The confessions of a not so perfect traveller.

Make no mistake I had an amazing time in Berlin. I think it could be the most cost effective and student friendly city in Europe. My initial dismay at the pound/euro conversion rate was quickly curbed when I was there. It is possible to see an array of sites, eat good traditional filling German food( 1 euro bratwurst, I think I love you) for way under 20 euros. Aside from money talk, Berlin is beautiful in places. It may not have the obvious charm of Paris or Rome but I quickly realised that in Berlin everything is discreet and understated. As an under prepared first timer, the Berlin AA travel guide was invaluable ally, however the best travel tips came from asking Berliners themselves. From the students chilling in Alexanderplatz or friendly people in the (rare)information offices, their advice was the natual key to unlocking an enigmatic city.

Before I tell you about the short time I spent in Berlin, I’m going to purge all my negative feeling towards the holiday and city here. It maybe unexpected as when Berlin is mentioned peoples usual reaction is that, ‘its craaaaazy’ and ‘you will have an amazing time’. I did...but that does not adequately describe my entire trip. I’ve noticed that a lot of travel blogs tend give the impression that Every Second Of A Holiday Is Wonderful Life Affirming Experience. I’m sorry but sometimes it's just not. At times Berlin could be frustrating; the ‘Germanic stare downs’ agitated my very British belief that ‘it’s rude to stare’ . Also not being completely new to the German language but not being great at speaking it either was exhausting/humbling, i.e I could understand when I was being insulted but didn’t have the vocabulary to fight back. Here is a candid list of random holiday realisations and mistakes. I’d like to learn from them for my travelling future.

1) Hostel : Accommodation tends to be the most expensive part of the trip and I tend to want to save as much money on this as possible. I share the travel philosophy that it’s not where you stay or how you get there but what you see and do once you arrive. For my next trip I think I will have to be a little more practical with this belief. For my 5 day stay in Berlin I paid £54 for accommodation. Yep, you read it. Amazing deal, I was rubbing my hands with glee when I heard the price! However, with all too-good-to-be true deals, somewhere along the line you pay for it later. In the Generator Hostel in a random part of Prenzlauerberg, I quickly learned this. Me and a friend shared a room with 2 other people, slept on the top bunk (which i have a childhood aversion for) which barely fit my short self. It also meant that the nights when we came back a little late we had be extra careful and tip toe around our roommates so not to disturb them. Basically under these living arrangements, you can’t really unwind or feel free to talk to your friends about the day gone by. On my next trip I would choose to maybe spend a bit more on a double room or find a cheap hotel to solve this.

2) Travelling by myself is going to be difficult but if you travel with someone make sure you are compatible. Thankfully, my friend and I are just that, though at times her biblical readings of the travel guide and desire to do everything tired my legs. Looking back at all we achieved in such a short space of time I am so grateful I went with her. Remember that compatibility is very important should you chose to travel with other people. I think its this that can make or break a holiday and/0r friendship.

3) Follow the rules of any country you travel to. This may seem like an obvious one but because I'm used to the London Big Brother style obedience, I got a little cocky in Berlin. Yep, I ignored the key travel advice of in Rome do as the Romans do. You see in Berlin metro stations they have no ticket barriers or station workers and despite this people still buy travel tickets. I couldn’t come to terms with this. Why would anyone buy a ticket if the threat of being caught without one was beyond minimal? On my third day of rebel ticketless travel, I found out why, when a ticket officer dressed in everyday clothing fined me 40 euros for the offence despite our(poor) excuse that our tickets fell down on the train tracks. As the unwavering inspector said, ‘THIS IS GUHMANY AND IN GUHMANY VE ABIDE BY THE RULES’(I honestly kid you not). Just because authority figures aren’t as overt in Berlin as they are in other cities, rules are still implemented nonetheless. As I said before, discreetness is essential in this city.

4) Bring your student card. You save so so so much in travel when you do. I packed mine as an afterthought but in the future it will be the first thing I'll do. However, I think the attitude in most European cities is that even if you were a student a few years ago (or look young enough in my case) you can get sweet discounts.

5) Be aware/ Beware of the climate. Check, and check again. Though I think I will be cautious about traveling to a less then hot country during the winter season, if I do I will be dressed accordingly. I packed a plethora of jumpers, tights, socks and layering basics for this trip but let myself down on the footwear. Wearing ballet pumps or ankle heeled boots is just plain dumb for traipsing around this city in Winter. When it rained on the first day, I was dreaming of my flat heeled brown boots that I left behind in London for the embarrassing excuse that 'they didn't go with any of my outfits'. I am far from a Cher Horowitz in my non travelling life so I kicked my shivering self for being so superficial and short sighted on this holiday.

6) Most painfully, bring backup for your camera. On the 5th day in the German Technology Museum for no apparent reason my camera died despite all subsequent attempts to revive it. I’m in the process of getting it fixed now, and I may or may not have lost all my photos. RAGE! I won’t post about the trip until I get back the prognosis but I have learnt my lesson; even digital Canon bulky cameras are not invincible, so in any case bring back up. I used my camera phone for the day I had left but having to still carry around that big camera was salt in a very open wound.