The Germany Thread

[Neonmoon 38,127]

We spent 4 days in Munich. Lovely city. Great beer and food. It was our second time to Germany. Saw everything from Residenz to Dachau. I could see myself living in Germany. Everything is so clean and efficient. I appreciate and favor their lack of small talk. Do you job well, enjoy a beer, and shut the fuck up.

[Grundy 27]

On 2/29/2024 at 11:14 AM, Ghost of LL said:

Sure.  Give me a bit more information, though.  Where are you flying into and out of?  Are you open to flying into someplace like Frankfurt and out Zurich?  Or are you intent on flying out of the same place you flew into?  And what about internal transit?  Are you doing trains or renting a car?  And how ambitious do you want to be on transit?  Like a "if it's Friday, it must be Munich" itinerary?  Or more of a "let's find one or two bases of operations and go from there?"  And what do you mean by "culture?"  Are you looking for art museums?  Cites of historical significance (and if so, what era)?  Or more like street art and the KitKat Club?

Just three ideas:

Rhine:

Fly into Frankfurt and drive up to the Romantic Rhine (i.e., the stretch roughly from Bingen to Koblenz).  Spend a couple days there checking out the various castles.  Drive down to Strasbourg and spend a few days there.  Then drive down to Basel and spend a couple days there exploring the Rhine as it exits the Alps.  Fly out of Zurich.

Berlin & Dresden:

Fly into Berlin (will require a connection) and spend five days there.  Drive down to Dresden, which is an under-visited and -appreciated city by Americans.  About halfway is the Spreewald, which is where the River Spree naturally spreads out into a huge floodplain but has, over the millennia, been carved up by small canals.  It's just a beautiful area that you can now get a gondola, a bike, or just hike around.

Munich & the Bavarian Alps:

Fly into Munich and spend three or four days there.  Then drive down to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, see King Ludwig's castles, hike the Partnachklamm and the Alpspitze, take the gondola up to the top of the Zugspitze (the highest mountain in Germany).  Maybe go over to Salzburg and check out Berchtesgaden if there's time.

Those are just some ideas.

Thank you for the recommendations! Much appreciated..

We are leaning towards Munich as the starting point and then heading towards the Wengen, Murren, or Lauterbrunnen area as a base for operations. Anyone have a preference as to which area to pick as our home base to explore the area?

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

1 hour ago, Grundy said:

Thank you for the recommendations! Much appreciated..

We are leaning towards Munich as the starting point and then heading towards the Wengen, Murren, or Lauterbrunnen area as a base for operations. Anyone have a preference as to which area to pick as our home base to explore the area?

That whole area south of Interlaken is amazing.  I don't have a preference as between villages, and I've only been there once many years ago.  So I don't have any real good recommendations or commentary on that.  But it's a beautiful area.

I'm happy to give whatever thoughts you want on Munich.  I will observe that Munich is the birthplace of National Socialism.  So if you want some good Nazi sights, Munich is your town (Nuremberg is also great for that).  If you're interested in such sights, you should have a browser page on your phone open to Third Reich Ruins any time you're walking around Munich.

[otisdog 365]

You've made good choices....Wengen has more options  quality restaurant and room wise, but if you're using it as a base, it's remoteness up there translates into more travel time per day, same with Murren.  But if your exploring means hiking, Wengen would be fine.  Lauterbrunnen is a nice place to sit on a patio, drink bier, and watch waterfalls, but being in the canyon pales in comparison to being up above. Either of the to 'upper' towns are unworldly beautiful...you might find yourself content to just soak up the beauty...it's breathtaking up there. Grindelwald is also nice, a bit more sleepy than the others. Hotel Gletschergarten there is one of my favorite places to stay, sitting on the balcony in the morning looking at the Eiger, eating pastry from the  good bakery right across the street. The cemetery across the street, towards town has many gravesites of climbers who have died in the nearby heights...it's worth the look. The train runs to Grindelwald, not so the others. You will love the area.

Edited March 28 by otisdog

[rage-a-holic 4,308]

3 hours ago, Grundy said:

Thank you for the recommendations! Much appreciated..

We are leaning towards Munich as the starting point and then heading towards the Wengen, Murren, or Lauterbrunnen area as a base for operations. Anyone have a preference as to which area to pick as our home base to explore the area?

You might want to ask on the Switzerland thread too.

I prefer Wengen. Wengen and Murren are both no-car villages, accessible only by gondola/train, but Wengen is prettier and has more shit to do. 

It's all about how much you want to spend. Interlaken would be the cheapest base, then Grindelwald > Lauterbrunnen > Murren > Wengen  

The poster above said Grindelwald is sleepy, which is just crazy. I think he's confusing it with Gimmelwald. Grindlewald has a ton of hotels/shops/touristy shit and is jam fucking packed with hordes of tourists everytime I've been there.

