Berlin At Last

After many years, I finally made it to Berlin.

I first set my eyes (figuratively) on the city when I was fifteen, after having enrolled in German classes in high school. Even as a kid, I was obsessed with language, and it didn’t take me long to fall in love with my German lessons. I developed a soft spot in my heart for the German language, and hoped to put my newfound vocabulary to use one day.

Our school hosted a German trip for students who stuck with the program, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to participate for a myriad of reasons, the primary one being the actual cost of the trip. While I really wanted to go, and definitely had some FOMO, I never really had my hopes set on being able to go, so I was pretty accepting of the fact that my friends would travel abroad and have adventures in Germany without me. However, I will never forget that after talking with my teacher about the trip, she told me, “You’ll make it to Germany one day. I know you will.”

And it was those words that I turned over in my mind as my plane raced above the Atlantic Ocean, drawing me closer to Berlin.

Moments before I boarded the plane, I received a notification on my phone that the German train system was going on strike. Great! I thought, We begin.

Travel is notoriously filled with challenges and obstacles, and as a solo traveler, you navigate those challenges alone. I found this to be extremely empowering on my last trip to Europe, and felt ready to take it on again this time. I discovered that the German train system would be going on strike for two out of the three days I planned to travel by train. This meant that I, once again, had to cross Neuschwanstein off my list of places to visit. In fact, the portion of my trip in München and Neuschwanstein would all have to be cancelled, as traveling there simply would not be possible. So, with an hour left before takeoff, I blindly cancelled two days of my trip with no time to make a backup plan, and boarded my flight.

I thought that I had made a brilliant decision while booking my seat. As a resident tall person, I struggle with having enough space on flights, and since I was banking on sleeping for the entirety of my flight in an attempt to reduce the potential for jet lag, I knew I would want space to stretch out. So, I booked a seat in the emergency exit row, right next to the bathrooms, hoping for the best.

And boy, did I have leg room.

Yes, I do indeed have my legs fully stretched out in front of me, with extra room to spare. Score.

What was not ideal about this seat, however, is that because it was directly next to the door of the plane, the entire flight was ice cold. I’m talking teeth-chattering chills. I layered myself in a blanket and the complimentary flight pillows, and I was still shaking cold for much of the flight. Noted.

As soon as I landed, I took an Uber to my hotel. On our trip, I watched a man walk into the middle of an intersection with a ladder, which he casually set up, climbed, and pulled juggling instruments out of his shirt. He then juggled in the street until the light turned green, climbed down, and walked off. I started laughing, because how else do you respond to an oddity like that? My Uber driver began to laugh, shrugged, and said, “Das ist Deutschland.” This is Germany.

I wondered how many more times I would see jugglers stopping traffic, but as it turned out, it would just be the one time.

After checking into my hotel early, I sat down at my laptop and made a last-minute plan to visit Nuremberg instead of München and Neuschwanstein, which turned out to be an absolutely incredible choice. And with that accomplished, I hit the streets of Berlin.

I will truly never get tired of European architecture. Just look at the details in the corner of this building!

It felt like coming home, in a new place!

I was incredibly happy to hear real, live German being spoken all around me, though I did feel incredibly shy about speaking German for some reason. It took me awhile to get into it, and I was clearly not a native speaker, but I tried!

My first stop on my agenda was the Brandenburg Tor, but to get there, I walked along the Unter den Linden, a famous Berlin street on which to promenade. It’s also known (at least to me) for being one of the insane filming locations used in Kontra K’s wild sideways car scene in his “Sirenen” music video. If you’re wondering if that means one man driving a car on its literal side while Kontra K casually sits on the whole other side of the car, you’d be correct.

Why and how are two questions that come to mind.

I ended up walking along this very route several times, which was very cool! My first leg of the route, however, took me along a row of shops and buildings.

And standing at the end was the Brandenburg Tor herself.

It was a bit unreal to see it in-person. On one hand, I was in a bit of a haze after sleeping for only a few cold, restless hours on my flight, and on the other hand, it hadn’t quite sunk into my brain yet that I was really there. I’d made it to Berlin!

