(Part 1) Northeast Germany: Rollin' in Berlin

- December 16, 2018, Sunday.

- Germany has sparked my curiosity since one of my late maternal uncles would always tell us about the country when my sister and I were still small. He knew how to speak German, although I know that he did not have the opportunity to go to Germany. In the recent years, I realized that as someone who is not too inclined to Western history and culture, I knew nothing more about Germany than an ordinary chap - beer, sausages, lederhosens (leather pants with suspenders, which are not worn all over Germany!), Hitler and Nazism, the Berlin Wall, Angela Merkel, and the difficulty of the German language despite its close relation to English in the language family tree. While I knew that these things do represent Germany in some way, my encounters with German friends and students did give me the impression that the country was surely far more colorful than what most people think of the country and its people - cold, serious, and stern. Thankfully, I finally had the opportunity to discover Germany and neighboring Austria with my own two eyes over the Christmas holidays.

- Since my trip's route was from north to south, I started with Germany's capital, Berlin. Germany is part of the Schengen agreement, so those who will need a visa to enter Germany must get a Schengen visa or must have a valid Schengen visa; one can travel to and from the Schengen countries without or with minimal border controls. From Manila, the easiest way to go to Berlin would be flying with Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airways, or KLM. All of these land at the Berlin Tegel Airport, situated in the northwest of the city, and is one of the two main airports of Berlin. The other airport, Berlin Schönefeld Airport, is located at the southeast. In the near future however, the Berlin Brandenburg Airport, located beside Schönefeld Airport and still under construction, may open and will serve as the single international airport of Berlin. From Tegel, there are buses right outside the airport that will take people to the city center. Short-term visitors like tourists can get multiple-day tickets that can be used in all forms of public transportation. Those staying only within Berlin can buy a Zone A ticket, while those who wish to go outside the city city but still within the scope of the Berlin metro system may buy a zone AB or ABC ticket. I bought an ABC ticket since I planned to visit Potsdam on another day, which is located in Zone C.

- From the airport I rode the bus all the way to Alexanderplatz, which used to be a cattle market in the 1700s that after centuries, turned into one of Berlin's transportation hubs. My hostel, Wombat Hostel Berlin, is located around a 10-15 minute walk from Alexanderplatz. Alexanderplatz can be reached via the U-Bahn or S-Bahn (Alexanderplatz Station); the S-Bahn (suburbian) and the U-Bahn (underground) are the two connected train networks of Berlin. Today, apart from being one of Berlin's transportation hubs, it is also recognizable for the Fernsehturm, a TV tower built in the 1960s and currently the tallest structure in Germany, and the third tallest in Europe.

Saw the Fernsehturm as I was walking towards Alexanderplatz. 

Fresh from the airport, and right after leaving my stuff at the hostel. Hello Berlin, finally!!

- As with most big squares and public spaces in Europe during the Christmas season, it was not a surprise that Alexanderplatz was one of the places Berlin that turned itself into a Christmas market. Christmas markets in Europe normally sell Christmas ornaments, souvenirs, food, and other handicrafts. Speaking of shopping, Germany is usually shut down during Sundays, which means that stores and restaurants are usually closed or opened for a shorter time during Sundays. Tourist sites, however, are usually open (of course as a rule of thumb, always check the opening hours and dates of wherever it is that you wish to go.)

I was happy to see this Christmas market, but I eventually got tired of Christmas markets as the days went by since I'd usually pass by one or more Christmas markets per day. 

- Within the area, one can find the Marienkirche or St. Mary's Church. It is one of the oldest churches in Berlin, being built in the earl 1200s or perhaps before; the exact year is still being debated. Unfortunately, I was not able to enter the church since there was a service going on. After taking photos, I just spent the next few minutes going around the Christmas market; the market gave a happy and cozy ambiance despite the almost zero degree Celcius temperature with occasional harsh winds. Also, aross the church, one can find the city hall of Berlin, or Rotes Rathaus.

St. Mary's Church.

The Neptunbrunnen or Neptune Fountain, surrounded by an ice-skating rink. Poor Neptune.

Rotes Rathaus, Berlin's city hall. It was built in the mid-1800s.

