What landed me on Tempelhof (part 2)

Ahoy - it's me again. (read part 1)

I promised to offer some more answers - here we go!

If you ever asked yourself how comes a German girl is called "Misty" ...
- that is of course more of a nickname.
Tempelhof has been especially popular among English speaking tourists, so most folks on the island are more or less familiar with that language.
My legal name is Britta ... Britta Pein - but few tourists were able to pronounce that properly.
When I was still learning the ropes as a waitress, tons of things went wrong - so the word the guests heard pretty often from me was "Mist!!" - or even "Mist-Mist-Mist!!!" if I screwed up completely. "Mist" is a mild German form for "shit!" ... like "crap!" perhaps.
One day a friendly tourist who used to joke with me a lot said: "Young lady. This is a wonderful clear and sunny day - no mist whatsoever. But because you seem so fond of that term I might call you 'Misty' from now on - if you have no objections".
That nickname stuck to me. I like it and it is way easier to say and to spell for folks from abroad.
When back home some tourists sent me letters or postcards - most wrote 'Payne' instead of 'Pein'.
So - that's why. Meanwhile even most Germans call me Misty and I'm fine with it.

Why a humble waitress and dancer dashes around in high-tech submarines? 
Well - Tempelhof always was a small naval base. Just a handful U-boats, some minesweepers, some trawlers.

Due to my interest for all things nautical, I spent much of my spare time down by the docks, becoming friends with many of the sailors.
They began to show me around, even took me for short trips (TOTALLY against any military rule of course) and I learned pretty quick how to steer a boat.
That became handy, when we ran short of men during the war.
I helped out testing boats after repairs and improvements or with redeploying them to the (now destroyed) submarine pens.
Of course they never took me on any military mission, because women still ain't allowed to join the armed forces.
So my 'rank' (Fähnrich zur See = ensign on a ship, midshipman), just as any other military task I'm responsible for now, is unofficial.

After the departure of the nazi staff and the death of commander Fehrer, StFz Wertmuller found himself the highest-ranking soldier - so he jumped in and has been in charge of any operations or tactical plans since.
One of the first things he pointed out was (quote) "Also, please take into account that we take great pride in our policy of Equal Working Conditions, where we employ people regardless of gender, sexual orientation or talent."- that's why you even see women operating the FLAK guns and stuff. Some say his encouraging words were just a polite way to tell us: "Move your lazy bum and make yourself useful!". And especially after the 'U-boat incident' I had to think a bit about the 'talent'-part of his little speech.

This directly leads to 'da buzz-bomb': 

We still had one intact V-1 launcher ... as well as some bombs.
But due to the fact we are a bit short on explosives ... and because we don't really believe in the benefices of bombing and terrorizing civilians ... it came to my mind to convert the ramp so it points to the east now - where the mainland lies - removing the explosives from the war heads and to use the freed-up space to stuff letters and postcards into it: TaDa! Airborne mail, Misty-style.
After the war I will see to get this awesome concept patented.
No idea if anything ever reached the addressees - but hey! We tried, didn't we??

Last question you might have on your mind: Why is a chambermaid in charge of the radio station?? 
Hmm... just another of many 'dirty jobs' StFz Wertmuller has seen fit to impose on lil me - mostly because my dad has been an amateur radio operator and I once blurted out I knew how those things work.
And according to my motto "Never ask what your people can do for you - always ask yourself: What can -I- do for my people??" - Bullshit of course: He said "Duckling - YOU operate that thing!" - so I just do it. Cause I'm compliant. What a drag. Anyway.

In part 3 I will tell what happened to the harbor master, the lighthouse keeper - and how we managed to remove the few Jews and other 'endangered species' to a safe place.

Note to the Editor 

Tempelhof, 28. April 1945

Von: Misty Payne, commissarial in charge of Militärische Abwehr
 
Betreff: 'body in the sewers'

Dear Editor,

surprised enough the rats did not finish him off already (might be some kind of courtesy among colleagues) - all I can say is: That are the reminders of Hans Fehrer - former Ortsgruppenleiter of the NSDAP and Inselkommandant of Tempelhof.