 

Here's the view from the 4th floor of the Hotel Shonegg Wengen.

 

 

[otisdog 365]

No confusion, I know where Grindelwald is, I've been staying there for half a century. I tend not to be there during the high season.

[rage-a-holic 4,308]

21 minutes ago, otisdog said:

No confusion, I know where Grindelwald is, I've been staying there for half a century. I tend not to be there during the high season.

Then your definition of "sleepy" is weird. Grindelwald is bigger than Lauterbrunnen/Wengen/Murren combined and is the biggest tour/bus/train destination in the area behind Interlaken.

 

 

[Mango4 189]

Going to Munich for Oktoberfest. Plan on going to Dachau but will take any other recommendations in Munich. Only have a few days there before taking the train to Berlin  

[Grundy 27]

10 hours ago, rage-a-holic said:

You might want to ask on the Switzerland thread too.

I prefer Wengen. Wengen and Murren are both no-car villages, accessible only by gondola/train, but Wengen is prettier and has more shit to do. 

It's all about how much you want to spend. Interlaken would be the cheapest base, then Grindelwald > Lauterbrunnen > Murren > Wengen  

The poster above said Grindelwald is sleepy, which is just crazy. I think he's confusing it with Gimmelwald. Grindlewald has a ton of hotels/shops/touristy shit and is jam fucking packed with hordes of tourists everytime I've been there.

 

Here's the view from the 4th floor of the Hotel Shonegg Wengen.

 

 

That is very helpful and much appreciated! Fantastic scenery 

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

7 hours ago, Mango4 said:

Going to Munich for Oktoberfest. Plan on going to Dachau but will take any other recommendations in Munich. Only have a few days there before taking the train to Berlin  

Shit--I have a thread on Oktoberfest from way back.  But I can't find it now.

As to hotels, there is a Sheraton Four Points and a Courtyard Marriott within walking distance.  Marriott may have changed this, but when I went some years ago, they didn't have "surge pricing" for rooms booked on points.  So the Courtyard is something like a Level 3 hotel, and they didn't change that during Oktoberfest.  So you could get that room for really cheap on Marriott points.  But whether you're booking on points or using cash, you need to book a hotel now.

You ought to get a pair of lederhosen, and your lady needs a dirndl.  Yeah--you'll feel dumb as you get dressed in the hotel room.  But then you'll step foot outside and start walking toward the Wiesn, and you'll see that everyone else is ismilarly attired.  And you'll feel suddenly that you're pretty cool.

The general scene is that there are a dozen or so big tents.  Each has its own vibe.  Hippodrome is the smallest and maybe the coolest.  Hofbrauhaus is for the Australians.  Augustiner has the best beer.

You go in and find a seat.  You have to be seated to order a drink (or food).  There is no bar that you can walk up to and order.  It's a way of limiting capacity.  You order, the bier comes, and you pay--nobody is going to run you a tab.  And once you have your bier, you can get up and walk around if you wish (though you'll lose your place at that table). 

All of the tables are like picnic tables that seat 16 (though the tables at the Hippodrome are smaller--they maybe seat 10).  If you see a spot, politely ask the people sitting there if it's available--"ist dieser Platz frei?".   If yes, they'll motion you to sit.  Aside from being socially appropriate, it also has the side benefit of being something of a conversation starter.  And it's kind of expected that you're going to be social.  And why wouldn't you be?  You're surrounded by people from right around the world drinking and having a good time.  I'm still in contact with people I met at Oktoberfest who are from everywhere from Germany to Australia.

Tables can be reserved for large groups.  But if you see an empty table with a "Reserviert" sign on it, you can still sit down and order a bier.  But if the reserving party shows up, they'll kick you out.  Or they'll just ask you to push down.  That happened to us at the Hippodrome.  I think the Swiss guys who had the table reserved were quite happy to have Mrs.LL in her dirndl continue to hang out at their table for a while.

Remember to eat something.  The standard snack at every tent is the half-chicken (halb Hahnchen).  It's way oversalted and rotisserie grilled.  Fucking delicious.  But you're going to want another bier or two after all that salt.

Dammit--now I want to go back.  Maybe we'll take the kids when they're both over 16.

[Asithappens 974]

Going to be in Munich mid-October 2024 for a week. 

Any recommendations? Side trips? Thinking about Mad King Ludwig's castle, Dachau, Eagle's Nest, Rottenburg....

[EuroHorn 3,204]

30 minutes ago, Asithappens said:

Going to be in Munich mid-October 2024 for a week. 

Any recommendations? Side trips? Thinking about Mad King Ludwig's castle, Dachau, Eagle's Nest, Rottenburg....

Grab a few beers in the beer garden in the Englisher garten. Also check out the river surfing at the northern part of the garten 

Edited August 12 by EuroHorn

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

On 8/12/2024 at 4:45 PM, Asithappens said:

Going to be in Munich mid-October 2024 for a week. 

