Back to Berlin

Because no trip to Germany is complete without a stop in Berlin, and because I have rightfully deemed Berlin the second coolest European city after London, I was thrilled to learn that Reggie's mom gave us the go-ahead to plan a trip there for the three of us during the first week of her stay in Deutschland. It has been a year since Reggie and I first traveled to Berlin. Until I visited my precious London, Berlin stood alone as my favorite trip. On that marathon of a trip we only spent two fast days in this glorious metropolis and you can bet we made every minute count. (So much so that we didn't even stop to eat the second day.) The history is absolutely unmatched and the city's hip, youthful feel give it an edge over it's many competitors. In the year since we first fell in love with the home of Checkpoint Charlie and the Brandenburg Gate, I have created an extensive mental checklist of the many suggestion passed on to me, "in case you guys ever get back to Berlin." Well, we got back. And we did it right.

If you're curious why I am so crazy about this cool city, have a look at my write-up from our first stay.



To give Denise more than just a taste of our beloved Berlin, we started with the basics: 

The Brandenburg Gate

One of many, many stunning Holocaust memorials

Reichstag Dome

Museum at Checkpoint Charlie continues to be one of the coolest museums I've encountered yet.

A taste of America on the Berlin Wall

Berlin Wall

And, of course, the one...the only...Berliner Dom. Can you BELIEVE this thing?! At over 100 years old she sure looks fab for her age.

Once we had covered the totally worthwhile tourist sites, we let ourselves go in a direction different than last time. We wandered side streets, ate our hearts out, and people-watched until we were full on culture. The fact that one can do that--step outside of the tunnel of world-renowned monuments and be equally as entertained by the art and food offerings of a city is what make cities like Berlin, London, and Paris so fantastic.

Spree River

One of many super neat bistros available for us to choose from. 

Granted it doesn't look like much, but Denise's pesto pasta was as good as gold. Deemed by both she and I as the best meal of her three-week stay, this delish dish prepared by Italian-owned Toscana in Prenzlauer Berg will go down as one of my most memorable meals to date. And it wasn't even mine!

It is an unwavering truth that Germans do potatoes right. These scrumptious things, screaming with garlic and enjoyed in a biergarten, were no exception.

To advertise the upcoming World Culture Festival, volunteers started a street dance. Before I knew it, everyone around me--nearly 40 people--had joined in, including Reggie and Denise. I stayed back to avoid getting too much attention for my awesome moves, of course.

A GIANT edible Brandenburg Gate?! Genius! They're mos def onto something here.

We walked our hearts out morning, noon, and night through fab Berlin. When we were too beat to walk anymore, we found home at a totally neat, totally mod apartment in Prenzlauer Berg courtesy of one of our favorite travel sites, waytostay.com. If you're looking for an apartment for 3+ nights in a major European city, I highly recommend this site. We have used it three times now--in Barcelona, Berlin, and Paris--and have yet to be disappointed. Just look at this super kooky and equally cool apartment:

Here's where they first stepped over the modern/little too odd line...

...and here is where they planted their feet firmly over the line. But hey, it sure was a great conversation piece. Nevertheless, we all agree we would stay in the palace of oddities again.

With thanks to Berlin's many, many cool possibilities the three of us had a memorable stay. As tends to be the case with any major city, the more we saw of Berlin the more we wanted to see. Regardless, we left feeling grateful, content, and curious as to when the next time would be that we would be back in Berlin.  Unsurprisingly, my "if we ever get back there" list continues to grow.