Berlin, finally

While my flight to Paris was a dream, getting to Berlin was not quite as pleasant. With a three-hour layover and an awkwardly positioned gate, I sat around and people-watched. Once on the flight, I remember the plane ascending and that’s about it. I woke up 30 minutes before we reached Tegel Airport.

Leaving the airport, I was a bit confused, as I just left. No baggage inspection, no passport stamp, nothing. I am still a bit worried about this. I’m also a bit upset that my passport has yet to show that I’ve traveled anywhere.

The group spent our first night in Berlin visiting a memorial to the Berlin Wall, where part of the Death Strip was left intact. It was a somber place and strange to think how many people would so clearly see a great big division in the city. Then, we took the S-Bahn tram back into the East to eat at a biergarten. Due to the weather (which is ridiculously cold), the place was virtually empty. After getting some rest at the hotel and a quick trip to visit the Deutsche Bank ATM in Alexanderplatz, we went out in search of a bar for Marissa’s birthday. This was no easy feat, as the only crowded bar we found was full of single mingling males with a woman host who was very broad-shouldered. The boys were not willing to settle. Eventually, we went back to a desolate place, drank a few beers and then got doners at the eatery next door.

Today, it’s been continuously raining. This has, unfortunately, only made the weather colder. This continues to make me wish I had followed my gut instinct to bring my boots more and more. We had to postpone the bike tour. Instead, we took the U-Bahn to see the bombed-out church. It’s such an old building, surrounded by a modern plaza. The contrast is startling.

We went to grab a quick lunch at the train station, when we heard all kinds of hollering from inside. We were in the middle of a bunch of soccer fans, singing chants and drinking until the cops made them disperse. It turns out there is a semi-final match today, thus all the excitement. From there, we walked through a disappointing flea market and oogled the cars at Mercedes World, which are arranged in class/price order. At the top, they had a separate Maybach showroom. No big deal. The leftovers of the group took a double-decker bus to an opera house, which was surrounded by historic buildings. My cake was delicious, and I’m not just saying that because I haven’t had chocolate in 72 hours.