Me and my sister found him the day after the other nazi bastards stole our best U-boat and took off to Argentina (some say they actually were heading to 'New Swabia' in the Antarctic).

The commander sat slumped in a puddle of his own blood at his desk.
On that: his Luger Parabellum, some cash (pretty useless on Tempelhof - there is nothing to sell or to buy anymore. We just share what is left) and a "returned to sender" postcard to his sister in Freiburg - thus meaning she might have gotten bombed out during the last severe air raids.
We found some empty bottles of wine, so we aren't sure if he refused to flee with his comrades - or was just too drunk to do so.

Anyway - it was more than obvious he shot himself in the head.
All we did was to unload his gun, wrap his body into a blanket and drag that fat bastard to the sewers. Basically because we just had no idea where else to put him.

I hereby declare we did NOT change anything else on the scene - in case of further investigations.
We still use the radio device (which the staff fortunately did not render useless when they ransacked the office) to keep in touch with our raider-boats or in case anybody in the Reich will try to contact us.

Before the party left they destroyed all evidences of crimes on Tempelhof - that's why the office looks so devastated.
Depending on how the Allies will treat us after the war comes to an end, we might be willing to help with the investigations.

To the best of one's knowledge and belief:
Misty Payne, Fähnrich zur See

Body Found in Sewers?

Body wrapped in sack?

Tempelhof in Sl has been given a photo that appears to be of a body wrapped in a burlap sack. We have been informed that the photo was taken in the Sewers of Tempelhof.

 

Tempelhof in SL have asked the authorities to comment, but so far they refuse to confirm or deny whether this is indeed a bod or not.  

 

If you have any information about this story please contact the editor.

Body in Sewers
 

More Missing Emilie Paintings Found

 Last night 6 more paintings by Emilie that had been stolen from the Kommandantur  were found. 


Paintings by trawler

 These paintings were found in the open at the harbour front, near a fishing trawler that had arrived earlier that day. 

It is unknown at this time whether the trawler arriving that day was linked or is purely coincidental.

The paintings in question were not protected from the elements and experts say that is very fortunate that the weather was good last night as the paintings could have been easily ruined by rain or salt water from the waves. 

Missing portraits by Emilie

The paintings have been identified as portraits by Emilie.  So far the recovered paintings recovered were mostly of the Tempelhof area, with the notable exception of the previously unknown nude that was donated to the museum.  As Emilie was famous for her paintings of the locals this recovery is considered quite important.

The authorities have said that they are happy for the Emilie Museum to hold and display the paintings until the rightful owners are identified. 

Tempelhof in SL views these paintings of great cultural significance to the island and encourage resident and visitors to go to the Emilie museum to see them.





Emilie Museum to Open

 

Emilie Museum

An anonymous benefactor  has acquired the house that local artist Emilie used to live in and has donated it to Tempelhof along with his own 2 pieces of work by Emilie to the people of Tempelhof.  The museum will be operated as a trust for the benefit of the public.    The 2 pieces donated have never been seen before as they were private commissions as well as Emilie's sketchbook.  As the benefactor of these pieces is anonymous there is quite a lot of interest in the art world about the exhibition of these paintings.

 

After being informed of the opening of the Museum Tempelhof in SL has put pressure on the local authorities to allow the display of the four Emilie paintings that have so far been recovered from the collection that was stolen. We are proud to announce that these paintings will also be displayed in the Emilie Museum until such time as the rightful owners are identified and the items are claimed, and that all further pieces that are recovered will also be displayed at the Museum.

 

The Emilie museum will be open to the public at no charge however donations will be accepted for the upkeep of the museum.

 

 

EDITORS NOTE

 

The Emilie Museum is actually privately rented from Tempelhof, it is done so to add to the atmosphere for the  benefit of residents and visitors to Tempelhof.  

 

While the museum is not run by Tempelhof itself, all donations collected from tip jars will go straight into Tempelhof's accounts for the upkeep of the entire sim. Tempelhof is a spectacularly unique location in SL that should be supported.

Emilie Paintings Found! - Updated for accuracy

Some of the missing paintings by Emilie have been found by authorities in the back room of  Hafenmeister, located next to the Unsink  Bar on the harbourfront.

