Berlin is a place where you can show up exactly how you are. (As long as ‘how you are’ is effortlessly hip, wearing worn-in white Reeboks, and a distressed denim jacket.)
Fashion commentary aside, it's a place that is whole unto itself.
Despite being the largest city in Germany, nothing about it ever really feels crowded. The spacious streets aren’t overflowing with pedestrians, cars slow down when they see you jay-walking (most of the time), and at any given point, you can wander into a quaint coffee shop and find yourself alone with the barista and a perky flat white.
Berlin is a city in evolution. It's a mixed bag of new and old, with something different for the mind, body, and spirit to discover with every visit.
Mind Mantra: Soak up the varied aesthetic.
Find art in the urban landscape instead of the museum circuit.
The concept of “third space” is alive and well in Berlin. Notice the absurd colors and patterns of public transit, like the bright yellow trains with neon camouflage seats that contrast against the grayish underground walls. When onboard, be ready for an impromptu concert from a clarinet player looking to make some extra coinage.
Wander the funky, fresh Kreuzberg neighborhood. It will give your eyes a smorgasbord of street art. (if you want to dive deeper into the spray paint scene, there are tours available.) You’ll feel like you’re in ‘90s flashback with the vintage-meets-American-Apparel style of the locals. You can try to recreate the Berlin fashion sense at vintage stores like Voo, but be warned --just because the items are secondhand doesn’t mean they aren’t pricey.
Savor both extremes of the design spectrum.
Restaurants like House of Small Wonder are havens for interior design nerds and Instagrammers alike. With a spiral staircase, tons of warm wood and enough plants to constitute a small greenhouse, brunch is spent reveling in the details. Go for the Okinawan Taco Rice, a Japanese-meets-Tex-Mex dish of pork, chopped veggies, Parmesan and a fried organic egg over rice. Pair it with what may well be Germany's creamiest matcha latte.
On the other end of the visual spectrum, but by no means less impressive, is the cramped, greasy Bürgermeister space. Located under the rail tracks in what used to be a public restroom is a restaurant that slings juicy burgers to an endless queue of Sunday’s hungover populace. Enjoy the unsavoury notion of eating food prepared in a former toilet while you watch the cooks dance to techno through the open kitchen window.
Body Mantra: Explore two tempos in one night.
Move slowly at the dinner table.
Sometimes you need to procrastinate on making proper dinner plans and then aimlessly wander into hole-in-the-wall restaurants at 10 p.m. until one of them agrees to seat you. Karloff is that place. Ask the staff to put together a late-night cheese plate with some olives, oil, and bread. They serve cheese from the tender middle section of a 24-month-old Parmesan wheel. (Is cheese surgeon a profession? And if so, sign me up.) The Gorgonzola is so creamy and potent that every bite sends a pungent balloon up into the sinuses. Pillowy bread is pulled right out of the oven and slid onto the table. For a medium-bodied conversation lubricant, ask for a young bottle of Sangiovese wine called Nicole or a recommendation from the owner. Bond over the seemingly lost art of eating very slowly and very simply. Let time slip away at a candle-lit table.
Move quickly on the dance floor.
One way to experience the nightlife of Berlin is to stand in a queue for hours with the glimmer of hope that you might get into somewhere with a world famous reputation, like Berghain. Another way is to find a bar where locals hang out (Lugosi is a good shout) and let them lead you to a club with less hype, but perhaps even more good vibes. Opt for live local rap at Musik & Frieden, hip hop at St. George or techno at Prince Charles. Regardless of where you go or who you go with, drown your inhibitions in Berliner beer and dance like nobody’s watching. Because frankly, nobody is.
When you emerge from the club sweaty, bleary-eyed and smelling like a human ashtray just in time to see the sun rise, you’ve officially done “the Berlin club thing.” Feel free to never do it again.
Spirit Mantra: Decide on your decisions.
Find lessons in the past.
Amidst the confusion of Günter Schabowski's press conference on November 9, 1989, Lieutenant-Colonel Harald Jäger made a very difficult decision. As the commander of the Berlin Wall border control, he decided to allow people through the gates of the Wall with little or no identity check. In a moment, the Wall lost its power over the people. Fear, intimidation, and isolation were replaced by unity, liberation, and celebration. The impact of that one man’s decision rippled across the world. (At least that's how they taught it in history class.)
Make your way to the East-Side Gallery and quietly walk along the wall. As you stroll, take a moment to consider your own decision-making process.
Every day we face thousands of decisions. Some are simple: should I snooze the alarm or get up for a morning workout? Some are more difficult: should I quit my stable, but unfulfilling job and take a leap on a creative passion? The majority of these decisions are snap judgments, designed with us and only us in mind. We are the protagonist of our own narrative and we act in accordance to that belief.
Imagine what it would be like to make choices from a broader perspective. Instead of prioritizing our momentary wants and needs (our inherent default mode), is it possible to prioritize the moment as a whole? Could we widen our circle of interest and empathy a little bit every day? Can we serve the current situation instead of simply serving ourselves?
In-transit Consumption
“Thinking, Fast and Slow" by Daniel Kahneman
This best-selling book to explores the dichotomy between our ways of thinking: the quick, instinctive "System 1" and the slow, logical "System 2." Kahneman, a Nobel Memorial Prize Winner in Economics, unearths our cognitive biases and helps us question the very basis of our decision making. It’s a dense read, so give yourself time to start and stop whenever you please.