Any recommendations? Side trips? Thinking about Mad King Ludwig's castle, Dachau, Eagle's Nest, Rottenburg....

As fortune would have it, I just wrote up a day-trip itinerary to King Ludwig's castles for a colleague who is going to Munich next month:

Leave Munich by 8:00, and take the Autobahn A-95 south toward Garmisch-Partenkirchen.  Exit at the town of Oberau on the B-2 and turn onto the B-23 toward Ettal.  On the right side of road at the town of Ettal is the Ettal Monastery, which is worth a short stop.  And on the left side of the road is a bakery that is a great stop for a quick breakfast.

Just after Ettal you’d turn left toward Schloss Linderhof (https://www.schlosslinderhof.de/englisch/tourist/index.htm).  It opens at 10:00 AM, and it’s best to be early to avoid the big crowds.  It is built as a tiny version of Versailles, and the real interesting stuff is the grotto and the gardens.  The grotto was built for Ludwig to enjoy Wagner’s operas in an immersive environment, and is really very cool.  All in, it'll probably take 2-3 hours.

After Linderhof, you go back out to the road and turn left (i.e., not back in the direction you came), and you get a nice little drive through the Alps and into Austria.  Eventually you get to the town of Reutte, where you turn right on Highway 179 toward Fussen.  Just before Fussen, you cross back into Germany and then in a couple miles you come to a T intersection.  Right takes you to Schloss Neuschwanstein, left takes you into town.  Personally, at this point I’d go into town and grab lunch.  It’s a cute little Bavarian town with a pretty little pedestrian area in the center.  There are a bunch of restaurants around.

After that, you can head over to Schloss Neuschwanstein (https://www.neuschwanstein.de/englisch/tourist/).  This is the castle on which Walt Disney modeled Cinderella’s Castle, and the exterior is pretty famous.  The interior, however, is unremarkable.  Basically, the Bavarian treasury was emptied before Ludwig could finish it, so there’s not just a whole lot to see inside.  It’s definitely worth hiking up to the courtyard and then around to the side where there’s a bridge from which you can get great photos.  I’m not sure going inside is a great expenditure of time.  From Neuschwanstein, you can look down and see Castle Hohenschwangau, which is the previous royal palace where Ludwig was born.  Again—I’m not sure it’s worth going down there.

Finished with Neuschwanstein, go back out to Highway 17 and turn right.  At Steingaden, turn right on Ammergauer Strasse and follow the signs to the Wieskirche (https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/271/).  It’s a rococo church in the middle of a meadow (“Wies” is “meadow” in German) that marks a miraculous spring.  Even if you’re not a church person, this one is worth a stop.

After that, head back to Ammergauer Strasse, take a right, and that will take you right back to Highway 23 (take a right), which goes back to the Autobahn and Munich.

On the way, you’re going to pass back through Ettal.  I will tell you that the monastery has a brewery (as most monasteries in Germany do).  And across the street is the hotel Ludwig der Bayer, which has a very good restaurant with a patio overlooking the monastery, which you may want to stop at for a snack and a beer or for dinner, depending on the hour.

If you want to take an extra day and stay in the area, I think it is worth the area.  You can hike around the Partnachklamm, which is a cool little canyon.  Or you can take the gondola up the Zugspitze to the highest spot in Germany.  Also in the town is the stadium and ski jumps from the 1936 Winter Olympics (somehow Germany got both the Winter and Summer Olympics in 1936)--really great look for the IOC in retrospect.

 

[Asithappens 974]

Thanks!

Any ideas on tours in/around Munich? Or just walking around ideas?

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

1 hour ago, Asithappens said:

Thanks!

Any ideas on tours in/around Munich? Or just walking around ideas?

Inside Munich, almost everything you're going to want to see is inside the old city walls (which are gone, but are marked by various gates).  You can take the S-Bahn to Marienplatz, and that puts you right at the main town square.  Fronting on the Marienplatz is the Neues Rathouse (New City Hall) with the glockenspiel in the clock tower.  Across the way is St. Peter's Church, which is worth a hike up to the tower for a great view (you can see the Alps in the distance) and the full skeleton of some saint (southern German Catholics are very big on the display of relics).  I also like walking back behind St. Peter's to the Viktuelenmarkt, which is a big farmers market with a beer garten.  If you get up in the morning, walk around the old town, and then go over to the beer garten and grab a lunch of some sandwiches on a bread roll and end up sitting there the rest of the day drinking beer, . . . that's not a wasted day in my book.  

The Residenz--the in-town residence of the kings of Bavaria, roughly the equivalent of Buckingham Palace--is a few blocks north.  And near that is the Odeonsplatz with the Theatinerkirche, which is itself worth a stop.  