I was quite happy to be there, though.

I hung out in the area for a bit, admiring the small details, like this super cool sign plastered in stickers.

Pariser Platz is the name of the square next to the Brandenburg Tor – a place that has seen a lot of history and has a lot of stories to tell if you’ll stop and listen.

I soaked in the sounds of the city here for awhile, not realizing that I would be passing through this place quite often throughout my trip. In fact, the next morning I’d be right back there – just as I’d done in Paris, I’d decided to book a photographer through AirBNB, to capture nice photos of me during my solo travels.

Just like in Paris, I was so glad I did. More on Day Two of Berlin soon!

After spending time in the sun near the gate, I headed to my next destination: The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.

This memorial was extremely well done. Not only was it beautiful and immersive, it had QR codes on signs outside of the memorial, which you could scan for more information, as well as to listen to a symphony of music which changed depending on your location in the memorial.

I walked through it for a bit, taking in the artists’s concept. The piece is said to feel more open, free, and light on the outer edges, representing the lives of Jews before the Holocaust. As you get further into the piece, the walls get higher and you get more and more closed in – the floor gradually inclines and declines, adding to an air of uncertainty in the piece.

One thing that I found extremely odd was the number of people taking selfies or staging photoshoots here. It felt extremely tactless to me. Obviously I don’t know everyone’s story – maybe they’d come to the memorial to honor their relatives, and wanted a photo to capture that moment. However, some of the portraits certainly did not have an air of commemoration, and it struck me as completely odd. I personally don’t think I would choose The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe for the background of my next professional headshot.

As I walked to my next destination, I continued to take in the architecture. I thought this building was particularly cool.

It looks like it’s flowing in and out like waves.

As I walked, I noticed their unique pedestrian lights.

Meet the Ampelmann! You’ll find him in different pedestrian lights across the city, and in every souvenir shop. This little man was the character used in East Germany’s pedestrian lights, and has remained in many pedestrian lights since.

I was in full tourist mode this day – I ended up cutting one full day out of my Berlin itinerary to help accommodate my new travel plans post-train-strike, so I was determined to pack as much as I could in one day.

This included walking through the Grosser Tiergarten, a park in Berlin.

The weather was just beginning to turn warm and lovely – and you could tell. The Germans were sunbathing in every corner of the city, which was quite cute. Especially this super adorable old man who was lounging in the sun at the park.

He broke my heart a little because he was so cute, alone in the sun.

My stroll brought me to Schloss Bellevue, which is the official residence of the German President (President, not Chancellor – important distinction), though they have typically chosen not to actually live in the palace, and instead host a few events here throughout the year.

They had this super cool fire alarm outside of the residence, which I thought was super interesting.

The instructions say that anyone who can state the location of the fire is authorized to ring the alarm. I thought it was a really beautiful old piece of machinery.

Next on the list was the Siegessäule, or the Victory Column. This is where I made a mistake.

I got to walk down a beautiful boulevard of fragrant flowering trees on my way there.

Around the Siegessäule are several other sculptures, which were fun to look at, as well.

The Siegessäule is located at the center of a round-about, so instead of crossing traffic and risking injury, you can take a tunnel underneath the road to safely make it to the monument.

This was super convenient! I love avoiding accidental death and dismemberment.

The tunnel was pretty nice, and a very quick route across the road! It also had a random grill in it for no apparent reason. Does this grill belong to the agency that protects and maintains the Siegessäule? Does it belong to the park? Does some random German own it and they just stashed it in the tunnel for safekeeping? We will never know.

Back to the tunnel! Once you walk through it, you get a closer look at the Siegessäule.

You can climb all the way to the base of the sculpture.

You may be asking, Ana, had you eaten yet in Germany? No, no I had not. Had I drank any water? No, absolutely not. How many hours of sleep was I running on? Three or four at best. Was this the prime condition in which one should be climbing 285 steps?

It was not! I was dizzy when I got to the top. Don’t tell my mom.

It was worth it, though! The center section had an absolutely gorgeous, glimmering mosaic.

