Bouncing Around Berlin

The first leg of my journey was Berlin. I visited my friend Luis, who is there co-oping at some sort of business? Tech? Start-up? I don’t know, but it pays his rent which gave me a place to stay, so I am thankful. 

A museum? Actually on second though it's a cathedral.

The Bundestag Building (equivalent to Capitol Hill)

A gracious host

For background, I took four years of German in high school and took part in an exchange program the summer before my senior year. This was my first trip outside of the US, and I spent 3 weeks at our partner school in Nuremberg. All this to say, I am not entirely unfamiliar with German language and culture.

I definitely didn't mind brushing up on my knowledge of German food, tho 

Currywurst- a Berlin staple

The best gelato in Potsdam (if the claims are to be trusted)

I spent my days in Berlin sleeping in late (I was coming off a post-graduation bender), going for runs around the neighborhood, and trying to hit museums and cultural institutions before they closed at 6 PM. If I had to summarize my time in Berlin, it would be: walking, rushed, leisurely.

Most stressful part of the day was deciding what to make for breakfast. 

Shoutout to Luis's extensive cheese selection

Okay, picking dessert was hard too... Woe is me. 

Walking because I walked SO damn much. The city is massive. I’m used to Boston where walking 20 minutes takes you halfway across the city (and my bike gets me anywhere in 20 minutes or less). Even taking the bus or subway, you have to walk 10 minutes on either side of your trip to get point to point.  I took public transit with much trepidation. In Germany, there’s no turnstile system on public transit. You can walk straight off the street and onto the train. You’re supposed to either punch your single ticket with the time stamp, or have a monthly pass. If you’re caught without a ticket, you can face a hefty 60 euro fine. I rolled the dice most days for short trips, exchanging my peace of mind for the 2.40 fare.

The view is usually better on foot, anyway.

Berlin- the city that sleeps sometimes

Still, I walked at least 5 miles each day, meeting Luis for dinner, checking out sights, or getting to the bus. My first Saturday there we walked from 4 to 11 PM, only stopping for food or the toilet. It’s the best way to see a city, I think, and it gives you ample opportunity to feel out street life, and stop at your leisure.

Part of my time was rushed because I kept waking up so damn late. Between sleeping in until noon, going for a run, and making breakfast, most days I didn’t make it out of the house before 2 PM. Berlin offers oodles of history and museums, so my daily goal was to knock out one. I ended up visiting a botanical garden, the German Historical Museum, and the German Technical Museum. All of these ended up being way bigger than I anticipated, and I found myself being ushered out at closing still wanting to see more.

The Holocaust Memorial

Mmm plants

Plants... from a different biome??

Wet plants

Honey I shrunk the Boat

The splinters... Oh man.

Lastly, my time was leisurely. Having just sprinted to graduation, I allowed myself to catch my breath for a bit. Luis and I had nice dinners each night, and I wasn’t shy about ordering myself an extra beer. For the 9 days I spent there, I could have probably seen/done more, but I am content with what I accomplished and left feeling satisfied. I know that I’m going to visit Berlin again, so I’m going to let it keep aging well. The city is really cool- super grungy, very diverse, extremely hip. As someone who tends to shy away from bigger cities, by the end of my time there I found myself wanting more, not less.