Berlin

I was in Germany last in 2006 with 40 students from university. We visited Cologne, Frankfurt, and Heidelberg. The memories from that trip were incredible, but when it comes to remembering what the cities looked like, I have to think really hard.

Work brought me to Berlin on Thursday and Friday. I absolutely loved it. When anyone travels, I think there are two main things that enhance a person's experience.

1. The people

2. How different that city is in relation to where you grew up, or where you've traveled to in the past.

It was for the above reasons that I loved it.

Firstly, the people. The administrator at the conference I attended made a positive comment about German hospitality and she was right!

On my way from the Berlin Schoenefeld Airport to Potsdam, I was highly amused when on two different occasions, I was literally growled at by two female workers at two different train stations while trying to get directions in English. They then proceeded to laugh and tried their best to help me out. I realized that the growling probably occurred because they were frustrated that we couldn't converse properly?

Upon arriving at Potsdam, I got lost again, and asked the first person who gave me eye contact for directions. After using a mixture of German/English/sign language, he realized that I wasn't getting it. He then kindly shoved me to the trams, and proceeded to accompany me on my short trip to the hotel! I was then highly amused and very touched when we got off the tram, and while I could clearly see that the hotel was just in front of me across the road, he tried his best to explain how best to cross the road, and that I should use the ramp instead of the stairs with my luggage! I must've looked like the worst lost person he'd ever come across!

On Friday, as I was trying to get from Potsdam to Berlin, I proceeded to stop at this sausage deli for lunch. Now, anyone who knows me, knows how much I love sausages. Oh heavenly. Sausages, sauerkraut and potatoes. Oh my lord! I sat down with my meal and realized that I didn't have any cutlery or napkins needed to devour this thing. The deli was incredibly busy, and I was at a loss. This old man in front of me, in sign language, directed me to the cutlery station, and then to the napkin station on the other end. He then laughed and gave me a thumbs up signaling that I was now ready to eat! What a sweetie pie!

Secondly, the city. Upon leaving the hotel, I had 3 hours to spare before my flight back to London, so I decided to walk around Berlin for a bit. I downloaded all the free apps I could find on Berlin and got a good idea of where I wanted to go.

I decided to focus on the area South of the Berlin Hauptbahnhof where I would be able to walk down Eberstrabe and see the main landmarks - The Reichstag House, the Brandenburg gate, the Holocaust monument - and end up at Potsdamer Platz.

The holocaust monument - Field of Stelae- was incredible. It is an area the size of two football fields filled with 2711 concrete blocks. It is a pretty controversial monument; not many saw the need for it. I as a foreigner, disagree and think it's worth every life that was lost in the war. It's designed in such a way so that as you walk down a row of blocks, the ground slopes downwards, and the blocks get taller. So initially, as you enter a row, a block is the height of your knee, and in the middle, a block is 8 feet high. So the monument is meant to symbolize the fragility of the Jews, and as you walk through the pathways you are meant to feel trapped and uncertain of what's around the corner. I spent a good 20 minutes soaking in the experience and listening to Kreuzberg by Bloc Party on repeat.

My last stop was Potsdamer Platz. It used to be no man's land between East and West Germany, but has now been transformed to becoming Berlin's commercial center. It definitely sounded and looked like the Canary Wharf of Berlin. :) Sure the buildings were great, modern, and of great design, but I was more interested to see the remains of the wall. I get really silly with things that don't exist anymore, and there in front of you, you have a fragment of what's left. And so I stood in front of the 5 pieces of concrete wall, and stared and stared, at the graffiti, and let my imagination run wild.

Shame I didn't have more time on my hands. I would've attempted to experience the afternoon Kaffee and Kuchen culture!

Potsdamer Platz:

Adrenaline and the year 2011

First week of January. What did I do? I made a resolution. Exercise? Diet? Nahh...I've got other priorities...

My resolution: To visit two new countries and 5 new cities.

In 2010, I traveled to four new cities. Naples, Gothenburg, Hong Kong and Zurich. Gothenburg and Hong Kong were surreal experiences and have made me realize how much I want to see & experience new places. I've also sort of realized that I'm addicted. Now, everyone gets an adrenaline rush from different things. I get mine in the days leading up to the flight. I start to fidget, I'm on a high, and I can't stay still. Upon my return, I experience calm, tranquility, I smile a lot more, and my mind is in a good place. Sounds like an addiction? I think so.

Gothenburg and Hong Kong were amazing, simply because there was a local showing me the ropes and immersing me into the local cultures. In Gothenburg, it was my Scandinavian team. In Hong Kong, it was my brother who was living there at that time. Plus mom and dad joined us. Dad speaks Cantonese fluently, and he reads Chinese characters!! Now that was a huge bonus.

I will be blogging shortly on my time in Stockholm, Gothenburg, Oslo, and Trysil. Sometimes I tend to think, all these Caucasian countries, they're all the same. Oh my goodness. Scandinavian culture has pleasantly surprised me and is really one of a kind.

