Berlin
Berlin Again
January 18, 2026

Berlin Again

Berlin is about as opposite of Cairo, our previous stop, as you can get. It’s orderly, clean, cold (snowy, in fact!) and quiet. Egypt, by contrast, has filthy streets, air so thick with smog you can taste it, and a soundscape that demands earplugs on even the smallest street lest your eardrums be ruptured by constant honking. Yet people there are quick with a genuine smile and nod. Germany feels like it could be home, while Egypt is a challenging, yet rewarding, place to visit.

We’ve been to Berlin before. We did another cold-weather trip here in late November 2014. It was one of the first trips we took when we lived in Germany for 3.5 years. Perhaps because of that – or because of Berlin’s rich history, wonderful street life, and endless museums – Berlin holds a soft spot in our hearts. We had to go back.

Rather than do a big write up on our time here, I’d like to share some pictures with you.

Arrival

We arrived in Berlin and it was COLD! But we were psyched to be back in Germany. Here is the street we stayed on in East Berlin. Immanuelkirche Strasse.
Mmmm nothing gets us out of bed in the morning like rad public transpo and cotton candy sunrises.

Day to Day Living

There is a bouldering gym called Urban Apes in an old underground wine cellar. We went here 2x and really enjoyed the vibe. They have everything you need for a solid training session.
Me warming up on the Kilter Board
Rose and I really enjoy walking around city streets endlessly. Berlin provides no end of interesting things to look at.
The weather went from sunny to foggy, but this did not hinder our city walks. Don’t forget your big, puffy jacket. It was cold!

Food

Along side city walks, we love eating good local food. German food (like everything else about the country) holds a special place in our heart. Especially in the winter. The hearty meats and starches are a great way to thaw out after a long cold walk.

Art and Culture

Here is the Reichstag – the German Parliament Building
A really good combination of socialist realist art and concrete brutalist-style pillars on a government building near Potsdamer Platz.
Here is the “Mother with her Dead Son” monument (grim, I know) that is Germany’s central memorial for victims of war and dictatorship. This is a motif to many of Berlin monuments is museums: displaying their complicated history front and center so that it is less likely to be forgotten and, thus, repeated.
More wet and foggy weather with the iconic Fernsehturm (TV tower) in the background.

Soviet History Everywhere

A “fun” brutalist-style residential building. These abound in the East part of the city.
Berliners do try to make that drab architecture fun. Several buildings in this area had similar large ostriches painted in various places on them.
On our last day, we went to the Eastside Gallery – a several-block long part of the Berlin wall that was painted with hundreds of murals in the early 90s (and since restored a few times).
This is not just an artist being provocative! This is depicting the Socialist Fraternal Kiss – a special form of greeting between Communist leaders, demonstrated the unique bond between socialist countries. There’s a whole article about it here: https://www.comradegallery.com/journal/the-fraternal-kiss-behind-the-famous-photo

More Food

That night we went out to Duc Anh for Vietnamese food (the most highly rated of dozens in the neighborhood we stayed in).

Moving On: See you soon!

Like symmetry: beautiful mornings with brilliant pink and blue sunrises bookended the damp and cold days where we spent the bulk of our time.
After just 5 days, it was time to board the train to our next destination: Warsaw!

Jeff
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