After I accidentally took an embarrassing selfie at the top of the Eiffel Tower that I’m actually obsessed with, I started recreating it in other places, so here I am, doing the same pose at the Siegessäule.

This makes me feel cute.

At the top, you get a cool view of Unter den Linden and der Grosser Tiergarten.

One of my favorite things about my adventure to the top was this little sticker, telling you that you’re an idiot if you want to graffiti the Siegessäule.

I love that so much.

After stumbling from my sleepless, footless, waterless haze down the 285 steps, I decided to GO FOR A WALK IN THE PARK. Why did I not get food? Because I’m a Capricorn with a recovering Type-A personality type.

It was a really beautiful park! A little unfair that Berlin is so cool and edgy and artsy and creative and it also gets to have beautiful, scenic spots like this.

Next I continued on my path to self-destruction by going to a bookstore two miles away from my location.

Welcome to Bücherbogen am Savigny Platz.

Bücherbogen had really cool architecture – check out the sweet arches here.

Most of the books were about art or architecture, and while nothing caught my eye, it was fun to peruse the shelves and look around.

After shopping, I came to my senses a bit and realized I needed to drink something or I would die in a bookstore, which wouldn’t be the worst place to go. To my delight, just outside of the bookstore was Coffee Drink Your Monkey. I do not know what this is supposed to mean. I do know, however, that they make their juices fresh and they are super delicious.

I ordered (fully in German, which I was very proud of) a “Minty May,” which had raspberry, apple, lime, and mint. It was delicious.

From here, I headed to KaDeWe (pronounced “Kah-day-vay), which is a German department store.

Her real name is Kaufhaus des Westens, but her friends call her KaDeWe.

There are plenty of shops and stores to wander around in, but you best believe I immediately found the life-sized statue of Iron Man.

Available for purchase for the low, low price of thousands of euros. How would you even get this thing on a plane?

They also had life-sized Harry Potter and Voldemort statues, which I thought was equally as exciting.

The real reason why I went to KaDeWe is because they have an infamous food hall that is supposed to be super fun.

The problem for me was that at this point, I was unbearably hungry. And when I get unbearable hungry, I also become unbearably indecisive, which meant that I wandered around the food hall for a solid thirty minutes, starving and unable to make up my mind.

I just kept circling back to the cheese counter, delighted by the large “Kaese” sign, and telling myself that cheese was not enough sustenance for my current state.

After walking past it three times, I decided to climb the stairs to the Restaurant Wintergarten, which was the best possible decision I could have actually made.

First, it had a really beautiful large window that looked out over the city.

Secondly, it had the nicest employees. My interaction with them was exactly the confidence boost I needed. First, they communicated with me solely in German. I was happy that they didn’t immediately single me out as a tourist (and if they did, they addressed me in German to begin with), and then I spoke to them and ordered my food entirely in German. I even cracked a few jokes with them! They were so sweet and my interaction with them made my whole day.

If my accent didn’t give away that I was a tourist, my order probably did. It was the first food I would eat in Germany, and I wanted to go with a classic. So I ordered the wienerschnitzel with potatoes. And it was absolutely out of this world.

It was perfect. The potatoes were insanely good – they were cooked with onions and had a delicious flavor. The wienerschnitzel came with a cranberry sauce, and it was absolutely delicious and crunchy and savory.

I sat here for a moment, resting after my busy day(s), and regaining my strength after a delicious meal. I debated on what to do next – I was getting a little loopy, which was a sign that I probably needed to sleep. I debated on whether or not I should go back to my hotel and take a quick nap, or if I should power on. I’d booked a ticket on the Big Bus Berlin intentionally, so that if I was too tired to be a tourist, I could simply climb on the bus and drive around town.

Even so, I decided to head back to my hotel for a thirty minute power nap. However, fate had a different decision for me.

As I walked outside, she pulled up to the curb in all her glory.

How could I not take it as a sign from the universe? The bus pulled up almost immediately after I walked outside, nearly right in front of me. I decided that I’d take it easy, relax, and sit on the bus for a bit.

