1. So on the day of the trip, I walk out of my apartment to head to catch my coach to airport. Walking past the neighbouring apartment, I see Hayleigh, who's actually traveling with me to Berlin. But because we booked our flights at different times, we're taking separate flights. She's flying Easyjet from Luton, whilst I'm doing Ryanair from Stansted. I have to wait for her at Berlin Schonefeld airport for about an hour. Meanwhile, our third travel mate, Caleb, is flying in from Paris and meeting us at the hostel at about 2350 that night. Such jet setters we are.
2. You know how restaurants do those really value-for-money set lunches to draw crowds in on quiet weekday afternoons? Well, the Germans of course do that as well, and they term them 'business lunches'. Sounds classier, I guess.
3. Berlin is quite a contrast from other major Western European cities. Unlike Paris or London with their gazillion year old quaint buildings and small, narrow roads, Berlin is half old buildings and half steel/glass minimalistic modernity. Not surprising considering the city was bombed into oblivion half a century ago.
At the Holocaust Memorial4. Said steel and glass architecture, with their funky shapes, combine with the graffiti found all over to give Berlin a really edgy feel (I've been watching too much Project Runway I think.) The graffiti here is pretty darn cool, gotta say.
5. Oh, also unlike other European cities, there isn't a pigeon population the size of India + China. Sure, there's the odd one or two (or three or four) here and there, but it's not the kind of swarming over you like Singaporeans at a McDonald's circa the Hello Kitty craze that you find in Trafalgar Sq. or outside the Notre Dame.
6. There are tonnes of Vietnamese eateries all over Berlin. Was there a Vietnamese exodus to Germany that I missed out on? The pho I ate at this one restaurant was no where near as good as the one I had in Paris though.
7. Berliners are definitely not quite as fashion forward as Parisiens or Londoners even. The standard uniform seems to be: Hiking boots, jeans, simple top with a weatherproof jacket over it.
8. That said, there're plenty of individuals with outrageous and unique styles that I came across - like dudes with shocking blue or pink hair, as I had expected from what's been termed the new NYC.
9. The Berlin metro system is probably the most confusing one I've come across in Europe. There's the S-Bahn, the U-Bahn, the autobahn (ok not counted), the regular trains, a lack of clear signboards, ticket machines that do not like to accept notes - Efficient it may be, simple to understand it definitely isn't.
10. Had two people coming up to me asking for directions. What, I look German?
11. Gotta talk about my experience returning to the UK of course. The night before my flight, I merrily went over to the hostel lady and asked her how long it would take to get to the airport. She's all, "Haven't you heard? All flights to London are canceled." What!!?? Panic mode ensues. After having a strike derailed my flight back from Italy the previous trip, a freakin' volcano now?? For serious?
So I went on to Ryanair's site and the earlier flight available I could rebook was 4 days later (which still would have been canceled, as it turned out). I went to the train station the next morning to check out train options, but they were fully booked for the next 2 days and it would have cost a bomb anyway (Incidentally, the lady at the train ticketing counter was a majorly unhelpful, unsympathetic, um, person. Ugh.) Luckily, I had checked online the previous night that there were actually buses that ran from Berlin to London (Seriously, who knew?). So I headed to the bus station (on the confusing S-Bahn) located in West Berlin. There, I was told that the bus for that night (one each day) for full, but I could pay first and get on the waitlist and come and see what happens. So I did, and went back to the hostel.
Hours later, I'm checked out and I headed back to the bus station (having a room on hold till 8pm at the hostel in case I didn't manage to get on the bus). I found out I was 2nd on the waitlist. And 10 minutes before departure, we are told there's space! About 5 people on the list got to board. And so I boarded the bus and began the 19 hour ride to London.
The bus passed through Bremen, Hanover in Germany, then crossed Holland, where the customs check is this police van with a (-------> Follow Me) sign on its back that led the coach to a petrol station. Officers then boarded and checked our documents. How nice of them to do that! We didn't even have to disembark haha. From Holland, we went into Belgium and stopped at Brussels. The bus was Paris-bound, so the ones heading to London changed coaches.
From Brussels, the bus continued onto France, stopping at Lille, before arriving at Calais, where we crossed the English Channel using the Eurotunnel. That was the coolest shit. All vehicles basically drive into these long, narrow trains, one after another, and park inside. Then, with the vehicles stationary, the trains ferry us across the Channel and we emerge in Dover. English air at last! From Dover, it took another 2 hours to get to central London. Finally, after 19 hours, Victoria Coach Station! But the journey's not over!
I had to of course take another 2 hour coach journey to get back to Oxford. Good times. A friend had a three day bus ride from Croatia back to London though, so who am I to complain. So 93 euros (bus ticket price) and 21 hours later, I was back home, 1.5 days later than had been planned. My Easter travel adventures finally end, after Wales, Morocco, Italy and Berlin (sorta. still one final weekend in OLD TRAFFORD! Squee!).
Cute huskies make any blog post better.
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