Thanks to ESADE's winter career forum, we had Monday & Tuesday off
of school... which to me meant six full days of travel! In narrowing
down my options, I decided to visit two cities that Joe had already been
to (and highly recommended) so that we could try new places together
once he returns to Barcelona. After consulting e-dreams, I realized
that flying to Berlin and out from Prague was easy and cheap. A five
hour train ride from Berlin to Prague Sunday morning for only 60 euros
sealed the deal. Some of my ESADE friends liked the idea and joined me
for parts of the trip. So with that... first stop - Berlin!
I arrived to Berlin Thursday mid-day and was determined to figure out
public transit without asking any questions. I'm pleased to report that I
managed to find my way around pretty well. Maybe finally living in a
metro-based city is helping? Anyway, I got off the train from the
airport in Alexanderplatz. The first thing I noticed was a giant tower
and a partially rebuilt church.
After grabbing a giant pretzel and
coffee from a bakery nearby, I decided to visit both. First stop was the
TV tower. Luckily there were no lines and the process to get up was
super easy. Once at the top, I had 360 degree views of the city and was
able to orient myself.
There were great signposts throughout that
referenced what I was looking at as well as describing the historical
significance. I spent about 30 minutes up there, and since it was
approaching sunset I got to see the city light up! My next stop was the
church, which was nice and quick to see. I do find it ironic that
churches are my most frequented type of buildings these days.
From there I stopped into a tourist office to see if there were any
shows/ballets/operas/concerts happening. I ultimately decided I did not
want to sit through a German-speaking show, so I headed to my hotel and
consulted Yelp for a dinner spot. The Boetzow Private had great reviews
and was a 5 minute walk, so I headed there armed with my Kindle and an
appetite. Dinner was delicious (a 3-course meal of red pepper soup,
spelt gnocchi with walnuts and pesto, and creme brule - so delicious!)
but the best part was striking up conversation with a couple seated
nearby. They are ex-pats living in Berlin, and the husband, Bill,
offered me a personalized view of Berlin! I was going to take a walking
tour anyway, but I quickly agreed to meet him instead. We exchanged
details and I headed back to the hotel to rest up for Friday.
******
After another successful metro ride (can you tell how proud this makes
me?!), I grabbed breakfast in Potsdammer Platz (a nutella bagel-
heaven!) and then met Bill for our tour. Together we accomplished the
following:
Remains of the train station (Anhalter Bahnhof) that was used to deport Jews in WWII
The Berlin Wall Memorial
The Topography of Terror Museum - on the site of Hitler's Third Reich buildings
Checkpoint Charlie - the most famed checkpoint at the Wall, and scene of the US/Soviet tank face-off
Pit-stop at Bill's house where I got to play with his dog. (good mental break + dog fix!!!)
Postdammer Platz/Sony Center
Hitler's Bunker
Holocaust Memorial and Museum
Brandenburg Gate
Lunch at Alt Berliner Wirsthaus
The Alden Hotel (where Michael Jackson held his baby out of the window)
The Reichstadt & Parliament buildings
The Tiergarten - a park much like Central Park
Victory Column (and the full 270 steps to the top)
Back to Bill's to say hello to his wife Janet.
Phew!!! A fantastic tour of Berlin with great company. I was so thankful
that I met this couple - the Friday with Bill made this trip! I met
Melissa back at the hotel and we went for a mediocre german dinner, and
then I went back to the hotel to rest. I admit - my legs were so tired!!
**********
It was very cold and raining when we left the hotel Saturday, but after
grabbing an amazing german pastry & coffee, things cleared up.
Melissa took off for a city tour, and I had the day to myself to
explore more of Berlin. The nice thing was that I had already decided I
would be coming back to this city, so I didn't feel I had to see
everything. Instead I took my time and wandered wherever I felt. My
first stop was the Berliner Dom, a reconstructed church that afforded me
a free organ concert and some crazy views from the top of the dome.
(It also confirmed that Berlin is full of stairs!)
Then I walked
through Museum Island, a little market, another church with yet
another free organ concert
...
through this square...
and onto the Ritter
Sport Museum/store.
I *may* have completely loaded up on a ridiculous
amount of chocolate. But it's totally for Jen & me & Joe to
share. Yeah. (I bought white chocolate for Joe - that is how, um,
serious I am about this!) You could even make your own chocolate bars,
but that seemed a bit excessive to even me.
