Hamburg Life
It was a long day traveling to Hamburg, mostly because I spent the morning the Cologne hospital figuring out what to do about my fractured arm. The doctor told me I would need some time to heal, but I could play the guitar if it didn't hurt. Over the past couple of weeks I have taken a time out from playing, however once I got to Hamburg things changed.
I met up with a friend Sherija who lives in Hamburg. I originally met Sherija in Morocco and last saw her in August at the family reunion tour in Portugal. This was so great to finally see her in her natural environment. One of my favorite things in life is visiting friends in their home towns. You get a trip into their world and get to see their town and country through their eyes. Not only is this a learning experience, but you get to feel like a local in some way.
As soon as I arrived Sherija suggested that we head to an open mic. I knew this would be dangerous because I was already itching to play but my arm was still hurting. When we arrived the door guy told us it would be 5 euros to enter, but if we were playing it would be free. I said I would take a peek in the club and see if I would be up to playing. When I walked in I was blown away by the set up. There were over 70 people in the room and there was so much energy. This place doubled as a techno club on the weekends so it was a very trendy atmosphere. There were musicians, comedians, and a couple of poets. I asked one of the other performers if I could borrow his guitar and he was more than happy to help me out.
As the host called my name, which he thought was hilarious because apparently Kevin is not a popular name in Germany. In fact, Kevin is known for being an annoying person who is not educated. This has been an ongoing joke for me in Germany. It also doesn't help that I fell off a bike and broke my arm for no reason. So as I walked up to the stage a little unsure how my arm would hold up and also feeling like I had something to prove, I could feel the adrenaline starting to pump in my veins. I began to pick the first few notes of the song and I knew it was going to be a great set. After I finished, I really felt well received. People seemed to enjoy both of my songs Picture of Love and Umami. It even caused me to play a different version of Umami because I couldn't strum.
The next day, I met up with another friend from Colombia who I had not seen in a couple of years. In fact, we had not met up since the Bonnaroo festival in Manchester, TN in 2014. It is always great to meet up with people in another country and during another time period in life! Daniella and her boyfriend took me to a little Jazz club called the Colton Club. I would highly suggest anyone to try out this club especially if you like swing and jazz music!
