Boost your karma and recommend Ron! To do that, it’s best to write a personal e-mail to your friends, praising Ron. Don’t forget the link for them to sign up. Ok, that might take a bit longer than 30 seconds, but you’ll get an extra karma point for that.
Give my love to the city, Ron

Recently started by 3 local guys, Dugin-Music plan to provide the platform, recording facilities and live venues for new bands to be heard. They have the opening night of their Dugin-Live events at Club Revier this Thursday with a couple of rock bands – Everell from Zurich and Blauson from Dresden.  In the brotherly spirit of fresh music tips, I can wholeheartedly endorse the Dugin boys and their mission to bring you something new.
Thursday 8 pm, Club Revier

Like the name of the band themselves, let the lush melodies of The Phoenix Foundation lift you out of your winter sleep and be born again into the sunshine. Coming all the way from New Zealand to play at Komplex 457, this band have the same indie-pop charm as many of their kiwi contemporaries and bring that easy vibe to melt away any memories of the cold. To help with the transition I have 3 x 2 tickets to give away.
E-mail me.
Friday 7 pm, Komplex 457

Ok, go grab that neon top, pull on those leg warmers and get your hair bleached - the 80’s are back. Kim Wilde, who became my blonde ambition as a young Ron, has returned and is playing live at Neues Theater Spirgarten. The times may have changed and we all may have moved on a little but I know when she sings ‘we’re the kids in America’, I’ll be ‘la,la,la-ing’ along with the rest of you.
Saturday 8 pm, Neues Theater Spirgarten

Da Continent is a dj crew specialising in the club sounds of the Southern Hemisphere. Led by current dj-in-demand Douster, French by birth but learnt his craft in the clubs of Buenos Aires, he combines electro, house, dancehall and hip-hop. With special guests dj Ertu Denli and Pushking Noize who are both known for their Nasty Party Trash gigs this collision of 2 worlds, at Stall 6, is not to be avoided.
Saturday 10 pm, Stall 6

For those of you looking for a little more refinement  after the bands and banging of the previous tips, there are a couple of art events happening in town. On Sunday at the K3 Project Space two teams will debate artists motivation and what constitutes an ideal art market. At the end of the event votes are taken as to which team best argued it’s case. On Wednesday at the Bob Gysin Gallery they continue their Is it Art? series, discussing artworks that changed the world. This time around it is Manet’s Olympia.
Sunday 5 pm, K3 Project Space
Wednesday 6.30 pm, Bob Gysin Gallery

True Grit, the latest film by the Coen Brothers, is a new interpretation of the namesake western classic with John Wayne from 1969. The film is nominated for 10 Oscars, wow! Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon are to be seen hunting down a murderer this Tuesday at Riffraff.  It’s a pre-premiere and I have 3 x 2 tickets to give away.
E-mail me for tickets.
Tuesday 9 pm, Riffraff

As a special treat to all you hard working Ronsters out there, let me tell you about the Dolder Spa Lunch Break. As well as the beautiful surroundings and views across the whole of the city and lake, you can relax yourself with a wonderful lunch, a facial or massage and use of their spa facilities. Now here comes the bit that will send a warm shiver down your back – I’ve got 2 Spa Lunch Break vouchers to give away. All you need to do is send me an e-mail.
E-mail me

Hard times for smokers, it’s cold outside and inside you’re not allowed to smoke anymore. Unless the locale of your choice has a fumoir – a smoking room. Züritipp put together a surprisingly long list where Zurich still smokes. Here are some of my favourites. Nordbrücke – the team preserved the ancient smoke stained walls in the restaurant/bar. From March you can smoke inside again, where the toilets used to be (the toilets were moved downstairs). Zukunft – at the weekend, Bar3000 turns into the club’s smoking lounge. Acapulco - has its smoking room downstairs where you play table soccer, to combine your cigi with some sports (makes smoking almost healthy). Plaza – has probably the most beautiful fumoir in town. And it comes with a bar and music.

…in Berlin. After quite a long pause, I returned to Berlin. And – if you’re interested in Germany’s capital and want to improve your German – you’ll get daily tips again of what’s happening in the city. Hmm, how did that work again with those karma points? Yes, tell your friends (those who like Berlin or live there) about it. Your friends are my friends.  Subscribe to Ron Orp Berlin

There seems to be no end to the creativity of App innovations. One of the latest examples is by Swisskiss ( I don’t know why the Paris based company is called Swisskiss…) and beautiful Daphne (I’ve been told that it’s sexist to refer to looks when talking about women, but she is really quite stunning so it would be strange not to mention it).  In the interactive video app the Parisienne teaches you French. Watch and learn. L'example