The paintings were found by a structural engineer who was examining the building to see if it could be brought back into use.


Hafenmeister (Harbour Master's Office)

The Hafenmeister building has been abandoned since there was an unexplained grenade accident there which took the Harbour Master's life. When asked about the paintings being  in the back room the Engineer said "I have no idea what these paintings are doing there, obviously no one should be using the building at all at present.  There is a sewer entrance in that room and I believe the paintings may have been put into the room from there, which would explain how someone got into the building without being noticed walking with a number of large paintings along the sea front."

As of yet authorities have not been able to establish why these paintings were there or who may have taken them in the first place. 

Evidence of sewer access
 

Upon investigation it does indeed appear that there is sewer access to this room.

It must be noted that only four of the missing paintings have been found and this represents only a very small portion of the missing collection.

The authorities say that they will be ceasing  the paintings as evidence and cannot determine if or when they will be returned to the Kommandantur for display with the rest of the currently unclaimed artwork displayed there.

Fortunately prior to the paintings being confiscated we were able to take these photos of them.



Tempelhof Coast

The Lighthouse

 

The Girl in the World
 



Reflections
 

British Conuslate Office?

Controversial dancer and journalist MissUnderstood Lighthouse has opened what is described as an "Unofficial British Consulate Office" in Tempelhof.  Considering the current hostilities between our countries,  this could be viewed to be in incredibly bad taste. The office is located at the Old Water Tower where Miss Lighthouse had already come under criticism for her flying a Union Flag.

 

Tempelhof in SL queried the British born Miss Lighthouse about her decision to open this office and she said that she had several reasons for opening the "office." She stated that while the residents of Tempelhof are lovely people and had made her and other "misplaced allies" as at home as possible under the circumstances in Tempelhof, there was a feeling among many of these people that they needed a form of support group and a place to meet and that this was a "tongue in cheek" way of doing it.  She went on to say that the fact she called the place a "Consulate Office" showed that she did not have any animosity to the people of Tempelhof itself.  Lastly she said "In Britain it is believed that Germans have no sense of humour, I figure this kind of put this theory to the test, if they do (as I believe) actually have a sense of humour then they should get a bit of an ironic laugh out of this... if not I'll end up in front of the firing squad and the stereotype will be proved true."

 

 

 

Disapearence of Paintings - Updated for accuracy

Selection of paintings at Kommandantur

It has come to the attention of Tempelhof in SL that all of the paintings by beloved local artist Emilie have disappeared from The Kommandantur since we told her story and gave you a free copy of the song about her in our 20 May edition "The Legend of Emilie." 

Prior to the war the Kommandantur was a Casino, which was taken over to use as a command post by the Nazis at the beginning of the war. Following the Nazis departure a large stash of artwork was found by the local residents, so of the art is local, others are famous pieces from across Europe. The locals decided to display the art in a public place both out of respect of the art and to make the place look prettier until the pieces can restored to their rightful owners. Because of this the Kommandantur currently houses most of the fine art in Tempelhof and so the disappearance of these locally cherished pieces of work will cause great distress to the local residents.

Ironically it has been suggested that the owner of the largest collection of Emilie paintings was in fact the Casino, and so it is quite possible that the items that have been stolen were the only art work that truly belonged in the building to start with.

It has been speculated that the paintings may have been stolen as a result of the attention that Tempelhof in SL had brought to them by linking the song Emilie to the specific artist that inspired it, and that the firm link may lead to an increase in the paintings value.

There has been no official comment regarding the disappearance of these paintings of the Tempelhof area and its residents and this is further fuelling speculation into what has happened. 

Tempelhof in SL calls for a public enquiry into the disappearance of these most beloved art works and asks that anyone who has any knowledge of what has happened to them to assist in finding them so that they can be returned to their rightful place here.

Union Flag Over Tempelhof?

Union Flag over old water tower

For the past week a Union Flag*  has been spotted on top of the Old Water Tower in Tempelhof.  This is the residence of dancer and reporter MissUnderstood Lighthouse who is a British Citizen.

The appearance of this flag has naturally caused anger among certain residents considering the current state of hostilities with Britain.

