North London Food & Culture

Ich Bin Kentishtowner: Kai Artur Diers, language teacher

Here to teach German language lessons in Kentish Town, how does this Berlinner compare north London with home?

"The simple thing to improve my quality of life? Bring Berlin rental prices to London." Kai Diers
“The simple thing to improve my quality of life? Bring Berlin rental prices to London.” Kai Diers

Kai Artur Diers is originally from Berlin, but these days calls London home. He is a teacher for German Cultural Centre The Goethe-Institut, a body that promotes the German language abroad and fosters international cultural cooperation.

This month, they launch a brand new series of 16-week language courses in German, alongside the existing French classes, at Kentish Town’s Collège Français Bilingue de Londres, (aka the French School) on Holmes Rd. More info on the courses can be found here.

When were you happiest?
When my niece moved to Tufnell Park. Finally I have some family nearby to have a decent German beer with after class.

Where would you most like to live?
I like peace and quiet, so anywhere without airplanes flying over my head – something that is hard to find in London.


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What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
You can get about 93% of everything you want, if you try hard enough.

What is your earliest K-Town memory?
Meeting some really eccentric people when walking from Caledonian Road to Hampstead Heath shortly after moving here from Berlin. It was then I realised that perhaps I could really fit in here.

What makes you unhappy?
Seeing students decide that they won’t continue with their German classes due to time constraints, despite having already invested a lot of their time and energy. I believe there are always ways to continue.

What simple thing would improve your quality of life?
To bring Berlin rental prices to London.

What is your most unappealing habit?
Let’s finish this interview before my girlfriend gets here…

I'll be back: is this man really a Schwarzenegger-alike?
I’ll be back: is this man really a Schwarzenegger-alike?

What is your guilty pleasure?
Eating Nutella from the tub.

Who or what do you hate and why?
That in schools today, language has become more about testing than learning. I hope people trust we have a totally different approach at the Goethe-Institut.

What’s your best and worst experience since moving here?
Best has been meeting creative and unique people from all over the world in our classrooms. Worst? Almost getting killed by a car turning without indicating. Illegal in Berlin, apparently mandatory in London.

What do you most dislike about your appearance?
People say I look like Arnold Schwarzenegger.

What’s the worst thing anyone’s said to you?
You do look like Arnie! And you sound like him too!

What is your favourite dish and why?
Schnitzel. I’m happy to say you can get amazing ones right here in London and they make me feel at home immediately.

What did you do today?
I’ve been going over the classroom set-up and IT questions ahead of the first term in our new Kentish Town home. It really is a lovely old school building. I know I’ll enjoy working there and look forward to welcoming students to join us there too.

Describe yourself as an animal.
I’m definitely always flying back and forth, so perhaps a bird – one with my kind of migration pattern? I need to watch more David Attenborough to answer this question fully.

Email any suggestions for this column to info@kentishtowner.co.uk. If you’re a fan, why not sport some of our Ich Bin clothing range before the summer is well and truly gone? On sale here.

3 thoughts on “Ich Bin Kentishtowner: Kai Artur Diers, language teacher”

  1. I enjoyed this interview. However, it seems to me that the interviewee might benefit from immersing himself a bit more in London’s unique culture, and making fewer comparisons between his homeland and London. In this short piece, he mentions that he (i) teaches German at a German language institute, (ii) is happiest when drinking German beers in London with a family member who is presumably from Germany, (iii) feels that road safety in Berlin is superior to road safety in London, (iv) is frustrated that London rents exceed rents in Berlin, and (v) favours German food (schnitzel) when eating out in London. I can understand that visitors to London wish to feel “at home”, but I encourage everyone here to reach outside of their comfort zone – just as the English should do when visiting or living in Germany.

Leave a Comment

3 thoughts on “Ich Bin Kentishtowner: Kai Artur Diers, language teacher”

  1. I enjoyed this interview. However, it seems to me that the interviewee might benefit from immersing himself a bit more in London’s unique culture, and making fewer comparisons between his homeland and London. In this short piece, he mentions that he (i) teaches German at a German language institute, (ii) is happiest when drinking German beers in London with a family member who is presumably from Germany, (iii) feels that road safety in Berlin is superior to road safety in London, (iv) is frustrated that London rents exceed rents in Berlin, and (v) favours German food (schnitzel) when eating out in London. I can understand that visitors to London wish to feel “at home”, but I encourage everyone here to reach outside of their comfort zone – just as the English should do when visiting or living in Germany.

Leave a Comment

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