Ex-pat Newlyweds

The weather is changing. I can smell it.

Cities each have their own smell that gets lost over time. Vancouver has a beautiful smell, filled with fir trees and ocean that gets drowned too easily in the rain. But arrive in Vancouver the day after its rained with a slight breeze, and you know what I mean. Regina smells dry — your nostrils feel the arid air and in summer, you can smell the fields that surround the city, and if your downwind from a barn, my apologies for what you have to go through then.

Berlin is different — an older smell, mostly of rock and stone with a splash of diesel. The cold winter weather added a chill to the smell, making it drier, even when it snowed or rained. But today, that weather has changed.

March came in beautifully, with sunshine and temperatures hitting the double digits. Buds hint at coming out of tree branches and the grass is taking back its colour. When I opened the balcony door, Berlin smelled more like the grove in Zündorf — warmer, wetter and surrounded by park.

While we’re relatively far from the River Spree here, spring is coming. We’re excited to see what the square in front of our house turns into, to see how the city opens its doors and windows to spill out on the sidewalk. Everyone keeps talking about how amazing Berlin is in the springtime and the change in smell has only increased my anticipation for it.

Don’t worry, I’ll post pictures.