Berlin – Day Three

First we wanted to go to an American restaurant near by that is supposed to serve amazing food and is rated no. 4 in Berlin by customer reviews so we couldn’t go wrong. We took the walk, found the place, the sign said it was open but no one was inside. We were starving by now so we weren’t going to wait around and just found a nice little restaurant across the street. The food was awesome! We had a chicken salad to share and we each ordered pasta, mine was a chanterelle pasta and Rhys’s was a chicken Ragout. Very hearty and just what we needed on a cloudy chilly day. We had to get dessert too since the food was so good, we got Creme Brulee and the chocolate mousse! Yum!

We wrote a list of all the things we wanted to accomplish today that were achievable with our time. We wanted to go to one of the gardens around Berlin, go up the TV tower, visit the jewish memorial, see the Reichstag building and go to Potsdamer Platz square then our plan was to then go back to the hotel for a rest, get some dinner and then try again at this club we tried to find last night because with a little research we found we were standing right next to it but it wasn’t open yet because their doors open at 11.30 and close at 10am the next day!

After lunch we caught the metro to Alexanderplatz to go to the TV tower. We went in and the tickets were booked until 5.30 at night so we bought these and figured we would have a walk around the area until it was time to go up the tower. Time moved by quickly and after watching a homeless man dancing on the street to a group drum performance and doing a bit of shopping, it was time to go up the tower. You would think the world was ending the way people were rushing and pushing through to get to the turnstiles to get to the lifts. The panic in their faces. It made Rhys and I laugh but seriously I worry for these people if something does happen because it would create complete chaos haha!

Anything you pay for and line up for has to be very good or I will be uninterested. We got to the top of the tower, there was a view of Berlin but there were so many people in my way! We spent a really long time waiting to get up the tower and left after walking around it very quickly once! haha plus we had a lot to do today!

Next we headed to Potsdamer Platz because this is the center Rhys wanted to see and it is very close to the Jewish memorial and the Reichstag. We chilled out on the grass for a while and then we walked along to the memorial.

The monument was beautiful but there were people running around, jumping on it and using as a playground. I really hope they just didn’t know it was a memorial to the lives that were lost because if they did know and were doing it, then they are just stupid people. We got some photos, in and amongst it and walked around. I didn’t realise there was actually an underground information centre. When I did my own research later I came across it on the web and I am really sad that we didn’t go but we will be going to Dachau hopefully in Munich so that makes up for it. The design of the memorial alone was very impressive though.

Next we headed along to Teirgarten had a look then onto Reichstag. Very cool to see the old and new architecture together in one building.

We walked toward the metro to go back to our hotel and as we walked we spotted tents and lights everywhere, an outdoor bar and restaurant so we thought we would take a closer look. We had stumbled across “Cabaret” the musical. Set up in extravagant tents like the Moulin Rouge. We flipped a coin which made the decision to go see the show.

It was fantastic! I wasn’t sure I would like it because I was so tired and it was in German so I wasnt sure If I would be able to follow it but I could and I was very impressed with the performance! We got some dinner at half time too, a yummy chicken dish and we ordered a baked cheese to snack on during the show, DELICIOUS!

By the time the show finished it was pretty late and the club we wanted to go to would have been open so we decided to skip the rest and go straight there since we know we are lazy and wouldn’t head back out if we made the trip back. We caught a bus to the metro, on our walk to the bus stop we somehow ended up in the cultural centre haha but soon we were on the bus and at the train station.

The metro ride was interesting. The metro may as well have been a club because everyone was drinking alcohol and train officials didn’t care so the laws are again very different to ours at home!

When we got to Panorama bar .. or more also known as Berghain, the lines were huge, the music was pumping. We lined up for a while and there were a group in front of us raving on about how excited they were to be going to the “best club in the world”. When they got to the front of the line, like many others they were told they weren’t allowed in, with no reason. You didn’t wanna mess with the guys at the door Tattooed faces, tough looking blokes! Rhys and I stood at the front of the line and waited a good minute but it felt like an eternity. We had just seen him reject plenty others in the line just because they didn’t like the look of them and this guy looked us up and down, he was probably keeping us there to make us sweat.

We didn’t really care if we didn’t get in… Bed seemed like a better idea at this point anyway haha but this attitude must have helped because he let us through. We got searched, paid our entry and went in. This place is crazy. Amazing lighting and you could feel the music pulsing through your body harder than any heartbeat. It is in a power station so it is grungy, dark and moody. The people in there looked pretty dodgy but I think they pick a grungier crew anyway. We went to the bar to get a drink and look up to see the beautiful artwork … I am not kidding when I tell you there was a huge lifelike painting of a mans anus on the wall, I guess thats what it takes to be the “best club in the world” haha

The lighting effects were incredible, the music in the top bar was great but the central area music for me was like something from a nightmare and honestly I didn’t feel right being in here. I had taken a couple camera pics and I was told off, but after reading online I was lucky, some people literally get dragged violently down the stairs and are kicked out for doing this. It was pretty quiet while we were there so we didn’t get to experience it at its best we have read some pretty epic reviews, but it wasn’t my scene. I am grateful we got to see it and it was definitely worth a look but it wouldn’t have gotten busy till about 4 in the morning and we weren’t going to hang around for that.

After reading more reviews online though I am glad we didn’t stay too long. If you want to hear more about it, google it… there are lots of crazy facts about this place but I will leave it to you to read 🙂

We headed back and were in bed at 3am … I looked at our train tickets because I didn’t know what time we were meant to leave. Tomorrow our train leaves at 9:30 which means a 7:30 wakeup … URGHHHH must sleep! haha Tomorrow off to Munich, our plans? beer halls or tents and a little look into the history! See you in Munich

E