Deutschland Diary

So it’s rare that I visit a place and instantly know, that I have no desire to ever return, but Berlin was definitely one of those for me. It could be the weather (I arrived on an unseasonably cold April day) or the purpose (I was attending a conference and only able to sightsee in the off time), but my heart left nothing in Berlin.

I arrived in Berlin and promptly checked into my lodging, Hotel Alexander Plaza, which is very conveniently located near Hackescher Market and Museum Island. For a European hotel, the rooms were quite large and the bathrooms were amply sized as well. The hotel doesn’t offer much in the way of amenities, after a very tasty breakfast that was included with the rate, the lobby sort of shuts down. There was a small bar, but it appeared to be defunct. ​

During the week, the restaurants surrounding the hotel shut down very early (10PM) and the one saving grace was a place around the corner called Palm Beach that seemed to get its menu and décor from watching American movies based in California. However, it was open late, had a great full bar and a decent menu.

I only had about 1.5 days to sightsee, because it literally rained, hailed, snowed and sleeted the entire time that I was there. Which made me less than excited to hop off and on the double decker tour bus that rolled through the city. However, when the weather permitted, I was able to see many tourist attractions, including the remnants of the Berlin Wall, the Holocaust Memorial, Museum Island and Alexa Mall.

The saving grace of Germany for me (besides loads and loads of beer, even though I’m not a huge fan of the beverage) was the Ritter Sport candy shop, where you can create and eat your own chocolate delights. It takes about 30 minutes for the candy to set, but since I was warding off yet another storm, I had the time to spare.

Happy to say I got to visit the Rhineland, but definitely not looking forward to ever returning. ​