Berlin diaries: days 1-6 (ENG)
It seems that we have been preparing for this trip to Berlin for about half a year, and maybe all our lives. Anton Koba, one of the oldest members of our team, who had recently moved to Berlin, was already waiting for us there. In four months, Anton managed to find and rent an office and warehouse space, collect the rest of our clothes from all over Europe, register and set up a website on Shopify, revived our Berlin social networks and began to acquire useful contacts.
There were many worries before the trip. Vasily already had a visa, and Masha needed to get not only a visa, but also a new passport - and all this against the backdrop of news that now no one issues visas for people from Russia. Masha flew to Moscow on purpose and as a result received a French visa for five years, which will even create a few problems later.
The day before our departure, the clothes from our new drop were ready, and of course, we decided to shoot them straight away. So we returned home by ten in the evening, celebrated the birthday of Lesya (Vasiliis wife and an independent consultant for all our projects). The flight was at 6:30, so we didn't manage to sleep.
Further in the text: V – Vasilii, M – Masha
V: We flew through Istanbul, where already at the check-in desk a girl examined my passport for about 15 minutes, thus planting a seed of anxiety in me. At the passport control in Berlin, after asking about the purpose of the trip and the amount of money in the account, they let me in, and Masha was asked to wait a bit, and then they took her for interrogation.
M: I was taken to the police office, the policeman asked where I was going to stay, I gave the address, last name and first name of my friend. He looked through the base, apparently to make sure it was true. He asked where she was from and showed me her photo to confirm. Then they let me see some document, which said that I aroused the suspicions of the police, and now there will be an interrogation, according to the results of which they will decide whether to allow me entry or refuse and send a request to cancel my visa. And they said that you need to wait for a translator.
V: Masha was taken away, and I went to collect my luggage. I connected to Wi-Fi and wrote to her that I was waiting, and if she needs something, asked her to write me straight away. But she was not online. So 4 hours passed. All this time I thought that she was already on the plane back to Yerevan.
M: I had to wait three hours for a translator. It was unpleasant, because I did not sleep at all, I was very hungry, and I started feeling that I was daydreaming. There was no Internet. I tried to read a book to kill time, but my eyes were getting closed. I tried to guess why I was detained. When they asked how much money I had with me, I replied that there were about 500 euros on the card, and it seemed to me that this was the reason. Indeed, how do I expect to live a month in Berlin on this amount of money if I am a tourist? I felt, of course, stupid for letting this happened.
V: While I was waiting for the news, in order to calm down, I posted a story where I shared my feelings about the situation. On nerves constantly was going to the toilet and back. Each time I had to carry two heavy suitcases with me to the other end of the hall. When the phone and the power bank were dead, I went to the corner with the socket, where I laid my hoodie on the floor and lay down to keep waiting.
M: In place of the first police officer came his replacement. He brought me some water and generally seemed more nice. The translator finally arrived and the interrogation began.
Do I know why I was detained?
- No.
I flew to Germany on a French visa, and this is the first country where I entered the Schengen zone, why is that?
There was a long discussion about this. Why did I submit documents to the French consulate, if I was going to Germany, what kind of documents did I submit, did I use the services of intermediaries, why, in the end, they gave me a visa for five years.
Further questions about previous trips and visas. The policeman tried to make it all look like I had already received a French visa several times only to get to Germany, and spent a day or two in France itself for the entire period.
- No, this is not true, and you can verify this by carefully looking at the stamps in the passport. You can also look at old Instagram posts made during trips to France.
Then there was a long conversation about my work, position, salary. How am I going to survive on 500 euros? I explained that I was not on vacation and that I am able to work remotely, and therefore, receive a salary.
I was asked to show the money on the balance in the application. The translator shared the Internet. During the time I was being interrogated, my friends put money on my card, so there was already enough.
It remains to wait until the boss takes a look at the protocol and makes a decision. The situation, in general, was relieved. While we waited for another hour and a half, the policeman told the translator about his relatives in Kazakhstan and the funny stories connected with them. Even when I was answering questions, I noticed that he reacts to some of my jokes and ironic remarks even before he hears their translation. Turned out he understood Russian a bit.