So back to 2011. Oslo, Trysil, Berlin. Check, check, check. And Almaty in May. One more to plan. It feels good to be on schedule. :)

Growing up, around ages 12-16, I remember my parents traveling frequently for work and pleasure. I rarely got to go with them because of exams and school. I remember their stories about Europe and America. Whenever they returned, I Ooh-ed and Aah-ed, and then sulked for not being able to go. Now that I'm older it's nice to be able to do it myself and have those stories at the back of my mind. Plus, I really do want to maintain this blog for the reason below:

A conversation between mom and I 3 weeks ago:

Me: Mom, I'm going skiing in a few days in Norway.

Mom: Wowww, Norway is incredibly beautiful! Norway was where Aunty Lan lost her passport, and a kind Norwegian tracked her down!

Me: Where did you go in Norway?

Mom: Umm...what's that city called again? Aiyaya, uhhhhh, can you name me all the cities in Norway?

Me: Oslo, Bergen..

Mom: BERGEN! Soooo beautiful...

Me: Ooh, tell me more!

Mom: The lake, aiyaya, what's the name again...

Haha! :)

In May, we've planned a family trip to Almaty, Kazakhstan. My brother is there at the moment, and so mom, dad and I jumped at the opportunity to visit a new and wildly random city. Who the heck goes to Kazakhstan? Ooh, adrenaline is kicking in...

Scandinavia - Part 1 (Stockholm, Upsala & Visby)

Yes I am making generalizations having never been to Denmark. But let's zoom in to Sweden to start with. When I was studying/working in Philadelphia, I used to fly the now non-existent Malaysian Airlines route: Newark-Arlanda-Kuala Lumpur. So I'd been to Stockholm many times but that was a lie. I never ventured outside the airport during my one hour layovers.

In 2009, the company transferred me across the Atlantic Ocean to London. Before we kicked things off in London, our team spent a week working in Stockholm. For the very reasons I'm writing this blog, I have forgotten many of the specific places we hung out at. All I remember are names of places Stureplan, Ostermalm and that we worked hard, and played hard.

December 2009, my lovely Swedish friend, otherwise known as Sara Davar, invited my brother (who was pursuing his masters at Upsala) and I to join her family for Christmas. Oh my, we were at her place for 3 whole days not leaving the flat once. From the time we arrived until we left, we maintained a consistent recurring schedule: Eat, drink Glögg, sit on couch, watch TV, converse. Mrs. Davar cooked the most amazing Christmas spread I've had in a looong time (See image on right), and Tina baked a ton of cookie houses. I don't think they realized how much I was gawking at the cookie houses that decorated their apartment! Christmas at theirs was a great experience, simply because they were good fun to be around and I was introduced me to many delightful traditions.

Observation 1 - Swedes open their Christmas presents on Christmas Eve. Boxing Day? PFFfttt.

Observation 2 - They watch the same episode of DONALD DUCK every year on Christmas Eve! There is a tradition where the entire population (okay okay maybe 40% of the population, but it might as well be the entire nation) sits down in front of the TV and watches the show! This episode is otherwise known as Kalle Anka och hans vänner önskar God Jul ("Donald Duck and his friends wish you a Merry Christmas"). If you're interested in reading up on this, check out this blog post I came across 6 months ago >> http://www.slate.com/id/2239252/. This guy describes the whole experience so well.

Observation 3 - Glögg. It is a type of Swedish mulled wine. I watched in fascination as Mr. Davar heated a pot of red wine, stirring it with care. He then added raisins and almonds to it. I know I sound like an idiot since mulled wine is what a lot of European countries drink over Christmas, but back then, it was my first time experiencing Christmas in Europe.

Observation 4 - Pepparkakor. It is a traditional Swedish Christmas cookie but sold all year round. They are like thin gingerbread cookies. I think they come in all shapes, but is most commonly sold as heart shaped ginger snaps.

Thanks to the Davars for a great time!

Following Christmas at theirs, my brother and I went back to Upsala for a few days. One great memory I have of Upsala is biking in the snow! It took me awhile to get the hang of it, and trust me, I fell many times, once at the crossroads, in front of all these motorists. We then proceeded to Gotland, the largest island in the Baltic Sea! The funny thing is whenever I tell Swedes that I went to Gotland over winter, they give me funny looks. When we got there, we were the only foreigners brave enough to visit the island in the winter. Gotland is really more of the type of island that people escape to over the summer.

Nevertheless, we made our way around the island, and covered it quite well. Gotland is known for its 94 medievel church (image on left), many of which have been restored and in active use.

Now for the most part, we were in Visby, a municipality in Gotland and a very famous destination in the summer. One of the reasons my brother and I decided to visit Visby, was because it is a UNESCO site, and known as one of the best preserved medievel city in Scandinavia.

The 3.4 km city wall which encircles the city still remains and is quite a marvel to walk around.

So if you're planning to visit Gotland, do try to go in the summer. It sure is beautiful in the winter, but it's the sort of place where you'd want to bask in the sun and lay on the ground while soaking in the medievel scene around you...