A little while ago I decided to take a weekend trip to Berlin. Living in Austria at the time it wasn’t hard to find an affordable flight, but you can also take a train if you want to. But here is how I decided to spend my days in Berlin.
Once I arrived at the airport in Berlin I decided to take the bus into the city. In order to check off the first few things off my bucket list, I got off the bus close by the Schloss Charlottenburg. Thanks to my backpack I was able to walk from here to my hostel, where I even passed the German Opera and walked along Kurfürstendamm until I arrived at my hostel, which was right by the train station Bahnhofzoo.
That way I had checked off the first things, even with a late afternoon flight after work.
After a nice breakfast at the hostel I headed over to Bahnhofzoo and from here I took the subway over to Potsdamer Platz, where my sightseeing plan for the day would start. I used the early hour and therefor empty streets for some nice pictures around the area, before heading over to Checkpoint Charlie, the world famous point where you could from West to East Berlin and back after the second world war (Tip: Don’t get a stamp in your passport, this can cause trouble in some countries because its not an official stamp but rather a souvenir stamp… Pro-Tip: If you bring an old expired passport you can stamp that one).
From here I basically followed alongside the former German wall to the Eastside Gallery. Here street art artists used the original wall as their canvas and made nice big murals, which are awesome for pictures, but also remind us that a wall is never the solution. They did a great job at making it hip but yet remind us of the original use of it.
While walking along the former wall I slowly made my way to Alexanderplatz, you can not only shop there and see the Fernsehturm, but if you go up the Hotel Park Inn Alexander Platz to their Observation Deck, you can get a view of the city with the famous Fernsehturm in it rather than standing on it.
Since it was time for a snack anyways I decided to go out of my way a little bit and hit a shop called Spooning, where you can buy eatable cookie dough. Well the dough wasn’t bad, but I wouldn’t go out of my way again for it. But this way I was also closer to visit the Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer, a memorial for the wall in Berlin. They have a little museum there, which is free btw and it is super informative about the times of the wall and what led to it and how it got broken down (Mauerfall). From the top level you can see along a big area of the wall and how it effected every day life.
My next stop were the Hackesche Höfe, where you can find a lot of cute little stores and a little bit of history as well. The Berlin Cathedral was a super cool and nice building und was super impressive from the outside, sadly it was closed for public and I couldn’t check the inside.
Crossing the Museum Island was pretty impressive as it is very unusual to put museums and their storage somewhere, where they are completely surrounded by water and any high water could destroy art or history. Next on my list after this was the Gendarmenmarkt, where the German Church and the French Church are located and since I am a sucker for all the old architecture, this was a super awesome square to visit.
As someone who grew up watching tons of German TV-shows I couldn’t pass out the opportunity to walk along the Unter den Linden area before I made my way back to the hostel, obviously with a quick stop at the Siegessäule as it was right on my way.
On my last day I decided to store my luggage at the hostel and headed out for one last day of exploring the city. I took the subway over to Potsdamer Platz again from where I walked to the Judendenkmal (Memorial to the murdered Jewish of Europe). The line for the museum below the memorial was quite long but I decided to go for it anyways. The information center is really informational and worth your visit (and its free of charge as well). Keep in mind that this is a place to honor and remember those who died in the holocaust during the second world war and therefor you should refrain from jumping around the “stones” or other disrespectful behaviors.
Did you know that Berlin also has little metal plates all over the city that are built into the concrete on the floor to remember the Jews who lived at this place before they were taking to concentration camps from the Nazis. They tell you who it was, where they ended up, if they survived or not and the day of death (if known). I love this idea as it as a subtle way to honor them and acknowledge the past of the country at the same time.
While I waited for my ticket time at the Reichstag I hung out around the Brandenburger Tor, the famous Hotel Adlon is at the same square. It is impressive to see something you always see on TV in real life. Especially something that is historically so meaningful.
Soon after lunch it was time to head over to the Reichstag, where the German parliament meets. It was really impressive especially the glass Dome on top of it that should always remind the parliament that the people of the country are watching them. The audio guide is very informative and so are the tour guides that lead you to the building and its surroundings.
Tip: To get tickets you have to register online (no early than the month prior to your visit), you have to enter your full names as on your official ID and everyone else in your group. You should then be issued a ticket, which together with your ID (passport…) will allow you free entrance into the Reichstag building and the dome on top of it.
On my way back to the hostel I decided to take the bus but got off at Schloss Bellevue, where the German president resides and from here on walked back to my hostel. This way I came across the Siegessäule and the zoo.
Sadly it was time to head back home after just 2,5 days but Berlin is definitely worth a visit and super fun (especially for history nerds like me).
Kathi's Travel Adventure 