The Odeonsplatz is interesting because it is where the showdown between the Bavarian state police and the Nazis occurred that ended the Beer Hall Putsch.  On the left side of the Feldherrenhalle, which is the loggia on the south side of the square, is where the gunbattle took place.  There was a Nazi memorial there, at which everyone passing had to give the Nazi salute.  That's obviously gone.  Still remaining is a memorial to the police officers killed by the Nazis.

If you're interested in the Nazi spots, Munich has a lot of them.  I'd recommend the website https://www.thirdreichruins.com/munich.htm, which will show you a number of spots that were significant to the Nazis, Munich being the birthplace of the party.  And there are plenty of spots where you can still see the remnants of Nazi decorations.

Just outside the city center is Schloss Nymphenburg, which is another of King Ludwig's castles and was kind of the suburban royal residence (akin to Windsor Castle).  There's no nearby subway stop, but the bus goes there.

The Olympic stadium and athlete's village is a short subway ride from the city center.  That's worth a look.  The BMW headquarters and Museum are a short walk away (right across the Autobahn).

Go to the Hofbrauhaus if you want.  But the Augustinerkeller just north of the main train station is where it's at.  The food and beer are both better, and there's a great garden.  Also have a liter at the beer garden at the Englishergarten.

 

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

I don't see an Austria thread, so I guess I'll just toss these thoughts into here.

I'm thinking of 2-3 weeks bouncing around the country--perhaps flying into Munich and out Vienna.  I figure maybe 3 days in Munich, 2-3 days in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 4-5 days in Tirol (I found a place that looks like the Austrian version of a Great Wolf Lodge, which the kids would probably enjoy), a handful of days in Salzburg, and then 4 days or so in Vienna.  

But nothing is booked, and I'm obviously up for suggestions.

The kids like stuff that is more active (e.g., canyoning and rafting in Tirol).  Mrs.LL is going to like just spending an afternoon at the Viktuelenmarkt eating breadroll sandwiches and drinking beer.  I'm the dad--I'm good with whatever.

So fire away.  @texasdago--thoughts on a day trip down to Bolzen?  

Anybody else have thoughts on a day trip from Vienna to Bratislava?

[squib 1,120]

On 8/16/2024 at 7:21 AM, Asithappens said:

Thanks!

Any ideas on tours in/around Munich? Or just walking around ideas?

Dachau is a short train ride. You can be there in 30 minutes or so. Go midday and don't plan anything fun that night. You won't be in the mood. It's a heavy place. 

I always look for ways to get out in the country so last time I took the train down to Tutzing (maybe 45 minutes from Munich). Walked along the lake there and chilled on some benches by the shore. Pretty place. Then I started back on an open ticket and got off in each little town where the train stopped. Walked around for an hour then jumped back on the train only to get off in the next town toward Munich. Starnberg was really cool. You can climb up the hill to the church St. Joseph. The church has a pretty court yard and a great view back over the valley. I didn't go inside but it looks beautiful. This made for a nice day,  and I still got back to Munich in time to hit up some beer gardens--there are several fantastic ones. 

[squib 1,120]

1 hour ago, Ghost of LL said:

I don't see an Austria thread, so I guess I'll just toss these thoughts into here.

I'm thinking of 2-3 weeks bouncing around the country--perhaps flying into Munich and out Vienna.  I figure maybe 3 days in Munich, 2-3 days in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 4-5 days in Tirol (I found a place that looks like the Austrian version of a Great Wolf Lodge, which the kids would probably enjoy), a handful of days in Salzburg, and then 4 days or so in Vienna.  

But nothing is booked, and I'm obviously up for suggestions.

The kids like stuff that is more active (e.g., canyoning and rafting in Tirol).  Mrs.LL is going to like just spending an afternoon at the Viktuelenmarkt eating breadroll sandwiches and drinking beer.  I'm the dad--I'm good with whatever.

So fire away.  @texasdago--thoughts on a day trip down to Bolzen?  

Anybody else have thoughts on a day trip from Vienna to Bratislava?

Just got back from Vienna in June. I spent a few days in Krems. It's a cool little town with some nicer restaurants than you would expect. The wine produced there is world renowned so they get a high end tourist. About an hour by train from Vienna. 

[texasdago 7,553]

Hmmm... first, my Italian blood wants to tell you it's Bolzano but I'm trying to think.  Maybe you could go drive up the Otztal Valley and drive over Timmelsjoch into Italy.  In Hochgurgl and the way up the mountain pass there is a cool motorcycle museum.  You can then make your way to Vipiteno.  @Ghost of LL 

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

3 hours ago, texasdago said:

Hmmm... first, my Italian blood wants to tell you it's Bolzano but I'm trying to think.  Maybe you could go drive up the Otztal Valley and drive over Timmelsjoch into Italy.  In Hochgurgl and the way up the mountain pass there is a cool motorcycle museum.  You can then make your way to Vipiteno.  @Ghost of LL 

That’s exactly the direction from which we would be coming were we to go down into Sudtirol.

