Highlight Reel: Berlin
The adventure from Copenhagen to Berlin was an epic one.
I took a train that connected in Hamburg. But to get there, our train rode on a ferry. Yes, you read that correctly.
An announcement went over the loudspeaker in German, followed by a garbled English version. Did I just hear the word “ferry”? No, I must’ve misheard because we are on a train. A few minutes later, we were pulling into a tunnel (or so I thought). We were instructed to leave our suitcases onboard, but take our valuables. I grabbed my purse, and followed the butt in front of me.
That’s when I realized I was on a ship. We climbed to the top deck, rode across the water for 45 minutes, and resumed our travel via train. We arrived in Hamburg, and as I nearly boarded the wrong train to Berlin, I realized they switched tracks. Following the panicked look on people’s faces who were in the same situation, I found the only conductor I could and asked where the train to Berlin was leaving from. First, she murdered me with the look in her eyes, then hastily pointed across the way. We all hopped aboard and hoped we were heading in the right direction (spoiler: we were).
I continued my tradition and walked l from the station to the hostel (this time 40 minutes), and arrived at The Circus. Tay Schlac recommended it from when he stayed, and I’m glad he did. It was clean, fun and located in a great spot - Mitte.
The bed was comfier than the previous two hostels. Breakfast was at the hostel, and I ventured to the grocery store to buy peanut butter & jelly makings for lunches that week (thank goodness for Google Translate’s camera feature to help decipher labels). Over the course of the week, I tried curry wurst (delicious), doner kebabs and plenty of beer. Our walking tour guide said that Berlin has the highest ratio of vegans per capita, which made cuisine choices super interesting.
I made my way to a good number of sights - the wall, Checkpoint Charlie, East Side Gallery, museums (including the Terror Museum which was very sobering but worth it), a day trip to Potsdam and more. The free walking tour from the hostel was great (didn’t hurt that I had a cute Scotsman as a guide). Also, I was advised to go to the Central Market Hall which wasn’t in my tour books so I was glad I visited that!
I also met up with a friend of a friend who moved to Germany from Cali. It was so great to hang with a new local, but also someone who can empathize with the awkwardness and discomfort that being in a foreign country can bring. She was really inspiring, and we agreed that the best part of the trip is leaning in to these moments that put you outside of your comfort zone. That’s the point!
Ended the trip with the usual laundry day. This time, a very old woman helped me navigate the machines/system (she spoke only German but the pointing helped). I was recovering from a bout of fever and was a hot mess, so her small act of noticing someone who needed help - and doing something about it - went a long way.
Overall I really liked Berlin! There was so much history, but it was cold and drizzly most of the time. The majority of Germans I interacted with weren’t the nicest, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying my time.
Stay tuned for the Budapest highlight reel...
