Okay sorry, ^ is really terrible haha
Attractions, food/drinks, night life, (hopefully helpful) tips, and overall thoughts on a weekend trip to Berlin, Germany!
Attractions:
Brewers Free Walking Tour: If you don't already know, I love these! They give you a good glimpse of the city and also provide interesting background and history that you probably wouldn't get going by yourself. I had Jon and he was hilarious! He cracked a lot of inappropriate but hilarious jokes. I think that's why the older ladies left the tour. It was about 3.5-4 hrs along and it was well worth it!
Alternative Berlin Walking Tour: This was alright tbh. It was nice that they took us to the other, more grungier side of Berlin (and got to eat some DANK AF Doner) but other than that you can probably do without this tour. There wasn't anything super interesting said about it. You can do this tour alone or just wonder through Kreuzberg on your own.
Holocaust Memorial: This is an obvious stop in Berlin since there is so much history about the Holocaust. It was different than I expected. I wasn't actually sure what to expect but it's an area with different size pillars. It's meant for you to interrupt on your own. It's pretty neat! Got some cool pics (which will be posted later).
Holocaust Memorial Museum: There's a museum underneath the memorial that's free. It opens until 8pm. Should swing by and check it out. The coolest part was reading the letters from victims before they were sent away or while they were in the camps before dying. (Almost 6 million people died).
Berlin Wall: This is another very obvious attraction to do in Berlin. The wall that has all of the graffiti and art is part of the East Side Gallery. There are parts of the wall that's not here that doesn't have any art on it. One side of the wall is just a free-for-all space and anyone can go to decorate it. Su and I added our names to it! (Pics will come) The other side is fenced off because they are famous artwork and most respect it and don't paint over it.
Flohmarkt in Mauer Park: On Sundays they have a huge flea market that you MUST MUST MUST go to!! It's a huge park with a ton of vintage, second-hand, hand-made, crafts, and other stuff. They have a bunch of street food, beer gardens, and street performers. I think I spent over 2.5 hours there watching performances, eating, and also buying myself a beanie and new scarf.
Berlin Wall Memorial: This is pretty much down the street from Mauer Park. You can take a bus a couple stops down and you'll be there. It's both an outdoor interactive memorial and an indoor museum. It's actually pretty cool! You read up on the history of the Berlin wall especially during the Cold War. Everyone forgets that there is more to this city than just the Holocaust. The outside attractions are different underground tunnels, where people were buried, etc. It's free so definitely check that out!
Topography of Terror: I heard really good things about this place but tbh it's pretty whatever to me. It's just another history lesson on the Holocaust and Nazi that I've learned in class and have heard multiple times throughout the weekend. It's free and closes at 8pm so if you have time it's still cool to check out!
Markthalle Neun: On Thursday nights they have a street food event that goes until 10pm. Really cool atmosphere with a ton of food ventures, hanging hipster lights, and sitting area. Pretty cool place to check out for some food!
Night Life:
Let me just start off my saying that THIS PLACE IS FUCKING UNDERGROUND AND REJECTION SUCKS!! Berlin is definitely, 1000%, known for it's crazy, ridiculous night life. I don't even know where to begin... But if you come to Berlin you better get your body, mind, soul ready for this place. All the clubs are very selective, charge cover, and have different themes to them. You can't go to these clubs like you do back home because you will get rejected. Aka don't act like a drunk bitch, talking English loudly with your friends, and go in a big group. I got rejected every night there from a club. My poor self-esteem.
Matrix: I actually hated that I went to this club. I mean I had a lot of fun and stayed out until like 5:30am. But this club is like any other club back home so there wasn't much difference. They played all american music the entire night and there were way too many guys there towards the end of the night (aka the AM). But it was still pretty fun!
