Berlin - To Cool for School
Hallo!! I think that's hello in German.I should know cause I say that to practically every person that walks pass me, especially if they have a dog because I haven't been in any dog friendly places recently and am really missing wulipants (side note: I learned that Germans don't really do the whole stop to pet your dog thing).
I have spent the last week in the most magnificent city, Berlin. I chose Berlin as my starting point because it's smack dab in the center of Europe (roughly), German train systems are notoriously efficient, and Berlin is a beautiful segway between East and West. Also the obvious that I've never been to Germany and thought that it was a classic backpacker place. It has been especially making me miss the Steve and Debbie as they have always told me some of their fondest memories were backpacking in Europe, particularly in Germany.
I arrived in Berlin Easter Sunday evening. You kind of lose track of the days when your traveling so I was a bit shocked to see Berlin so subdue and mellow from it being Easter. Also, I completely underestimated the cold. I think I've done this every time I've been to Europe. It was snowing just as I set out for my trek in the city to find my hostel. It was so nice to be in the land of hostels once again. I only made it about 30 minutes outside before having to call it. I must confess something. I should have no shame because its my life and I can make the rules, but most of you know that I dont eat meat (ok hardly ever). The only places that seemed to be open that night was a doner kebab place with a line around the block (apparently the most famous in Berlin) and Curry 36, a place that specializes in currywurst. I was a bit horrified at first but the lady at the hostel insisted I try it. I went all in, mayo and all. It was actually so delicious. I knew travelling that I would adjust my rules because mainly I want to be flexible with my options but I also dont want to miss out on a cultural moment. Currywurst is Berlin culture so there you go.
The first day in the city was a big one. I racked up my steps mainly because I was so overwhelmed on what to see and do. I started at the recihstag building and made my way down to the Deutsch history museum to bone up on the last 1500 years of German history. Shoutout to Mr.Tran and Ms.Loudermilk for making me not feel like I actually knew something. After was the world or Europe's largest chocolate cafe. I finished up the afternoon at Chechpoint Charlie, which is apparently all fake, and the Jewish museum. There are like 100 museums in Berlin and I think I only did about 3 justice. Washington Dc you may be out beat. It felt so familiar wandering a European city but also so foreign. Just be prepared for my pictures to be of beautiful buildings and food.
I met some people at the hostel and enjoyed my first German beer before we set out to catch a glimpse of the Berlin nightlife. Truly it is a whole other world which I cannot exactly say on a blog or with pictures. I would say that if you go to Berlin this is a must! You really gotta immerse yourself in it too. Berliners claim to only go to bars and clubs that you cant see from the streets. They have to be in an abandoned warehouse or underground so you have to do a little digging.
The next couple of days I tried to soak up as much culture as possible. Art museums, memorials, and a solid walking tour around famous historic sights like Hitler's bunker and the East side gallery (Berlin wall) were just some highlights. I even took a day trip to Potsdam thanks to Topics covering the Potsdam conference (its like one big Topics tour). Super Duper highlight was meeting up with my high school pal Jacob who has been backpacking Europe for the last 7 months. It has been such a treat having a companion to compare hostel stories with and someone who can picnic as hard as I can. The night before I met Jacob though I made friends with a group of delightful guys in the park t. I was searching for a grocery store but gave up when I passed through a park full of people. Kids playing, teens jamming to music, and a lady doing cool hand hula hoop things. Johann started chatting me up and the next thing I knew I was grocery shopping with all his friends and cooking dinner with them. They were the nicest guys Ive ever met and they had a real appreciation for rap so we all got along. I sadly had to say goodbye to them, but now Ive got Jacob who will have to do for now.
Jacob and I took an amazing tour around alternative Berlin which focused on the street art scene and how that relates to Berlin's history. You can see in each neighborhood how it changes based on gentrification and the battle that "true" Berliners are feeling with their ever changing city. In one way Berlin relies on street art for tourism purposes and to attract artists, but in another way a city cant have too many tags and graffiti everywhere in order to keep a nice and capitalistic appearance. Sunday was definitely one of my favorite days because we got to witness Berlin in full swing. It was the first weekend with nice weather so the flea market was popping. We thrifted for sunglasses and jean jackets and even joined in on a drum circle. It was just a magical day. On Monday we set off to Dresden for the night and I got to ride my first German train!! How exciting! Everything they say about German trains is so true. Our train pulling into Dresden didn't stop until exactly 11:26 because thats when it said it would. Anything earlier was unacceptable. Ill stop there because there's too much to say (also the beer tasting tour is starting now). Till next time <3
I have spent the last week in the most magnificent city, Berlin. I chose Berlin as my starting point because it's smack dab in the center of Europe (roughly), German train systems are notoriously efficient, and Berlin is a beautiful segway between East and West. Also the obvious that I've never been to Germany and thought that it was a classic backpacker place. It has been especially making me miss the Steve and Debbie as they have always told me some of their fondest memories were backpacking in Europe, particularly in Germany.
