Jon's Second Trip to Berlin

I've always been a fan of introducing people to new places and lands and in Jon, I have found the perfect travel buddy. He loves to experience new things, is eager to learn about foreign cultures, is an active listener for my traveling stories and asks inquisitive questions. Because so many people ask us about our trips, I decided to make this a travel-blog entry about Jon's second trip to Berlin. We encourage you to try any and all of our suggestions when you come visit Berlin: The lively and vibrant city I now call home :)

Day 1:

Jon flew Wow Air to Berlin. If you want to travel at a low fare and look forward to layover in Iceland that offers you enough time to do some sight-seeing, this will be your best option. Wow Air offers round trip flights from any of their locations in the USA to Berlin for $400-$800.
After a long day of travel, we think its best to relax at the nude spa Vabali in walking distance of Berlin's main train station, the Hauptbahnhof.

Day 2/3:

If you love food, you are in for a treat in Berlin! On Zossener Straße in the Bergmann Kiez, you will find anything your curious taste desires. Today, we decided on Sushi at Sushi Cube. During the summer, it's also a great idea to try out one of the many open-air movie theaters. We went to "Freiluftkino Rehberge" and gave the location 5 out of 5 stars. In the middle of the forest, you grab a blanket, get your popcorn and ice cream from the concession stand and enjoy a quality movie under the stars!

Day 4

If you have always wanted to have a professional photo shoot but never found a good place to do it - Berlin has some great options for you. If you search on Groupon, you will be able to find great deals. We decided on a 2-3 hour photo shoot with Studio Zwo. We watched our photographer edit the photos in front of our eyes and were able to take the pictures home right away. Can you believe I wasn't wearing make-up? Post production these days is crazy impressive! The photographer actually added make-up during the edits. Afterwards, we went to Krumme Lanke to chill on the grass beach of the idyllic lake "Schlachtensee" with lots of locals and rented paddle boards for one hour. We'd advise you to reserve a board online because it can get quite crowded! At night, we went for a stroll through Kreuzberg, Jon's favorite district of Berlin. It's full of young entrepreneurs, backpackers and hippy party animals. We passed by lots of people sitting on the curb, drinking their beer and shooting the breeze. We decided to stop at Wonder Waffel - a waffle and ice cream shop that will make your "sweetest dreams" come true while you listen to enticing Arabic music! 😊

Day 5

We took a day-trip to Hamburg to meet up with my family and friends. There, we first took a boat trip along the Alster (you can take the ferries to "Finkenwerder" or to the musical theater across the river for no additional charge with your city ticket and you still get a good impression and beautiful views of the city). Then we went to the loft apartment of one of my good friends for coffee and later strolled around a beautiful small lake called the "Weiher". Here Jon and my dad skipped stones across the water and we all enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere of people walking their dogs and children playing on the swings. The best way to travel to and from Hamburg for two people on a weekend is the Weekend-Ticket with the German railway system - we paid $60 for two people round trip!

Day 6

After a healthy home-made breakfast, we went to one of the many Sunday outdoor flea markets. At Boxhagener Platz, you find a colorful mix of vendors, street musicians and children playing on large adventure playgrounds. Afterwards, we had coffee with some friends at an authentic hole-in the-wall coffee shop: Kaffeebar. Later on, we made our way past some of the clever streets which Berlin is famous for and then danced to the electronic tunes of a DJ at Ipse, a place that lots of Berliners love for their daytime parties. We closed off the day at Holzmarkt, a very hip hangout to watch the sunset over the Spree river. Here we enjoyed sitting on benches made out of wood pallets, surrounded by many unique wooden sculptures. We were hungry since we had been biking to all these places and bought ourselves some drinks and organic burgers from one of the wooden stores. A perfect way to end the day!

Day 7/8

On Monday, we went to Nin Hao, an authentic Chinese restaurant in the district of Charlottenburg, Berlin. In addition to meeting more of my friends, Jon was also introduced to many strange-looking raw sea creatures, which we collectively boiled in communal hot pots in the center of our tables. On Tuesday, we spent way too many hours (and money) in one of my favorite clothing stores: Chapati. Jon is rocking their outfits - maybe they will pay him as their model someday ;) After that, I took him to meet my cat Kenny, who I brought with me from the U.S. in 2010. These days, Kenny lives with my former roommate and his family. Kenny the sweetest and most tolerant cat and thus the perfect cat for kids to grow up with. During this visit, we even played on one of the adventure playgrounds that are meant for kids... hmm... hmm... cough... cough.... It was really fun!

Day 9

On our way to the Prinzenbad, a hustling and bustling open air swimming pool in the heart of Kreuzberg, we passed many cute cafes, funky looking houses and impressive church buildings. We got to peek in to the Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche (Church of the Holy Cross) and even to go up to the top. Too bad, Jon was already gone when they had a gospel choir concert the following weekend!

After playing in the water and sun bathing for a couple of hours, we took a stroll along the Landwehr Canal toward the Admiralbrücke where we watched lots of people sit by the river drinking their “Feierabendbier” (after work beer). There we saw numerous couples laying in the grass as they listened to the street musicians celebrate as they offered up their art form free of charge! For dinner, we chose Kimchi Princess, a very hip Korean restaurant serving delicious street food in an authentic atmosphere.

Day 10

We love “Klunkerkranich”! This is the hidden rooftop bar in the district of Neukölln. It offers you an amazing view over the city, organic food and “Kraftmalz” (a delicious alcohol free beer option). At night, this place turns into a stage for young musicians, circus artists and electro DJs. But we had different plans for the sunset. We biked to the Monbijoux Park in the district of Mitte, where they offer a variety of affordable drop-in dance lessons (Lindy Hop, Argentine Tango, Ballroom, Salsa, etc ...) in front of the historic backdrop: the Bode Museum. If you need to unleash some extra power, you could also exercise in the well maintained free work-out area right behind the little avantgarde theater at Monbijoux Park, where lots of circus actors train before their shows.

Day 11

Time flies... just like the giant bubbles Jon and I made just before he had to take the train to the airport. Giant bubbles are a great way to make new friends (young and old!) in public parks because they are simply the best ice breakers and conversation starters. You should try it yourself sometime 😉