Next I wandered around the famous street Unter den Linden and hopped on a
free tour via the 100 bus. I recommend the bus as a easy way to see
more of the city in a short period of time. It was neat to see so much
of what Bill and I had already explored and again familiarize myself
with the city's layout. The bus dropped me off in Alexanderplatz and I
spotted my next destination - a chicken doner kebab restaurant. Finally
- a real Berlin doner kebab - and it was delicious!! While eating, I
consulted my TripAdvisor CityGuide and realized there was a cool area
about 200 feet away that held an Ann Frank Museum and the Otto Weidt
Museum, as well as some actual beautiful graffiti meant to represent holding on to the older parts of Berlin. I am so glad I found this area....the Otto Weidt Museum was a
trip highlight for me. Mr. Weidt spent many years protecting Jews
during WWII, and the museum showcased his actions and the stories of
people he helped. It was inspiring, heart-breaking, and very personal.
In a way, it was the perfect last place to go after days of looking at
WWII information.
I had made plans to have dinner with Janet & Bill (yay!) so I had a
few hours to wander around the Mitte neighborhood. I found some cool
shops, galleries, street art, and ultimately a darling little
coffeehouse where I was able to finish my book and stay out of the cold.
I met Melissa early at our restaurant (Die Berliner Republik - totally
recommend it) for beer, and then Bill & Janet joined for dinner.
Again, it was so much fun to hang out with them - and hopefully I have
convinced them to visit me in Barcelona. We headed back to the hotel
after that so we could get up bright and early for our train to Prague.
(This trip definitely reinforced how little going to clubs interests me
- I much prefer low-key evenings with good food and drink and lots of
sleep!)
Some thoughts on Berlin:
-I loved this city. It's that simple. Really, I'm not sure how to put
it into words, and I feel like I am repeating what Joe has said of
Berlin as well. There was not one thing that defined it, but it had
this great energy to it. I think it might be tied with Seattle and
Vienna for the short-list of cities I want to live in.
-Obviously Berlin is most know for being home to Hitler and being
central to WWII, and for the Berlin Wall and being a focal point of the
Cold War. It was incredible to me how the city has turned itself into a
place for remembrance, recognition, and memorial. There is no hiding
of its history - rather there is a very clear effort to make sure that
everyone can access information about what Berlin has been through.
-For being largely flattened during WWII, Berlin is very much alive. The
buildings have been rebuilt, and cranes and construction was
everywhere. Yet even with all of the new construction, the city has
personality and beauty.
-Not necessarily a Berlin thought, but obviously making new friends in the city greatly added to my experience and appreciation.
-I will be back!
This morning I woke up later than I meant to (um, see above!), so I went for just a short run before meeting up with the group. As soon as we grabbed our train seats, we dug into croissants Josh had picked up from Hofmann's. (Glad my run made up for about 1/10th of that pastry!) Finding this award-winning bakery has been a blessing and a curse because their croissants are divine. Next time I will actually take a picture of one instead of just showcasing the bag. :) But to describe it - buttery, flaky, and filled with smooth raspberry preserves.... Um, awesome. 
Our tourist mission for the day was the Monastary of Pedralbes. This isn't one of the more typical tourist attractions in Barcelona, but I had read enough reviews to convince me to go. We found the church first, and I was taken with the simplicity of it. I thought it was stunning, and very similar to my favorite church Santa Maria del Mar. Already the trip was a win!
After viewing the church, we headed next door to enter the actual monastery. Side note: I love how Barcelona showcases attractions with a big "B" sign. 
Here we are with the courtyard behind us. 
After leaving the monastery, we explored the neighborhood a bit and headed to Bar Tomas, which was supposed to have the best patatas bravas in Barcelona. The place was packed!! Of course we each ordered a plate and I will say they were pretty tasty - certainly a great snack to counter what was to come... which was afternoon tea time at Caelum! Josh found this place in my guidebook (thanks Laura!!) and was intrigued by the fact that everything in the place is made my monks or nuns, and the bottom part is an old Jewish bathing house. We ended up arriving before it opened, so we wandered around the Raval neighborhood a bit, and then returned at 3:30 for this wonderful treat. That would be a fig cake and mint tea.... so yummy!
Isn't this place adorable? And romantic apparently - didn't mean to catch this couple smooching! 
I came home in time to chat with Angie... we are planning out our month-long European tour! We ended up buying Eurail passes because we 1) couldn't make up minds where to go, and 2) just got excited and wanted to book them. The Eurail map looks like a giant mess of spaghetti - figuring out the trains is going to be fun!
