I was really looking forward to heading to Berlin as last time I visited it was 7 years ago when it was winter and I dont really remember much about the trip other then the pretty christmas markets and cold weather. After a pretty cruisy drive day from Amsterdam we got to our hostel in the late afternoon. After checking into the best hostel so far (we even had our own balcony - fancy) me and Caroline had a bit of a wander around the local shopping galleria called the Alexanderplatz. We found a nice little bar that had beach chairs out on a deck so we just sat there and lazed around and people watched for a little while before finding something to eat and having a nice early night.
The next day we opted to do a walking tour recommended by Busabout. It was a four hour tour of all the main sights in Berlin. We got to see the Brandenbourg Gate, what was left of the Berlin Wall, Hitlers bunker (where he committed suicide), the museum and university where they burnt 25,000 books, the jewish memorial and lots of other bits and peices around the city. The tour guide was really passionate which was really good as it kept you interested and excited about what you were seeing but after 3 hours I was a bit like - ok man calm down. The only downside was that we were walking around in the sun and 30 degree heat. It was the first proper summer day Ive had whilst away. So sunburt and partched we headed straight somewhere to eat and drink.
On our way to the place with the deckchairs (we figured this would be a good place to relax again) we stopped into a Currywurst shop. We had been told that currywurst was a local specialty and had to be tried. Its basically just a bratwurst smothered in tomato sauce with curry powder on top. It was pretty good I must say but definately increased our thirst so we powered on to the little place and found a beer garden tucked behind the deck chairs that had a big screen.
We had pretty good timing as we sat down,ordered a drink and got to see the first game of the Football World Cup. Im not usually into soccer as a sport but I have to say sitting under the shade of a tree in a beer garden with a stein of the local brew in hand I had heaps of fun. The California girls play soccer at home so at least they were really into it. Caroline ate the most delicious schnitzel ever and I just drank and people watched and actually got into the game.
That night it was a another friend of ours from the bus birthday so we decided to head out with her and check out Berlins famous nightlife. We headed first to this place called the 'Playground' which was basically a man made beach in the middle of no where. They had imported tonnes of sand and set up sun lounges and beach chairs along with food and drink stalls. There were volleyball nets and people kicking around soccerballs as well as a huge big screen to watch the match. We just chilled out there with a couple of drinks and watched the second game while talking to a few more people from our bus.
After that place we were going to head to a wine bar we had heard about from our tour guide that you pay one euro for the cup, they fill it up and then you pay them what you think it is worth. As cheap backpackers wereautomatically thought bingo! Turns out we could not find it. After catching two trains and walking up a quiet street we decided that we would give up and try this nightlife thing tomorrow. Turns out we headed home around 11ish and apparently the nightlife in Berlin doesnt start til at least 1am. No wonder the street was deserted!
The next day we decided to check out the History of Germany Museum. It displayed the history of Germany from around 300 to 1995. It was interesting to see how it was founded and read about all the invasions and family history that I had been hearing about throughout my whole time in Europe. It was also interesting yet sad to see memorabillia from Hitlers reigh and the war. The upside was they had a little section on fashion and pop culture which is always cool to look at. We also had a wander through some markets thats were close by and I grabbed another traditional food - a pretzel (yummy!).
After the museum we spent the afternoon looking around the Jewish quarter that was a series of beautiful old buildings connected by little courtyards that held really funky little shops. Not the massive chain stores but gift shops, clothing boutiques, book shops and jewellery stores etc. It was a cute little area and we could have gone crazy shopping up a storm if we had the money. By this time we had worked up an appetite and it was starting to get chilly so we headed to a little cafe in the area. Its so funny how having the World Cup on has changes everything. Every single cafe had a flatscreen showing the world cup along the street. In fact our cafe had three alone! Everybody was out watching it and we were lucky enough to catch the second game for the arvo. When your backpacking and eating out you usually opt for the cheapest thing on the menu or the thing you can understand in the language. For this reason I seem to eat pizza pretty much every second day and I have to admit im kinda getting sick of it. So I thought id be fancy and order a flambee tart with bacon,egg and onion. I figured that sounds sort of like a quiche and I havent had one of those since France. Turns out flambee tart is just a german word for pizza so much to my suprise I had a bacon, egg and onion pizza. It was extremely delicious but now Im still craving a quiche! We also had an appel strudel to share and It was different then I expected but still delicious.
That night we tried our second attempt at having a nightlife but tried to head out a bit later. We started the night by watching yet another football match. It was the USA vs England game so at least I felt like I had a team to go for. Its hard though cuz we had become good friends with the Cali girls so I wanted to go for them... but I would be ending up in England so maybe I should go for them. In the end I figured Australia has always had a sporting rivalry with England and that wouldnt change even if I was living there. So offically (since Aussies arent the best soccer team) Im going for anyone else but England. Thats a suprise at all considering this time last year if you had tried to make me sit through a soccer match I would have chucked a tantrum and left the room.
After the match we tried to find somewhere to go and followed some directions from the bartender at the hostel. Once again the directions didnt help and even at one in the morning we could not find any of the bars/clubs he was talking about. We eventually found one club and had a bit of a dance before the DJ changed and we ended up dancing to songs that just did not mix together. According to my map (yep, when backpacking you even have to take a map clubbing) there was a club nearby so we tried to find it. After taking directions from an English girl who was apparently a local we headed off to the place. We ended up standing in a deserted square in the freezing cold at 2.30 am. Needless to say we gave up on the idea of finding this famous Berlin nightlife and headed home. One day I will be out clubbing and drinking in Berlin! Just not this trip.
Luckily we had headed home as it was a drive day the next day and we had to head to Prague. Overall I enjoyed Berlin and think that maybe if I go back I would love to see something beyond the crazy history and war memorials. Im sure that Berlin is more exciting then that but when you only have two days its not something to miss. On our way out of the city on our way to Prague we drove along the East Side Gallery which is part of the Berlin Wall that is left standing and has been painted by artists from across the world. While Im sorry I did not get a chance to walk it, it was still an amazing sight to see.
Next stop was Prague so im getting close to catching up. Once ive caught up I hope to start blogging about other things other then what I do in the cities and other stuff about backpacking as well.
1 comment:
Bron, I think you've forgotten the Golden Rule of directions... TURN LEFT! hahaha.
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