I had a wonderful, wonderful time there. Truth be told, Berlin was never near the top of my list (much less even ON said list) of places I wanted to visit anytime soon, despite the fact that my father's side of the family hails from there. But over the last couple of years, I developed connections to Berlin. One of my closest and most special friends on the planet lives there, and as soon as he seemed to be pretty entrenched in his German lifestyle, I knew I'd be heading out at some point.
Berlin is great, so shame on me for thinking otherwise. It is full of history (see if someone can go 5 minutes without mentioning "the war"), interesting old and new architecture (or as my friend put it: "MONUMENTAL architecture"), gorgeous rivers and lakes, hopping bars and clubs, friendly cafes, cute shops, great public transportation, and, of course, amazing beer.
Just a few things I noticed about Berlin:
- People are really nice
- Women (of all ages) have a tendency to dye their hair extreme variations of red or purple, often in chunks more than streaks
- Older folks aren't into deodorant
- All dogs are cute and very well behaved (and I'm a cat person, big time)
- PDA is A-OK
- Not a lot of traffic
- Bicycles kick ass
- No SUVs!! (really, very few big vehicles at all)
- Naked swimming!
- Fashion is very 80's, and not in a VICE magazine sort of way
- Socks with sandals and pumps
- Beer is cheaper (WAY cheaper) than water
- Everything is under re-construction... all over Berlin... FOREVER.
I'm glad to be home, but I was sad to leave Berlin. I'm missing it more and more. Till next time...
