I am so behind on books — three to make posts about, three to read, not to mention attempting to make progress on the reading challenge.
So why don’t I make a photo log instead, eh?
I have recently traveled to Berlin as a birthday present from my lovely husband. I have never been before, and I had other stuff to deal with prior to the holiday so I did not get to plan all that much. J also hates plans set in stone. It was also a short trip, so all I managed was to find out which museums are there (and whittle it down to desperately-needed-to-see), find a place to have the birthday dinner, and to download the Berlin S-bahn and U-bahn map on my phone.
We both had very little sleep the night before the flight, so we spent the first day just roaming around. On our way to the hotel from Berlin Schönefeld, we took the long way, sitting on the bus all the way to the last stop at Hermannplatz before getting on the U-bahn. It was interesting to see the suburban architecture, and comparing it to the more central/touristy parts of Berlin that I would get to see later on in the trip. The rest of the day was spent meandering about from Alexanderplatz until we got back to our hotel.
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  I did not put that cone there, but I am immature enough to take a photo of it. Heeeee. |
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Gendarmenmarkt is a very short walk from our hotel, and this is where we ended up, spending some time sitting outside Konzerthaus Berlin, listening to a pair of wondeful musicians on the violin and the cello playing classical music.
Sunday was for sleeping in, but also for my must-do — the Gemäldegalerie. It features lots of classical paintings and masterpieces by the likes of Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Canaletto, Botticelli, and a lot more. I spent about 3.5 hours on here, and it was definitely worth having been soaked through with that intense downpour (although I don’t think J thinks the same as he claims he was bored to death). My favourites were ‘Christi ZyklusChristus am Olberg’ by Matthias Stom (photos online does not do it justice) and ‘Portrait of a Young Woman’ by Sandro Botticelli. And I always love anything by Caneletto! J got bored by all the Marys and infant Jesuses (I did too actually), and the one he was most entertained with was the ‘Netherlandish Proverbs’ by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Photography was allowed in the entire gallery, which confused me a bit. I got beeped at though, because I stepped too close to a painting!
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 Why yes, I had time to do a bit of people watching in an art gallery too. |
More walking and U-bahn-ing about to try this popular Vietnamese place, and to briefly check out Checkpoint Charlie. We would see bits of the old Berlin Wall here and there, and I never managed to figure out if I was in the eastern or western side if the wall was still standing.
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 A piece of the wall in a random place? |
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  J was very amused that just past the old checkpoint is a McDonalds! Welcome to the American sector indeed. |
On Monday, we went to see the Stasi Museum, which houses all the information about the Stasi (East Germany’s intelligence and secret police). The main part of the exhibition is the office and working quarters of the head of the Stasi. I found it most interesting because of the 80s decor: familiar, visually displeasing, but amusing. It was also interesting that this happened fairly recently, as the Berlin Wall fell in 1990. I guess it is nice to have a visual reminder of the horrors of that time, so as to potentially avoid history repeating itself (something my own native country should be doing).
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Monday was also the sunniest day, and we were hoping to do a walking tour because we just had no idea where all the history was! Unfortunately (and because we didn’t really plan), it was all booked out, so we went and roamed around to see the East Side Gallery, and spent some time in a beer garden near the edge of Tiergarten before my birthday dinner.
 It is forbidden to deface the wall! |
 I wonder if anyone is actually prosecuted, as there are ‘defacements’ all over the length of it. |
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We ended the trip with a visit to the Holocaust Memorial. It wasn’t sad for me personally; I only wonder why Hitler hated the Jews so much he had arranged for killings in such a massive scale.
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It was too bad there wasn’t much time, as I would have wanted to see the Charlottenburg Palace and the Sanssouci Palace in nearby Potsdam. I also wanted to have seen the Pergamon Museum, but recent reviews on TripAdvisor said it was currently being renovated and barely anything is left on display, so I thought I’d skip it. I definitely would have wanted to do a few walking tours! I actually feel bad, as I don’t think I got to know the city properly. I’ll try and see you again, Berlin!
Have you ever been to Berlin or do you live in Berlin? Did/Do you like it? Any tips or local advice on things to avoid/things to check out that are off the beaten path?
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