Berlin 02-20-2011

Well, I just spent five days in Berlin and I have to say it was pretty freaking great.  The point of going, was a conference put on by the center for International Cultural Diplomacy.  It was a series of lectures and panel discussions that spoke about the way art, music, film, and literature were and still are able to cross borders and allow connections regardless of political and legal barriers.

The conference itself was great. There were anywhere from four to seven speakers on each day and they were incredible speakers.  Several foreign ambassadors, founders of several non-profit art or cultural programs, world renowned professors…the list goes on and on.  It was a tremendous opportunity. 

The first night we were there we had a nice meal in the home of the former German ambassador to Turkey.  He and his wife (an accomplished artist) were phenomenal hosts and they served us a fantastic buffet style meal.  We ate, and then conversed at their home for several hours, not arriving back at our hotel until nearly 11:30. 

Out hotel was called Motel0ne.  It is an incredibly cool hotel chain.  I really think they might be the next big thing.  First off, let me say that this was a VERY nice hotel.  The conference was in some way affiliated with so we stayed there.  The lobby was beautifully lit with comfortable furnishings and a lot of people spent a significant time in the lobby just enjoying the soothing environment.  Our rooms were cool.  It was my first introduction to a multiple person room in Germany and I was a little surprised.  The beds were two twin sized beds with about 4 inches between them.  The room was small, but it worked out really well.

The really special thing about this hotel, it that is it incredibly energy efficient.  You have to put your hotel key into a fixture and then your lights turn on or anything else electrical.  When you take your key to leave the room, no electricity.  It’s fantastic.  I bet it saves them thousands every year.

Another nice thing (and also a bit strange) is the breakfast that is served in the lobby every morning.  There is your traditional choice of coffee, cereal, and bread with butter or jelly.  This one does not stop there.  It has meat and cheese trays (ham, Swiss, mild white cheese, turkey, and salami,) tomato and cucumber slices, and medium boiled eggs.  There is the choice of two different types of juice and five forms of coffee (I highly recommend the cappuccino,) and yogurt.  It is a really good breakfast, I just find salami, turkey, and dill flavored cream cheese a little strange at breakfast.

The second night we attended, the conference took us out to a very nice meal at a local Greek restaurant called Nikko's.  The food was very good.  It had already been preordered, and I was pretty impressed.  First they brought out thick crusty bread, then salads. In a large group, salads are not individually served. They consist of shredded lettuce, a few slices of tomato, a few slices of onion, a small handful of Greek olives (Mmmm,) shredded lettuce, kohl slaw (so much better here than back home,) and a creamy jogurt dressing that tastes similar to ranch, all on one large plate for everyone to eat from. 

After the salad they brought out rice and the first entrée, meat. The rice was cooked with paprika and was very good.  The meat platters consisted of kebab meat, thin pork chops, and goat/lamb meat in ground patties.  It was very delicious.  After the meat, the waiters delivered the second entrée; seafood.  Where we had gotten two large trays of meat for our entire group to select from, with seafood, it was just the one. It consisted of large patties of breaded baked fish, calamari rings, prawns, and large smoked sardines.  I took some prawns and a sardine.  I wanted to try something new.  It was delicious, but a very new experience.

As with any meal in a Greek restaurant, in Europe, it was followed by a shot of ouzo to cleanse the mouth.  Ouzo is a fairly strong, clear, licorice flavored alcohol that is used as a way of preparing the palate before eating and then cleansing it after.  I always feel slightly buzzed for about 20 minutes after the meal.  It works at what it does, but it’s also pretty strong.  Oddly enough, it is a complimentary and necessary thing.  It isn’t paid for and it is expected.