[otisdog 365]

Innsbruck is pretty nice, good shopping and a short train ride from Munich. Garmisch has gotten too big for me, so we canceled and went up hill to Mittenwald. But if you do go to Garmisch, Hotel Reindl is nice.

 

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

3 hours ago, otisdog said:

Innsbruck is pretty nice, good shopping and a short train ride from Munich. Garmisch has gotten too big for me, so we canceled and went up hill to Mittenwald. But if you do go to Garmisch, Hotel Reindl is nice.

 

Yeah, and that's fair.  I was also thinking about Fussen.

[rage-a-holic 4,308]

3 hours ago, Ghost of LL said:

Yeah, and that's fair.  I was also thinking about Fussen.

We were gonna stay in Fussen last June after the castle tours, but everything was ridiculously priced. We stayed in Garmisch instead and I'm glad we did; Fussen was just wall to wall tourists.

[rage-a-holic 4,308]

On 8/20/2024 at 3:27 PM, Ghost of LL said:

I don't see an Austria thread, so I guess I'll just toss these thoughts into here.

I'm thinking of 2-3 weeks bouncing around the country--perhaps flying into Munich and out Vienna.  I figure maybe 3 days in Munich, 2-3 days in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 4-5 days in Tirol (I found a place that looks like the Austrian version of a Great Wolf Lodge, which the kids would probably enjoy), a handful of days in Salzburg, and then 4 days or so in Vienna.  

But nothing is booked, and I'm obviously up for suggestions.

The kids like stuff that is more active (e.g., canyoning and rafting in Tirol).  Mrs.LL is going to like just spending an afternoon at the Viktuelenmarkt eating breadroll sandwiches and drinking beer.  I'm the dad--I'm good with whatever.

So fire away.  @texasdago--thoughts on a day trip down to Bolzen?  

Anybody else have thoughts on a day trip from Vienna to Bratislava?

I've pimped Werfen before, but it's a cool little town. Right across the German border and not far from Salzburg. Your kids will enjoy the ice cave and the castle is also pretty cool.

[TxEx84 375]

On 8/1/2021 at 9:55 AM, squib said:

I'll log back in later and hit you up with a few more of my recs. 

We're waiting...

Seriously, thanks for all the recs. I am heading to Berlin and Munich (Oktoberfest) in two weeks. I have been to Munich several times, including Oktoberfest five times, so have that covered.  But never been to Berlin.  Friend is running Berlin Marathon so we'll be there for four days. Any other recommendations on Berlin?

[squib 1,120]

@TxEX84 

Thanks for the reminder. 

I used to work in Berlin quite a bit. I'm a huge fan. The city has a grit that reminds me a somewhat of Chicago--just seems very real. 

Here are some things I would hit up I you have time. 

The East Side Gallery. This is outside and free. You can just walk along and enjoy. The are several sections that get repainted so only some is historic, but it is always interesting. My recollection is that artists have to submit a plan for approval and then they get a time frame on a section. It is different everytime I am there.  To get there probably best to just take the U to Warschauer Strause U stop. I think it is the last stop on that line. Neat old stop in a massive brick structure.

In terms of public transportation, you generally don't scan in and out of turnstiles, etc. There is just an assumption that you have a pass. Don't get complacent though as everyonce in a while a transit officer will board a train car and ask to see everyone's pass. If you can't show yours, they will drag you off at the next stop. I don't know what happens to those people, but they always look pretty worried as the train pulls away. 

Ok. Now I have a low-rent rec near the ESG and the Warschauer Strause stop.  The gallery is on the northside of the river. There is a bridge over the river just a bit east of the ESG. On the corner where you would turn south for the bridge is a guilty pleasure--Scheer's Schnitzel. It's a hole in the wall--basically a place that makes schnitzel and fries and that is about it. It's gritty, it's greasy, and it is fantastic. I have had schnitzel all over Germany and Austria, many at high end places like Figlmuller in Vienna. If I was told I could have only one more in my life, I would go get one from Scheer's served on a paper plate with a slice of lemon and one of their sauces from a squeeze bottle. I like the mayo/garlic one best, but many are good. 

From there, you can walk across that bridge to the south to hit up several of my other Berlin favorites. The walk across the bridge is a bit disgusting--lots of little nooks for people to piss in, and this section of town is a bit bar-driven so prepare your nose.  The next stop down from Warschauer S is Schlesisches Tor U stop. You can ride the U if you want to skip the bridge stroll, but walking across the bridge gives you a good view of Molecule Men art installation that is in the river to the east. It's huge. You won't miss it. You can walk down to it on the southside of the river, but I am not sure it is any better up close--and that particular part of Berlin is sketchy--more on that later.  All that side, I would walk across the bridge. It is better than waiting on the U. 

