Introducing Dima of the Citizens of Ukraine cast from our current ACHTUNG Nr. 44 “Beruhigt Euch Nicht!” issue.

Turtleneck MARC O’POLO

ACHTUNG: How did you get to Berlin?

Dima: By car.

ACHTUNG: Why Berlin?

Dima: I’m mentally from Berlin, even though my passport states it differently. I’ve been in love with the city for a long time. I really like it’s dynamic, culture what is happening in the field of music and art. Now I want to be a part of this. But there is also another reason, not the one that everybody is celebrating about Berlin: I feel incredibly calm here. I feel at home.

Vest MARC O’POLO

ACHTUNG: What did you do in Ukraine?

Dima: I got into the restaurant business by accident. I never thought about it and did not imagine myself meeting hundreds of guests everyday – but it happened seven years ago. We opened a coffee place called Essence of Silence, which became the best in Ukraine. I prefer to refer to it as a place about and for people, a place where time loses its meaning or accelerates at an incredible speed. We also launched Birk, a boutique hotel with a restaurant and a rooftop bar. Besides that, music is everything for me. I graduated from a DJ school few years ago, quickly started playing in clubs and organized parties. But after Russia started the war, everything changed. The hotel turned into a volunteer kitchen, serving 700+ meals a day and Silence became the last stronghold for those who did not leave Odesa.

ACHTUNG: What are you doing now?

Dima: Together with one of the best coffee places in Europe, Bonanza Coffee Rostery, our Silence team launched a charity project. A coffee we created and of which 50 percent of its profit goes to organizations helping women and children affected by the war. And we are looking for a place to open our own project in Berlin.

ACHTUNG: Where do you go to find hope?

Dima: I search for a good pair of pants.

Vest MARC O’POLO

ACHTUNG: What color/smell has home?

Dima: After music, scents are my favorite topic. The warm yellow light of a passing summer day, the air is salty, humid with the aroma of algae, delivered to the streets by the breeze of the Black Bea. But the most interesting smells await you at my place. Burnt candles on the eve bring a complex formula of patchouli, which is hardly perceptible, and a characteristic smoky aroma with hints of leather. Luckily, a touch of vanilla delivers, sensuality to this sophisticated set.

ACHTUNG: The color/smell of Berlin?

Dima: The smell of Berlin is surprisingly delicate and sweet but with a blatant hint of street food. Yes, it’s a doner. But when the night comes, everything changes. The color is black. A long que of beautifully dressed people. It is stuffy and dark inside, the air is permeated with the scent of bodies, perfumes and sweat in the rays of a flickering strobe light.

ACHTUNG: The one piece of clothes that you (brought with you and) would never give away?

Dima: I can’t live without sunglasses. I always wear sunglasses, during the day, at night, when it’s cloudy or sunny, no matter what I’m doing.

ACHTUNG: What do we still not understand about Ukrainians? 

Dima: That it is beautiful and brave. I really wish that even if it is a devastating time, that it marks the beginning of exploring our Ukrainian culture. You must do this and visit after our victory!

ACHTUNG: Your favorite word in Ukrainian and what does it mean?

Dima: Кохання – it means love. Because in my life I do everything for love. Love for myself, for what I do, for the people with whom I spend time. All for love.

Mask and bag SASKIA DIEZ