A Night at Cafe Republik

Last night we met some students from Richard's class, from Spain and Mexico. So a strange mix of Spanish, English and German was spoken (maybe not so strange in multi-kulti Berlin). Marcella is a photographer and was very excited to hear about Wannsee as a place to photograph nature. Juan and Elena were about to fly back to Spain and were not so happy about it, but they'd run out of money. Elena spoke fluent German because she'd studied in Bavaria but Juan was Richard's level.
The place where we met is just across the road from our flat on Pappelallee; in fact we can look out the window into the orange glow and see how busy it is (usually packed after 11pm). From the street you wouldn't know it was there - you have to go into the courtyard and up some flimsy stairs. The bar is huge, it takes up one whole floor and oddly has nothing above it - maybe it's a building that was bombed, because we have a view right over it which is unusual for a second floor flat, most have at least four levels.
Inside is completely retro - old brown sofas, round orange coffee tables, those big round lights on the walls and the odd disco ball. Very nice cocktails too, but I hadn't been back for a bit due to some nasty red wine with lemon and ice in it (stoned barman, long story).
All sorts head to Cafe Rebublik for a chat. The music is also very cool...they even play Che Fu occasionally. Whenever we have visitors we take them there because it's our "local". It shut down a few months ago, without expanation, then opened again as if nothing had happened. That's pretty normal here. Bars come and go, especially the best ones, the illegal ones that often consist of nothing more than a few couches and some alcohol.
If Cafe Rupublik is full sometimes we get lazy and go to the cocktail bar downstairs. Cocktail bars are very common here and everyone loves a caiparinha. This bar is unusual because it's a sand bar, meaning that even in the middle of winter, when it's minus-something degrees outside, you can enter this bizarre tropical oasis and feel the sand under your feet, bask in the pinky-orange light, fondle a nearby fake palm tree and sip rainbow coloured drinks. Tacky, yes, fun, sometimes.
PS Found out the other day that most Germans have never even seen the Sound of Music, a film that I seem to have an unhealthy fascination with, maybe because it's just so unbelievably saccarine. But I guess it makes sense - Germans are the baddies in the film, trying to make Captain Von Trapp join the Nazis, and so Germans watching the film might not end up feeling that same warm glow/bout of nausea that other people get when "Eidelweiß" is sung.