Berlin

March 15, 2006 Andy 0 Comments

Espe and I had the pleasure of visiting Mats and Tasja in Berlin. They have a wonderful flat just North of the old GDR center. We were put up and fed for the full four days, so a huge thanks for that.

Friday night, due to our late arrival we sat down for Dinner prepared by Tasja. After a great feed, loads of catching up and a few too many glasses of wine we retired to bed.

Come Saturday, the weather was not too accommodating with minus temperatures, driving wind and constant snow. We headed down to Potsdamer Platz to check out the modern district that was no mans land in the days of the Berlin Wall. While there we visited the Film Museum, which although not a subject close to my heart, was interesting all the same. I’m set on seeing several 1920s classics as a result.

We took it pretty easy for the rest of the day in preparation for a Saturday night out. We hit a bar, of which the name escapes me, serving excellent cocktails and an equally varied mix of music. The DJ seemed to play a bit of everything without resorting to cheesy classics. Thumbs up there.

Next up was the Icon club. Host to regular Ninja Tune nights and renowned as one of Germany’s best Drum & Bass clubs who was I to resist…. And I was not disappointed. Dark, underground (literally) and with a sound system that does a pretty good job of rearranging your internal organs. It was Mats’ and Espe’s first experience of such a club, but they seemed suitably impressed. Especially when the DJ dropped a filthy remix of the Pulp Fiction theme track.

The rest of the weekend was spent looking around the city. We did far too much to go into detail, but generally wandered about taking photos and being tourists. Sights seen included the Brandenburg Gate, the Ruins of a Church bombed in WW2, statues of Carl Marx and others and Museum Island.

Highlights were going up the immense TV tower which at 200 metres gives stunning views of the whole of Berlin and the Checkpoint Charlie museum.

Covering much of the Cold War that fascinated me so much in History lessons, the museum also gave an insight into the oppression of the East German people and the multitude of ingenious attempts to cross the Wall to the freedom of the West.

A fantastic long weekend. Surprisingly cheap as well due to Easyjet and the hospitality of Mats and Tasja. With still a lot to see, we fully intend to return in the summer.

Even the return flight was great with stunning views of the Alps and the Pyrenees.