First, I realize (now that I’m in Europe, do I type “realise“?) that this is several days late. I promise to post more often. Not an excuse (okay, it’s an excuse), but the jet lag has hit pretty hard. It’s always worse going west to east and I’ve stopped in three different timezones. So that’s the reason (and I’m sticking to it).
Anyway, I started out last Friday evening from JFK and arrived Saturday evening in Berlin. For those of you who know me, I travel light. As in one carryon light. Even when traveling for months at a time. So to have to travel to Berlin with a carryon and two checked bags was a foreign and slightly unpleasant experience. But I figured it would be a straight train ride on the Airport Express to the Hauptbahnhof, with the hotel being less than a five minute walk. So relatively painless. Well, best laid plans. Turns out there was track work which meant changing trains to a more local S-Bahn.
So I got to the hotel, which was a decent size compared to most European hotels. With nowhere to really go, I hit the hotel bar lounge for the first of what will be many German beers:
And the first of what will not be many currywursts:
I’m not sure what it is about currywurst that makes it the staple of Berlin. Not that it’s bad. It’s just not that great. Now, Nuremberg sausages are another story! But compared to Philly and its cheesesteaks or New York and its pizza for unhealthy, iconic food, currywurst just doesn’t do it for me.
My first full day was Sunday. Sunday in Berlin is quiet, with stores closed and people staying home. So it was actually a great time to walk around without dodging a lot of crowds and bikes. The weather was just about perfect – 70 degrees (21 degrees celsius – and this will be harder than remembering to change the “z” to an “s”.).
While the hotel was nice, it would still be one more day before the first apartment.
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