Last year I’ve done a sensational trip to Germany. In this post I want to share with you 4 lessons I learnt and why I want to go back. Welcome to Berlin.

So I was in Berlin for the first time in my life some time ago when we were allowed to travel. I must confess I was gladly impressed by the city and even though we all think about history here, it’s not just that. We spent 5 days discovering this stunning place. On the other hand, we stayed in Mitte District, close to the city centre in a hotel that had a bit of hipster vibe.

We did pretty much the majority of the “to-do” attractions (including museums, top squares and hidden passages) and we even watched the Champions League Final (Bayern Munich vs PSG) with locals.

But let’s park that conversation for another time because I want to share the 4 lessons I learnt in Berlin that can hopefully be useful if you plan to travel.

Before I forget, I’ve also made a video about this in case you want to check:

1. Dating History. When people talk about German history, it’s inevitable the discussion shifts to WWII and the Holocaust; however, there’s so much more to it than that. There’s the West and East Germany period from the blockade and airlift, the uprising, the Berlin Wall, student movements, the reunification, the capital discussions and so on. I tried to visit different museums, monuments and memorials as this was certainly an interesting way for me to understand the history a bit better.

I think that we all have a lot to learn from Berlin. Somebody said that Wall’s in people’s heads are sometimes more durable than walls made of concrete blocks (Willy Brandt, Erinnerungen). And I feel this is true not just when thinking of Berlin’s history but our own countries too.

2. Beer & Sausage? We live in the past!. Guys, there’s so many vegetarian and vegan places these days in Berlin. Like it’s just unbelievable. It blew my mind. And being vegetarian, I must confess I was impressed. There was one place we really enjoyed and one that we couldn’t go but that’s one of the reasons we want to go back!

Wine and Coffee are also really big things. In fact, I enjoyed 10 places for coffee and made a review here. I enjoyed a lot a place called Die Espressonisten (sorry for my bad German). Wow! Amazing coffee by the Air Service Berlin Welt balloon. I enjoyed a blend called Hafensilber (Arabica 70 / 30 Robusta). They had over 3 grinders and state of the art machines and some great baristas. The place was like being truly in a coffee museum.

And to close the food chapter, if we are into ice cream, then there’s a place called CANAL… it’s a tiny shop that can easily be overlooked but wow! Home made, unconventional flavours and even vegan options. Like this place can compete with any ice cream shop in the world.

3. The Power of Silence. During the time of the Berlin Wall people in East Germany were scared into silence, never speaking their minds and not able to express themselves through their choice of art or music. But that didn’t stop people from expressing themselves underground. This is also the reason why we see a lot of street art and musicians these days. Music is the heartbeat of Berlin. They also have some amazing contemporary art galleries and if we look at the east side of the Berlin Wall, there’s inspiring murals dedicated to themes like freedom and democracy. If we think about it. Nothing can really stop people’s desire to express themselves. There’s always a way and Berlin is one compelling example.

4. Freedom is Gold. As I mentioned before, I explored the Berlin Wall history and I heard so many personal stories. One was in 1962, a 14-year-old boy named Winfried Tews (and once again sorry for my German). This kid ran for his life. Scrambling over the walls and jumping into a canal, desperation pushed him forward. Despite the dangerous situation, the people he was leaving behind, the East German border guards shooting at him — hitting their target 17 times, including in his lungs — this kid didn’t stop until he made it to the other side. The Western side of the Berlin Wall. He made it, badly injured, but he made it. We all have tough times in life… but how many comparable to this?

Final Thoughts

My lesson here was to value what I have — especially if I’m lucky enough to have freedom — as we never know what will happen tomorrow. Because while the Berlin Wall technically wasn’t built in a day, the oppressive wire perimeter that people woke up to without warning happened straight away.

No doubts, Berlin is a place to have a date with history. But there’s so much beyond that to do that even a week can be short. We didn’t really have a structured plan before going other than couple of museums, key squares and historical areas. We knew about the hipster vibe too. But that was it. As somebody mentioned, some of the best things that came to our lives have been unexpected and unplanned. Even though, I’m a massive planner, here I was happy I left my plans behind.

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