berlin

here are some pictures from our time in berlin. i had mixed feeling about berlin. it was insufferably cold when we arrived (especially from comparatively balmy barcelona weather) and while we were making our way from the airport to the s-bahn, walking out to find snow on the ground, the wheel on my luggage flew off. perfect timing!

we ended up having to connect to different trains a few times to get into the city, and were huddled outside on the platform, freezing our asses off. my feet were so cold i thought i was going to cry. i was hungry, cold and the ground was so iced over that i felt like i was taking a risk of slipping and cracking my head open at every step.

the cold and snow continued the whole time we were in berlin, but at least one of my good friends was there (she moved to berlin last year) to hang out. our new year's eve was one of the most unusual i've ever had. i'm not really that into celebrating the new year, but one of my friends' unofficial roommates (aka long-stay couch surfer) decided to throw a party at their massive apartment. before we knew it, there was a full-on, serious russian dance party going on. the fireworks were crazy, and i'm not just talking about the "official" ones. everyone and their dogs were setting off fireworks in the streets, out their windows, etc.

it was actually kind of scary walking from the u-bahn station to my friend's apartment with 8-year-old kids shooting fireworks all over the place. even on our way back to our hotel people were shooting them off inside the metro stations. at midnight the entire sky was FULL of fireworks, i mean FULL, and it didn't stop! it was really a sight to be seen, and i'm not really one for being impressed with fireworks displays. i'm more 'meh' about it, but this was amazing.

shopping-wise there were some really interesting stores and restaurants. i confess i didn't research berlin as much as i probably could have, and actually being there trying to find stores in minus celsius weather quickly flew out the window, so i only really managed to go to a handful of stores. i have a feeling if i were there in any other weather i could explore more, take more pictures definitely, and get a better sense of the city. in that weather, ill-prepared clothing wise, i had the mentality of "f*ck, get me inside with a hot chocolate STAT i don't care about shopping or sightseeing unless its inside and warm"














i hope to return when the weather is more favorable, or at least being more prepared! after being in berlin i really got interested in the history of the city, especially during the war. part of my heritage is german and i really don't know much about my family tree on that side, and i'd like to find out more about my grandfather and where he came from, and where his parents came from. time for research mode.