Finding the BEST things to do in Berlin (History, Food & Fun)

hey it's Phoebe and today I'm in Berlin not only is Berlin the largest city in Germany it's also the capital and it's known for its incredible art scene wild night clubs and of course it's layered and complex history and on this trip I'm Keen to see the big sights and delve into the city's history while also discovering a few local spots for great food but first to get here I caught the train from Amsterdam Central Station using my URL pass which I booked through clerk I didn't need a seat reservation for this journey but I booked one anyway just to be sure and I'm glad I did it took around six hours to get from Amsterdam to Berlin Central Station and the journey was really easy the train is so comfortable and simple to use I love exploring Europe this way it's just so much better than flying it's easier faster and the journey is way more relaxed enjoyable for me Once I arrived in Berlin I caught the tram to my accommodation now the tram is right outside the station and it's so easy to navigate using Google Maps you can purchase your tram ticket from the machine at the station using your card or Apple pay just be sure to get a ticket it is an honor System but you will be fined if caught traveling without one so it's not worth risking it I checked into my hostel and got a really good night's sleep so today I am up and ready to explore I'm starting the day off with breakfast at my hostel the circus now I'll show you my room a little bit later this place is an awesome location it's super super easy to get around and the buffet breakfast is perfect it's nice and simple they have cereals breads pastries fruits coffees yogurts all that kind of stuff they also have an espresso machine if you need a really good cup of coffee I'm extremely tired this morning I need like a hundred coffees um so I'm gonna have my breakfast I'll show you around the hostel a little bit later and have some really fun activities I'm Keen to check out um but right now first up we're gonna go out and do some sightseeing here in Milan [Music] thank you [Music] Berlin's public transport system is so easy to navigate I definitely recommend using it to explore because I'm going to be using it all day I've purchased a 24 hour or day ticket which allows me to take as many trips as I want for 960 Euro just be sure to validate the ticket before you use it for the first time and keep it on you to show inspectors if needed foreign [Music] [Music] walking tour meets outside Starbucks at 9am one of four English guided tours for the day it's led by an israeli-born locally based guide with an incredible historical knowledge we begin at the Brandenburg Gate built between 1788 and 1791. it's one of Germany's most well-known landmarks having played many different roles in history intended to represent peace it was initially named the peace gate but was used by Napoleon for a triumphal procession in the early 1800s and is a Party symbol by the Nazis when they seize power it is riddled with bullet holes and damage from nearby explosions it's been patched over but they're still visible if you look closely we pause at the reichstag building an important political site where a fire in 1933 gave Nazi leadership the opportunity to claim Communists were planning a violent Uprising an emergency legislation was needed to prevent it abolishing constitutional protections and Paving the way for Nazi dictatorship as the tour unfolds the journey into Germany's history is really difficult to grasp at times it is a struggle to wrap your mind around the truly horrific and inconceivable events of the Holocaust and how anyone could inflict so much horror but onwards we walk standing atop Hitler's bunker the center of the Nazi regime until the very last week of World War II and the site where he married Eva blaum on 29th of April 1945 just 40 hours before they ended their lives we continue onwards to the memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe 2711 concrete slabs arranged in a grid each the same height and weight placed at different depths in the Earth they create an imposing presence as you walk between them the memorial is on a slight slope and it's wave-like form and uneven concrete base give you a sense of uncertainty and the further you wander the more intense that is and the more lust you become the slabs towering high above your head as you lose all sense of place and direction its design is meant to be void of symbolism allowing each visitor to develop their own interpretation for some the pillars represent gravestones for others the memorial mimics the experience of the victims for me it's the size of the slabs and their placement that strikes me the most knowing that those seeing just a few inches above the ground are the same size below the Earth as those towering above my head for me it's a clear reminder that the impact of the Holocaust isn't just what we're seeing what we read what we learn it's much much deeper it's overwhelmingly heartbreaking the underground police of information located at the memorial holds the names of approximately three million Jewish Holocaust victims and that's only around half of those that were murdered the above ground area is open day and night to visitors and I believe it is a must do no matter how difficult our journey into Germany's history takes us through the events of the Cold War and the construction of the Berlin Wall remnants of which can be seen throughout the city finally we head to our final stop at Checkpoint Charlie and after so much history it's time for a much needed break doing a guided walking tour with an expert is a really great way to dig into Germany's history and I think a really good starting point for a day in Berlin like I'm spending today I want to get that history and that context and move through that part of it and then start to explore the city a little deeper now I was going to book and pay for a guided tour but my friend who lives here he said don't just sign up for the free one so I don't know if the paid one would have been better the free one was great I'll have both linked below for you just make sure you bring some cash because you do tip at the end I don't know what is going on with me I am so so tired today I'm exhausted so today I'm gonna drink a lot of coffee and I'm starting with a really great Coffee Spot I was just walking fast it's cold I'm going to say this wrong diasperson that doesn't sound right anyway it looked amazing and then I walked inside the shop and it is so beautiful it's almost like a museum sort of that has all these old coffee machines and you could just tell they take it seriously anyway it looks so beautiful I had to get myself an oat milk flat white and hopefully this is going to revive my soul oh okay that is officially the best coffee I've had on my entire trip so far they have some great seating outside and you can just sit here in the nice warm sunshine and watch the world go by a little bit it is just exactly what I needed all right it is time for lunch and when I was researching where to eat in Berlin and talking to friends I really said to come here to Market Hall no it is Thursday so with this street food Thursdays and here they have loads of Market stalls set up so if you came here with a couple of friends you came here really hungry you could try lots