When we were alone in the room, the translator said that now people often try to get to Germany via French or Spanish visas in order to stay there, and everyone is tired of this, so they are being deported quite often. And I am lucky that I have many visas and trips in the past.
I was tired and decided once again to take a walk at least to the toilet in the company of a policewoman in order to change the environment, and when I returned, my policeman joyfully announced in Russian: “You are entering!”
V: After all this, I was definitely not ready to take the subway, I withdrawed 150 euros for a taxi, and we went off. On the way, I came to my senses, nervously looking at the counter, which at the end of the journey reached the mark of 70 euros and 60 cents. Okay, whatever. Approached to the entrance and saw cherished buzzer with the inscription KOBA.
M: It was great to meet Anton, whom we haven't seen for three years, and his dog Donnie. And the fact that a spacious but very comfortable office was already waiting for us, where there is everything you need to work together, discuss ideas and just hang out, was an incredible surprise. Anton is a hero, really. Because of all this there was a feeling that we are home.
V: It was already quite late. We unpacked a bit. According to the plan, Masha was supposed to stay with our friend Nastya, and I planned to live in the office or with Anton. It turned out that there was no shower in the office, while Anton had a very small room, and his neighbor himself lived in the living room. Well, okay, it's been worse. We charged the phones and went to find a dinner.
M: On the way from the office, we withdrawed some cash from an ATM and bought local SIM cards. After Yerevan, the city feels huge, there are a lot of people. From all this, sometimes I felt a slight sense of agoraphobia, but when I was in the subway, looking at very familiar applications on the windows of the trains, I thought that the city would tighten pretty quickly.
V: We met Nastya and went to eat curry. At dinner, Nastya asked where I was staying and offered to live on her sofa. In general, I rarely think about personal comfort, which, of course, I later regret, but then I could hardly hold back tears of joy. To be honest, I'm even afraid to imagine how hard it would be to go through this quite nervous and difficult period of life alone living in the office.
V: I woke up at 9:30 am. While was making coffee, looked at Nastya's kitchen and tried to remember how to sort garbage.
The girls also woke up, and while having breakfast, they discussed which travel card we should buy. Although there are no turnstiles in Berlin and a lot of people ride stowaway, we decided not to risk, since we had to ride the subway several times a day, and I definitely could not stand such stress. The AB travel card for the metro and bus came out at 91 euros. We chatted a bit and went to work.
M: In the morning I learned from Nastya that I snore sometimes. For the first time in my 28 years, I learned about it. Well.
V: On the way, I told Masha that I felt a little better. That Berlin seems to me the city you need to be in right now.
M: I always really liked the feeling in Berlin that no one cares about you. You are on your own and do what you want, no one will judge. I felt it here again. There are a lot of people around, many seem close in spirit, and yes, it seems to be expensive, difficult, but at the same time it seems to be easy to integrate and find something for yourself.
V: We had a monthly pass, sim cards with internet. What else is needed for happiness. In front of the office we went to a huge supermarket, bought coffee and bars. In the office, the first step was to equip the space. Masha got a huge chair, which Anton found in the garbage. In general, at the very beginning I told him that he should not buy any furniture and that we could find it all in the garbage, since this is Europe.
M: I brought with me a poster with a photo of panels in Yerevan, which was made by our friend Mitya Lyalin. I really liked his photo, and he printed it for me. Yerevan will always be a savior city for me, and it's cool that now this photo will hang here and remind me of it.
V: Our office is in the attic, and the sun floods it from time to time. So it's either hot or cold here. The toilet has a low door frame, and everyone bangs their heads against it every now and then.
M: Anton showed me the roof, which you can climb out of our flight of stairs. From there you can see rows of identical tiled roofs in serene orange. The sight is soothing.
Anton also set up a recording studio in the office, and in between work, he constantly records or mixes something. In the evening his friends came. One of them, Kaplya, makes great videos, Sasha is a drummer, Vlad is engaged in music and modeling. The guys went to shoot a video, then hung out in the office with beer. I really like to work in a space where some kind of peaceful activities are constantly taking place.
We decided that we needed to take a closer look at the areas of Berlin, especially those where there are stores in a segment close to us. First of all, we decided to look into Superconscious, Supreme and Civilist.
