Back in 2005, when I was trying to make the most of rainy days at the Polish seaside, my parents booked an excursion to Berlin. I had never been to Germany before and had only started learning basic German so I remember being super excited about the chance to spend one day in a city so close to Kołobrzeg where we had been trying to enjoy 13 rainy days out of total 14 of our stay there. That's how I set my feet on the German soil at the age of 13. I remember it was Sunday and all the nice shops were closed so basically I came back with no souvenirs, but at least managed to send some postcards to my nearest and dearest.
If you're not Polish and had never experienced sightseeing with an organised group of Polish tourists, you may not understand why I'm a bit of a loner when it comes to trips. And keep in mind that in the 2005 going abroad was still something super duper and definitely not as accessible as it is now (a highway to Berlin straight from Warsaw makes travelling much easier and shorter). So, in a bus full of average Poles we made our way to the capital of Germany. If you had asked me a month ago or so whet exactly I had seen back then, I'd probably come with Brandenburger Tor, Reichstag and nothing more. We had only a couple of hours and the tourist guide wanted to show us Berlin in a nutshell so our sightseeing was done the Asian way (if you have ever seen a group of Asian tourists on their Europe in 3 days trip, you'll know what I'm talking about here). I was also probably too young to understand what I had just seen but at least I could sense I was experiencing all the important things there were to see there. Anyway, we had been rushing on and on and I was secretly praying for some free time and maybe some shops open on Sunday. And yep, we had some free time but it was the time to take pics next to luxurious cars in a luxurious shop. I can clear remember how me, Mum and Dad didn't even want to get into the shop so that nobody would associate us with other crazy Poles taking pics like there's no tomorrow. I can also remember we asked the guide to let us take the walk to the Brandenburger Tor alone so that we could do some window shopping and stay away from the crazy Polish crowd. This is more or less how my first time ever in Berlin looked like. No wonder I only had some zest in mind and could recall more or less interesting details of the short stay there.
After 11 years I was more than excited to come back to Berlin for a little longer. I knew I won't have enough time to see everything I had on my to do in Berlin list but at least I managed to feel the vibe of the city (and make million comparisons to Vienna just to prove supremacy of the latter).
The first point on the list was KaDeWe. Having studied their instagram account, I had huge expectations and was hoping for the most luxurious experience in my entire life. Truth be told, even the building itself makes you feel impressed cause it's huge and the though that the best designers in the world sell under one roof only adds up to the feeling. But when I entered the store, I was faced with a freaking crowd which looked more like people going hin und zurück at Arkadia in Warsaw and the feeling of ultimate luxury was gone. Here, I have to make a few observations.
First of all the staff. I'm used to kindness and politeness in Vienesse department stores and shop assistants popping up from every corner only to ask if I need some help and if not, to inform me where I can find them shall I need a thing. Here in Berlin (and this counts for every shop I was at), I could wander unnoticed and if I needed help, I had to be really lucky to find someone interested in my little existence (apart from one lady at Zadig & Voltaire who was absolutely friendly and knew well all fabrics of the clothes she was selling). Don't get me wrong, I love shopping in peace and hate with passion strident staff but at the same time I don't like being ignored or even greeted with some polite words.
Secondly, the amount of people at KaDeWe stripped the place from its elegance and charm. I felt like in a regular department store selling cheap lots of cheap stuff. All the precious fabrics and unique pieces from my favourite designers kept losing their beauty while I was trying to find some peaceful corner and shelter from the crowd. That's why I was more than happy to leave the store and go back to the hotel and get some well deserved rest.
The second day was devoted to wandering around Berlin and basically had to official agenda. That's what I love best about travelling on your own. If you want some recommendation, which is of course very subjective, I advise you to use public transport, especially double decker buses. It's like getting a sightseeing ride but not only past famous monuments. It's absolutely worth giving a try. Coming back to the main topic, I got the feeling that Berlin is a cold city but let's blame it on the weather. I thought there'd be more parklands and trees around Brandenburger Tor (at least that's how I kept picturing it after my trip in 2005). I was also hoping to see more stylish people, wearing designer clothes with class and not mixing them with some kitschy garments. This is not so say, I was disappointed but I just love looking at so to say beautiful people and in Berlin I have met very few of them. Given the fact that my stay was again pretty short, I didn't explore any museum but I'm hoping to come back when the weather is nicer and I have more time to spend.
All in all, Berlin was a pretty nice getaway from Independence Day celebrations in Poland and made ma add many things to my never-ending list of places I want to see and things I want to do. Still, I see Vienna as my second home in Europe and I have a thing for wienerisch (which I kept speaking wie besessen while in Berlin).
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