On the 15^th December 2009 we launched the Circus Blog, and the last twelve months have certainly been exciting at the Circus. In the finest traditions of those end of year “best of” lists that are currently filling magazines and television programmes, here are some of our favourite moments at the Circus over the past year and on the Circus blog.

In January we closed down the Circus Hostel for the best part of three months as we made a complete renovation of the building in time for the re-opening at Easter. Alongside the new design features, infrastructure improvements, and the funky new facade, we also put together some new services for  Circus guests to help them explore Berlin, such as Jimbo’s Cheap Man’s Bus Tour, the Cwiki guide to Berlin complied by the Circus team, and the Urban Wanderer DIY Walking Tours.

It was also a busy year over at the Circus Hotel. We built a new library for Fabisch, launched the Circus Hotel Magazine, hosted a press conference for the Sparkasse Tourism Barometer, and installed some funky works of light art in the hallways, and in the courtyard. Talking of art, the Temporäre Kunstbox hosted its first exhibitions and happenings, whilst Sandra kept the blog supplied with “Stuff we like” around Berlin and beyond.

What else? Andreas left us for three months to travel through Southern Africa, sending back his impressions and reports from the 2010 World Cup before travelling on from South Africa to Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia. Jared kept us refreshed with his guide to best places to sip a cocktail in Berlin and beers on the road, whilst Jim headed to the hidden corners of Berlin, giving us all inspiration for exploration off the beaten track.

Along the way we went to a football game in Pankow, the boot record was broken in Goldman’s Bar, we held a fundraiser for children’s homes in Nepal, Konny got married, Tommy was born, we learned to juggle in the finest Circus traditions, an old friend won an important prize, and the Circus football team did us proud.

What a year, with a lot of fun and hard work along the way. Thanks to everyone in the Circus team for a fantastic 2010, and to everyone who has been following the Circus blog either here or on our facebook page.

Here’s to another great twelve months!

Paul

Because Uli and Herbert were coming to Berlin we thought it would be nice to have a little party in their honour, and at the same time raise some more cash for the different projects in Nepal. Jim cooked one of his infamous curries, which we “sold” for donations, and Uli and Herbert brought a slideshow of pictures from Nepal, the children’s home and the school, as well as a selection of Nepalese handicrafts to sell.

We were also able to hand over the money we raised from our summer fleamarket, and on Saturday evening – thanks to the donations  of hungry backpackers and marathon runners – we raised another €170 for Kinderhilfe Nepal Mitterfels. It was a really great evening, with some nice people, some tasty grub, and a few cold beers, and we wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to Uli and Herbert for coming and for all their work, as well as to everyone who came by and made some donations.

There will be some more fundraising events coming up in the future, so keep checking the blog and we will keep you posted. Here are some more photographs from the evening…

(above: serving up a curry to the hungry. Hey Jim, it was yummy!)

(above: some of the Nepalese handicrafts for sale)

(above: In the spirit of the Oktoberfest, our donations jar was a one litre beer mug. Altogether, over the past year, the guests and staff of the Circus have raised around a thousand euros for Kinderhilfe Nepal Mitterfels…thanks to everyone!)

Next month there will be something a little different for curry night. As you might know, we have been raising money at the Circus for a small charity based in the south of Germany that collects funds for different children’r projects in Nepal. Our next curry night will be a fundraising event, with some music, drinks offers, photos from Nepal and handicrafts, and all money raised will go to the projects.

There will be more details in the next couple of weeks on the blog, but if you want to come down and enjoy some good grub for a good cause, put the date of Saturday 25th September in your diary. See you then, curry-fans!

We just transferred to Kinderhilfe Nepal Mittelfels the result of our first few months of fundraising, and thanks must go to everyone who has supported us and helped us raise €1200. This money has been used in Nepal for the financing of the first Health Camp that took place in the West of the country. You can find more information about the Camp on our Nepal project page.

Thanks again to everyone who has helped and been involved in raising money for the project, and please keep an eye out here and on the project pages for the next fundraising events which will be taking place in the new year.