Berlin, Part I

I have come to the conclusion that one post containing all of my adventures in Berlin will be just too much. So, I will break it up into four entries, meaning four written explanations and anecdotes, lots of pictures, and many memories being relayed to you.

Here goes...

My flight out of Stockholm arrived around 8:30am Monday morning. I flew into Tegel airport by myself, but by now I have gotten the hang of traveling in Europe. With my single backpack, I headed straight to the information booth where I picked up a map of the city. I was still a bit tired since I had barely gotten any sleep the night before (right after I sat down on the plane I fell asleep and woke up only after we had landed). After getting my map, I figured out what bus line I needed to take to get from the airport to the city center, bought a bus ticket, and then got on the bus that would take me to Bradenburger Tor.

Side note: I have to say that the map I got at the airport was extremely useful not only because it guided me to all the places I visited in Berlin and that it had all the lines for the U-Bahn (Berlin's transportation system), but it also had all the tours offered by the company New Europe...which is how I learned to the two tours I went on during my trip. But more on that in a bit.

My bus ride into the city took about 25 minutes and all the while I was either looking down at my map to figure out my exact location at the moment or looking out the window to see the sites of Berlin. I will admit that I wasn't completely 'wow'ed by the city during that first half-hour. I didn't think it was that beautiful...but as you'll come to learn, my impression  changed drastically as the day (and trip) went on.

I got off the bus at the main square, Pariser Platz, where the Bradenburger Tor is. And followed the map to the hostel I would be staying at. It was about 9:15am, so the streets were pretty quiet and dead. The walk to Grand Hostel took me about 40 minutes, a little longer than I had anticipated, but it refreshed me and allowed me to see some of the streets of Berlin. Without previously knowing, I walked right next to part of the Berlin Wall (thanks to my trusty map for informing me of this!). On the other side is the Topography of Terror museum that I would later return to on Thursday.

Part of the Berlin Wall

I arrived at the hostel around 10am and one of the receptionists kindly greeted me. She handed me another map and told me to sit at the table to fill out a sheet of paper with my information. Another woman asked if I would like tea or coffee, so I asked for tea. When she came back, she sat down with me and circled all of the popular "must-see" sites in Berlin. I had decided on the bus that I wanted to go on the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp tour with New Europe that left Bradenburger Tor at 11am . I was getting a little antsy as the woman continued to tell me about Alexanderplatz, the East Side Gallery, and the Reichstag. She finished around 10:30am and after I said "thank you" and "I'll be back later" (my room wouldn't be ready until 3pm), I quickly headed to the Mohrenstrade Station that was a convenient two minute walk from the hostel.

The Grand Hostel-#2 hostel in Berlin. It was a very nice, clean, and comfy place to stay.

I bought my ticket and headed to the platform. (In)conveniently, the line I was supposed to take was delayed (so I figured out from everyone leaving the platform), so I walked to another line and anxiously waited for its arrival. By the time I got on this train, it was already 10:50am. I was coming up with a back-up plan for the afternoon in case I wouldn't make it in time for the tour.

After getting off at the Bradenburger Tor Station, I quickly walked to the meet-up point for the tour...in front of a Starbucks (of course!). I made it! Unfortunately, I had not money on me to pay for the tour but the guides let me try to find one in the area. I came up empty and was wondering, "how can there not be any ATMs in the main square?!". I didn't understand. Luckily, my guide, James, said I could pay later.

So our group of about 16 young adults and one older couple all headed to the Bradenburger Tor U-Bahn station and waited for the train to take us to Sachsenhausen. The ride into the town where the camp is situated took about 35 minutes and then we had to board a bus to take us to the camp itself.

Upon arriving, it was quite and grey. The entrance was concrete and cold. James gave us a brief history lesson about World War II, the Nazis, and the history of Sachsenhausen before we entered the camp. Sachsenhausen was not an extermination camp, but a work camp that had not just Jewish prisoners but also homosexuals and Communists. However, many prisoners died there.

The triangular layout of Sachsenhausen

James then walked us along the edge of the camp, giving us more information about the officers and where/how they lived.

Once we got to the entrance of the camp, everything seemed even more quiet and eerie. After we walked in, James took us all around, showing us the different facilities and giving us in-depth details about what occurred in each area. Most of the details were very graphic and depressing, it's really hard to believe that this happened not that long ago.

