I don’t dare presume that I know what you should do if you had just 2 precious days in Berlin, but t’was a catchy title.
Warning: I’m not a museum buff, but Berlin had lots of these if you are; I like being outdoors, taking in the sites and people-watching. Here’s what two people-watchers who also like to take in the sites do with 2 days in Berlin:
Day 1 We started by walking down Ku’damm, the Champs Elysees of Berlin—only it seemed like I could afford these stores...hmmm. A short stroll led us to a life-sized fuzze ball, compliments of the World Cup for sure! We could definitely feel the fever! Next we headed to the Jewish Museum. For me, visiting the Jewish Museum was much like renting the movie Schindler’s List—you want to see it and fight with yourself about getting it, even though you know it is difficult and painful. Going to the Jewish Museum is a MUST in Berlin, if only to remind us of what happens when we stand back and do nothing while a tyrant decides to commit genocide. After the Jewish Museum, we walked to Checkpoint Charlie, and then Potsdamner Platz and the Sony Center. Next we walked to the Holocaust Memorial and Brandenburger Tor, which at the time seemed like the World Cup headquarters. The Reichstag was next on our list, and after a 30-minute wait, we were in the Reichstag dome, enjoying views of Berlin. I’ve heard that the wait time to get to the top can be very long; we went at about 8pm on a Thursday night and just in time to see Berlin’s twilight—magical!
Day 2 We started our second day by taking the bus 100 tour—the most economical bus tour in Berlin. We bought day passes at the Zoologischer Garden station (the tourist office is in the back) and this includes the bus map/tour map. At the time of our visit (06/2006) it was €5.40. As we waited patiently for the bus at Zoologischer Garden, we began to realize why it’s called the bus 100 tour—we were waiting in line with other tourists and as soon as the bus pulled up, only the fastest and fittest made it to the top of the double-decker for the coveted front row seats. Get on this bus at the very first stop, if you want a seat and the best views of Berlin. We got off the bus at Alexander Platz and then took the S-bahn to the East Side Gallery (formerly the Berlin wall). Sobering, but worth the visit. Next, we headed to KaDaWe for lunch on its famous 6th floor food market. KaDaWe reminded me of the Macy’s at Herald Square in New York City—so of course it was a hit with me! The ruins of the Kaiser Wilhelm church were next on our list; another reminder of the destruction of war and the Berlin effect—that new can be built on old; the resilience I talked about. We then walked to the Elephant gate at the Zoo before we decided to take the S- and U-bahn to Olympiastadion (the Olympic Stadium). Then, on to Wannsee and you wouldn’t believe you’re still in Berlin. This water-front treasure gave our wary feet some time to recover from all the walking. The beirgarten at Wannsee helped too…gotta love a beer garden—kids with their parent, pet owners and their dogs…everyone is welcome at the beer garden. This is Berlin!
Hard to pull ourselves away, but we did and had a long dinner at the Quasimodo Café and then headed to the shinny, new (2-day old) Hauptbahnhof station for our overnight train to Sweden. Did we have sweet dreams? You bet—they were of Berlin!