When asked about the flag Miss Lighthouse did not deny that she has a certain amount of national pride but explained that she had put up the flag in an attempt to reduce the further destruction to Tempelhof by the allies.  She pointed out that the British are incredibly patriotic and that no true blooded Briton would attack in an area where the Union Flag is flying.

If there is any truth in this theory then "Tempelhof in SL" will be among the most likely to benefit as the Old Water Tower is located right next door to our offices.

* The Union Flag is more commonly known as the Union Jack and also as the British Flag.  It has been referred to as the Union Flag here as many believe it should only be referred to as the Union Jack when it is flown from the bows of a warship, while this is considered untrue by experts we have used the term Union Flag (which is definitely right) to avoid such debate.

Misty Payne

So - what landed ME on Tempelhof?? (Part 1)

Born and raised in Germany's northernmost region (Schleswig-Holstein to be exact) I always felt a strong affection for the sea and all things nautical.

So after leaving school in 1935 I applied for the Nautical College in Kiel - only to learn the nazis won't let women study there anymore.

Also they told me it would be hard for me to get any other university place, because I have never been member of the BDM (Bund Deutscher Mädel) or the NS-Frauenschaft (official organization for women in the Third Reich). Drat!!

I decided to go on a hiatus from further education, took the ferry boat to Tempelhof for working as a waitress at the casino and restaurant they had on the island,  this building later became the "Kommandantur" (headquarters) for the party and navy staff when they took over the island about one year after my arrival.

At first I only planned to stay during summer - thinking things over and trying to figure out what to do for a living in a country that dooms women to a live as obedient wives and mothers only.

What can I say - I just fell in love with the island instantly. The rough weather, the cliffs and the sea - and last not least the odd folks living there. Most not very talkative, but good-natured.
Unruly and edgy. And - if they come to like you: awesome friends!

Among them - very few nazis but some pretty interesting artists: Painters, singers or writers, who decided to flee the turbulent mainland and it's ongoing drift into inhumanity and totalitarianism.
Islands tend to be kind of a melting pot for people that won't fit in properly otherwise.

The genuine islanders are the decendants of whalers, fischermen and farmers, now mostly living on the tourists that used to overcrowd Tempelhof during summer season.

Tourism came to a standstill, after Berlin declared Tempelhof to become a naval base (Minesweepers and U-boats).
The casino had to close - so I lost my job there and started to help out as a chambermaid in the Hotel Esplanade (now mostly inhabited by naval officers) - and I became friend with the lighthouse keeper and moved in to help with the huge lantern and stuff.

Oh! And I met and fell in love with Stabsfeldwebel (StFz=first sergeant) Wertmüller! Rumours have it he actually was a "Unterscharführer" in ... you know where, but got disbanded for being ... err ...
unruly and not enough in line with the ideology. They "exiled" him to godforsaken Tempelhof, where they thought he could cause less havoc.
His job in the beginning was to care for the radio equipment and some ... uhm ... experimental stuff, I'm most certainly not allowed to talk about.

With the beginning of the war times became tough. No daily ferry boat anymore, so we were dependent on the few navy tenders und the incoming U-boats. No way for any of us to leave the island anymore, very little contact to the mainland and our folks at home.

All foreigners on Tempelhof got stuck here also (Ms. Lighthouse already wrote about it: "Maiden in the Tower") - the officials first tried to incarcerate them in the cells of the various basements ...
then just telling them not to leave their homes, which soon became rather impractial also, so they were mostly left alone, but under more or less strict surveillance. 
In contrast to the party-bastards we never bore them any ill will - actually most became good friends over the years ... So we saw no point in making their life more miserable than it was for all of us anyway.

As a matter of fact all of the pretty international bunch we have here live pretty much as us Germans do.
They work, they sing, dance or care for their business. We like it just that way!

---------

In a couple of days I will carry on with my story, offering answers to some still open questions:
• How comes a German girl is called "Misty"?
• What landed a waitress and dancer on the sail of a Typ-VII-C??
• Why does she seems to be in charge of the V-1 launching ramp??
• Why does that point to the EAST anyway??
• What is her business at the radion station in the ravaged NSDAP-offices??

I will tell, what I MAY tell!
Thank you for reading!