Two of the stories I'll remember most are how the prisoners were treated on a daily basis. They were forced to wake up early, given a minimal amount of food for the day (their breakfast was a piece of bread), were forced to stand outside for role call (which could last up to two hours if not all the prisoners were accounted for), and had to work from sun up to sundown with only one bathroom break. One of the jobs that James vividly described for us was what I call the "boot tester". After boots were made for the Nazi soldiers, some prisoners were forced to test them out on a "track" of three different types of rock. These men had to run back and forth all day without any food or rest. Since their caloric intake was already extremely low, many died of exhaustion in just a day.

I also won't forget how James described the extermination process to us. He told us that the camp previously used trenches to kill prisoners, but the guards/officers had a difficult time looking in their eyes. In addition, other inmates could hear the fate of their fellow prisoners. So, instead of continuing to use the trench, a "doctor's office" was built. It was strategically set up so prisoners had no idea what was occurring, they were led to believe that they were there for a check-up with the doctor. This form of execution solved the previous issues that had occurred when the trenches were in use. I won't go into detail because it is very graphic.

The tour lasted nearly four hours, I was pretty exhausted by the end of it. I'm really glad I went because although it wasn't the happiest way to start out my trip to Berlin, it was informative and a good experience. Reading about the Nazis and concentration camps in history books or articles is helpful but you can't grasp how things truly were or looked at that time. Physically going to the sites and hearing from a guide makes this part of history a haunting reality.

"Work sets you free"- posted on the gate at the front entrance. Little did the prisoners know, their "freedom" was ultimately death

If prisoners stepped into this area, they were shot by the guards (usually in the arm or leg so that they wouldn't die and could go back to work)

One of the bunkers

Museum with furniture and prisoners' clothing

The Soviet Liberation Memorial erected in Sachsenhausen. It was controversial because it was only dedicated to one of the groups of prisoners. Also, the portrayal of the prisoners (as healthy and fit) is completely inaccurate.

The second memorial that better depicts the conditions of the prisoners.

Written on the wall opposite of the second memorial

After the tour, we headed back onto the train (I finally found an ATM and paid James). By this time, it was about 4:30pm. I took the U-Bahn to Alexanderplatz Station where there are huge shopping malls and lots of stores. I was on the hunt for a new converter (the receptionist at Grand Hostel told me about this area and that I would definitely find one there). A girl who was canvassing on the street next to the Station told me to go to Media Markt and pointed me in the right direction. I found it easily, wow that place is huge....four stories! I bought my converter and headed back out. Right outside the store inside the mall area, there was a small concert going on. A German singer, Helene Fischer, was performing (she seemed pretty popular since there was quite a crowd, but when I asked Anna, she said she had no idea who she was. Now that I think about, it was a performance in a mall).

Who is she?!

I was in and out of Alexanderplatz in 30 minutes. I got back onto the U-Bahn and took it to Mehringdamm Station where I would sink my teeth into what Anna, Katrin, Matthias, and many Germans I had met called "the best kebab/durum in Berlin" at Mustafa Gemuse Kebap. I was told that the line could be really long, so I was expecting to wait. However, when I got there, I ordered right away (it was a food stand, not a restaurant, so it was on the street corner).

I couldn't decide between the kebab or the durum, but the guy making the food explained the difference (the kebab was wrapped in a tortilla-like bread while the durum was in a more pita-like bread).  I ultimately went with the durum.

The young man on the right made my durum

Durum making in action

My vegetarian durum...soooo good :)

I must admit, it was TASTY! There were lots of vegetables, potatoes, and three different sauces in it. Yum, so delicious and very filling.

After savoring the flavors of my durum, I headed back to the hostel to call it an early night. On my way, I picked up some fruit and snacks at a grocery store nearby, called Kaisers, and then headed to bed. It had been a long, very eventful day and I wanted to get enough rest to start early the next morning. I had a lot planned...

Roughin' it

I forgot to mention in my 'Stockholm' post about my packing strategy for this week-long Fall Break Trip:

When I went to Helsinki, Tallinn, and Riga, I brought a blue duffel bag (my dad's AT&T gym bag). It's a good size bag that can be used as carry-on, but it can be a little bothersome to lug around (especially if you overpack, I fell victim to the overpacking monster).

I decided that I wanted to pack a little lighter this trip...well, actually MUCH lighter. So instead of bringing the blue duffel with a purse, all I brought was my backpack. I'm not talking about a backpack you take on a hiking trip that can fit a bunch of clothes and a sleeping bag. No, I'm actually referring to a backpack that you would use for your schoolbooks.

