In the spring of 1997 I gave a reading at the Buchhändlerkeller in Berlin. (According to the website the Buchhändlerkeller is neither a bookstore nor a cellar.)
Tonight I was back. The audience seemed to be pleased with my reading, a woman said: "the canapés are sponsored by the cultural attaché", and the wine was fruity and pleasant.
My German translator, Rainer Kersten, gave an excellent and even moving introduction to my work and his life as a literary translator.
Afterwards we went with a small group of people to an Italian restaurant, but I didn’t go to bed at dawn. Some things have changed since 1997.