ghost of nature.

crossing bridge in sömmerda. sömmerda  is the little city i was born in ( but not raised ), and while today i actually quite like this place, it wasn't always so. sömmerda for me was always booooooring af, there never was a lot going on there, it felt provincial & small-minded and kind of dated. growing up as a teenager in a region that's very reclusive and smalltown-y, with rarely some like-minded people around, sömmerda didn't provide any connections to me. i didn't go to high school there, i rarely attended any social gatherings - it was more like a city i had to go to because of obligatory things like doctor's appointments or learning how to drive, not a place i could get more creative & connect with people.  today i look different upon this city, because it isn't as dire & stale as i always made it out to be. while not super cosmopolitan, it offers a few cultural happenings throughout the year, has various educational & creative hub...

street scenery on anger square in erfurt. sometimes it is strange. you think you know a place from deep down in your heart, because it's been part of your youth for such a long time, but as soon as you move away, it becomes blurred & indistinct and you feel estranged from this place, only a mere visitor. this is what i felt about a small visit in erfurt back in february - the capital city of thuringia. i was raised in a small village around 25 kilometers away from erfurt, and erfurt was the big city in my yet small periphery back then. we often visited this city for all kinds of occassions, i spent the duration of my saleswoman apprenticeship wandering around its streets and getting to know it intimately. until i moved away to wiesbaden. the visits lessened and my focus was put onto different cities & regions of my homestate, because now i was always a tourist and i lost my citizenship - at least in my mind. whenever i returned to thuringia i would explore places i...