Now you are in a fun part of town that many locals go to for drinking and just being outside. Again, a bit gritty though. Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg--south. I have a few must do's here and one must avoid. 

Under the U tracks and just a bit north of the Schlesisches Tor U stop is Burgermeister--maybe the best burgers on the planet. Now you may still have a bellyfull of Scheer's so just come back here after you are drunk--more on that in the next paragraph. But, stop here you must at some point. It seems that all of Berlin ends up at Burgermeister at some point late in the night. There are several Burgermesiters around Berlin, but this is the one to hit up. https://burgermeister.com/our-story/?lang=en

This one is the OG--and the stall is an old public toilet. There are no tables to sit out--in fact it is outside. It is basically a stall under the U tracks. You order from a green shack then you wait for your order. There are little round tables you can stand at to eat with whatever other person is also standing there. Everyone just shares tables. On Friday and Saturday nights there will be hundreds of people there laughing and talking and enjoying great burgers and fries. The shack doesn't sell booze but there is a liquor store right across the street and you can buy a tallboy beer and walk back to the table while your burger is grilling. I have met people from all over the world sharing a table. One of my favorite encounters was with some guys from Galway. They had just gotten of the plane and said they always went there first thing to get burgers before going to clubs. (The Matrix is one of those famous Berlin clubs and is back across the bridge), When I told them all I knew about Galway (I had not been to Galway then; I have now) came from Steve Earle imploring about his Galway girl and what could he do cuz her hair was black and her eyes were blue. One of the guys laughed and said well move over a bit and you get to meet a Galway girl--a blackhaired/blue-eyed stunningly beautiful girl then walked up with the sack of burgers for her boyfriend and the other two guys at our little table. Anyway, get a burger from Burgermeister after you hit up my favorite beer spot in Berlin--next paragraph.

There are great beer gardens around Berlin, but they all have the standard German beer choices. You won't see any if at all local craft beer at a beer garden. And Berlin and Germany has some good craft beer; you just have to search it out. My favorite of these hidden craft places is just a few blocks from Burgermeister. The place is small and fantastic: Hopfenreich, located on Wrangelstrause. http://hopfenreich.de/

Great group of owners who are really into beer. It's not a big place but is comfortable and has inside and outside seating on a small residential street. The beer is great, the music is good and the taps/furniture are all really cool old repurposed industrial equipment and tools. The beer taps come out of a huge lathe, some of the tables still have vices and clamps attached. Just look around for cool stuff. I usually sit here for hours then go get a Burgermeister.   

The other really cool venue near there is Markthalle Neun. This is the old market hall (#9) for the area. It is huge. https://markthalleneun.de/

It is a great place to kill an hour or so and sample cheeses, breads, all kinds of food and other stuff depending on the day. In the summer on Thursday nights, they even bring in food trucks and it gets packed. Super fun. In the back left corner is a small beer nook--this place has great beer and one of the other places in Berlin to get some craft. Can't recommend Markthalle Neun highly enough. Maybe even get dinner there. There are lots of choices and it is fun. Communal tables--eat and then go to Hopfenreich. 

There are other cool places in that neighborhood including a great icecream place that is also busy in the evenings. But you can just explore around. The one place to avoid though is Görlitzer Park .  This is a bad scene. Drug fiends and a bad crowd in general. When you have heard of bad shit going down in Berlin--people getting attacked by mobs and such--it likely happened here. I ended up walking though Gorli with my wife one Sunday afternoon,and it is the only time in all my travels around the world where I honestly thought we were in danger. We got surrounded by a group of about a dozen youngish punks, and I am not sure why they finally let us walk away. I have since seen numerous stories about that exact thing happening to people with terrible outcomes. Don't go over there. 

Ok. I will add some more stuff in a bit. 

[Brisketexan 104,746]

My son lived in Berlin for a year - he’d shout for joy about your Burgermeister rec. He still says it’s his favorite burger anywhere.

And I’m pretty sure you don’t need a permit to paint certain panels at the ESG. The boy and a friend painted a panel last year. It only lasted a coupla days before something new was painted there.

Berlin is one of our family’s favorite cities around. There’s just something about the vibe, people, and energy.

[52-80 19,110]

On 8/20/2024 at 10:27 PM, Ghost of LL said:

I don't see an Austria thread, so I guess I'll just toss these thoughts into here.

I'm thinking of 2-3 weeks bouncing around the country--perhaps flying into Munich and out Vienna.  I figure maybe 3 days in Munich, 2-3 days in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 4-5 days in Tirol (I found a place that looks like the Austrian version of a Great Wolf Lodge, which the kids would probably enjoy), a handful of days in Salzburg, and then 4 days or so in Vienna.  