Supreme opened in Berlin recently, in 2021. It is a large square space with a sculpture of an airplane under the ceiling. Their stuff is cool, but not in our spirit. And the Supreme audience looks like they want to be the most fashionable in the world. Guys wearing comically huge boots, with the shaved patterns on their heads, in gold-colored chains. We like a more relaxed vibe.
Superconscious is located in the next building. A multi-brand store with a pleasant, light, almost sterile interior. In the bio on their website, they call this space a laboratory. Well, well deserved. In addition to clothes, they sell sneakers, perfumes, glasses, magazines, jewelry – in general, a complete set of a concept store.
There was also a SOTO store on this line, which we did not know about. There is a more expensive selection with the brands Etudes, MSHBHV, A-Cold-Wall, Acne and so on and a whole rack of Moon Boots which all look the same.
The last shop for today was Civilist. A respected Berlin skateshop with a rather relaxed vibe inside.
M: I liked Civilist the most. Every second print brought a smile, and I wanted to respect the author for a good joke, and the atmosphere in the store cheered me up.
V: Before going to the office, on the advice of a barista friend, we decided to go to the iconic THE BARN coffee shop, but stayed not impressed. Except for the prices.
M: But we checked out the buns at the Zeit fur Brot bakery next door. Every time I'm in Berlin, at least once I go there and take a bun with an apple and cinnamon. I haven't eaten sugar in months, but this time I made an exception.
V: We took breath in the office and had a meeting where we discussed our plans for Volchok this month, as well as our new project – a multi-brand store, which we plan to open in Berlin.
With the new project, we are now working on the identity, structure and appearance of the website. Now we are waiting for a new version from the designers, as we have recently made corrections. We also make a list of brands that we would like to have, and finalize the concept.
With Volchk, the plan turned out to be like this. At the end of the month we have a two-day pop-up. Which means we need to find a space, rent sound and DJ equipment. Find rails, hangers. Of course, for the event, we will need to shoot a promo, make posters and stickers. And for this, find models and a video operator. Make a guest list and invite everyone. At the end of our discussion, Masha said that she had run out of pages in her notebook, and there is no more room for tasks, and lay down on the floor, hugging Donnie.
M: It's hard not to get frustrated when you're constantly switching between different tasks, especially when you're working on something new. Especially when it is a project in another country. But in fact, I prepared myself for this when I was going on this trip. I knew that everything would not be completely clear, and with my impostor syndrome, I would often feel insecure. So, in general, I am proud that I have a stable mood, and I just do my job every day without any strong emotions.
V: Our office has a funny kitchen. Only a small trickle of cold water flows from the tap, we are still preparing coffee in a saucepan, and yesterday we had to heat all our products, as the refrigerator was at maximum minus temperature, and milk and cheese turned into ice cubes.
In the evenings, Anton has parties. Today, for example, the guys came to record vocals. Despite the noise, it is even more fun to work and feel the creative atmosphere. Basically, everyone is talking about housing problem, and this gives the feeling that you are not alone with your difficulties.
Anton warned that tomorrow would be Good Friday, and nothing would work, so we ran to buy groceries for future several days.
In grocery stores, of course, there is a huge selection, we even found lecho to cook shakshuka. We also decided to take a couple of bottles of wine in advance for the evening and the weekend. What was wrong.
We drank all the wine at home, argued about projects, gossiped, and then there were some unnecessary oversharing about childhood traumas and other dark stuff.
V: Waking up was a little more difficult than before. And the weather wasn't good either. We cooked shakshuka and decided to do some work from home to recover. When we were finally ready for the office, Nastya decided to go with us.
Our office is located almost at the end station. And it seems mostly older couples live here. Even the graffiti here are some funny, for example, in the form of maple leaves. But we have it, it is huge, bright and has access to the roof.
Today we have outlined a tentative list of meetings that may be useful. Tomorrow I will go to a meeting with a girl who opened a company in Germany, and in the evening we will go to a meeting with Tim, Anton's friend and our office neighbor, whom we have not yet seen here. In parallel with work, we are thinking with might and main about a long-term visa. This issue is mainly dealt with by Masha.
