Birthday in Berlin

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Greetings to all! First post in quite some time. Quite frankly, there has been little to report. The second semester of school was very busy and challenging leaving little time for travel, fun and games. However, the semester ended this past week and it was certainly time to go on a bit of a holiday. Conveniently, my birthday was Thursday of this past week so that provided additional insentive. My flatmate and I found very reasonable airfare to Berlin and so took advantage of an escape to central Europe.

We arrived in Berlin on Thursday afternoon and after making our way via bus and train to our hostel, began venturing about the city. In our first afternoon we saw the Berlin Dom as well as the Brandenberg Gate and the Reichstag. I have to say that I was in awe of the Brandenberg Gate as it has been witness to so many major and controversial events in history. Following our first trek about the city, my flatmate and I decided it was time to enjoy a birthday treat and made our way to a beergarden for a tasty weissbeer. We found a place situated along the river Spree in the shadow of the Berlin Dom. Absolutely brilliant! Needless to say, we made an evening of it.

The following day featured more of the same venturing through the eastern part of the city and then making our way to Checkpoint Charlie and what remains of the Berlin Wall. From there we walked to the former Prince Albrecht Strasse, site of a dark history, but an important one nonetheless. As the day went on we found ourselves simply strolling about enjoying the beautiful weather and observing the culture that is Berlin; a truly wonderful city. However, after another great evening in beergardens and cafes it was time to return to Belfast and to schoolwork. Though I do hope to return to Germany and Berlin in the near future.

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