I arrived in Berlin Easter Sunday evening. You kind of lose track of the days when your traveling so I was a bit shocked to see Berlin so subdue and mellow from it being Easter. Also, I completely underestimated the cold. I think I've done this every time I've been to Europe. It was snowing just as I set out for my trek in the city to find my hostel. It was so nice to be in the land of hostels once again. I only made it about 30 minutes outside before having to call it. I must confess something. I should have no shame because its my life and I can make the rules, but most of you know that I dont eat meat (ok hardly ever). The only places that seemed to be open that night was a doner kebab place with a line around the block (apparently the most famous in Berlin) and Curry 36, a place that specializes in currywurst. I was a bit horrified at first but the lady at the hostel insisted I try it. I went all in, mayo and all. It was actually so delicious. I knew travelling that I would adjust my rules because mainly I want to be flexible with my options but I also dont want to miss out on a cultural moment. Currywurst is Berlin culture so there you go.
The first day in the city was a big one. I racked up my steps mainly because I was so overwhelmed on what to see and do. I started at the recihstag building and made my way down to the Deutsch history museum to bone up on the last 1500 years of German history. Shoutout to Mr.Tran and Ms.Loudermilk for making me not feel like I actually knew something. After was the world or Europe's largest chocolate cafe. I finished up the afternoon at Chechpoint Charlie, which is apparently all fake, and the Jewish museum. There are like 100 museums in Berlin and I think I only did about 3 justice. Washington Dc you may be out beat. It felt so familiar wandering a European city but also so foreign. Just be prepared for my pictures to be of beautiful buildings and food.
I met some people at the hostel and enjoyed my first German beer before we set out to catch a glimpse of the Berlin nightlife. Truly it is a whole other world which I cannot exactly say on a blog or with pictures. I would say that if you go to Berlin this is a must! You really gotta immerse yourself in it too. Berliners claim to only go to bars and clubs that you cant see from the streets. They have to be in an abandoned warehouse or underground so you have to do a little digging.
The next couple of days I tried to soak up as much culture as possible. Art museums, memorials, and a solid walking tour around famous historic sights like Hitler's bunker and the East side gallery (Berlin wall) were just some highlights. I even took a day trip to Potsdam thanks to Topics covering the Potsdam conference (its like one big Topics tour). Super Duper highlight was meeting up with my high school pal Jacob who has been backpacking Europe for the last 7 months. It has been such a treat having a companion to compare hostel stories with and someone who can picnic as hard as I can. The night before I met Jacob though I made friends with a group of delightful guys in the park t. I was searching for a grocery store but gave up when I passed through a park full of people. Kids playing, teens jamming to music, and a lady doing cool hand hula hoop things. Johann started chatting me up and the next thing I knew I was grocery shopping with all his friends and cooking dinner with them. They were the nicest guys Ive ever met and they had a real appreciation for rap so we all got along. I sadly had to say goodbye to them, but now Ive got Jacob who will have to do for now.
Jacob and I took an amazing tour around alternative Berlin which focused on the street art scene and how that relates to Berlin's history. You can see in each neighborhood how it changes based on gentrification and the battle that "true" Berliners are feeling with their ever changing city. In one way Berlin relies on street art for tourism purposes and to attract artists, but in another way a city cant have too many tags and graffiti everywhere in order to keep a nice and capitalistic appearance. Sunday was definitely one of my favorite days because we got to witness Berlin in full swing. It was the first weekend with nice weather so the flea market was popping. We thrifted for sunglasses and jean jackets and even joined in on a drum circle. It was just a magical day. On Monday we set off to Dresden for the night and I got to ride my first German train!! How exciting! Everything they say about German trains is so true. Our train pulling into Dresden didn't stop until exactly 11:26 because thats when it said it would. Anything earlier was unacceptable. Ill stop there because there's too much to say (also the beer tasting tour is starting now). Till next time <3
Love the change of pace here. Sounds like so much fun just being spontaneous and taking it all in. Love the train tip as well (riding at night to save $ on overnight accommodations.). Personally I think I might need the sleep more than the money at this point. Ha ha!
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