of food now looking around at where the cues are the longest I would say the Bowman Place and the pasta place and a couple of like the laundry Bakery style places dropping some French in there I would say they're probably the best ones I didn't feel like queuing and if I'm honest I think I've been I know I've been eating the wrong foods have you been watching this channel for a long time you know I have a whole bunch of stomach problems and I have just been pushing those problems to the side because I've wanted to eat all the food while I'm traveling through Europe but it is caught up with me I have not been feeling very well that's nobody's fault but my own but moving forward I need to start making some bit of food choices and this is one of those better food choices this is from the Peruvian place it's just a nice bowl of rice with some gorgeous veggies they also do Ceviche which looks really good too but I thought I'd keep it pretty simple with some delicious rice and veggies or I'm so hungry too that is exactly what I felt like yum no it's a little hard to find a seat here I'm stood up at one of the tables but I think after I finish filming I might go and see if I can sit somewhere maybe even somewhere outside where I can watch the street a little bit and then they also have some sweets so my stomach's filling up to it we might try some sweets as well all right lucky for me the ice cream shop has dairy free options so we're gonna attempt fade it was hard to choose I actually had a lot of dairy free options I've gone for their dairy-free chocolate sorbet and current and both dairy free I'll say it one more time just so we're clear um this is my favorite combo like a like a raspberry or like a berry sorbet with a chocolate sorbet I just think it's like the dream so I hope this is good oh my God the chocolate's got a little chocolate chunks in it to get that little crunch the current is really really fresh and tangy the chocolate is all smooth and creamy and Rich and delicious oh my God I'll say this about the limb feel very very comfortable you know I feel very safe and at ease and I don't know everything here just works everything just makes sense it's easy to navigate the public transport it's easy to walk around the streets I I feel really relaxed here like in the bigger cities like Paris and Amsterdam and London I'm always a little bit on edge and obviously I have my guard up a little bit here because I'm traveling by myself but I mean to be honest with you I just feel really relaxed and brilliant it's a real vibe [Music] foreign [Music] if you want to get up a little closer to the Berlin Wall a great place to do that is here at the East Side gallery now it's pretty much an open air Art Gallery with artworks painted all along the longest surviving stretch of the Berlin wall and it's around 1300 meters in length or so and it's really cool to see the only thing is it's extremely busy especially in front of the most popular of paintings if you want to get a photo there good luck to you I tried it was 10 out of 10 difficult I did get a shot it's not very good we'll see if it makes it on the Instagram or not now you know I love a hop-on hop-off bus tour I don't know why I think it's just easy to do you get to see everything you have the audio that tells you what you're seeing it's a great way for me to film sit and relax and my legs need a break because I have been up and walking all day now I booked my big bus Hop On Hop off ticket via Clerk and so that is on my app I just show it to them they print the ticket out I'll have that link below for you it just makes it nice and easy but yeah let's go let's go take a load off gang let's go sit down on this bus and do some really lazy really easy sightseeing [Music] for accommodation I'm staying at the circus hostel now in terms of location it is excellent it was so fast to get here when I arrived and having a train and tram station right out the front makes it so easy to explore the hostel is ideal for solo Travelers because it's so social so they have a different hangout every day like rooftop yoga speed-friending giant Connect 4 put quiz karaoke walking tours and so much more there's a micro Brewery and a David Hasselhoff Museum and have it on good authority who's actually been here they had bike rental the buffet breakfast the cafe serves great coffee and food basically it is perfect for fun and new friends now I stayed in a private room which was super spacious and comfortable there's High Speed Wi-Fi all your Linens included the bathrooms are shared the atmosphere is great and there is so much to see do eat and explore nearby I have really enjoyed my stay here there's a link below if you want to book yours too plus I have a discount code for you to use you can save a little money when you book [Music] thank you [Music] don't leave a message all right when I was looking for places to stay part of me was like you're so old you need to stay at a hotel but this inner part of me was like no stay the hostel say where you're going to meet people where you're not going to be alone where you're going to be surrounded by new friends and I don't know be more involved and have fun and I was so right I was in my room and they had like a karaoke night going on downstairs in the tap room and I was like I'll just go down for a little bit and I got there and I wasn't talking to anybody and I said talking to these lovely girls and then their friends and everyone was doing karaoke and by the end of it you're like oh singing and your best friends and it just I don't know I was looking around that bar and even though I couldn't really tell it was a little bit older than some of the other kids there I don't know it was just like having that amazing time of my life all over again and I felt so happy to be there and everyone was so nice to me and I cannot stop smiling saying here was absolutely the right decision it took me back to when I did my first ever Europe trip and I think it's nice sometimes to remember that you can always get those amazing parts of your life again they're not just they would just happen and then go away forever you can do things to get those most joyful parts of your life those things you really enjoyed back and that's just such a good reminder for me and staying here really pushed me out of my comfort zone and that's exactly what I needed because I can get a bit repetitive sometimes and shut off so that was exactly what I needed even though I didn't know it so a lovely end to my time in Berlin and with that that brings this week's episode to a close I really hope you've enjoyed it now if you don't already be sure to subscribe right now so you never miss a single episode and say hello in the comments below I hope you have a great weekend and I will see you with a brand new episode next week love you

Channel: Travel For Phoebe

Views: 50,596

Keywords: travel, travel guide, travel tips, how to travel, Germany, Berlin, Travel For Phoebe, Phoebe Lee, berlin travel, berlin travel guide, berlin travel vlog, berlin tour, berlin tour vlog, berlin tourist traps, berlin hotel, berlin hotel review, berlin food, berlin food tour, berlin food guide, travel berlin, germany travel vlog, eurail pass, eurail, eurail pass worth it, berlin vlog, explore berlin

Id: 5cwg3l0MZTs

Length: 17min 53sec (1073 seconds)

Published: Sun Aug 27 2023