My Berlin... Stephen

Introduction: My Berlin

STEPHEN “ICH BIN EIN VIERTEL DEUTSCH” BOTT

I am a quarter German and have family living in Berlin, so it was kind of a travesty that I had never been there in all of my nearly 22 years. The last time I saw my Berlin-based family members – my father’s cousin and her two teenage daughters – was three years ago in northern Germany, however I had always promised that I would come to visit them one day.

I was so thrilled when Jeremy, the project leader of writing this book, offered me a place in the group. I was in France on my year abroad working as an English Language Assistant at the time, really needing to spend some time in Germany – I had done the French part of the year abroad, now I needed to do the German part (I start my final year of a French and German degree in October 2008). I wanted to do something different to being an assistant again or studying at a German university, so the project was an amazing and fun opportunity. So, Berlin here I came...

My naïve images of the city before I arrived were the Brandenburg Gate and parts of the Wall that were preserved, however, as I was to discover, there is so much more that it has to offer.

My first night in Berlin was a hectic one, having landed at Schönefeld Airport at nearly 10pm. I was greeted by Lutz, a member of the team organising the project, who kindly bought me a well-needed beer (I am not a drunk, seriously!). I finally arrived at where I live at gone 1am, so not only was I tired, but I had to make the most of any sleep that I got, because we started the project immediately the next day.

Several weeks have passed since then, and, although I have had ups (seeing Annette, Janna and Mara – my family living in Berlin – and scoring 193 in one game of bowling) and downs (chronic chest pains – thank goodness that hot water bottles exist!), I have loved every minute.

Of all the places I have been, I really enjoyed looking at Berlin from the Fernsehtaum (TV Tower), the symbol of East German technology. The lifts go up and down at an incredible speed – 5.273 metres per second, the fastest in Europe. But, when you get to the viewing gallery, 210 metres above ground, the view is unbelievable. You can see literally everything the city has to offer and more – seeing the sunset is one of the best things to experience.

When I leave Berlin, I am not quite leaving Germany. I am going to the north to see some more of my family, but, nevertheless, it will be sad to have to say goodbye to the group. I know that whatever I do and wherever I go in life, I will look back on writing this book with fond memories. I just hope that you get as much pleasure reading it as I did writing my parts.

My top recommendations to see/go to/do in Berlin:
1 Going up the Fernsehtaum (TV Tower)
2 Going on a walking tour of Berlin
3 Eating Bienenstich from ‘Kunsper Bäcker’
4 Bowling at ‘BowlingCenter am Alexanderplatz’
5 Visiting Grosser Mügelsee
6 Eating a kebab at ‘Tat Köfte’
7 Eating the best Currywurst and chips from ‘Beckers Fritten’