Tresor: We actually got rejected from this club at first because Seb and I were with a big group of French guys so they didn't let us in. We ditched them and when we tried again it worked. Ok this is what I was thinking of. They played all Techno. There were multiple floors and I felt like I was having a seizure in one of them. I wasn't on drugs but being there I felt like I was high. The vibe just rubbed off on me I guess because everyone there is definitely on drugs and you need to be to really enjoy a place like that. It's okay though because I was drunk enough to enjoy it. I mean I had to if I didn't get home until almost 9am (personal story for another time). Me coming home that late was also due to the fact that I fell asleep on the train TWICE lol.
KitKat: Got rejected from here because I wasn't wearing enough leather and latex I guess. This is known to be a kinky, fetish club. My friend recommended it to me as something you can't find in other cities so I had to try. The first bouncer didn't let me in because I had my big coat on and he didn't see my leather jacket but I tried again with the other bouncer who did let me in but the first ran after me and kicked me out. There's that lol
Berghain: The ULTIMATE club of Berlin. I got rejected twice. *sigh so I guess I will never get to experience whatever that's happening in there. Let's just say you will change as a person from experiencing this club. Also notice that I said 'experience' and not just to go in. You can read all about it online and you will definitely be curious about what actually goes on in there. There's so much going on that people stay for multiple days at a time... So now my life goal is to get into Berghain one day, one day.
Schmittz Ping Pong Bar: Went here the first night we got there. It's a cool vibe with people playing ping pong, hence the name. Nothing too crazy about this place except for the Tinder/Snapchat story, which I will not post about here but hilarious indeed.
Refer to previous blog: Berling is the TRUE City that Never Sleeps
Food/Drinks:
Burgermeister: Ordered the Meister Burger with cheese. Really delicious! It's underneath the tracks and it's a stand type place without a real seating area.
Doner: I can't remember the doner place I went to but it was delicious. Omg the best I've ever had. Even my Turkish friend was dying over it. It was amazing. I can't even describe it. But it's a must in Berlin! It's also sooooo cheap! One huge doner is only like 3 euros. Su and I had to split one
Currywurts: This is the traditional food here. It's chopped sausages with curry power and ketchup. I mean it's nothing to be crazy about but it's still good and something you should try in Berlin.
Korean Food: DISGUSTING ugh it made me so terribly sad. ); I really wanted some KTown quality korean food but was very disappointed. I got it at the Sunday Flea Market. I guess it was worth a try.
Tips:
- Book Free Walking Tours
- PUBLIC TRANSPORT: this is a must in Berlin. The city is huge! You can do a group day ticket for 3 euros each or an individual one for 6 euros. I bought tickets for one day but didn't for the others because there's no one to check your ticket so you should normally be fine. If you do get caught say that you don't have any money because they demand you to pay them on the spot.
- People don't get dressed up in Berlin so go pretty casual and grungy looking, especially to clubs.
- Cash is King! Nowhere in the city takes card so you have to carry cash around with you at all times.
Next Time:
- German History Museum: I heard it's really cool! A very interactive museum about everything you need to know regarding Germany and Berlin. It's also very modern, so I've heard. It costs money and closes at 6pm so that's why I didn't go.
- Reichstag: It's this huge oval glass building that overlooks the entire city. It looks soooo cool but you have to reserve tickets beforehand. It was book online for the entire weekend but you can wait in line starting at 8am to get in. Ken said it's one of the coolest thing he did in Berlin so bummed I didn't get to do it.
- Berlin TV Tower: You also need a reservation to go up but it's free. You go all the way up to the top and get an arial view of the city. I heard it's dope but again didn't get to do it.
Overall Thoughts:
I think Berlin is a hit and miss with everyone who visits. I really like the city because there are so many facets to it from the history to night life. There is definitely a lot going on. However, the city is dirtier and not as modern as most so some people might not like that. Also, the clubs are so selective that it might get really annoying at times. I would come back to Berlin just to experience Berghain lol but I can't see myself living here though. It takes a lot out of you for sure.
