6 Things To Do In Berlin!
Hello,
It is me, I have returned from the dark abyss, a pit of eternal blackness I like to call the Spring Term of Semester Two. Around eight or so weeks ago, me and my friend started to look at holidays to help keep us sane and to give us something to look forward to and we decided to book to go to Berlin! We managed to survive the 5 days and also Katie put up with me for this time, which is a miracle within itself. It was a truly wonderful trip even though I did come home without my German Football Beau, a desire of mine that I had longed for since the 2014 World Cup, but Hey-ho! I had such a good time I decided to write a blog post about it so here are 6 must do things, that may be obvious to some, but are accessible and can be done in Berlin, Germany!
1. Visit the Holocaust Memorial & Museum to The Murdered Jews of Europe - If you ever find yourself in Berlin, I highly recommend going here as it really is remarkable. I am no art connoisseur, but the memorial's structure and the quantity of the individual concrete slabs are very overwhelming. There is something quite chilling and ghostly about walking through this memorial and seeing figures of other spectators in the far distance, it is very thought provoking and touching. I found the underground museum to be very educational but also sobering as it serves as an honourable reminder of the atrocities that happened less than a 100 years ago. A must see if you visit Berlin - it is also close to the Tiergarten and Brandenberg gate, so if you are short for time you can do all these things in an afternoon. You can turn up for this and que on the day, but there is also a website which can offer you a guided tour but you have to book in advance for that. I will post the link.
https://www.stiftung-denkmal.de/en/visit/offers-for-schools/guided-tour-for-groups.html
2. Visit Tropical Islands Resort - Tropical Islands Resort is a tropical theme park located 30 miles away from Berlin in Brandenburg, which is very accessible by the German underground tube system. This place is a must if you love water parks or beach holidays as it genuinely feels like you are at a beach, even though you are inside. The temperature is warm and so is the water and what's even greater is the fact that a free shuttle bus from the station picks you up and takes you there. Personally, I am not even that much of a water park fan, and if you know me, you know I never get my hair wet, but this was one of the funnest days I had on holiday! There is so much here which caters for everyone such as saunas, pools, lagoons, hot air balloons, and for you fitness fanatics - a fitness club. Our tickets cost 33 euros as we were students, and the train cost 17. We did get the bus from our hotel to a train station but the German bus system is quite confusing and the driver didn't charge us anything so that was also a plus. I will post the link below.
3. Visit The Brandenburg Gate - The Gate can be interpreted as one of the most symbolic monuments in Europe. Its beauty and history are such an attracting reason to visit, and you certainly will not be disappointed. I had always wanted to visit the gate due to this as it was probably the main reason why I desired to visit Germany for so long. The history behind it and the symbol of division between West and East Berlin (alike the wall) are really fascinating and at night time it is illuminated. Also, there are hella good bakeries nearby that sell amazing bread so if you don't want to visit the gate, at least visit the bakeries and make your taste buds happy. There is so much to choose from, but anything with cheese and seeds on is an absolute winner.
4. Visit The Remains Of The Berlin Wall - Throughout the city there are parts of the wall that have been scattered and moved outside of train stations, such as Potsdamer Platz etc. so it's really accessible to view it, but there is also the East Side Gallery that includes some paintings after the wall was taken down in 1989 painted on the East Side of the Berlin wall. The gallery is almost a mile long and again, I am no art expert but the paintings and graffiti seem to be expressive of a time of new found liberation and a hopeful free future in contrast to the previous oppressive regime. The gallery and the wall are just so sick and the history behind it is gripping as it was only 'torn down' 28 years ago. You just have to go sooner rather than later! As barriers cover up a vast amount, so if you have always wanted to visit, do visit soon in case all of it ends up being fenced off.
5. Visit the Reichstag Building And A Museum - The Reichstag building is like Berlin's Houses of Parliament, it previously had been burnt down but it is a meeting place for the German parliament. It can also be recognised as a building associated with Nazi propaganda as they were accused of its fiery demise which I find so fascinating. Admissions to the Reichstag and the dome is free but advance booking is required to prevent disappointment. It is possible to just turn up and visit the dome without reservation if there is a space but we weren't so lucky and just viewed the building from outside. Still, this was also enjoyable. If you can visit the dome do try to, as I can imagine that the views of the city at that height would be amazing.
ALSO
There are so many museums in Berlin, such as the Checkpoint Charlie Museum, the Egyptian Museum, the German Museum Of Technology, the Allied Museum, and several museums located on Museum Island etc. We visited the Checkpoint Charlie Museum which documented the crossing point of communist East Berlin and the American-controlled sector of democratic West Berlin, the only checkpoint where American military and non-German visitors could pass into the East. The museum cost less than 15 euros (I think it was 12), and revealed so many aspects of the Cold War and Berlin's history - it was really captivating! You can buy tickets for the museum at the door and there are lockers to put your possessions in as bags are not allowed inside.
6. Visit The Mall Of Berin And Eat, Eat, Eat - I am a huge foodie and the food in this city did not disappoint. The Mall of Berlin has more than 300 shops! shoppers paradise right?, and an amazing food court. I love European fashion and designs (even though I have very bland dress sense lol), but the patterns and prints within the city were so cute and abstract. This mall caters to everyone and there are tech shops, clothing shops, shoe shops, makeup counters, the list goes on and on. We went to the mall multiple times as the food court was insane and really not expensive at all. I think the most I spent was 7 euros on a Chinese meal that was soooo yummy. The city also caters very well for vegetarians and vegans and I found there to be so many options. Some places even offered vegan halloumi and soya meat for a small fee more. Boussi Falafel was amazing, I really recommend going as you can put hummus in everything on the menu, it is a m a z i n g. And do not even get me started on German bakeries, biting into a beautiful bread roll was often the highlight of my day.
This city is rich with so much history and the buses and tube system makes monuments and buildings so accessible. It is so easy to walk from one place to the other and I highly recommend that any history geeks or food fans visit this beautiful and clean city.
Thanks for reading - I hope this was helpful! if you have any queries or criticism, do not hesitate to contact me,
Kes x
Comments
Post a Comment