After dinner, Flor, Stephen, Sam and I went to a really fun Irish Pub with a live band (singing tons of American oldies and new faves too.)  It was a pretty chill night.  One thing I love about Europe is that I can order a cappuccino anywhere and they are cheap.  At one point, the band took a break and they were replaced by the radio.  I heard the first familiar beats of Tonight’s Gonna Be a Good Night, and then heard hollering.  We all looked towards the entrance and the Jagermeister crew was making an entrance.  According to the waitress, they visited the pub once a year so WOO HOO, lucky us. They gave out shots of Jager, had contests (one of which I won.  I had to spell Jagermeister faster than anyone else…go me,) best of all, they took photos which they gave to us so I have a few photos of my friends that I think are really fun.

Friday, I attended the lectures until noon and then Stephen, Sam, and I headed to East Berlin.  It was a really really great day. We took the trains through to the Haupbanhof (central station) and then walked to the Reichstag.  This is a really beautiful piece of architecture.  I was amazed.  It’s one of Berlin’s more important government buildings.  I must have take thirty pictures. What really blew me away was when I saw pictures of the damage that had been done to it during WWII. The renovations are amazing!  After the Reichstag, we headed to Brandenburg Square. Along the way we passed the memorial to fallen Russian soldiers.  From what I got through talking to Stephen and Sam, the memorial is a slap in the face to Germans, because the soldiers had fallen during the Soviet invasion of Germany and so it memorializes people who were invading and raping their women. 

Brandenburg Square is a cool place.  You enter it through a HUGE gate.  On top of the gate, is a huge statue of a man in a chariot with horses.    This was also where I got my first view of the television tower. 

We hoped a train from Brandenburg Square to Alenxanderplatz where we had every intention of eating lunch, finding me cheap new shoes (mine had inflicted horrible blisters,) going to The Wall, and seeing a few museums.  We ate, found me shoes, and went into St. Marien Church.  It was beautiful.  We headed back to the hotel after that because we were all tired and wanted to rest.

That night, six of us decided to hit the Berlin club scene.  Flor invited four friends, we met up and then headed out.  The first club we decided to go to was a 12th floor flat and evidently was pretty pricey.  We were all set to go and we arrived around 11:00 and it wasn’t open yet (par for the course in Europe.)  Our guide (a local friend of Flor’s) mentioned that it would be open in an hour so we hit a little bar right outside of the club and had a few drinks.  While we were waiting, it was decided that we would move it on to another club that sounded like a lot more fun and it was already open so we hoped a train and headed to Soda.

This club is pretty freaking awesome.  It is in an old factory building and has been reset up as a club with several bars on several floors, all with different music (though not that different) and identical prices (expensive…lol.)

There was a line to get in and we waited our turns.  I always feel weird presenting my ID in Germany because it’s an American ID, but they are pretty used to seeing them, and quite frankly, I don’t think they are really too worried about someone too young getting in as their scrutiny is minimal at best.  We got done with ID checks and went up to pay the 8 Euro cover and WOO HOO! Ladies night.  No cover and three free drinks! (all of them 2,50 and under, but free is free.)

Because it is cold here in Germany, you can’t go running off to the club with no coat or scarf, so you have to check your outerwear.  This process was fun.  We had to push our way through a long hallway and a huge room with a packed dance floor to get to the coat check room.  Once that was out of the way, it was onto the bar for a cheap drink and then to dance.

We all took a shot (turns out those were the only drinks 2,50 or under so I gave one away and took another shot later on.)  Then I decided I wanted to explore the huge labyrinth of multilayered bars and rooms.  I have to say that Soda didn’t disappoint as far as the European club scene goes.  I will be going to a gay club when I come back to Berlin in a few weeks.

The bar where we had our shots had the least people in it of all the bars I looked at, but it was also the one nearest the entrance and it was flipping cold outside.  It was hopping by the end of the night (haha…gaspnight…hahaha) but at 12:30AM, it was kind of dead.  The next space was the crowded hallway and then into the main club where the huge crowded dance floor was.  It was awesome!  All these people, music I knew (American and German music are really popular here so it is not uncommon to hear old and new American music mixed in with German music at bars, clubs and on the radio.)  I hung out there for a couple of songs; dancing and singing along at the top of my lungs and then went to the bar for water and moved on.