You're probably thinking one if not both of these things:
1) How did you fit a weeks worth of clothes and toiletries in a single backpack?
2) Eww, that's kinda gross, Nat.

I will admit that never in a million years did I think I would ever pack this light. I knew from the get-go (a week before leaving) that I was going to only bring my backpack. All I needed to decide was what clothes I would bring and how to systematically organize it into my North Face.

Luckily, I learned from both of my parents in this case. My mom taught me how to roll my clothes and pack things in order to maximize a small space. Therefore, I brought five long sleeve shirts, three pairs of leggings, two pairs of jeans, a cardigan, a jacket, one pair of shoes and other necessary clothing. I brought toiletries too. Not surprisingly, everything fit in with extra room to spare. Score!

And let's just say, I am my father's daughter. I always used to (even just a few months ago) tease my papa for packing light when we went on trips, but now after experiencing the ease of not having to worry about bringing so much stuff and ultimately not having to carry tons of baggage, I may not turn back to my old ways ('may' is the key word here).

I like to say that while I was in Stockholm and Berlin, I was "roughin' it". I think that lack of variety in my clothing and the pictures of me wearing nearly the same outfit (jeans with a different long-sleeved shirt and a beanie) contest to this fact. Don't worry, I showered every day.

P.S. I hope this isn't TMI, I feel like you should know the interesting/obscure details of my life in Europe. Anyways, please try not to don't judge me ;)

My luggage for the week

The ultimate tourist with backpack and map in hand...at the U-Bahn station

Christmas in Scandanavia

It's only the end of October and already the Christmas Season is already upon us here in Denmark. My European friends weren't kidding when they said that stores start stocking up on Christmas decorations even before the winter season has begun.

The other day on the bus, a woman sitting diagonally from me had a brand new roll of Christmas wrapping paper in one of her shopping bags. Yesterday, as I was in the check-out line at the grocery store, a huge box of chocolate Advent calendars was staring right at me.

Although it's starting to get cold, I don't feel like it should be the end of December yet. I mean, honestly, do they just skip the month of November altogether? (I know they don't observe it, but I love Thanksgiving so I can't let that happen!)

I'll know the Danes are really serious about Christmas in autumn when I start hearing holiday music in public places (not that I'll understand the lyrics, since I'm sure they're in Danish). Hey Mom, Christmas music before Black Friday...I bet you'd love that ;)

Stockholm

So here is my run-down of the weekend trip I took to Stockholm with Anna, Katrin, and Matthias.

Matthias and I took an evening flight from Copenhagen to Stockholm, we arrived a little after 11pm. We went to the tourist information booth in the airport where we picked up maps and bus tickets, then proceeded to take a bus from Arlanda airport into the city center. Let's say it was pretty chilly when we were waiting at the bus stop, I entertained myself by watching my exhaling air form into small clouds.

I was pretty exhausted and took a short nap during the bus ride, which took about 30 minutes. Matthias and I got off the bus at the Central Station and then attempted to make our way to the hostel. Anna and Katrin had arrived early that morning, so we would be staying with them. Needless to say, it took Matthias and I awhile to figure out where to go, at one point we walked in a giant circle around the Central Station. We were a bit lost, but the upside to that was we got to see several of Stockholm's sites at night. Eventually, we did figure out where we were and how to get to the hostel. On our walk through old town, we walked straight towards a man who was walking towards us with a rifle...we quickly realized we had encountered a night guard at the Royal Palace.

A few minutes later, at 12:30am we got to the hostel. Katrin let us in and Matthias and I followed her into our shared room. I climbed into the top bunk (Anna was sleeping below me) and fell asleep.

Around 8:30am the next morning, we all woke up and had breakfast in the hostel's kitchen. Every morning, the hostel provides its guests with free toast, jam, corn flakes and milk. After eating, we headed to catch a ferry to the Vasa Museum. Matthias and I purchased our transportation cards (I got a 24 hour pass) and then boarded the ferry.

Anna wanted to go to the Vasa Museum, and I'll admit that I had no idea what I would see. It was a really interesting exhibit and the ship was huge! We took a guided tour and then saw a 30 minute film about how the Swedes were able to raise the sunken ship after 333 years.

Afterwards, we headed to a little grocery store to pick up some bread, cheese, carrots, and apples for lunch.

Giant, I mean GIANT crackers!

