Berlin

Berlin is an invigorating city — the art scene, the delicious restaurants, the sprawling neighborhoods, the lively nightclubs. I was lucky enough to get a chance to visit one of my best friends, Tasina, there this March. The history of the city and the variety of things to do were what really drew me to visiting. I had been to Germany before, to the cities of Cologne and Hamburg, but Berlin was new to me.

I flew from Seattle to Frankfurt and then had a quick layover before arriving in Berlin. I flew on Lufthansa, an airline I had enjoyed before when traveling to Europe. I highly recommend trying them and as always, book several months in advance like I did to find the best deals!

Day 1 - Kreuzberg

I arrived on Saturday late morning and Tasina greeted me at the airport with a beautiful bouquet of flowers. We dropped my luggage off at her flat and took the U Bahn to Kreuzberg, one of Berlin’s districts. We grabbed coffee and some pastries at SPIERS cafe.

Afterwards we stopped into an adorable bookstore and admired the flower stalls in the area.

For dinner we wandered around Markthalle Neun (Markethall Nine) and tried some delicious bao buns and gao from Bao Gao Club.

We took some cute photos at one of the photoautomats in the market before heading home.

Day 2 - Pankow

For brunch on Sunday we headed to the Pankow district and put our names down at Benedict Berlin. There was a bit of a wait so we wandered around a nearby park soaking up the sun. The wait was worth it and the food was delicious, I ordered the blueberry pancakes and Tasina got the ham and bacon benedict.

On our way to the tram we wandered around Prenzlauer Berg, one of the neighborhoods in the Pankow district. After admiring the pretty buildings and colorful doors on the way we took the train to the Volspark Friedrichshain.

We ended up at Märchenbrunnen, also called “the fountain of fairy tales”. The design and sculptures make this a magical spot and it’s also great for people watching.

There were so many beautiful murals and wall art in Berlin. I loved this mural just outside the park. Tasina also found a vespa that perfectly matched her shoes — too cute!

Although the skies were blue, it was still pretty cold out so we found a cute coffee shop nearby, Cafe Blaumond.

On our way home we stopped by the Berliner Fernsehturm, also called the “TV tower”. Built by East Germany between 1965 and 1969, the tower was used in broadcast communications and was also a symbol of communist power. You can buy tickets to the top of the 666 foot tall tower, the highest building in Berlin.

Day 3 - Mitte

The next morning Tasina had to head to work, so I took the U Bahn to Mitte, a district of Berlin that houses some of the cities biggest attractions. I stopped first by the Berliner Dom, or the Berlin Cathedral. This was such a gorgeous building and the green dome reminded me so much of the Marble Church in Copenhagen.

I walked through the Brandenburg Tor, also called the Brandenburg Gate. Originally built in the 18th century as a symbol of peace and prosperity, it became an element of division during the Cold War when the Berlin Wall ran right next to it. The structure is beautiful and is one of the most iconic landmarks in Berlin.

Next I passed the Reichstag building and then wandered through Tiergarten, one of the largest parks in Berlin. After walking through the park for a while I visited the Victory Tower and paid €4 to climb to the top. The view and artwork at the Victory Tower were stunning, I definitely recommend visiting if you get the opportunity.

After relaxing some more in the park I headed to Blumental, a super cute restaurant in between the Mitte and Kreuzberg districts. The food and coffee was amazing and reasonably priced. I ordered the pink pancakes, they were the prettiest pancakes I’d ever eaten.

I headed back to Tasina’s flat and relaxed a bit before walking across the Spree river to meet her at her work. The view across the water at night was beautiful and I enjoyed watching couples and families heading home from work. After I met Tasina, we walked to Alexanderplatz, one of the central city squares, before going to Dump Ling for dinner.

After dinner we headed to Hackesche Höfe Kino, a cinema nearby to see a late showing of Yargos Lanthimos’ Poor Things. This was my first time seeing the movie and I absolutely loved it.

