Brrrrrrlin

After we had done as much as we could in Dublin, our next stop took us to Berlin!  Never have I ever imagined that I would want to go to anywhere in Germany because my notion of Germans begins with their not so gentle language.  But, for some reason, the weeks leading up to our departure for fall break I became really excited about going....the reasons I can't really remember right now.  Maybe it had something to do with hearing about other peoples experiences in the region and how it was a must see destination while we were overseas.  I was game.  


I am so glad that I took the opportunity to visit Berlin. Berlin is truly a fascinating city.  It is so deeply rooted in its past, yet progressively moving forward as a modern city.  Remnants of the past are visibly seen everywhere you look; parts of the berlin wall, checkpoint charlie, tv tower, memorials and so much more.  On our first day we participated in the Fat Tire bike tours.  This city offers many different tours, but we chose to do this one because as a student at A&M I have heard so much about this company.  This company is based in four cities across europe; London, Paris, Barcelona and Berlin.  The one in Paris was started by an aggie graduate and a goal I have in life is to one day work for this company as a guide!  So of course I wanted to get first hand experience of how they operate...which now I realize may be different from city to city.  Nonetheless, participating in this tour has affirmed even more my desire to work for this company! Also, it was a great way to see the major attractions that we might have not been aware of, so that in the next two days we could go back and spend more time at our favorite sites.  Which ended up being too many to fit in our short amount of time we had there.  


Berlin is beautiful and during our time there REALLY cold.  I love Europe and its beautiful display of colors during Fall.  Our time there was filled with biking around the city, through a huge park, going to museum island and other monuments.  We visited two museums...one had just opened the first exhibit ever on Hitler and the other was the infamous Pergamon museum which houses so many artifacts that I had learned about so much through my art history classes.  So of course I was pumped! The food in Berlin is wonderful as well.  Because of the diversity of culture found in Berlin; it has the second largest turkish population, the food found here is very diverse!  So we tried the doner (turkish), currywurst and even managed to find a steak house!  One of the biggest things that I got out of this experience is how it is one thing to learn about various things in a classroom, but when you get to immerse yourself and really experience the things you learn about, it just takes on a whole new level of importance to you personally and really resonates within you.  As a result, Berlin is one of my top favorite destinations!


Now, here are some pics!

As always, if you have questions about any of these photos...do ask!

Dublino

Good gosh what is there to say about Dublin, Ireland? Way too much! If you asked me to describe it in one word...I think it would be impossible.  What was I doing in Ireland? It was the first stop of our jam-packed week known as Fall Break! Thank goodness for study abroad and going along with the european school schedule which involves participating in fall break - WOOHOO!! And boy oh boy, did we have a craic time in Dublin.


Our time there began with a trip to the Guinness Brewery - which I was kind of unsure of because I am not a huge beer fan.  Nonetheless, if you were to find yourself in the same situation...definitely GO! This unique location consisted of several floors where you walk and breathe in the rich history of Guinness.  It is a charming mixture of old and new that ends with a beautiful panoramic view of Dublin from the gravity bar...which also includes a free glass of guinness beer - which is actually not too shabby! The Guinness Brewery was a hit!


The rest of our time consisted of visiting some of Dublin's well known gardens (which are beautiful!), taking a tour of Dublin Castle, visiting St. Patrick's Cathedral (a must!) and of course...a little shopping! Being in Dublin, I felt really comfortable.  People speak English and the irish accent is not that bad either!  The Irish are very hospitable and not to mention, the food is fantastic.  Ireland is definitely one of those places that I will return to one day.  I had a wonderful 3 days filled with playing dress up at many vintage shops, eating fish and chips, Irish accents, too much money spent, singin' at the top of our lungs to good 'ole songs we know and even a little random bit of two stepping!


Here are some pics from my time there!