New Home for Tempelhof in SL

New Tempelhof in SL offices

Since our old offices were confiscated at the beginning of the war by the military Tempelhof in SL has been proud to continue publishing despite these hardships due to the assistance of our reporters and local businesses who have allowed us to work from their homes and office space to give you the only newspaper in Tempelhof.

Tempelhof in SL is proud to announce that due to an anonymous donation of property that we can once again have our own offices in Tempelhof to produce our newspaper.

While the new offices are modest compared to our pre-war ones, the reality is that having impressive offices does not write the news,  we therefore greatly appreciate the donation of this office space.

The new offices are located at the Treehouse Building next to the water tower on Wertmüller Straße.  It is believed that this building had previously been used as a second home for "recreational purposes"... what is meant by this exactly remains unclear.
 If you have news stories, information on local events, wedding announcements, obituaries, classified ads, advertisements etc. that you would like posted in Tempelhof in SL then please post them to:

Tempelhof in SL
Treehouse Building 
Wertmüller Straße
Tempelhof
Ceiram, Germany
Second Life
SL 109/114/33

(OR in other words click the SLurl and put it in the mailbox shown in the photo)

Russia Denial

Photo a Fake?

For the past week there have been rumours that one of our reporters MissUnderstood Lighthouse has been in Russia in Yaraslavl ... well beyond the front line.

This photo has emerged which apparently shows Miss Lighthouse in front of a Russian Orthodox church.

When asked about going to Russia Miss Lighthouse said "No, I have not been to Russia, there is no truth in the claim whatsoever, any evidence you have is obviously been constructed... I have been ill for the past week and have not been around so much... but people have seen me... Mr. Barrow and Miss Payne have both seen me"

When queried about it Mr Barrow confirms that Miss Lighthouse has been seen around Tempelhof, but says "She has not seemed quite herself, never changing clothes, just standing around barely moving at all."

In possibly related news, the "Unsink" Bar where Mr Barrow works has  recently started serving Russian Vodka, which appears to be very high quality.

The photo above is the only hard evidence of Miss Lighthouse being in Moscow, but Tempelhof in SL does confirm that there had been a gap of several days where Miss Lighthouse did not submit any reports which is rather uncharacteristic of her. One may also consider it rather suspicious that this story itself is written by Miss Lighthouse.

Tempelhof infiltrated?

Liebe Bürger,

as our head-reporter has been sent abroad to the eastern shores for a few days, the news-output of this newspaper is considerably low, as you might understand.
Unfortunately, an incident was raised, which needs the immediate attention of all well-intentioned citizens.
This snippet of a newspaper has been found in the lounge-area of the Kommandantur yesterday:

 

 

As this is obviosly a part of our newspaper, translated into russian, Tempelhof authorities wait for Fräulein Lighthouse's return to work. We are sure that she can give a good explanation for this incident, especially while no one at Tempelhof is able to read cyrillic letters.

 

In the meantime, we ask you to keep your eyes open and to stay alert. Report all suspicious visitors to the Kommandantur immediately!

 

C.W. (StFw)



 

 



Wonder Woman in Tempelhof?

This photo raises serious questions

WHAT IS GOING ON?

This photo taken last night raises major questions.

• What is Wonder Woman doing in Tempelhof?
• Why is she talking to local performer Clyde Barrow?
• Why does Clyde have such an elaborate radio setup?
• Why does Clyde appear to have an obsession with the popular local Dancer MissUnderstood? 
• Why are our reporters taking photos inside private residences in the middle of the night?

We all know that Wonder Woman flies around the world in her invisible plane, and so she can come and go almost anywhere without being noticed, but why Tempelhof does Clyde know why she is here?

It has been suggested that Clyde may not be just an innocent singer, but he may be an American agent, this would account for Wonder Woman's presence and the radio equipment.  If this is the case, Clyde may be reporting to the US some of the anomalies that have been reported in Tempelhof in SL

Clyde's obsession with MissUnderstood has been suggested in several of his shows, the poster of her on the wall does appear to confirm this.

The last question is easy to answer.... our reporters spy on people at night, because they are fucking nosey.  That is why Tempelhof in SL gets the best stories.

