Bye, Bye Berlin.

Over the past two weeks, I have made friends with 20 people. Nineteen of them, I had a hard time saying goodbye to this morning as they were leaving the hotel and heading to the airport. The other one, Shannen, will be accompanying me to London, where we will spend a week, so I wont have to say goodbye until we land in Miami airport on June 6th.  We have all shared an experience that we will remember for the rest of our lives. 

(Professor Freeman took the photo)

This trip was definitely an experience. I tried foods that I couldn't pronounce, took public transportation by myself, learned a small German vocabulary, made great friends and opened my mind a little more. 

Goodbye, Berlin. It's been an experience. I can't wait to visit again. 

Subways, Trams and Metros.

In Gainesville, I have no problem navigating around the city on an RTS Bus. Put me on a U-Bahn, S-Bahn or Tram in Berlin and I'm lost. 

The mix of foreign language barriers and a lot of colorful lines on a Bahn map make for a pretty confused Lauren. Not to mention, the thought of getting lost, alone, in a foreign city in Germany completely terrifies me. So, I have always traveled in a group. 

Keeping this in mind, I'm proud to report that on my last day in Berlin I took an S-Bahn two stops away from Alexanderplatz all by myself. I asked three people to reassure my route-plan and I made it to the East Side Gallery, my favorite spot in Berlin, and enjoyed a walk up and down the Berlin Wall. 

I don't know if it is the history, the art, or the interesting groups of tourists that make it so enjoyable. Maybe it is the mixture of all of them together. 

A classy 21st birthday in a department store in Berlin?

I've met a lot of sweet people in my lifetime thus far, but Emilie Shinskie is probably the sweetest person that I've ever met. 

Her 21st birthday was on Monday of this past week, and all she wanted was to buy flowers and find someplace in Berlin that serves dessert and wine. 

I've never been to a 21st birthday outing, so this was a first for me to begin with, but it will definitely go down as classy. A group of us went to KaDeWe in Berlin, I'm told that it is the largest department store in Europe. You may need a GPS to navigate your way around this place. 

We took a glass elevator to the 6th floor of the seven-story building. We bought cakes and pastries from a parisian dessert stand and wine from another. It was a lovely time all around. Definitely classy. Definitely memorable. How many people can say they spent their 21st in the largest department store in Europe? 

Happy Birthday Emilie! 

Wan Tan Soup and Norah Jones.

I wouldn't say that I'm a picky eater, but I know what I like. So, coming to Berlin, going to a biergarten and trying to order something that sounds appetizing is definitely a stressful experience.

So after trying a never ending series of "____wursts," I resorted to eating pizza, pasta, chicken and other comfort foods that are cooked in America.

As one of our paid group dinners, we went to a place just a brisk walk away from our hotel that serves meanVietnamese cuisine. I've ate there a total of three times in the past seven days. The wan tan soup is to die for and they really like "Don't know why" by Norah Jones because it played on repeat all three times I went.

If you are ever in Berlin, stop by. I think the wan tan soup is reason enough to come back to Berlin.

Thoughts on Berlin

       On a packed bus ride from Tegel Airport to my hotel I remember thinking, "Wow, this is definitely not what I pictured on my 10 hour journey to Germany." I pictured the possibility of passing Brandenburg Gate, the Berliner Dome, or the TV Tower during my ride. Instead, I saw graffiti, graffiti and more graffiti.  

      Over the past week, I have figured out that Berlin isn't the typical cookie-cutter city. Businesses open at 11 a.m., art is everywhere and Germans aren't as talkative on public transportation. It is relatively cheap, very large and has a good mixture of history and modern innovation. Men proudly wear pink, dogs walk around without leashes while healing next to their owners, the streets are fairly quiet and most speak English almost as good as they speak German. 

Berlin, so far, hasn't been anything like I originally expected. I think to fully "get Berlin" it requires an open mind and relaxed expectations. Berlin has definitely exceeded my expatiations, I will never look at the world in the same way.