Berlin, Germany

What a city Berlin is! It sure does live up to the name of ‘The capital of Germany’. With its rich history this city is quite the landmark. There are lots of remains from the country’s past as a big chunk of the Berlin Wall still remains. Berlin was divided during the Cold War and has reunified in the 18th century. Berlin is also known for its upcoming hip and art scene.

With a total of 12 districts, Berlin has something for everyone! No matter what district you are in you do feel the special Berlin feeling and a sense of freedom.

a Berliner (people from Berlin) told me that there is no “true city center”, it is just different areas of Berlin. It is true every area was quite different from atmosphere to styles. We did not go to all 12 districts of Berlin (we stayed in 3-4 districts and got a better feel for them). 

Berlin Cathedral

Currency: Euro €

Highs: prices are very reasonable for the backpacker budget! If you want luxury, don’t worry, you have it. Incredibly diverse, most people speak fluent English, food markets, food quality, easy transportation system

*for a 24 hour ticket on the subway it costs you only 8.80€ 

Lows: lots and lots of people

Places to see: see the different districts around, Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenburg Gate, Tiergarten, Reichstag Building, Berlin Cathedral, Sony Center, Mauerpark ( an insanely large market.. more like a massive garage sale with street food as well), East Side Gallery (the longest still standing part of the Berlin Wall with 105 artworks along the wall), Oberbaum Bridge

Museum Island

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe

Museums: Topography of Terror, Museum Island (an island in the middle of Berlin with a number of museums), Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (HIGHLY RECOMMEND)

Things to eat: 

Definitely try some authentic German foods:

Käsespätzle - call it German Mac and cheese, the noodles are made from flour and eggs and smothered in cheese and topped with crispy onion. 

Wurst - sausage. yep. All sorts of wurst. Definitely recommend currywurst. They are everywhere. Currywurst is the best.

Schnitzel - a thinly pounded meat, breaded, and fried. 

Maultaschen - call it German ravioli. You can get it I’m vegetarian version or the original meat version. 

Pretzels - they are quite big!

German food can get heavy real quick, but you have so much more options! 

Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, Italian, Austrian, Tibetan, etc. There are numerous restaurants but we did get recommendations to these places by a Berliner:

Tibet Haus, Angry Chicken

Street Food!

Currywurst

We also enjoyed a craft beer bar called Herman Craft Beer - the owner is from Belgium and he is great! 

…and there are street food markets in several districts of the city. There is something for everyone in Berlin! - street food market Berlin close to U Eberswalder Strabe subway station. Mauerpark, Markthalle Neun. 

For first timers, I would recommend that staying in the Mitte district- or close to it would be worthwhile! It would be close to everything and good places to eat as well! 

Tip: look at the crosswalk signs when you are crossing! If you see a funny man on them you are in East Berlin! It’s quite entertaining to see! (West Berlin is the regular crosswalk sign)

Berlin is huge! At least compared to the surrounding areas… take it one day at a time and see the area in clumps instead of getting from one end to the other end.