This was a delightful full circle moment for me – I have a special fondness in my heart for Big Bus tours after a very similar experience in Paris, when the bus pulled up at just the right time.

Next stop: Checkpoint Charlie, a crossing point between East and West Berlin.

It’s interesting seeing some of these monuments and historic sites with McDonalds in the background.

There were a lot of really cool museums and sights in this area – unfortunately, many were closed during the time of day I visited, but I did get to check out Checkpoint Charlie and its museum.

Checkpoint Charlie was the site of many escape attempts, which the museum discussed, as well.

Several exhibits showed the various ways East Berliners attempted to escape to West Berlin, including the crazy of Liane and Georg, who were in love. Liane lived in West Berlin, while Georg was in East Berlin. The duo devised a plan to hide Liane within the passenger seat of Georg’s car – and they did just that. Liane dressed in all black, and hid within the hollowed-out passenger seat, which had air holes cut into the seat. Even so, breathing was difficult, especially being so squeezed into such a small space.

Here’s the actual vehicle she escaped through.

They also had a set of two suitcases in which another woman escaped through.

Another story I thought was interesting was about an American who’d served in the Army, and opted to stay in Germany after his service ended. While studying in Berlin, he became part of the efforts to help folks escape, by posing as an eccentric American. He was able to pass through East Berlin into West Berlin, and guards described him as “weird, but harmless.” In doing so, he was able to help ten people escape to West Berlin. They included his marked up passports from his various trips back and forth.

After checking out the museum and walking around the area, I decided to head back toward the Brandenburg Tor, where my Big Bus Berlin tour ticket included a free currywurst! I was hungry yet again, and decided to take advantage of my coupon.

On the way there, I came across a police van, and I just thought it looked cool, so here it is.

As I returned to the Brandenburg Tor, the sun was beginning to set.

It was gorgeous.

I walked over to Curry Wolf, ordered their mildest curry with only mild amounts of shame for my inability to handle heat, and excitedly watched them douse my little snack in sauce and spices.

It was super delicious. I could have eaten it several more times, but there were so many more treats to try in Berlin!

You might think that I’d have done enough in one day, but you’d be completely wrong. I decided to eat my currywurst while walking to the Reichstag Building, which was being doused in beautiful sunlight.

The building still serves as the seat of the federal German parliament. You’re able to take a tour here if you submit a request ahead of time and are approved – I submitted a request while planning my trip, however I submitted it a bit late in the game and never heard back, so I wasn’t able to go in. I would recommend planning ahead if you’d like to take a tour!

I was still hungry, and while I’d been contemplating where I’d eat dinner, I kept thinking about a recommendation a friend made to me about the best apple strudel in Berlin: EINSTEIN.

That’s not in caps because I’m so excited about their apple strudel, but I am pretty excited about it.

EINSTEIN Unter den Linden had the best vibe – exactly what I was looking for at the end of a long day.

As I approached the restaurant, I felt exhaustion roll itself over me in a thick wave, and the Type-B part of my brain begged the Type-A part of my brain to ask the German waiters if they would speak to me in English. I’d been awake for over 24 hours and spent an entire day exploring a brand new city, nearly straight off the plane, and I was feeling it. I didn’t feel like my brain had the capacity to navigate a conversation in German.

While I know that most Germans speak English fluently, I think the polite thing to do while traveling as a guest in another country is to always ask the person you’re speaking with if they speak English, rather than assume they can and will communicate with you in any other language than their native tongue.

As such, I approached the waiter and asked him in German if he spoke English.

“Of course!” he responded, and told me that I could choose any seat I liked in the restaurant. I ended up sitting at a cute table outdoors, as I wanted to people watch and breathe in the fresh air as day switched over to night.

As I looked over the menu, I started to amp myself up and told myself that I could, in fact, place my order in German, and I would not let myself get off so easily in not at least trying. So, I decided what I wanted, and when the waiter returned, I placed my order fully in German. I was very proud of myself.

Then, the waiter complimented my shirt, and without thinking, I responded, “Merci.”