 

EDITORS NOTE

 

Yes I am going on holiday, my last post was supposed to be my last for awhile, but seriously, this story was too big not to post.

The Legend of Emilie

Emilie's House

On the hill overlooking the harbour their stands a house, where before the great war lived a young artist named Emilie.

Emilie moved  to Tempelhof straight out of art school, and even though was an outsider her quick wit and charm was very appealing to the community and she was quickly accepted by the locals as one of their own

Although Emilie was never really that well known to the greater public, she was very skilled and she did have a reputation locally and in the art world for creating the most memorable paintings of the Tempelhof area, particularly of the residents and the village of Tempelhof itself.

Bar on harbour front

Emilie's work was very popular in the village and she was considered somewhat of a local treasure, always friendly and with a whimsical sprit.  She enjoyed spending a lot of her time "people watching," as they worked in the harbour and the theatre, on a weekend late in the evening she would go down to the bar on the harbour front, and just sit and watch people interact as they drank.  Occasionally Emilie was known to sing with a local folk band there. Emilie did not have a strong singing voice, but was considered very memorable,  her voice has been described as a musical whisper that was enchanting to those who heard. 

Emilie spent quite a bit of time talking to fishermen at the harbour and became quite interested in the sea and talking about how she wanted to capture the "Emotion of Ocean." She spent ages painting the sea from all different directions on Tempelhof, the most wonderful scenes of the sea, but she was never satisfied with the results no matter how much people praised them.

Emilie came to the conclusion that the only way she could really paint the sea was to understand it better, so one day Emily simply took a small boat and went out to sea with her painting kit, while out the sea started to get choppy and the fog rolled in taking Emilie from sight of the shore and Emilie was never seen again.

Many local residents claim that on certain days when the sea is rough and the fog rolls in you can  still hear Emilie's whispering song in the wind.

While Emilie's paintings never became that well known, the story itself inspired the song "Emilie."

As a special offer "Tempelhof in SL" offers a free copy of a record of the song Emilie with the purchase of this edition. (Click the Youtube link below)

 

 

EDITORS NOTE

 

This story was actually inspired by this song which was written and performed by "The Box" a French Canadian (Québécois) band that mostly performs in English and was from the album "Closer Together." The lead singer Jean-Marc Pisapia was an early member of Men Without Hats (you may remember them from the song "Safety Dance"). He recruited guitarist Guy Florent and bassist Jean-Pierre Brie for the band, The band was originally known as Checkpoint Charlie before settling on the name The Box.

This song may be far from everyone's taste but as a child I found it very moving and emotional and so I wrote this story as an excuse to share the song with you. 

Special thanks to Clyde Barrow for finding this song online for me.  


 

Tempelhof Theatre Roof Appeal

Tempelhof Theatre

Throughout the war Tempelhof Theatre has continued to put on shows for the public despite the continued bombardment from the allies. Over the course of the conflict our beloved theatre has taken substantial damage, yet the shows continue.  

 

The damage is substantial and now the Theatre is suffering from 2 major issues.  

 

Tempelhof is notorious for it's changeable weather and certain headline performers have been heard complaining about getting wet when it is raining. and this may damage the ability of Tempelhof to continue to attract major performers.  (It should be noted that no one has ever heard any of the dancers complain about this.) 

Some may argue that the new alfresco style of theatre brings a  refreshing charm, however there is a second problem and that is that the elements may start to further deteriorate the fit of the building and may start to effect the electrics and such.

 



Interior of Tempelhof Theatre

Tempelhof as a whole has also taken a bit of a beating, with many building and infrastructure needing to be repaired or demolished in a safe way, not to mention the on-going costs of maintaining the island.

 

As we all love our theatre it is urgent that we try to get the roof remedied.  As you know that throughout hostilities Tempelhof Theatre has been giving free shows to the residents to maintain moral, and it is not the intention of management to change that.  There are however donation tins at the front of the stage, we would ask that people attending show to dig deep if they are able to help support the continued shows at Tempelhof, the on-going costs of the island and hopefully the speedy restoration of our spectacular theatre to it's former glory.