We ate quickly and then headed to Old Town for a walking tour, but upon arriving there were no English tours. I searched everywhere and even asked a tour guide who was leading a group in Swedish, but we came up empty. Instead, Katrin had her Lonely Planet book, so she was quickly nominated as our tour leader. She took us around Old Town. I really enjoyed the quaint streets, there was so many cute shops. We went into quite a few, I saw so many things I wanted to buy (homemade sandals, knitted headband, boots).

The Royal Palace

Street in Old Town

We took the metro into what appeared to be the downtown part of the city and stopped for a late afternoon coffee break. Then, we headed back to the hostel and had a nap. We ate heaps of free pasta with a delicious pesto with zucchini and onions sauce that we all helped to cook. It was delicious but contributed to a food coma for all of us. We called it an early night.

We repeated the morning's events of previous day with a breakfast and then Matthias and I headed to the two-hour boat tour that would leave at 11am.

(One interesting fact I learned on the tour is that the crown princess of Sweden married her personal trainer...which was quite the scandal in the country. She became the wife of a commoner?! Makes for a good tabloid story or Hollywood film)

City Hall

The big barrel is one of the original Absolut Vodka barrels

After the tour, Matthias and I headed back to the hostel to meet Katrin (Anna had already left for the airport since she had class the next day...no Fall Break for her). We headed into Old Town to get a nice lunch, we were planning on having pasta again for dinner (so we wanted to have a nice lunch). Katrin referred to her Lonely Planet: Sweden book. There was a Thai restaurant and a vegetarian restaurant that caught her attention, they were pretty close to each other so we decided to check them both out. The Thai restaurant was closed, but down the street the vegetarian place called Hermitage was open. We decided to eat there, it was a pretty tasty all-you-can-eat buffet. There was lentil soup, bread, lasagna, brown rice, potatoes, a salad bar, a vegetable stew, peanuts, rice crackers, and other goodies. I filled up on a warm meal, I really enjoyed it. I thought it was really thoughtful of Katrin and Matthias to choose a vegetarian place for lunch since neither of them are vegetarian, they did that for me. I was grateful and so was my belly. I have great friends!

After lunch, Katrin headed towards the Junibacken, the children's museum (although she ended up not going) and Matthias and I went to the Nobel Museum (Katrin and Anna went earlier that morning). We made it just in time for a tour that was about 45 minutes long. Our guide gave us an overview of Albert Nobel's life, his will and what he wanted to do with all of his money. He explained how the Nobel prize winners of each category are chosen and by whom, and this year's recipients. Afterwards, we saw the temporary Marie Curie exhibit, browsed some of the awards from decades ago, took a look at the place settings of the prestigous Nobel banquet and watch some of the short clips in one of the two theaters that show highlight previous Nobel recipients. The museum wasn't very big, but it was dense and very informative.

Outside the Nobel Museum

Albert Nobel's will

Marie Curie's lab equipment

We left the museum right before closing (5pm) and headed back to the hostel. Katrin met us in the kitchen where we all hung out, talked, and skyped with our friend, Sam, who was in Istanbul. Around 6:30pm, we cooked dinner...pasta, of course. We ended the evening around 10pm and so ends my short, weekend trip to Stockholm.

...Now, on to Berlin!

My Fall Break destinations: Stockholm and Berlin

Today is the first day of my week-long Fall Break. It's odd to me that we've only been in class for five weeks, yet we already have a break. Apparently, that's common here in Europe. I'm so used to going fifteen weeks with a few days off for certain holidays. But hey, I'll take full advantage of this.

In a few hours, Matthias and I will be flying to Stockholm for the weekend where we will meet Katrin and Anna (they arrived in Sweden this morning). Come Sunday and Monday we will be splitting up, Anna will be coming back to Copenhagen since she doesn't have a break (medicine started later than all the other departments), Matthias and Katrin will be doing an Eastern Europe trip (to Helsinki, Tallinn, and a few other cities), and I will be flying to Berlin early Monday morning and staying until Thursday afternoon. Sarah will be joining me there.

I'm so excited for this trip! I'll be sure to post pictures and blog entries along the way!

I hope all is well with everyone, have a great weekend :)


Nat

Here comes winter

Just as fast as I blogged that the weather was so nice last week, it has drastically changed. I'm reluctant to say that I now believe the first signs of winter are fast approaching. It all began for me about two days ago on Saturday when I could feel a shift in weather. When I originally just wore a beanie or knit headband on when my ears were a little chilly (I'd get funny stares because the Danes, other Europeans, and many Americans from the mid-west and east coast obviously didn't think it was THAT cold, but hey give me a break, I'm from a city that doesn't experience seasons), I am now forced to bring gloves to keep my hands warm. I'm not looking like such a wimp anymore. Everyone else is wearing their bulky winter coats and parkas that are lined with fur.