But nothing is booked, and I'm obviously up for suggestions.

The kids like stuff that is more active (e.g., canyoning and rafting in Tirol).  Mrs.LL is going to like just spending an afternoon at the Viktuelenmarkt eating breadroll sandwiches and drinking beer.  I'm the dad--I'm good with whatever.

So fire away.  @texasdago--thoughts on a day trip down to Bolzen?  

Anybody else have thoughts on a day trip from Vienna to Bratislava?

In the summer I would plan seeing an opera on the water in Bregenz. In Burgenland theres Oper im Steinbruch which is their version of Red Rocks.

Imst in Tirol has the world's 2nd longest alpine coaster / toboggan. But there are a ton of other ones around the Alps region too. Many of the ski slopes do downhill bike rentals for thrill seekers. Places billing themselves as "sporthotel" typically have outdoor packages and facilities.

Stift Engelszell near the Passau border hosts one of the few trappist breweries in the world, and the first outside of Belgium/Netherlands.

Vienna has a stupid amount of free outdoor public festivals/events year round, but especially in the summer: e.g. music festivals, arts performances, wine/food celebrations, red bull sponsored activities, avp volleyball, outdoor soccer tournament projections, film projections (multiple types and events). Check Wurstelstand for the schedule.

Popular local thing to do is hike around the vineyards on the foothills at the edge of the city where you can eat and dine at the taverns (Heuriger), often set outdoors.

In comparison, Bratislava is pretty boring from a tourist perspective, but if you want to go there you can take the hydrofoil on the Danube and that in itself can be an attraction.

 

 

 

[TxEx84 375]

Thanks @squib for the detailed recommendations! Will definitely try those.

[Mango4 189]

12 hours ago, squib said:

@TxEX84 

Thanks for the reminder. 

I used to work in Berlin quite a bit. I'm a huge fan. The city has a grit that reminds me a somewhat of Chicago--just seems very real. 

Here are some things I would hit up I you have time. 

The East Side Gallery. This is outside and free. You can just walk along and enjoy. The are several sections that get repainted so only some is historic, but it is always interesting. My recollection is that artists have to submit a plan for approval and then they get a time frame on a section. It is different everytime I am there.  To get there probably best to just take the U to Warschauer Strause U stop. I think it is the last stop on that line. Neat old stop in a massive brick structure.

In terms of public transportation, you generally don't scan in and out of turnstiles, etc. There is just an assumption that you have a pass. Don't get complacent though as everyonce in a while a transit officer will board a train car and ask to see everyone's pass. If you can't show yours, they will drag you off at the next stop. I don't know what happens to those people, but they always look pretty worried as the train pulls away. 

Ok. Now I have a low-rent rec near the ESG and the Warschauer Strause stop.  The gallery is on the northside of the river. There is a bridge over the river just a bit east of the ESG. On the corner where you would turn south for the bridge is a guilty pleasure--Scheer's Schnitzel. It's a hole in the wall--basically a place that makes schnitzel and fries and that is about it. It's gritty, it's greasy, and it is fantastic. I have had schnitzel all over Germany and Austria, many at high end places like Figlmuller in Vienna. If I was told I could have only one more in my life, I would go get one from Scheer's served on a paper plate with a slice of lemon and one of their sauces from a squeeze bottle. I like the mayo/garlic one best, but many are good. 

From there, you can walk across that bridge to the south to hit up several of my other Berlin favorites. The walk across the bridge is a bit disgusting--lots of little nooks for people to piss in, and this section of town is a bit bar-driven so prepare your nose.  The next stop down from Warschauer S is Schlesisches Tor U stop. You can ride the U if you want to skip the bridge stroll, but walking across the bridge gives you a good view of Molecule Men art installation that is in the river to the east. It's huge. You won't miss it. You can walk down to it on the southside of the river, but I am not sure it is any better up close--and that particular part of Berlin is sketchy--more on that later.  All that side, I would walk across the bridge. It is better than waiting on the U. 

Now you are in a fun part of town that many locals go to for drinking and just being outside. Again, a bit gritty though. Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg--south. I have a few must do's here and one must avoid. 

