Berlin gets a bad reputation for being a city that is, frankly, not that pretty. I actually really loved Berlin--I'd probably place it at number 3 on my 'Favorite European Cities' list, after Athens and Paris, equal perhaps to Rome. Berlin in the summertime would probably be equal to the other three.
It's a very walkable city with superbly efficient public transportation--like New York, but German. I was also giddy to find basically every kind of food known to man there, so naturally, I ate Mexican food every day.
In Berlin, I visited a couple of museums and (most importantly) Deutsche Oper Berlin. This year is the celebration of Wagner's 200th birthday, so it's basically one giant Wagner-fest all over Germany. I couldn't be here at a better time. I saw Tannhäuser, my first *live* Wagner opera (I always see the MetOpera Live in HD series in the movie theater). As a student, for 13 euros, I got an unsold seat worth 10x that price that was at the front of the balcony (my very favorite place), and I was there early enough to hear the pre-opera lecture (in German, of course...).
Great food, great music--if only the weather was nice, Berlin would have been absolutely perfect!
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| Hey, it's Checkpoint Charlie and fake American soldiers. |
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| I found it ironic that just behind the "American Sector" was a McDonalds. |
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| I'm too short to be JFK |
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| Berlin Wall: East Side Gallery |
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| The wind was so strong. I look so cold! |
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| Berlin is like the German New York |
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Deutsche Oper Berlin: Wagner's 200th Birthday
Celebration... (This is my excited face.) |
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| Berliner Dom |
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Before starting our walking tour... 4 hours through the snow/sleet,
just to learn about Berlin... |
