Sunday, November 29, 2015

48 Hours in Berlin - Where to go/ What to do



Yesterday I got back from the most amazing trip to Berlin. Full of Glühwein, Bratwurst and aching feet, I thought I'd share my top 10 places to go if you've got 48 hours in Berlin.

1. The Jewish Museum
We visited this museum on the first day. This museum draws upon not only the Holocaust, but also the culture, history and art of the Jewish community in Germany. It was so interesting and an incredibly moving museum. It took us two hours to go through all of the collections. Something that hit us most was a quote from the philosopher Baruch de Spinoza in one of the exhibitions, "The holy word of God is on everyone's lip.......but we see everyone projecting their own versions of God's word,with the sole purpose of using religion as a pretext for making others think as they do" - Something I feel is very prominent in today's world.

2. WeihnachtsZauber Gendarmenmarkt 




Situated in between the Deutscher Dom and the Franz. Friedrichstadtkirche is one of the most stunning Christmas markets in Berlin. Filled with arts and craft, Crepes, Bratwurst and Glühwein stalls it's the perfect evening. We were so lucky to have gone to Berlin a few days after the Christmas markets had been set up. It costs 1 euro to get in which I know seem a bit odd to pay for, but it's totally worth it!


With live Christmas music being sung, we honestly felt in the festive spirit. Although the Glühwein may seem cheaper at this market than the one in Alexanderplatz, you get a lot more for 50 extra cent at the other one. 



3. Reichstag Dome



A beautiful view of the city from the Parliament dome is something you have to do in Berlin. Although quite a big struggle for me and my fear of heights (I had to hold my friends hand walking up), architecturally, it was a stunning building to look at. Before traveling to Berlin, make sure you book this and register (it's free) otherwise it's highly unlikely you will get in! 




4. White Trash Bar

We ended our first night in this bar. You cannot really describe this bar without making it sound ultimately the most hipster place in the world. With live music, a giant shark model hanging from the ceiling, chinese decor, an outhouse for toilets and a tattoo studio next door, it's definitely kitschy. If you go, you HAVE to try the nachos. They serve food and drink until ridiculous hours in the morning, and the sharing nachos is ten times the size of your face along with the cocktail sizes being very generous! The staff are so friendly as are the people!
http://whitetrashfastfood.com/

5. Brewer's Best of Berlin Walking Tour


When I visited Berlin when I was around 11, I took this exact tour and I remember my mum saying how interesting and different it was. So, for 8 euros they take you to all the major sites in Berlin in 7 hours, but not only that, they take you to these weird and wonderful forgotten places which aren't usually visited by tour groups. Considering we only had such a short time in Berlin, the walking tour allowed us to see so much. If you're thinking about going on a walking tour, I highly recommend this informative and different walking tour!

http://www.brewersberlintours.com/best-of-berlin/

6. Alexanderplatz Weihnachtsmarkt

One of the biggest Christmas markets in Berlin is the one right in the centre of the city. There are quite a few more stalls than the one at Gendarmenmarkt along with an Ice skating rink, ferris wheel and multiple fairground rides. Even better, there are quite a few inside mini bars where you can have a glass of Glühwein whilst enjoying some classic German songs. Our favourite, "Wer verdammt is Alice?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-_lRiODt28

7. Berlin Photobooths

Yes, I know you can totally get these everywhere you go in major cities but these photoautomat booths are just perfect for souveniers. As we were staying literally across from the East Gallery wall, we had a photobooth outside of our hotel which we got a bit carried away with! For 3 euros we got 2 strips of photos, one black and white and the other colour. Safe to say these are going up in my university room! 

8. Fairytale Bar

My friend was doing some research for our final evening and keeping in turn with our hipster bars we ended up in this one. Excuse me whilst I get far too excited to tell you about it. Hidden away is a Fairytale and Alice in Wonderland themed cocktail bar. You enter this "exclusive" bar by following white rabbits on the street towards the door and ring the doorbell. Greeted by a waitress dressed up as the Queen of Hearts you're welcomed into a bar decorated top to bottom in playing cards and rabbit decor. We were seated in a lovely area and given menus. This is where it just got too much to handle. You open up the menu and a little paper butterfly flies out, there's a biscuit saying "eat me" and a test tube with a tester of one of their cocktails. They've only been open since January so I urge you to go if you like a little mystery and fun!


9. East Side Gallery Wall 


We were so lucky to be able to see the East Side Gallery Wall from our hotel room. Artists came to painting on this wall to show their support for freedom, peace and love between countries, companies and people after the fall of the Berlin wall. One of the most famous pieces is "My God, Help Me to Survive This Deadly Love" and "Vaterland".


10. Memorial for the murdered Jews of Europe



A place to remember, contemplate and reflect. This was part of our walking tour and us three found it quite an emotional memorial. With 2,711 non-identical concrete blocks, the area covers a vast area in the middle of Berlin. It's a site that I urge everyone to see. 

48 hours in Berlin is not near enough to cover it all, and there are some places I really wish I could go see but our trip was too short to! I hope this helps anyone who is thinking about traveling there - it's an amazing city full of culture, great people and amazing food. Plus, I got to practice my German, which somehow impressed the receptionist at the hotel. Winning! 
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4 comments

  1. I heard you'll need atleast 3 days minimum for Berlin! Such a lovely modern city but full of history! Would love to visit it someday!


     Miriam ♥ A whole lot of serendipity

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    1. You definitely heard correctly! A lot of the museums are quite out of the way and scattered around the city so we really could only go to one but i would have loved to go to the Stasi museum - guess that means I just need to go on another trip then! xx

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  3. I always dreamed about visiting Germany and Berlin is the first stop-point there. Therefore, visit this page should be really helpful for me! As I presume you visited it in the end of November, but I see Christmas decorations everywhere. They are preparing for Christmas so early? In addition, my German is very very bad, on the basic level where I can tell what Kugelschreiber or Montag is, but that’s all; what do you recommend to must learn first, to feel yourself more comfortable in Deutschland?

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