Central Europe 2023: Berlin

A trip to Berlin has been in the works for many years. I've been studying German for several years and kept hearing about the creative energy that permeates Berlin. It in many ways is one of the least-German cities in Germany; English is commonly overheard, the food scene is highlighted by superb international cuisine, and the urban fabric is very bizarre.

It's important to know a little bit about the history of Berlin before you visit. Yes, it was a divided city for many years--split in half by the Berlin Wall. But the differences in former east and west Berlin can still be seen with the Soviet-style buildings, memorials and roads named for Soviet heroes. Berlin is also a very old city, but most of its history was obliterated in the World Wars, mainly WWII.

For me, I am drawn to Berlin because it is unlike any other city. The nightlife is unrivaled. The freedom of expression is paramount to the identity of Berliners. There are creatives everywhere. So, it was only a matter of time before I was finally able to visit and fall in love with the city.

We flew into the new-ish Berlin Brandenburg Airport and took the express train to Berlin Hauptbahnhof (Central Station). Our hotel was near Potsdamer Platz, so we were not too far from most of the main sights in the city. Since we arrived early, we dropped our bags at the hotel and headed over to the Reichstag. The history of the building and the incredible renovation work by Norman Foster is certainly something every Berlin tourist should see. The tour includes access to the roof of the building which is topped out with a glass dome that you can ascend to check out the view of the city.

We headed over to a Biergarten where we had our first bit of German food and beer. It was probably the jet lag that accelerated my buzz, or the ginormous beer I had, but either way it was welcome. We headed back to the hotel where we rested a bit before going out for our first night in the city. We hit up Monkey Bar which had some seriously delicious cocktails. The space was packed but a fun, diverse crowd.

The next day we hit the ground running by walking through the Sony Center at Potsdamer Platz then walking through the Tiergarten to see the Monument to Homosexuals Persecuted Under National Socialist Regime. The small off-square sculpture poignantly captures both fear, love and hope. Across the street is the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. This installation by architect Peter Eisenman is overwhelming, disorienting, and emotional. The concrete blocks wept in the mist of the air. The sense of loss is inescapable.

Just next door is the iconic Brandenburg Gate, one of the most recognizable German landmarks. We took our selfies and walked down Unter den Linden towards Museum Island. Museum Island is very similar to the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. and there are many museums and cultural institutions nearby. We chose to visit the newly reconstructed Humboldt Forum. The museum features anthropological artifacts from around the world. We viewed exhibits on the South Pacific and Africa, much of which were colonized or exploited during Germany's colonial past. The museum did a great job of bringing this to mind and constantly reminded visitors of the somewhat complicated ethics of displaying such historical and cultural icons in a colonial-era reconstruction.

Across from Humboldt Forum is the Berlin Cathedral, which we visited and climbed to the top of the dome. The view was great and we had an amazing vantage point of the TV tower and the River Spree. I wanted to visit the Pergamon Museum, but all the timed tickets were sold out (another reason to go back and visit).

We headed over to Alexanderplatz and the nearby ruins of the Franciscan monestary. The juxtaposition of the medieval ruin with the looming space-age TV tower was a great way to visually summarize the Berlin aesthetic. The nearby reconstructions of Nikolaiviertel were a great place to imagine what medieval Berlin was like and refuel a bit with some refreshments.

That evening Josh and I donned our edgy black outfits and joined the queue for the world-famous Berghain. We waited in line for about three hours, which is an experience in and of itself. As we grew closer to the entrance the crowd became silent as the anticipation of being allowed into the most exclusive club in the world. Josh and I had done a ton of research about the ins and outs of Berghain and as we approached the bouncer, we exuded what we thought was "the most cool, yet bored" presence. After what felt like way too long, the bouncer asked, "Zwei?" I nodded, threw up my thumb and index finger and nodded, "Ja wir sind zu zweit." Between our outfits and my basic knowledge of German, the techno gods shined down and the bouncer motioned us towards the door. Without losing our composure we both made eye contact with each other and entered.

Berghain is in a former power plant and the industrial aesthetic is visible everywhere you turn. It was such a cool space and the music was insane. You could feel the pulse of the beat throughout your body. The main Berghain floor had a dark, intense sound, compared to the Panorama Bar, which featured energetic house music. We spent time in both areas and both are amazing. There were so many areas to explore, catwalks, lounges, back room bars with industrial equipment surrounding. We were hanging out on the main floor when the DJ set switched, which felt honestly like a spiritual experience. The energy in the club was palpable. We unfortunately had to leave around 4:30am, because we had agreed to meet our friends in the hotel lobby at 10:00am. Needless to say, it was an amazing experience and we hope to go back one day.

After getting some much needed rest we met up with our friends and headed to Potsdam to visit the imperial Prussian palaces. Much like Versailles, Potsdam is only about 30 minutes outside of the main city and has a series of palaces and gardens adjacent to the small town.

We visited the Sanssoucci palace and walked the grounds of the Potsdam palaces. We had a cute lunch at the Drachenhaus (Dragon House) before heading back into the city. The trains were a little backed up, so our time at the Berlin Jewish Museum was limited. We were able to view most of the Liebskind portion of the building, but with such a massive museum and such little time, we were shuffled out through many of the permanent exhibits.

We hopped on the S-Bahn and headed over to the Bürgermeister that is housed under the train tracks and inside a former men's public restroom. The burger was pretty good and was on par with something like Five Guys. We ate along the River Spree with Oberbaumbrücke in the background. We wrapped the day up with a short walk along the East Side Gallery, a public gallery of street art on the former Berlin Wall.

After a busy day of sightseeing, we headed back to the hotel and got our things ready for an early morning train ride to Prague.

We fell in love with Berlin and will surely be back!