Exterior of Tempelhof Theatre
Roof

 A serious note from the editor:
It should be noted that the above article and following statement are my own personal views as editor of the blog and has not been asked for, discussed with or sanctioned in any way by the Tempelhof Management. (Which is true of all articles I have posted to date, other than those advertising upcoming shows, which have been requested and checked for accuracy).

It is my sincere belief that management of Tempelhof are delighted to present the highest quality entertainment they can get within this wonderful environment which has only the most minimal of advertising in it to try to maintain it's authentic look.  There is however a cost to this as good acts are not free (nor should they be as they are genuine professionals),  nor is the cost of maintenance of the land. I am certain that management appreciate all the visitors who support the acts here, and certainly do not want to make the guests feel they are being bled dry, however if you do enjoy shows at Tempelhof and you can afford it, a donation (even very modest ones) I am sure they would be greatly appreciated.









Maiden in the Tower

Old Water Tower

MissUnderstood Lighthouse

I have been asked to write about what it is like to live in a water tower, and how I came to live in a water tower in the first place.

I was visiting Tempelhof in 1939 with an travelling variety show from the United States of America as a dancer. I am British myself, I was 16 at the time and frankly was desperate for work and was scouted out while the tour was in the UK as one of the dancers had suffered a serious illness (this is what I was told at the time, actually I think she got pregnant). So I joined the tour naively, not politically aware and not really paying attention to where it was going to go.

So here I was finding myself in Germany at the beginning of the Second World War... the show was allowed to continue on it's way as at the time there were no hostilities between the US and Germany, but I as a British Citizen was detained by the local Commandant.  Unsure what really to do with me,  they did not really want to shove me into the cells, but nor did they feel I could run free, so they quite literally locked me in the tower, a disused water tower that was converted into living quarters, as although quite comfortable, it was virtually impossible for me to escape from as there was only one door in or out, and getting out the windows was impractical.



Cover of Frauen-Warte featuring Miss Lighthouse
 

As the war rolled on and moral on the Island lowered the owner of the local theatre convinced the Commandant to allow me out of the tower under supervision to help put on shows to help keep spirits up.  Quite shockingly my performances got the attention of  Frauen-Warte where I made the front cover.

After the former regime left the Island I have been given my "freedom." I use the word freedom reservedly as I obviously am unable to return to Britain while hostilities continue, and frankly we are all effectively prisoners here as we are cut off from the main land at present. I was however with my "freedom" offered a job here at the paper and a new residence. I turned them down.

You may ask why I would choose to stay in my "prison cell."  Well as you can see from the following photographs the Water Tower is actually quite luxuriously furnished and has some of the spectacular views in Temeplhof.

While the Circumstances under which I ended up living in Tempelhof are quite unfortunate I have come to love the place and the people here and my prison cell has become a real home.

 

Girl in the Globe

Yesterday I was put in the Globe over Atlas for the annual "Girl in the Globe Celebration." This celebration is said to go back centuries, the woman inside the globe signifying Mother Earth.  Although this is an ancient local tradition, official records only go back to 1939 when I fist arrived in Tempelhof, and was selected to be the girl for that ye..... oh.

Clyde Barrow & The Tempelhof Dancers @ Tempelhof 14/5/2013

"Does Sinatra better than Frank does"

Our resident performer Clyde Barrow put down his bottle of whiskey (Tesco's brand) crawled his way out of the bar he lives above up the steps to the Tempelhof theatre and absolutelywowed the crowds with his rendition of classics backed by the be-feathered Tempelhof Dancers.

PHOTOS CAN BE FOUND HERE

Battleship hunting Tall Ship?

This picture appears to be of a military vessel hunting down a Tall Ship. Although hard to make out the ship in the distance, using special lenses and enlargement techniques Tempelhof in SL has been able to enhance the relevant parts of the photo:

 

The exact nature of the tall ship has yet to be determined, and any help in identifying it would be appreciated.  It is peculiarly odd to see such a vessel in our waters considering the level of military vessels in the area, the ship appears to be being chased by an unidentified battle ship.  There did not appear to be any shorts fired (be either party), and so the question has to be asked as to the intentions of either party.

Please keep an eye out for either of these vessels on the coast and notify the editor if you sport them.