Day 4 - Friedrichshain

On Tuesday morning I had a late start and then walked by the river before meeting Tasina at her work for a late lunch. The sun was out and it was another beautiful day!

After lunch I walked through Alexanderplatz and up into the shopping district of Mitte where I did some thrifting and shopping.

After killing a couple hours I returned to The Social Hub, the hotel where Tasina works. They were hosting a pitch night that was focused on Women in Entrepreneurship and we got to hear from a handful of super amazing women with such interesting companies! Afterwards there was a networking event and I got the chance to meet people from all over the world who had moved to or were visiting Berlin. It was such a fun night!

Day 5 - The Berlin Wall

For brunch on Wednesday Tasina and I went to Funk You, a natural food spot in Mitte. We grabbed some acai bowls and wandered around some cute spots in the neighborhood.

After Tasina headed to work I took the bus down to the East Side gallery to see the Berlin Wall. The stretch of murals on the wall was so impressive and much longer than I expected. Many of the messages and art pieces were really beautiful and communicated themes of peace and harmony in humanity. One of the most famous murals called “The Kiss”, depicts the fraternal kiss shared between the former East German leader Erich Honecker and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev in celebration of 30 years of the German Democratic Republic.

After walking along the full length of the wall, I crossed the Oberbaum bridge into Kreuzberg.

I headed to Cafe Sora and read my book outside while the sun was out. I finished reading The Guest by Emma Cline. I love this author and the book was riveting, definitely a quick read!

After relaxing at the flat for a while I met Tasina at the hotel for a movie screening event. There were several films being screened and some of the directors even came to speak with the audience! Afterwards I headed to a date at Dresden, a bar in Friedrichshain. The neighborhood was super busy but walking the river late at night was peaceful and so pretty.

Day 6 - Kinemathek

On Thursday Tasina took the day off and we took the U Bahn to Steel Vintage Bikes Cafe in Mitte. The breakfast was delicious and the neighborhood was super cute, especially the wall art.

Next we headed to the Deutsche Kinemathek in the city center and just down the street from where the Berlinale Film Festival is held at the Potsdamer Platz. Tickets are affordable and are only €5 for students if you provide a student ID.

The museum was absolutely fascinating and featured amazing displays, a fascinating mirror room and a wide expanse of the history of film in Berlin.

My favorite exhibit was one on Marlene Dietrich, a famous movie star from Germany who moved to Hollywood in the early 1930’s. She used her stardom to fight against Nazi - Germany and supported the Allied forces.

There was an area in the final exhibit where you could contribute a list of movies to include in future expansions for the museum. I included some of my favorite films like Past Lives (2023), Cinema Paradiso (1988) and Arrival (2016).

That evening we went to Cyclo, a sushi bar close to Tasina’s flat. We had an early night since we had to get up at 4 am for my flight the next day, so we just watched a movie and headed to sleep.

Recap

This trip was so amazing! Sometimes when I travel, especially if I’m traveling solo, I feel guilty that I am not maximizing every moment of every day. On this trip I reminded myself that it was my spring break and it was completely okay for me to sleep in or just chill in the afternoon. I find it’s always better for me to make sure I have enough energy to explore rather than running on fumes after walking all day and partying at night. Even so, I packed in a lot in this trip and I felt that five full days (plus one afternoon) was the perfect amount of time to see Berlin.

Berlin is a sprawling city, much larger than I had imagined. I definitely want to return and explore more of the surrounding neighborhoods and some of the famous clubs like Berghain and Kit Kat.

The experiences that I had with other people on this trip felt especially important to me. Berlin is such an international city and I got to meet people from all over the world. I also got to spend time talking with and hearing from other women, all of whom were so energetic and welcoming. It made my experiences solo traveling and my future career in writing and travel feel all the more exciting. Whether it was watching films made by women, hearing about women’s start ups or just spending time with one of my best friends in a new city, the week was so inspiring. These kinds of moments and connections are one of my favorite elements of traveling and make me look forward to my next trip that much more!

Thanks for reading!