The title of this post is from Eurotrip, a movie I’m embarrassed to admit I own and have watched many, many times over. (I know all the lyrics to Scotty Doesn’t Know. Sometimes I really disappoint myself).

Anyhow, after a lovely five day stay in Madrid, S and I embarked to Berlin together. Several small mishaps occurred on our journey. On the way to the airport we A) rode the Metro the wrong way, B) realized we had booked a hostel for only one person, and C) were informed by EasyJet that we are allowed one carryon per person–purse included. On our way from the airport we A) missed the bus stop for the Metro, B) walked the perimeter of our hostel’s block approximately twelve times failing to find any markers indicating street names, and C) realized that instead of an hour and a half-long trip with several transfers, we could have taken an express shuttle to the airport in 22 minutes. Oops.

Luckily, our trip more than made up for our complications getting there. We stayed at St.Christopher’s, a super-fun hostel run by a group of young Australian dudes. I hadn’t stayed in a hostel for three years, since I had studied abroad in college, and don’t know if I ever will again. The way I see it, if I can treat myself to $12 organic pressed juices, I can certainly treat myself to a bed that is not bunked in a room full of foreign strangers that do not appreciate my blasting Ke$ha while getting ready and feel the need to snore loudly during my siesta hour. That being said, St. Christopher’s was definitely a giant step up from some of the hostels I had met when studying abroad–it did not smell like any particular bodily fluids, graphic anti-abortion posters didn’t hang from the walls, and I didn’t feel the need to sleep with my passport in my Hanky Pankies (for those curious, these were indeed all attributes of hostels I had stayed in in the past). Most importantly, the staff were a blast–they not only told us where to go for sightseeing and food, but also accompanied us out at night and served us more than our 3nights room rate’s worth of Jagermeister shots on the house.

Berlin was an unbelievable city–I had truly never been anywhere like it before. The whole city was considerably cooler than me–ridiculously gritty, full of art and music, and partying till the wee hours of the morning.

Highlights included:

[Street Art in East Berlin]

[Pumpkin ravioli  for lunch at Luch’s Restaurant. This was probably the most well deserved meal I have ever eaten, consumed after arriving at our hostel at 2AM, having a “dinner” of corn flakes and Jager, and going out dancing with hostel staff until klub klosing hours]

[Stumbling upon installations like this in residential areas]

[The Holocaust Memorial in the city center.  On Saturday morning, we did a four hour walking tour of the city with New Berlin Tours. This was by far my favorite part of the trip–our tour guide was ridiculously smart and captivating, and  I learned so much from him. (It helped that he was British and had adorable British swoopy hair and a scintillating British chuckle). The tour took us all around Berlin, but the eerily beautiful Holocaust memorial was one of my favorite stops–it consists of a football field of stone slabs ranging in height from 6 inches to 20 feet, and one feels unsettlingly lost trying to navigate it]

[The only picture S and I got together during the trip. It was cold. I wore my best Soviet head gear. Isn’t S’s hat cute? When I try to wear a hat, I end up looking like a special needs patient. I have a really small head, and my hair gets super static-y, creating a pleasant “crazy halo” effect. I envy your average sized skull, S]

[Cool because this is not an actual drugstore, rather the bar area of a club called Rosi’s, located in an abandoned warehouse full of old furniture and strobe lights. The other club we went to was in an old WW II bunker underground. Berlin’s nightlife is really strange and awesome]

[A snapshot of the East Side Gallery of the Berlin Wall–1.3 km of art painted on the infamous structure, a definite must-see]

[View from the Christmas Market! Last Saturday was the first day of Christmas season, which, in Germany, means small enclosed markets full of every type of accessory and culinary treat one can desire, and vendors selling glugwein (hot mulled wine with cinnamon), cheesy pretzels, and spicy sausage, while the score from The Nutcracker plays plays from a live band. Needless to say, this was heavenly]

[S with the spiced sausage. She will be extremely pleased that this picture is on the internet]

I think I’ll end my musings on our Eurotrip with that lovely picture. For those of you bored with hearing of my travels, don’t fret–back to Fetch Fridays tomorrow, with a special giveaway for one lucky reader!

Danke Danke Danke!