The next bar was lit bright red and playing Summer Nights from Grease. It was really cool to hear all the thick accents singing along and jamming out to American theatre music.  It made me think of all the times various friends of mine had sung it at karaoke and I had thought it so obsolete.  I was incredibly wrong.  I headed upstairs next. One bar I passed through was playing Black or White by MJ.  Another was playing Green Day.  One, on the very top floor, was a massive pool hall with big screen TVs projecting a soccer game.  I wanted so badly to play!  It was quiet (aside form ambient music from the bars below,) and the tables were really well taken care of.  I didn’t have a partner, so I didn’t play.  I just headed onto the next bar. 

 This bar was very small and I found most of my friends dancing and having a good time. The DJ was playing Tonight’s Gonna Be a Good Night by the Black Eyed Peas, and it definitely was a good night. That was where I took my last shot and spent the most time.  We all vacated that bar together and went in search of the rest of the group…namely Flor.  We found her on the main floor near the smoking patio. (Why they have it I will never figure out, because everyone smoked inside.)  She was talking to some guys about English and school.

Stephen, Sam, Zach, and Jacob wanted to head out because it was after 3 AM but Flor wanted to stay (she is a cute hyper little thing when she wants to be,) so I opted to stay with her and because we were both the only girls, Zach decided to stay with us as well.  (He is a very sweet guy.)  We hung out another hour before we decided to head back to the hotel also.  I must say that I am very proud of myself.  I was literally exhausted and I still managed (with Zach’s help) to get us on the right trains to get back to the hotel.  It was awesome.  We made it back at five.  Flor took a shower then I took one and by the time I fell asleep, it was 5:30 AM.  We slept until 11AM on Saturday.

Saturday, Flor and I headed to the conference.  I went to see if Stephen and Sam were still going with me to East Berlin to see the Berliner Dom and Flor because she was attending the day’s lectures.  They were going to go, so I was pretty happy!  We ate lunch with Zach and Eric then headed back to the hotel for a half hour break and then left for Alexanderplatz.  The Berliner Dom is a beautiful old church.  I took a zillion photos.  I can’t even describe how awesome this place is.  There was an incredible amount of art everywhere just aside from the fact that the building itself is a masterpiece.  Every arched doorway was decorated with relief sculpture on every surface.  Gilt work was done on several pieces.  I was in awe of the work done in the central apse (which I know is the wrong word, but I can’t think of the right one.)  It was literally breathtaking.

The thing about all these incredible buildings in Germany, is that most were damaged in a profound way during the world wars.  The work done to restore them is as noteworthy as the initial construction.  It hurts my heart to think of how horrifying it would be to see them damaged.

Aside from being monumentally gorgeous, the Berliner Dom has a crypt with several royal families in it.  Some of the sarcophagi are incredibly intricate and others very simple, but there were easily forty or fifty of them, many of them royal children.  It was very sad and very moving to be there.  Stephen made the comment that he was surprised that so many were still in good condition or still there considering the wars they had survived.  Sam pointed out in reply that many were damaged or missing the crowns and crests.

Saturday night was the closing of our adventures in Berlin, but it was a beautiful ending.  As part of the conference, we were given a ticket each to see the film Under the Hawthorn Tree, at the Berlinale Film Festival.  I loved this film.  I don’t think I have loved a movie this much in years.  It was beautiful. It takes place in China during the years when Mao was re-educating the young people. It’s based on the book with the same title.  God, it was so beautifully done, there is no surprise that it was chosen to be shown at the festival.

Today, we headed home.  I can’t believe that I am so tired, but it was an amazing five days.  I walked into my room with my luggage and found that Jutta had neatened it up, washed the bedding, bought my children little Easter bags with candy in them, and bought me beautiful pink tulips.  I almost cried.  I am so grateful for everything and everyone who brought me here.  Sometimes I feel so lonely, but I am really very blessed to be where I am and to be experiencing what I am experiencing.

Right now, I am eating the last bite of a cake Klaus made and then I am off to bed.  This will probably be hands down the longest blog I have written.