Eating out is one of my favourite things about travelling. In Florence, dinner at il Latini was an experience and a highlight. As was eating a Nutella crepe on the summit of a mountain in the French Pyrenees from a make-shift cafe powered by a generator. But as a traveller, I am disadvantaged when it comes to knowing where to go for a good meal.
So when my CouchSurfing host Annika told me she'd made reservations at a cafe for breakfast I was excited. And with good reason. I could have roamed the streets of Berlin for hours and hours and not had the slightest chance of finding Café BilderBuch.
The cafe, with its tiny front door, is in Schöneberg. Even people who live in the area must walk by without knowing what's inside. At the back of the cafe is a giant living room - it's the only way to describe it. The walls are lined with bookcases, some tables are surrounded by couches, others belong in a fancy dining room. There are antique lamp shades, beautifully framed pictures and lovely knick-knacks around the place. Our table faced a grandfather clock and an artist working away at an easel.
If you go out for breakfast in Germany, don't be expecting pancakes or eggs and bacon. The dishes are mostly some type of meat or fish served with fruit, salad, cheese and bread. I ordered smoked salmon, but couldn't eat that much of it that early in the morning so instead went to work on the bread basket.
Annika had class in the afternoon so I headed into the city. It was forecast to rain every day of my trip, but so far it had held off. Nothing a hood pulled on couldn't handle.
There are apparently some great markets in Berlin, but unfortunately most are held on the weekend. Luckily on the good ones, the Turkish Market at Maybachufer, is open on a Tuesday. The market was mostly food - fruit and veg, cheese, meats, deli items etc. I probably would have enjoyed it more if I hadn't stuffed myself on the bread basket.
From the market I toodled off down the road and ended up at Oranienstrasse. I wasn't walking to anything in particular, but then saw this:
I figured it was worth checking it out. It turned out to be a piece commissioned for a street art program. It's done by an artist called Victor Ash. It's often confused as a Banksy and I found out later that some tours even tell people as such. Banksy, a British street artist, uses stencils. This piece though isn't stencil work. When you stand close you can see the faded grid marked out. It's the same technique used in painting the Sistine Chapel. I was slightly disappointed with the Sistine Chapel - perhaps if Michaelangelo painted a giant astronaut I would have found it more interesting.
Oranienstrasse turned out to be packed with some amazing art. I spied some cool looking cafe's too, but that damn bread basket ruined my appetite for hours! I covered a lot of ground on foot, ending up at Tacheles - an abandoned building that was converted into an artists squat. I'd seen pictures of its interior and wanted to see for myself, but it was closed. I found out later city officials shut it a few months ago. Apparently there is some covert access although I'm not sure I'd want to risk it.
In the afternoon I returned to Brandenburg Gate with the intention of joining Sandeman's free walking tour at 4pm. Unfortunately I picked up the summer brochure instead of the winter one that would have told me the 4pm tour doesn't run during winter.
Back to the streets I went, this time walking along Friedrichstrasse - Berlin's major shopping street. I walked all the way down to Checkpoint Charlie. I won't rehash my thoughts on that place - you can read them here.
I visited some museums, including one about the Ministry for State Security - or Stasi, as it was known - and the Topography of Terror. It's fair to say that I learnt more about World War II, the Cold War and the Berlin Wall in those three hours than I did over my 17 years of school and university education.
