Berlin

Gatwick Airport Crawley, England, GB

This morning we set off on our mini-Saddle Creek trip of Europe, starting off in Berlin.

Schoenefeld International Airport Königs Wusterhausen, , DE

This was my first time in Germany, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Luckily Tom studied the language in High School and was fantastic at mastering the transport station.

Alexanderplatz Berlin Berlin, , DE

We caught the S-Ban to Alexanderplatz, the center of the city.

As soon as we stepped off the tube we spotted a squished penny machine and I knew that I was going to like Berlin!

We explored the city for a little while. There was a shop which only sold wooden pinocchios.

St. Oberholz Berlin, , DE

We then went to Sankt Oberholz, a cool cafe recommended by a Cut Out + Keep member. They keep a blog (http://www.sanktoberholz.de/?lang=en) of their lost & found with all the crazy items people have left in the cafe.

We soaked up their WIFI and shared a walnuss brownie. They also had an Azure Ray poster, so we knew this was our kind of place.

The green man in East Berlin is called the Ampelmännchen. When the wall came down, the west tried to replace the traffic lights and there were protests to keep him.

Potsdamer Platz Berlin, , DE

We then headed down to Potsdamer Platz which use to be one of the main border check points and you could still see remains of the wall.

For €2.50 a man dressed as a soldier stamped an example visa with all the passport stamps you’d have got. He offered to stamp my actual passport but I didn’t trust that I’d be able to use it again afterwards.

Dunkin' Donuts Berlin, , DE

I couldn’t resist getting a Dunkin’ Donuts squished penny for the tack value.

Squished at Dunkin' Donuts in Berlin. The tackiest squish penny ever, I had to get it!

Holocaust Mahnmal Berlin, , DE

We then went to see the Holocaust Memorial. The walls get very high in the center and at one point we lost each other which was a little scary.

Brandenburg Gate, Berlin Berlin, , DE

We did a little bit of sight seeing. It didn’t take long to get around all the sights. The clever sewer plates help direct the tourists.

Reichstag-Glaskuppel Berlin, , DE

The dome that Tom wasn't to see wasn’t open today unfortunately.

Checkpoint Charlie Berlin, , DE

We then went to see Checkpoint Charlie and it was time to get another squished penny, this one has the wall on it.

It was then time to head to our hotel. We passed by Universal on our way to the hotel and The Wanted’s tour bus was parked outside with a big stupid picture of them pasted on the side. I also spotted Simon’s Cat pasted to one of the doorways. If you’ve haven’t watched any of the cartoons you should look them up on Youtube.

Plus Hotel Berlin, , DE

We stayed at the Plus Hotel, which felt more like an art gallery than a hotel. In fact, there was an art exhibit on the way to our room. The room was nice and cosy but I wish we’d brought swimwear because there was a pool and sauna.

TV Tower Berlin, , DE

We caught the u-ban back in to town and went up TV Tower which offers panoramic views over the city.

We went up at sunset so we got to see the city light up as it went dark. Berlin doesn’t have too many landmarks to spot but it’s very pretty.

I Due Forni Berlin, , DE

We went for dinner at a punky pizzeria we’d been recommended by three different people. It was cosy and warm with gig posters all over the walls. It was Valentine's day so there was a rose waiting at our table and when our pizzas arrived they were heart shaped.

I went for the potato and sage pizza with a bottle of Afri Cola, which tasted like normal cola.

San Remo Berlin, , DE

We went for hot chocolate in the cafe next door where it was legal to smoke, so everyone was. We regretted it after smelling our hair and clothes on the way out but the hot chocolate was soooo good.

Comet Club Berlin, , DE

It was then time to go and see Azure Ray who were playing at the Comet Club, one block away from our hotel. The support band was Sir Simon Battle who played nice sleepy music. Azure Ray came on stage around 10.30 (after we’d been up since 3.30 am) so it was the perfect pre-bedtime gig. They were really good even though they had to compete with a ska band playing loudly in the venue next door.