We had an AMAZING time in Berlin over Easter weekend. I loved the city. It was historic, fun, relaxing, and perfect for a group of students on a "vacation from vacation." The tourist guide described the city as "atmospheric," which we laughed about a little bit, but it really did have an amazing atmosphere and gave off great vibes. We spent days exploring and wondering through the history and beauty of the city and nights with friends in the neighborhoods of the city, claiming almost every random event that happened as #classicberlin. It definitely was more touristy than Hamburg, making me glad that we are living and teaching in Hamburg, but it was a great city to visit. I can't wait to go back one day!
After dropping our stuff off at our hostel, Friday started with a walking tour led by Thomas, who was extremely entertaining and informative! I was really impressed with the tour. We started outside the famous Bradenburg Gate, the former city gate and current symbol of both Germany's tumultuous history and European's unity and peace. We continued the tour, visiting the place where the Berlin Wall once stood, Reichstag building, Neue Wache, Berliner Dom, and more!
Interesting fact from the tour: Hotel Adlon, the most popular hotel in Berlin, might look familiar to some of you. This is the same hotel that Michael Jackson once held a baby from the balcony.
Interesting fact from the tour: Hotel Adlon, the most popular hotel in Berlin, might look familiar to some of you. This is the same hotel that Michael Jackson once held a baby from the balcony.
After the tour most of us stayed in the city and tried the Berliner Weisse mit Schuß (the ß makes a sharp "ss" sound), a classic Berlin beer with syrup. There are two flavors - raspberry and woodruff. I had this drink several times throughout the weekend. I am not sure if we even have a woodruff flavor in the States; it had a light and refreshing natural flavor, but I preferred the raspberry.
Friday afternoon we also visited a random memorial (shout out to Todd and Leslie) and a beautiful park area before going to dinner. It was really nice to wonder around for a little bit, and I was amazed that there were such large green areas situated in the middle of the city!
We had dinner at a restaurant in a cool neighborhood called Kreuzberg and had dinner the European way: sitting and enjoying each other's company for a few hours before heading out to explore the neighborhood's nightlife.
Friday afternoon we also visited a random memorial (shout out to Todd and Leslie) and a beautiful park area before going to dinner. It was really nice to wonder around for a little bit, and I was amazed that there were such large green areas situated in the middle of the city!
We had dinner at a restaurant in a cool neighborhood called Kreuzberg and had dinner the European way: sitting and enjoying each other's company for a few hours before heading out to explore the neighborhood's nightlife.
On Saturday we had a free day to explore the city as we wished! Gabrielle, Kelly, and I started the morning by venturing to an antique market and spent hours looking through the different booths. It was a beautiful day with temperatures in the low 70s (staying loyal to the Fahrenheit system), so after meeting up with Areale and Matthias, we decided to take a boat tour! This was a perfect way to spend the Saturday afternoon. I loved seeing all the little cafés along the water in a part of the city that I had not yet seen. There were so many people outside, at cafés, sitting in beach chairs, or even just laying on the grass along the water. Many of them had a drink in hand from one of the many beach bars along the way. Berliners know how to chill!
Some snapshots from the boat tour:
Some snapshots from the boat tour:
After our boat tour we started to make our way to Alexanderplatz, an area known for its markets and live music, but we got distracted by another market along the way. We stopped and grabbed lunch from the street food vendors in the market. I had bratwurst and pommes as well as a little bit of a Turkish wrap. Turkish food is very common in Germany!
With full bellies we set out for the Berliner Cathedral, a beautiful church in Berlin. The inside of this church was easily one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen. We enjoyed the views inside the church for a few minutes before setting out to climb the 270 steps to the top. When we rounded the final corner, it was breathtaking. The view of the city from the top of the Dom was unbelievable, and we spent a while at the top of the Dom taking in the views.
With full bellies we set out for the Berliner Cathedral, a beautiful church in Berlin. The inside of this church was easily one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen. We enjoyed the views inside the church for a few minutes before setting out to climb the 270 steps to the top. When we rounded the final corner, it was breathtaking. The view of the city from the top of the Dom was unbelievable, and we spent a while at the top of the Dom taking in the views.
One of the best parts about Saturday, however, had nothing to do with the things we did or the sights we saw - but the people we were with! We started to get to know Matthias really well, and it was just a lot of fun to hang out with a local German person in a new city. He took pictures of us taking selfies and told me I talked like Britney Spears - haha. All in all, it was a really cool experience to be with these four other people, some of whom I didn't know a month ago or even a week ago, at the top of the Berliner Dom just having a really good time.
After a full day of exploring, we made our way back to the hostel for a quick nap. A few of the other students had the same idea, and we decided to meet back up around 8:30 for dinner. Leslie found a random group of people talking in American English at Starbucks and naturally approached them to ask where we should venture. They told us they spoke English well because of JFK, which we accepted without second-thought only to later realize they were talking about a school, not the president. Anyways, they pointed us in the right direction and recommended some traditional German places! When we got to the neighborhood we spotted Mexican though, and we couldn't pass this up! We loved the atmosphere of the restaurant and staff.
We ended the night with drinks at a local pub and called it an early night to get ready for Easter Sunday in Potsdam!
We ended the night with drinks at a local pub and called it an early night to get ready for Easter Sunday in Potsdam!