M: We realized that the most realistic thing would be to try to get freelance visas. To do this, we need to collect recommendations from people and companies with whom we have worked, as well as letters of intent - letters from those who are interested in cooperation in the future. This is probably the most difficult. So far, every day I remember, look for and write down the names and contacts of people who, in theory, could help. I also look forward to the instructions of my friend, who has already gone through all these processes. Probably, after her consultation, I will start writing to everyone.
V: The days here, of course, are very different from our usual everyday life. For example, for all the time I have never opened YouTube and have not watched a single movie, although I consistently watch a movie a day and watch a large amount of news.
M: I'm used to the fact that everything is different when you travel. The last months of my life in Yerevan, I worked every day at the computer, and after work I was digging music or spending hours in Ableton Live, and my social circle was limited only to the closest ones. Here I am ready to communicate and get to know new people every day. I think it's important when you're in a new place, at least I don't know any other ways to immerse yourself in context.
Tonight I decided to go see Tresor, a legendary techno club I've never been to before. My favorite DJ was playing at 5 am, so I slept for a couple of hours, drank coffee and took the subway. I went out at the right station and immediately found myself in a noisy crowd. I just can't get used to the fact that there are so many people in Berlin, especially those who party. There was no queue at the club, I quickly got inside. The space seemed huge, and not really welcoming which was not actually a problem. After about an hour and a half, I realized that I was terribly tired during the day - it was difficult to breathe because of the smoke machine, the music seemed too harsh, there was not enough space. Usually techno energizes me, but this time it sucked the rest of my energy. Having not found a place on the dance floor where I could just stand and where the sound would reach sufficiently, I realized that I would not make it to the end of the set. Next time will get a proper rest before.
In general, the club, as expected, satisfies all progressive canons. And most likely, some of them were born here (Tresor opened in 1991). There are reminders on the toilet doors that people should be attentive to each other and, in which case, turn to the Awareness Team, instead of the usual Male and Female on the signs in the toilet - Male and everyone else (lesbians, non-binary, etc.).
Going out into the street already in the light of day, I saw huge banners with the inscription NO WAR along the road leading to the club.
In the evening, Anton invited us to the bar 8mm, where he wanted to talk to the owner about his performance. He actually didn't show up, but Anton chatted with the administrator. And we were just sitting drinking beer and chatting.
For a couple of days, Anton invited me to his place. In the evening we walked Doni, who ran after the rabbits, which for some reason live in large amounts in that area.
V: We spent half the day at home. I cleared subscribers from bots and abandoned profiles in our Berlin account, and Anton looked through ads with housing and premises for a shop or office.
Then we decided to take a walk. We went to the gallery, which turned out to be closed, had a bite of a burger at Burgermeister and sat on a bench near the Holocaust Memorial.
M: Today we met Tim, Anton's friend, who works in an agency with the brands like Supreme, Balenciaga, Gucci etc.. They are engaged in marketing, creative consulting, work with influencers.
I did not expect him to be able to help us directly, but it was very valuable to talk to someone who is inside the industry that we only want to get into here and get his opinion on our plans.
V: Masha talked to Tim at the meeting. I tried to listen, I understood something, in some ways I was guided by facial expressions.
M: The conversation can be reduced to several theses:
- russian brands are cancelled in Berlin, no one wants to work with them
- before opening a streetwear store, you need to gather your own community of like-minded people
- to gather a community, you need to clearly understand what our idea and concept is, who our target audience is
- no matter what brands our selection will consist of, the main thing is that the store is authentic
- Berliners are very skeptical, they constantly need to be surprised
At the end, he said that when we have something to show, he can take a look and say what he thinks.
V: Nothing really new, that's what we've been doing since the beginning. Only here you need to start almost from scratch. And at the same time with a weight around your neck in the form of a lack of residency, unknowing of German and unusually high prices on everything.
M: But you can decide on the order of the actions. First, a website, attracting brands, along with Instagram and work aimed at finding “our” ambassadors and the community. Then there is the offline store.
V: After meeting Tim, we went to the embankment to drink beer and discuss housing issues. Fell asleep with a heavy heart.
