I am not afraid to admit that I get tired easily. Especially after a lack of proper sleep and jet lag from Malaysia to Berlin. Nonetheless I was able to successfully meet up with Jono, check into our hotel and make it out to see a few things.

Here is a list of we got up to on our three day trip to Berlin! Keep in mind that we definitively took it chill for our first day after our long day of travelling. Most other days also only had one to two main attractions for the day which made it easy to have much needed down time.

We stayed at Select Hotel near Checkpoint Charlie which ended up being very conveniently close by to most attractions. Everywhere was accessible by the U-bahn or by walking.

Day 1 – Main Attractions by Foot

What to eat

Mustafa’s Kebabs

The first thing we both needed was food! And where better to go than to get a classic kebab from the famous Mustafa’s Gemuse Kebap (there’s a line – it’s that famous).

We also tried my first Curry Wurst – it definitely tasted like a sausage with curry so no surprises there. But it was doused in a lot of tomato sauce. Not sure if it lived up to expectations.

Dinner was at another sausage wurst place called Meisterstück Berlin in Mitte. We also indulged in a beer tasting. I’m still not a complete fan of beer yet though haha

What to do

Topography of Terror

The Topography of Terror is a stark reminder of Hitler’s rise to power and the atrocities that occurred against the Jews and other races and beliefs.

There is an outside display (make sure you walk from the left to right starting from no.1 because we started from the opposite end).

We then went inside to walk through 5 separate periods during the Reich reign. The history is fascinating and serves as a reminder so we may never do it again.

Brandenburg Gate

There are a lot of people here! Not much to do other than take a photo for keepsakes.

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe

This was a really sobering visit, and I highly recommend. Don’t worry about “opening times” that appear on Google recommendations. The memorial is free to walk through at any time.

Reichstag building

This was very close to Brandenburg Gate that I suggest a visit here afterwards. I would also recommend booking advance tickets to the Reichstag dome which looks awesome from photos I’ve seen. We unfortunately did not book in time and couldn’t go in.

It is definitely worth booking tickets in advance especially because it is free!

Lidl

For sub par groceries – kind of like Aldi.

Personal note: taking time out for yourself

I’ve recently realised that despite travelling together in a pair or group, to stay sane also requires spending some time apart and going through things at your own pace.

I separated from Jono to go through the topography of terrors and that was ok because we went at different speeds. And at the end of my viewing, I was able to take a rest and reflect on the day.

Day 2 – Museum Island Day

We bought a museum island pass online a few weeks in advance for about 10€ per person. This granted us access to the 5 museums that were there. We only visited 3 but we found this to be more than enough after a long day of walking.

Altes Museum

This museum was all about Roman and Greek history complete with sculptures and artefacts. Not my favourite but the entrance is so grand it’s fun to take photos.

Pergamonmuseum

This museum was a 20 minute wait even with our prepurchased ticket, but it was so worth it! The artefacts were breath taking especially the Ishtar Gate.

Alte Nationalgalerie

The gallery had a great “traveller” exhibition which was very fitting for what we were doing i.e. travelling.

One thing that was super interesting was an artwork that highlighted the other side of travelling, which is not always fun and exciting. Instead it can also be tiring and draining. And at the time of walking for a few hours already, this rang very true haha

Berliner Dom

My first church in Europe did not disappoint! It was spectacular.

The viewpoint from the top though had so many stairs. It was a good workout haha

What to eat

Rewe Supermarket

Groceries! Much better than Lidl – this one had fresh fruit and a wider variety of options for breakfast.

Real talk

Travelling can take a toll on your body. Especially if you are not used to moving around a lot or eating new foods. Your body has to adapt to new environments.

I unfortunately learnt this the hard way when I got food poisoning on the second night 🙁

Jono was very nice and looked after me, and we speculated that it could have been from the water I drank (the tap water and some brands of bottled water tastes quite disgusting bleh), the potato salad from my meal on the second night, the Fanta I had a KFC…. the end joke became “I’m just acclimatising, very poorly”!

I threw up for the first time in years and it felt like such a traumatic experience. But I did feel better afterwards. We then went on a hunt to find Powerade (an isotonic drink) for me to regain my fluids. And NO PLACE sold Powerade it seemed, until we came to a small convenience store of all places.

Remember to take care of yourself, drink fluids and eat safe foods.

Day 3 – Day Trip to Charlottenburg Palace and the East Side Gallery

Schloss Charlottenburg (Palace)

The start of our day was disturbed by a smoke incidence at one of the train stations we were changing over at 🙁 Luckily we were able to find a cab to drive us to the palace. Make sure you say “Schloss” in front of Charlottenburg if you are taking a cab so they know you are going to the palace. It is German for palace.

We also bought our tickets online for 20€ but you can also purchase tickets at the door. Audio guides are also included in the ticket which was super helpful! Otherwise walking through the rooms would have gone over my head without the commentary. It was fascinating learning about the first Prussian King Frederick and Queen Charlotte, after whom Charlottenburg is named after. The ticket includes entrance to the old palace and the new wing!

You will also have to cloak your bag everywhere you enter, but don’t worry it is free to do. Small purses are allowed though. Also I kept getting told off for taking photos. Apparently you need a photographers permit which is 3€ at the entrance.

The palace was actually mostly destroyed during the war, so the commentary will tell you which rooms have been reconstructed or whether it survived intact. The grandeur and opulence was stunning! I would recommend a half day here to give yourself the time to fully explore. We spent 3-4 hours here, but we were definitely tired by the end and rushed through the audio guide.

Handy tip is to bring your own packed lunch or snacks to eat out at the garden afterwards.

East Side Gallery

We saw someone getting wedding photos here! Haha but besides that, the art is quite sobering and thought provoking.

We decided to come out just before sunset to see the wall, so it can definitely be a short visit.

Tip: search for East Side Gallery on google maps, anything else with “Berlin Wall” won’t take you to what you want to see.

What to eat

Burgermeister

I’d heard a lot about the burgers at Burgermeister being amazing and they did not disappoint. After a while evening and day of eating nothing but plain baguette and water to overcome my food poisoning, the amount of flavour I could taste was indeed so good and juicy and flavourful.

I would recommend just the plain cheeseburger and at 4.90€ it’s quite affordable. Also you are very close to the East Side Gallery from here, so I would recommend visiting Burgermeister for a feed before or after visiting the wall.

Let me know if you’ve been to Berlin, or if you saw something in this post you’d like to know more about!