Destination: Berlin, Germany

– 15 Hours in Berlin – 

Devin and I had a fifteen hour layover in Berlin on our way home from Italy, this would normally be something I dreaded, but I was actually quite looking forward to playing tourist one last time, in one last destination, before ending our honeymoon.

After checking in and dropping our bags at the Mercure Hotel connected to the airport, we grabbed a cab and headed towards the Berlin Wall Memorial. But there was one small problem, our taxi driver had no idea what memorial/museum we were talking about, and without an international phone plan and wifi, we had no idea where it was located or how to get there, so we ended up at the East Side Gallery.

We were planning on going there later in the evening since it’s outside and never closes, but you just gotta go with it sometimes. As we strolled along the remaining part of the Berlin Wall, which is now covered in art and, graffiti, we nibbled on currywurst stopping to  take photos in front of some of our favorite pieces.

Next we headed to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. This again is a free, outdoor exhibit, of concrete slabs in varying heights lined up in orderly rows. As you walk along the slabs, the ground slopes downhill, and you end up standing amongst 15ft tall walls of concrete. It was a really eerie feeling, especially since we were there at night, in the pitch black.

The very last thing we did before heading back to the hotel was stop at Augustiner am Gendarmenmarkt for the authentic German biergarten experience. We order huge steins of beer, pretzels, sausages and pork knuckle, and it was all delicious!

  First thing the next morning we were back at the airport boarding our flight back to the US. It was only 15 hours but we had a great time in Berlin, and have vowed to go back to Germany in the future.

That’s my story,

xoxo, andrea