I can see my breath now and yesterday night as I was riding back to my kollegium from dinner at Keops, a digital sign flashed that it was 9 degrees Celsius (which is 48.2 degrees Fahrenheit for all you Americans, haha)! And I'm afraid it's only going to get colder....AHHHH!!!

Guess I need to start getting used to it now, but I heard that the end of December and January are the worst of the winter months here in Copenhagen. I'm relieved (yet a little disappointed, only a little though) that I will not be here to experience those harsh(er) winter months. What I naively considered "cold" in San Francisco is not even minutely close to what I have already experienced here in Scandinavia. I'm sure I'll get my rude awakening as well as a fair share of unbearable winter weather (snow included) during the rest of my stay.

I'll just have to continue drinking lots of hot tea and keeping my extremities and the rest of my body warm with hats, gloves, socks (fuzzy and wool), and a coat.

A day in Riga

Anna, Sarah, and I woke up early to catch the 7:20am bus to Riga. We ate breakfast, made lunch, and then took a cab to the station where all of the buses left. We were all a little tired but very excited for the day trip.

The afternoon before after Sarah had arrived, we went to a travel agency to purchase our bus tickets to Riga. It was a little last minute, but we all wanted to experience Latvia (at least for the day) since who knows if we will ever be back that way.

We were on a nice charter bus that had wifi and televisions, but the three of us mostly slept through the four hour drive. When we arrived, we walked to the Old Town, picked up maps at Tourist Information and then headed off to see Riga's most important sites. The map led us to a dozen historical, must-see locations.

I took heaps (you can thank the Australians for getting me hooked on that word!) of photos, here are just a few from the day:

Freedom Monument, the symbol of Latvian independence and Riga's major landmark.

The spectacular panoramic view from atop St. Peter's Church

The day we were there, there was a festival taking place in Ratslaukums' Square. From what we could tell, it was to give thanks for the harvest.

Built in the 14th century, the House of Blackheads belonged to the Guild of Unmarried Merchants. At that time, it was the richest and most prestigious venue in Riga. It was rebuilt in1999 after it was damaged during WWII.

Riga Castle, the primary workplace of Latvia's president

See the pulleys on the outside of this building? Old school elevator system baby!

Three Brothers, a group of residential houses each from a different century with the oldest dating back to the 15th century.

Powder Tower, one of Riga's fortification towers. It dates back to 1330 and stored gunpowder in the 17th century. Since 1919 it houses the Latvian War Museum.

Walking towards Old Town

National Opera, constructed in 1863 as the German Theatre.

 Central Market, one of the largest and oldest markets in Europe that has hundreds of vendors selling clothes, flowers, candy, pastries, seafood, meat and lots of local produce.

A furniture store inside Central Market. It felt like we had gone back in time while we were in there. "Hello old school couches".

Inside one of Central Market's five food pavilions.

An outside vendor selling grapes and lingonberries

Walking through the underground tunnel to get to the other side of the street

Streets of Riga (adjacent to Central Market)

We ate dinner at a restaurant in Old Town. All of us were craving sushi and that meal hit the spot. I ordered a cucumber roll and a vegetable stir fry, it was pretty good but not like it is at home. 

After dinner, we walked to the bus station next to the Central Market where we waited for the bus back to Tallinn. We left at 7pm and for most of the ride back I read and took little cat naps. 

We arrived back in Tallinn after midnight. We took a cab back to the Monk's Bunk where Anna and I waited in the common/living room until 3am when we needed to leave for the airport. It was a long night and I was delirious from not getting a sufficient amount of sleep (Anna took a nap on the couch when we got back to the hostel). I kept myself awake by reading, I'm not sure how I was able to do that.

We had a short layover in Riga and then finally got back to Copenhagen around 8am. Needless to say that when I got back, I slept until 4pm. 

It was a whirlwind and extremely eventful 5 days in Eastern Europe. It was a fantastic experience, I had no idea that while I was in Copenhagen I would ever have the opportunity to visit Finland, Estonia, and Latvia...three countries I knew very little about until going there. I'm really happy I went because I probably never would have gone in my life if Anna hadn't suggested it. 

If you ever have the opportunity to experience countries in Eastern Europe, I'd say take it!