Berlin: One For The History Books

30th November- 2nd December 2017

Berlin, another favourite location of mine. Well-known for its impactful history, Berlin is an opportunity to taste German delicacies and take a step back into the history books. This unique and contrasting city allows for food, shopping and culture. I got to choose the location to commemorate me finishing my GCSE’s that summer and so felt that Berlin was a great place to start.

Activities

My family and I visited Berlin in the lead up to Christmas Time, meaning that it was festivities galore. Although I haven’t been during summer, I would highly recommend going in winter for the Christmas markets alone. We went to the Weihnachstmarkt at Alexanderplatz, there was food, drinks, music and stalls available to buy gifts and goodies. My sister purchased a (rather overpriced) bar of nougat, totalling ten euros, but there was a range of more affordable options. The market helped us get into Christmas spirit and helped me brush up on my, rather rough, German.

As we were only visiting for the weekend, we wanted to fit in as much sight-seeing as possible. We opted for a hop-on-hop-off sightseeing bus tour, for thirty euros we got a tour of the city and guide informing us of the history. What we neglected to remember was that it was December in Northern Europe, as the snow began to fall, we had already sat ourselves on the uncovered portion of the bus. We passed the Potsdamer Platz, the Reichstag Building, Brandenburg Gate and Checkpoint Charlie. When visiting I’d also recommend going to the Holocaust Memorial, opposite the Tiergarten, for some silent reflection. Berlin’s history envelopes the entire city and, not only is the difference between East and West Berlin notable, the impact of the holocaust is commemorated throughout the city.

My favourite part of the city was the East Side Gallery, recommended to us by my uncle, we made the trek, via underground, to the Wall Museum. When we initially saw a fragment of the wall at Checkpoint Charlie, I couldn’t help but be severely underwhelmed- we’d travelled 600 miles to see a rather pathetic, run down wall. My fears were relieved after visiting the East Side Gallery. Layers upon layers of artwork and graffiti covered this wall, making it quite the colourful spectacle.

Food

When I first visited Germany in the summer of 2016, I was visiting for a school exchange in order to improve my German. My preconceived judgements were that I would simply hate the food- I have a rather simple appetite and so the thought of the stewed meats didn’t quite appeal to me. Boy was I wrong! I adored sauerkraut (fermented cabbage) and loved the way the food was cooked. Going into Berlin, I couldn’t wait to try some more of the cuisine. Ordering Sauerkraut with practically every meal became part of my routine. Whilst I was there I also tried ‘kartoffelkloesse’ a potato dumpling that’s chewy in texture and served with meat. Although weird, this also was delicious. On the final day, just before leaving for the airport, we stopped off in a small café for some lunch. My dad, having been to Germany many times, ordered us all currywurst with chips as our last meal. It may not have been the healthiest of meals, but it was a perfect way to end the trip.

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To conclude, Berlin is a cool city with plenty of history to learn. Prepare yourself for walks and cold weather (in winter of course) and I'm certain you'll love it.