprised when Hanau shootings happened but the truth is, that I was not. Not one bit and that is a scary admission. There is an underlying hostility that we people of color feel in the midst of white people. Sometimes it is in the form of silence and sometimes it is in the form of rationalizations. “No he didn’t mean it like that.” “She is old, she doesn’t know any better.” Mostly though, it is in the form of the fragility of their emotions. Those...

Life in a foreign country · 30. September 2019

As a black person, I cannot think of a more thankless way to spend your life than trying to understand racists of any shade. And I cannot think of a worse thing than voluntarily filling your head with apoplectic Nazis boiling with rage at the existence of non-white people threatening their privileged existence. It’s a waste of time. Well, not just a waste of time but a waste of precious time you could use for sweeping the neighborhood streets or simply biting into a juicy mango and staring...

Life in a foreign country · 19. May 2019

So this past weekend, the Eurovision song contest took place. In case you are like most people and are wondering what the hell that is, you are not alone. Outside of Europe, I mean crazy Europe,I am sure no one knows what it is or the joys of watching it. I have been watching Eurovison song contest for as long as i have lived in Europe. The reason is not because of the quality of music but rather the drama that tends to accompany it. There is something primal and distinctly unpretentious about...

Random thoughts · 29. December 2018

Beyblade is the world’s best toy. My eight year old says this so it must be true. African Twitter-space is divided into two distinct parts. Those who fall over themselves praising the continent’s leadership and those who stare at the first group with their mouths agape. Exceptionalism is a lie. It’s not the gender. When it comes to gossip and pettiness, gender parity rules. Bluffing is an extremely important skill. If in doubt, watch Trump and the Brexit shenanigans in the UK. Be wary of...

Random thoughts · 30. November 2018

The first time I saw Sheryl Sandberg was a few years ago on CNN. It was around 2 pm on a random Saturday afternoon. I remember sitting up, intrigued by her enthusiastic voice and her bubbly face. There was something about her. Something about her vulnerable demeanor and raspy voice that made it look like she was talking to me or people like me. “What do you tell people who might think that you are too privileged to understand the struggles of ordinary women?” The CNN anchor asked her. I...

Life in a foreign country · 14. November 2018

In the months of October and November every year, stories about the holocaust flood German media. I have for years followed these stories and every single time, my heart breaks into tiny pieces. It never becomes more bearable or easier to see the haunted eyes and the emaciated skeletal bodies of the victims of the Wehrmacht. I’m not sure what exactly drives me to watch or read these stories. Perhaps it’s the fact that I’m deeply aware that as a foreigner, I would have been high on the...

Life in a foreign country · 09. October 2018

Whenever people use the term shocking, I get the feeling that they are just trying to be dramatic. There really is no need to use the term shocking to describe anything that’s not life threatening let alone in a blog post headline like I was planning to do. My first headline had 'shocking' prominently displayed in it but after going through it, I had to admit to myself that there was not just a tinge of drama in it but a healthy dose of laziness. The following are things that you are unlikely...

Life in a foreign country · 01. October 2018

Important difference between East and West Germany that foreigners should always keep in mind

Life in a foreign country · 05. September 2018

The past two weeks in Germany have been dominated by demonstrations in the Eastern German city of Chemnitz. A male resident of Chemnitz was stabbed to death and two others fatally wounded. Two suspects, both asylum seekers, one from Iraq and a Syrian were arrested. The residents held a demo to mourn and protest. The next day, thousands of neo-Nazis held an even bigger demo to protest against ‘criminal foreigners’. I live about 500 km away from Chemnitz in the south western part of Germany...