He walked away and I felt like a complete idiot. I’d walked in, asked him in German if he spoke English, proceeded to completely order in German, and when he complimented me, I spoke French. Maybe he didn’t notice, I thought, putting positive and hopeful vibes out into the universe.

When he returned with my food, I said a polite “danke,” and he responded, “bon appétit.”

I think he noticed.

While I did take a moment to cringe at myself, the feeling didn’t last long, because in front of me was a delicious plate of käsespätzle.

It was so good. Cheesy noodle-dumplings with caramelized onions? Sign me up!

I wanted to enjoy a German beer during my first evening in Germany, so I told the waiter I’d like to order one but wasn’t sure what to get. He told me what his favorite beer was, so I ordered that.

I believe it was the Schultheiss pilsener, but I’m not going to lie, I panicked a bit and told him I’d take whatever was his favorite. It was really good!

It was really nice to sit outside, listening to the activity on the street, and enjoying my cheesy-delicious-dinner and my German bier.

For the grand finale, I ordered the apfelstrudel. I told my waiter that I’d been told their apfelstrudel was the best in Berlin, so I had to have it, and that made him really happy.

The apfelstrudel was no joke – it was huge and so delicious.

I truly believe this is the best apfelstrudel in Berlin. Did I try apfelstrudel elsewhere? No, because I didn’t have to. I had the best on night one. You will notice how much of the pilsner has mysteriously disappeared in the background.

I was so full that I thought I might explode, so I decided to walk it off and head back toward my hotel. Instead of going to sleep after my long day, like a normal person, I decided the best thing to do would be to feed my ever-growing book addiction.

Near my hotel was a bookstore that was on my list to visit: Dussmann das KulturKaufhaus.

It was absolutely massive.

It was so fun to peruse the shelves and see titles that I’ve seen in many American bookstores, except with their German covers and translations. I ended up spending quite a bit of time here, and looked at just about every table, shelf, nook, and cranny of this place. I was fascinated.

Of course, I made my way to the Fitzgerald section.

The purplish-red book and blue book you see both made their way into my suitcase – both were clothbound and had gold foil lettering, so it wasn’t like I could just let them remain on the shelves. They obviously had to be added to my growing F. Scott Fitzgerald collection.

I’ve made it my goal to purchase a copy of The Great Gatsby in the native language of every country I visit, so I had to get at least one copy of it. I got three copies and you’re not allowed to judge me for that.

In addition to the cloth-bound version, I picked up this shiny gem.

I have this in English, as well. I do have a problem.

Then, this one. This beautiful, beautiful book. This may be my most beautiful copy of Gatsby.

It’s gold and shiny. I am no better than a crow.

It also has a beautiful shiny green detail at the top, and the interior is filled with absolutely gorgeous illustrations. It also included several extras, like posters and notecards. I’m obsessed with it and love it so much that I’m scared to look at it or touch it. Do with that what you will.

What really blew me away about their Fitzgerald section was that they had two books of Zelda’s. I could hardly believe my eyes – I felt like I had won the lottery when I saw them, and I snatched the off the shelves so quickly just in case they disappeared.

One was a book I hadn’t heard of before, and one was Save Me the Waltz, which is very difficult to find in the U.S. so I was truly shocked to find her work casually on a shelf in Berlin. So, so cool.

I clearly bought both.

Feeling like I was carrying around a literal treasure trove, I continued to peruse the store and came across this literal nightmare.

Ok he wasn’t really that bad, but I had zero idea why he was there other than to terrify children. What is he reaching for? I don’t like that.

They also very randomly had a sphinx on display, on loan from a museum, which was super cool. It was at the back of the first floor and visible directly as you walked into the store, which was fun.

Feeling satisfied with my finds and my book adventure, I decided it was truly time for me to head back to my hotel and get some rest, so I paid for my books (while speaking to the clerk in German) and left.

As I walked out of the store, I took a mental snapshot in my mind of the street. Dim streets illuminated by multi-colored lights, gentle chatter in German, the crinkling of my bag full of new beautiful books against my side, and the lovely flow of piano music from a street artist just outside the store.

And then I took an actual picture. You may not be able to hear it, but you can see it.