The Altes Stadthaus, or old city hall, behind the Rotes Rathaus. 

- Beside the city hall, walking towards the river called the Spree, visitors can go through old narrow streets with souvenir stores and cafes, and find themselves near or around the St. Nicholas Church' or Nikolaikirche. It is so far the oldest church in Berlin, unless anyone can prove that the St. Mary's Church was built earlier. Its two pointed roofs make it an iconic mediaeval German landmark. The church is quite small inside, and personally, I thought that its facade looks better than its interiors.

Two pointy roofs.

It looked like a "regular church" inside, though still nice.

Found these four outside the church.

Panorama.

- My highlight for the day was visiting the Museum Island, which is right across the bridge near Alexanderplatz. Although I walked there from Alexanderplatz, people can also reach Museum Island through the Friedrichstrasse U-Bahn station. Museum Island, as its name suggests, is an island in the middle of the Spree with some of Berlin's most prominent museums are located. Visitors are welcomed to the Museum Island with the majestic 15th-century Berliner Dom or the Berlin Cathedral, which, unfortunately was closed when I went, and the Berlin Palace which is currently under renovation.

The Berliner Dom from the side.

From the front.

- Among all the museums, I chose to go to three main ones: the Pergamon Museum, the Altes Museum, and the Neues Museum. The Pergamon Museum, finished in 1930 and located at the northern side of Museum Island, was my priority mainly because of its larger-than-life exhibits, such as reconstructed facades of big structures around the world. I have always wanted to see the Ishtar Gate from Babylon, originally built during the time of King Nebuchadnezzar II (around 6th century BCE). A loose adaptation of this gate can be found in Hollywood, Los Angeles (click here to see.) Other mega structures there include the Market Gate of Miletus from 2nd-century AD  Anatolia, and the 8th-century AD Mshatta Facade from Ummayad-Era Jordan. It still baffles me how the Germans were able to transport all these things all the way to Germany!!

There's that beauty - the Ishtar Gate!!

See the details??

Beside it is yet another replica of the Code of Hammurabi.

How it looked like in ancient Babylonia.

Cuneiform.

The Market Gate of Miletus.

Was looking at the walls for a good 10-15 minutes thinking they were cuneiforn, until I realized that they were just regular cracks.

Mshatta Facade.

- In front of the Pergamon Museum is the Neues Museum (New Museum,) built in the mid-1800s. The most important artifact in this museum is Nefertiti's bust, normally seen in encyclopedias or textbooks. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed in the gallery where the bust is. However, there are other important artifacts there too, such as the Berlin Golden Hat, which is a golden Bronze-Age hat that probably was some kind of ancient calendar.

The Berlin Golden Hat.

Moose skeleton. (It's larger than it looks!!)

Torture devices.

Roman-era Etruscan jewelry.

Egyptian gallery.

Amenhotep I.

I love all the colors here, just think how colorful ancient Egypt was!!

- Finally, I visited the Altes Museum (Old Museum,) built in the 1800s, which has a number of galleries on Greek art. I also forgot to mention that visitors can avail combination tickets to skip the line in the other museums. I lined up at the Pergamon museum, got a combination ticket which also served as my ticket to the Neues and Altes Museums. (In hindsight, I could have bought a ticket from another museum so I did not have to line up at the Pergamon Museum since most people would rush to the Pergamon Museum first.) 

Greek, Greek, and more Greek.

Greek jars.

A random Hindu statue in the middle of nowhere, it was a special exhibit. This one is Vishnu's statue.

I wish I could always just sit back and relax.

Pigs!!

- I ended my first day in chilly Berlin quite happy with some of the items I ticked off my travel bucket list. I had a quiet walk back to my hostel after a simple dinner at Alexanderplatz, as most stores were closed for the day. The night was too young, but coming straight from a long flight from Manila to Berlin, rest was all I needed that night. After all, I needed to recharge for more jam packed adventures ahead!!

- Please don't forget to read about my other adventures in Germany, Austria, and Slovakia here:

GERMANY:

Berlin and Potsdam: Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here

Munich and Schwangau: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here

AUSTRIA:

Salzburg: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here

Vienna: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here

SLOVAKIA:

Bratislava: Click here