Last week I spent four days trolling the streets of Berlin. I suppose now that I’m back I can use “trolling” with confidence as it definitely doesn’t feel like a city around which one would saunter or stroll. It’s too gritty and urbanized for that kind of casual pedestrian action. Perhaps that’s what made the trip so exhausting. But, exhausting in a good way. Each day I would head out into the city at around 9:30 or 10 and arrive back by 6:30 or so. That’s a long day of cruising the streets, stately memorials, and countless restaurants and bars. I pounded the pavement hard, but it was certainly enjoyable.
What I liked so much about it was its complete oppositional atmosphere from that of Bern. The cities, despite almost identical names, could not be more different. So much energy and emotion. A far cry of from the near-sterile environment of Switzerland’s capital city. I only took my camera out on two of the four days so I don’t have a tremendous amount to share but I did want to contribute my own impressions of the East Side Gallery and some of the more recognizable monuments surrounding Tierpark, which I will put up tomorrow (maybe?). Sadly, I don’t have any pictures of my most moving experience, had at the Berlin Monument to the Murdered Jews of Europe, but I suppose that’s just as well given the solemnity of the memorial. Here are a few of my impressions from my first day in the city:
