Ochuko Akpovbovbo's Colorful Apartment in Germany Will Boost Your Mood
“Everyone is sort of a literary babe these days."
Hi! How are you? Hope you’re having a good week! I’m actually flying to England tonight for a sad reason, but on the bright side, I get to squeeze my cousins and meet Lulu’s new dog. I’ll take photos :)
Today, we’re thrilled to feature
, who lives in Nuremberg, Germany, and writes the newsletter about books, culture, and business trends. We especially love her monthly reading recaps. “Everyone is sort of a literary babe these days,” she says.Exciting news: Ochuko and Pandora Sykes (who writes the
newsletter) are also launching a book club called 2 Girls 1 Book. Every month, they’ll publish a cross-post on a buzzy new read. First up: The Coin by Yasmin Zaher, about a Palestinian woman in NYC who gets caught up in a scheme reselling Birkin bags.Here, Ochuko shares nine favorite things, plus a tour of her colorful apartment…
Ritual: My boyfriend lives in Oregon, and I live in Germany. Long distance is hard, but we’ve found a rhythm that works for us. We FaceTime while we’re working from home or cooking, so it feels like we're in the same room doing our own things. It’s a pleasure to hear his voice and enjoy his sense of humor. Someday, when we’re not long distance, part of me will miss the comfort of our calls.
Books: I read a bunch of books every month, including one ‘big book’ that’s longer than 500 pages. My boyfriend is Indian, and after spending the holidays with his family, I’ve been making my way through novels set in India. I just finished The Covenant of Water, Abraham Verghese’s generational saga, as well as The God of Small Things and The White Tiger.
Recipe: I love the ritual of coming home from work and cooking dinner. I cook lots of Nigerian food, like jollof rice with peppered chicken. In West Africa, we’re competitive about which country has the best jollof rice. I think Nigeria does, and I’m proud of perfecting my recipe.
Entertaining: Whenever friends come over, I’ll light candles and turn on glowy lamps, like IKEA’s donut lamp. My Alexa will be playing what I call ‘sad white boy music’ (like Coldplay or Imagine Dragons) or chill Afrobeats. I’ll put a show on my projector in the background, like Sex and the City. I ask friends to bring their own booze since I don't drink, but I’ll cook Nigerian snacks. People sit on the rug, on the couch; it’s cozy.
Style: I wear only drugstore makeup. On my lips, I layer a brown pencil and rose-tinted Vaseline. And I bought myself a Mejuri diamond necklace three years ago. It’s a signature piece, so even if I'm wearing nothing, I'm wearing something.
TV show: The British teen drama Skins is like Euphoria, but it’s set in Bristol, England, in the early 2000s. I watched the first season in two days.
Podcasts: I’m a true crime girl; I like being scared. I listen to three podcasts: Crime Junkie, Murder with My Husband and Hollywood & Crime. The storytelling grips me. Thrillers are my favorite genre to read, too. My favorite is Donato Carrisi’s The Whisperer; and I enjoyed Lisa Tuttle’s novella, which is literary horror.
Life shifts: In Oregon, I was buying a lot of clothes. I even started hiding my purchases from people in my life. It didn’t feel good. So, when I moved to Germany, I told myself I’d stop — and went cold turkey. It’s kind of annoying because my style has changed, but it’s been good for my finances. My only exception was when I went back to Nigeria and needed more modest clothes, so I bought a Zara maxi dress. I feel so damn pretty in it.
Making friends: Before moving to Nuremberg for my job at Adidas, I lived in Nigeria, Canada, and the U.S. What’s surprised me most about Nuremberg is how much joy I’ve found in living a slower life. There's a freshness in the air here, and the city is quiet and picturesque. That said, it can get boring! When I think of Nuremberg, I think, ‘You’ve got to make your own fun.’ And I think I have. Many of my friends are expats, and it’s been great to navigate the city with people in similar positions. That said, Nuremberg has a cross-country Techno Train that runs twice a year in a seven-hour loop. But I hate techno!
Here, Ochuko shows us around her gorgeous, colorful apartment in Nuremberg…