Rich history and unique culture, Berlin is a city that has something for everyone. Whether you’re interested in exploring the city’s vibrant nightlife or its vast array of art galleries and museums, there’s no shortage of things to do in Berlin on a city break.
I didn’t really know what to expect from Berlin and it was really like no other city I’d ever been to. It felt so open and spacious and not just in the way that many European cities do with nice wide pavements large enough for outdoor seats and tables but in a way that just felt..like you good breath and take your time. It helped too that the sun was shining a lot.
I was surprised by how urban and rundown East Berlin felt at times, even though I know it is this way for obvious reasons. I guess as I was only turning four when the wall came down and so to me it feels like this was a lifetime ago and the images I saw of Berlin then and during my childhood I thought would be somehow massively different from how it would be now. It actually felt in many ways much the same, with some buildings still derelict or with vines all over them like they had been untouched.
Seeing the wall itself didn’t really move me until I peeped through a hole and had to stop myself from thinking too much about how people can do such strange things to other people. How scary life can be when you can wake up one day and never see your family for another for decades?? I realised actually how little I know about this chapter in history which made me feel a bit awful. I was actually chatting about it with a friend of mine who is half-German. She reminded me that this is why we should never get complacent with political parties and how ones you think are just plain full of hate crazy (that you assume no one would vote for) could get into power and that’s why they are so scary. It’s actually reminded me (although I always vote of course) that I do need to get a little more aware of the world around me as awful as it can sometimes be, in order to make sure we don’t let things like this happen again.
And now for some smiley street art during our Berlin city break
A reader recently asked me if I would recommend anywhere that I visited on my trip. I have to say it was mostly spent in coffee shops due to the work I was doing out there but if I were to recommend any of the places we ate during our Berlin city break it would be Momos for veggie dumplings. I also enjoyed House of Small Wonder (which is that beautiful staircase photo third from bottom) both of which are great for children.
There are lots of cute kiddo boutiques around Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg as well as tons and tons of cool coffee shops all around East Berlin. I really enjoyed the Michelberger Hotel as a bar and restaurant (although the rooms like super cool too!). Other than that there is so much of the city I’d like to explore including the flea markets which I never got to visit in the end (a good excuse to go back!)
See other snap shots here and where I stayed here during my city break to Berlin and ideas of what to do on a weekend in Berlin here.