By the time we took the six-hour train from Prague to Berlin, we had become pros at Eurrail train travel. The train rides, even the long ones, had become enjoyable. They gave us time to relax before the next country’s adventure.
Berlin was our respite. We’d each spent time in Germany, separately and apart, so we knew quite a bit about the culture, food and way of life. However, neither of us had been to Berlin. We stayed in the Innerstadt/Mitte area, which is the historic city center and looks a lot like Park Avenue in Manhattan. Conversely, the difference between Prague (where we’d just left) and Berlin was night and day.
The Regent Berlin
Thank you, baby Jesus. A five-star hotel. After our horrible experience at the Clementin Hotel in Prague, it was such a pleasure to stay at one of the leading hotels in the word, at the best location in Berlin. Everything about the hotel oozed luxury and class. We didn’t set out to stay at international luxury hotels. As we’ve written in previous posts, we wanted to avoid them, and instead stay at local places. But all the local boutique hotels were sold out during our stay, so we had to “settle” with the Grande Dame of European luxury. It was fantastic.
The Berlin Marathon.
It’s a good thing we were comfortable in our hotel because we arrived the day before the Berlin Marathon and its path ran around our hotel. The streets in all directions were barricaded for two days. So, we spent two days watching the pre-run events and the actual marathon. Watching the runners cross the finish line under the Brandenburg Gate was exhilarating, especially when thinking of what the Brandenburg Gate has represented through Germany’s history. We’ve all seen the pictures of Napoleon, the Nazis, and the Soviet forces at the Brandenburg Gate during their horrible reigns. In contrast, during the marathon, the gate represented so much joy as free people from all over the world celebrated underneath it. It was a powerful and beautiful experience.
We got sick.
We both fell under the weather in Berlin: Monica with horrible stomach issues, and Peter with an upper respiratory infection. So, because the streets were closed, we got good experience navigating Berlin’s u-Bahn (subway) system to specialty pharmacies! Getting sick limited us on doing as much exploring as in other countries. However, if we were to be sick, having to be “stuck” at the gorgeous Regent Berlin hotel wasn’t bad at all!
Hitler and WWII
Once we started feeling better and the roads opened, we went back to the Brandenburg Gate, and then to other WWII related sites, such as the Holocaust Memorial (very emotional), the former sites of the Nazi headquarters, and the site of Hitler’s bunker. Visiting Europe has put us very close to many of the locations that were affected by the Nazis. It’s been frequently heartbreaking, but very necessary.
The Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie
We spent an afternoon going to the remains of the Berlin Wall and the exhibits about its history and destruction. We went to the Checkpoint Charlie military stop. We laughed that a McDonalds is now next to Checkpoint Charlie, and it’s become such a tourist trap. People were standing in long lines to be photographed near the post. Monica wondered if all the young selfie takers really grasped the history of what they were seeing. Nevertheless, we took photos (and selfies) too. It seemed weird to do so.
The Food
Sausages, schnitzels, potato soup, sauerkraut, crushed tomato soup, bread dumplings, pork legs, pork rumps, pork bellies, pork knuckles, and beer. There is so much to love about German food. We ended up finding our favorite German restaurant in the neighborhood and eating there twice. Peter loved the sausages the most. And as usual, Monica ate soup and bread.
Falling In Love at the Plast
One evening we went to a performance at the famous ____ Plast stage. It was a show called “Falling in Love” that was a colorful explosion of musicians, dancers, acrobats, and lighting. By some interesting turn of events, we were seated in the famous Sky Wall Lounge that’s usually reserved for VIPs, dignitaries, celebrities and their bodyguards. We were the only ones in the lounge, and we had a private waitress and bartender all to ourselves. We felt very fancy schmancy being treated like the king and queen of Berlin. The view was extraordinary, and the show was unique and fun.
Evenings at the Hotel
Peter ended each evening in Berlin holding court at the hotel’s lounge. By the tine we left, everyone knew his name. 😊
Even though we didn’t see as much of Berlin as we planned, we felt very comfortable in the city and enjoyed our luxurious respite. We (especially Monica) want to return to Berlin. It’s a big city, and there’s so much more to see.