Besides Munich, which was a bit of a wild whirlwind for Oktoberfest, my only other German stop was Berlin. I stopped by here for two reasons, a) it was a convenient stop in the direct I was headed and b) I was interested in the history of the city. Once again though, due to the lack of time remaining in my trip, I only had two days to spend here.
With daylight savings ending, and winter rapidly approaching, the sun is not around for long – even in nice weather. This meant I arrived after dark in Berlin, especially after train delays, so I grabbed some dinner at the train station and basically went straight to bed. Talk about exciting.
I had booked a historic walking tour for the following day, only for it to be cancelled that morning due to the weather. So Rick Steven’s and his audio guides came in handy. I’m not 100% sure, but I think Rick Steven’s is a historian or similar, and he has an app that provides audio guides for many European cities where you walk a certain route through the city as he tells you about places, buildings and the history. I have used these guides in a couple of other cities too. This lasted for about 2hrs, and was very interesting. I saw a range of sites including the Brandenburger Gate, Unter den Linden, many memorials, Hitlers Bunker, Humboldt University, Museum Island, and the Berlin Cathedral. I also visited the East Side Gallery, which is the longest surviving section of the Berlin Wall and has been commemorated with murals following the fall of the wall. The history behind many of these monuments and memorials was definitely sobering. While I spent almost a year studying WW2 in year 12 history, there’s nothing like seeing these places firsthand. You can feel the history prominent and lingering throughout the city.
With my limited time I didn’t have the opportunity to experience Berlin’s famous techno & nightlife scene that I’ve heard a lot about. However, I did get a chance to I enjoy the bakeries and food options. Right below my hostel was a Zeit Für Brot bakery which I got scrolls from on a few occasions. They were just that good and fresh.
It was in Berlin that I decided to do something a little bit spontaneous, but also, those who know me know I can never be completely spontaneous so it was semi planned. I got a new tattoo. This time I got a small dragonfly on my wrist. There is a bit of of meaning behind it, but nothing too specific I honestly just thought it was pretty cute. Before my euro trip I had thought it would be cool to get a tattoo while travelling, but did not want anything super cheesy. It wasn’t cheap, but it would be on par with NZ tattoo prices and it’s a fun reminder of my trip.
Berlin definitely had a different feel to many other European cities, and it wasn’t particularly my vibe. But I could appreciate that it really had its own scene, and many people really loved the city. For me though, I don’t think I’ll be in a rush to visit again.
~ Nikita’s Nomadic Notes
Nikita’s Nomadic Notes 