It's taken me a little while to post again, mainly because I've been trying to frantically cram in sightseeing over the past two weeks before work began today! The weather has suddenly become amazing here in Berlin and it looks so different when it's sunny! A few more things I've been up to recently:
Potsdam: As the title suggests, I visited Potsdam. Potsdam is a city on the outskirts of Berlin which is good to day trip to. We went last weekend and it really helped that the weather was sehr schon because there is so much to do outside. Potsdam itself is beautiful, with lots of wonderful architecture and the beautifully maintained Sansoucci Park. We visited the Russisches Kolonie, complete with pink domed church and wooden houses. We also checked out the Dutch Quarter, which was cute. However, we spent most of our day walking around and relaxing in the vast Sansoucci Park. Sadly, not much was open-all the buildings inside like the Baths and Schloss Charlottenhof seem to open May-October (more info here). We bought a 5 person zones B-C Berlin ticket so we could travel out there via the S-Bahn and were pleasantly surprised to learn our ticket (you need zone C) would also allow us to jump on Potsdam's trams and buses. This was pretty useful when we were exhausted/too hot/just needed to get somewhere.
Tandeming: For those people who don't know what a language tandem is, it's where two people who want to learn a language practice speaking with each other. One person speaks German and wants to learn English, the other party speaks English and wants to learn German. I find it really helpful because I get to learn new words all the time and be corrected without embarrassing myself too much. Plus it's a good way to meet local people if you're in a new country. I actually have two language tandem partners and they are both really lovely (especially if they're reading this!) and very patient when I say extremely odd things auf Deutsch. It's pretty easy to get one-post an ad in a cafe, go to a language tandem night or post an ad on a specific tandem website. I really couldn't recommend it enough! :-)
Brunch: Every cafe I walk past on a Sunday in Berlin is doing some kind of brunch deal. Every single one smells/looks amazing and so this week a few of us headed out to Friedrichshain to try some. Most of the cafes in the area around Boxhagener Platz do an all day brunch, which usually involves an all you can eat buffet of some sort and a pretty obscene amount of food. We chose Elfida and ate and relaxed there for quite a while. The food was really good with lots of fresh salad and fruit, bread rolls, vine leaves, different egg dishes, muesli and a pretty scrummy cheesecake. Will definitely be on the lookout for more brunch places this weekend so if anyone has any suggestions please send them my way!
Museums: Berlin has pretty much every type of museum you could possibly want to go to: art, ancient history, modern history, natural history, zoo(if it counts as a museum) and even a museum dedicated to the Ramones... (it has a good cafe!).
I decided to pick a few I was interested in and concentrate on visiting them before I began work(particularly as it can get expensive!). A lot of the museums sit on Museumsinsel, near Friedrichstrasse/Unter den Linden so its pretty easy to find them all. The Pergammon is one of my absolute favourites, from the Asisi Panorama to the Ishtar Gate-everything in here is so cool. The Neues Museum was also really good and good value for students at only 5 euros. Plus audioguides for both were included in the ticket price of each and good(particularly at the Pergammon). The Deutsche Historiches Museum is good at presenting the history of Germany if you are interested and there is a lot information there, so make sure you are wide awake! The DDR museum was very fun and interactive-definitely worth the entry price, despite it's small size and a good way to spend a rainy afternoon.
The following three museums are free to enter: the Stasi Museum was quite good although a bit heavily reliant on the free audioguide(there is a amazing waffle shop opposite called Kalter Krieg though!). The Topography of Terrors is also information loaded, with lots of reading and listening, but it is really good and very sad. The same applies to the Museum in the Jewish Memorial, although that is much larger.
Egyptian Gallery at the Neues Museum
DDR Museum
Ishtar Gate, Pergammon Museum
Bis spater!
Shachi x
Having completed two full weeks here I can already say I love Berlin. We've been exploring lots and every day brings something unexpected, like the tiny random cafe with wonderful fresh salad or an artists collective in what looks like an abandoned warehouse that we happen to pass, Berlin has not yet ceased to amaze me. Everyone who visits this city will no doubt have their own favourites but here are some things I've loved so far:
- Seeing the inside of the Reichstag- So, so worth the faff of booking a timeslot. I can't believe it's free to go inside this beautiful dome, with an excellent audioguide to match. You have to book online in advance(no phone bookings) which then has to be "approved" but you get some gorgeous views and a look inside an incredible piece of history and architecture.
- The S-Bahn- I've really grown to appreciate the transport system in Berlin. I live on the S-Bahn, the equivalent of the Overground line in London I guess. I can always find a seat, its nice and toasty and the trains are always really quite fast. Add to that the fact the entire U-Bahn and S-Bahn network run 24hrs at the weekend(necessary, as no night out really kicks off until 2am or so) and you can see why I really like it.
- The East Side Gallery- A must see for any tourist in Berlin, the Gallery is a series of paintings done along pieces of the Berlin Wall. So beautiful and emotionally charged. Go on a day with good light. You can find out how to get there and other things from the link.
- Food- Somewhat general, but I really love how much variety I can get in food here. I found the Arminius market hall not far from me, which looks like a normal market hall at home except it is complete with a brewery, several cafes, a wine merchant and lots of other things. Bakeries, are of course plentiful here. I also discovered a wonderful Turkish supermarket which has the most yummy looking deli counter and breads. Plus let's not forget the numerous good and inexpensive Vietnamese/Thai/Indian/Turkish/German/Italian/Chinese restaurants across the city(and bubble tea!). The KaDeWe food hall blew my mind, especially the cakes! Walking in the Tiergarten one day(with the help of my very good Time Out Berlin) we visited Cafe am Neuen See for some of the most fun heisse Schokolade I've ever had, complete with milk warmer and scoop of chocolate.
- Vintage shops and cafes- Like any big city, Berlin has lots of cool vintage shops and an abundance of nice cafes. We went on a hunt for Colours, a huge and cheap vintage store in Mehringdamm and found it tucked away overlooking a pretty tiled courtyard and a hotdog stall. I spotted the very cool and unpretentious Fire bar very close to the Museumsinsel and I love the decor inside-very cool furniture! The cafe in the Ramones museum(!) across the street is nice too. Plus there are an endless amount of flea markets across the city.
There are many more things that I love about Berlin, like seeing dogs on the S-bahn or the haunting Stolperstein across the city, but I didn't really want to make a long list of "stuff I like". My recommendations are just recommendations/highlights-this city truly has anything and everything and its definitely worth taking the time to explore and finding the bits which you love.
X
Egyptian Gallery at the Neues Museum
DDR Museum
Ishtar Gate, Pergammon Museum
