Someone asked me about my first impression of Berlin last night. Hm, I said...um, well...it’s German? And the trains run on time? Honestly I haven’t had to articulate much about my experience so far in Berlin, so it took me a few stumbles to come to the conclusion that Berlin was very URBAN. I think that coming from Portland, and even San Francisco, a large European city can feel like the true prototype of a CITY. It’s got massive, efficient public transport, people are walking, biking, scootering, jogging all over every street, and the conveniences of city life are obvious everywhere. Two minute walk from my apartment, you can find excellent falafel, an apothecary to pick up over-the-counter drugs and fill prescriptions, 24-hour mini-marts to buy beers and rolling papers, countless bars, restaurants, and cafes, and enough pleasing-to-the-eye ivy-covered apartment façades to satisfy this sentimental heart. That much cannot be said about Portland, sadly, and most of the time San Francisco feels more focused on being Instagrammable than being a practical place to actually exist as a person.
Despite the reputation as a party juggernaut, Berlin feels quiet to me. The people are quiet, the trains are quiet, and for the amount of bustling on the streets, it feels quite low-stress and manageable. It does shock and delight me to see hundreds of bikers commuting every day, but even that seems very well managed.
I’m also in the kid capitol of Berlin - Prenzlauer berg. Friends have informed me that the birth rate in Germany is the lowest in Europe, but the birth rate in Berlin, and *specifically* in the neighborhood of Prenzlauer Berg, is booming. This explains my daily near-brushes with death by children ragin’ down the sidewalk on razor scooters.
I can’t get my phone to connect with my computer so I don’t have photos to share, but I thought I owed it to my Tumblr community (hi, nitro!) (hi, allie!) (lol) to at least share a few thoughts.
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