Under the U tracks and just a bit north of the Schlesisches Tor U stop is Burgermeister--maybe the best burgers on the planet. Now you may still have a bellyfull of Scheer's so just come back here after you are drunk--more on that in the next paragraph. But, stop here you must at some point. It seems that all of Berlin ends up at Burgermeister at some point late in the night. There are several Burgermesiters around Berlin, but this is the one to hit up. https://burgermeister.com/our-story/?lang=en

This one is the OG--and the stall is an old public toilet. There are no tables to sit out--in fact it is outside. It is basically a stall under the U tracks. You order from a green shack then you wait for your order. There are little round tables you can stand at to eat with whatever other person is also standing there. Everyone just shares tables. On Friday and Saturday nights there will be hundreds of people there laughing and talking and enjoying great burgers and fries. The shack doesn't sell booze but there is a liquor store right across the street and you can buy a tallboy beer and walk back to the table while your burger is grilling. I have met people from all over the world sharing a table. One of my favorite encounters was with some guys from Galway. They had just gotten of the plane and said they always went there first thing to get burgers before going to clubs. (The Matrix is one of those famous Berlin clubs and is back across the bridge), When I told them all I knew about Galway (I had not been to Galway then; I have now) came from Steve Earle imploring about his Galway girl and what could he do cuz her hair was black and her eyes were blue. One of the guys laughed and said well move over a bit and you get to meet a Galway girl--a blackhaired/blue-eyed stunningly beautiful girl then walked up with the sack of burgers for her boyfriend and the other two guys at our little table. Anyway, get a burger from Burgermeister after you hit up my favorite beer spot in Berlin--next paragraph.

There are great beer gardens around Berlin, but they all have the standard German beer choices. You won't see any if at all local craft beer at a beer garden. And Berlin and Germany has some good craft beer; you just have to search it out. My favorite of these hidden craft places is just a few blocks from Burgermeister. The place is small and fantastic: Hopfenreich, located on Wrangelstrause. http://hopfenreich.de/

Great group of owners who are really into beer. It's not a big place but is comfortable and has inside and outside seating on a small residential street. The beer is great, the music is good and the taps/furniture are all really cool old repurposed industrial equipment and tools. The beer taps come out of a huge lathe, some of the tables still have vices and clamps attached. Just look around for cool stuff. I usually sit here for hours then go get a Burgermeister.   

The other really cool venue near there is Markthalle Neun. This is the old market hall (#9) for the area. It is huge. https://markthalleneun.de/

It is a great place to kill an hour or so and sample cheeses, breads, all kinds of food and other stuff depending on the day. In the summer on Thursday nights, they even bring in food trucks and it gets packed. Super fun. In the back left corner is a small beer nook--this place has great beer and one of the other places in Berlin to get some craft. Can't recommend Markthalle Neun highly enough. Maybe even get dinner there. There are lots of choices and it is fun. Communal tables--eat and then go to Hopfenreich. 

There are other cool places in that neighborhood including a great icecream place that is also busy in the evenings. But you can just explore around. The one place to avoid though is Görlitzer Park .  This is a bad scene. Drug fiends and a bad crowd in general. When you have heard of bad shit going down in Berlin--people getting attacked by mobs and such--it likely happened here. I ended up walking though Gorli with my wife one Sunday afternoon,and it is the only time in all my travels around the world where I honestly thought we were in danger. We got surrounded by a group of about a dozen youngish punks, and I am not sure why they finally let us walk away. I have since seen numerous stories about that exact thing happening to people with terrible outcomes. Don't go over there. 

Ok. I will add some more stuff in a bit. 

Leaving for Germany in two weeks, thanks for the tips. I've added Burgermeister and Hopfenriech to our lists since we already planned on going to the East Side Gallery. 

[Brisketexan 104,746]

The boy and his buddy painted this panel at the ESG back in March. It’s cool to see it constantly changing.



Also, there’s a Saturday “market” at the Mauer Park - cheap random stuff, a real Berlin thing. The boy and his friends hit it up all the time. It’s a genuine “locals” thing to do.

[squib 1,120]

Here are some more thoughts on things to do in Berlin. I will be a bit more succinct. 

• Fight the urge to go to Check Point Charlie. You won't listen to me and you will go anyway. It's a waste. (There is a bit of an outdoor museum thing there that salvages it a bit). Tourist trap. Skip it.
• Berlin is spread out. I would do the Hop-on/Hop-off bus tour on my first day to get a lay of the land. The accompanying audioguide is fairly educational.
• From Brandenburg Gate you can walk west through a nice green area to the Victory Column. It's a nice stroll. 
• You can also walk east along the main road and go past Humboldt Univ., the museum area, the cathedral, the Neue Wache monument and probably some book sellers. It's a nice stroll as well. You will eventually come to Alexanderplatz and the TV tower. 
• There is a restaurant at the top of the TV tower. I have had several work functions up there. The food is not terrible and you get a nice view. It won't be your best meal, but...
• If you keep walking you will come to the Hofbrau Wirtshaus. Yes, it is a chain-type thing. It is also a lot of fun. The house band is fantastic. It gets rocking in there on Friday and Saturday nights. It is a fun stop. The big fried pig knuckle is pretty dang good with a beer. 
• Also along that walk is another pretty good place for traditional German food. The Treffpunkt--on the corner of Friedrichstase and Mittelstrase. https://www.treffpunktberlin.com/  It's somewhat of a cross between a bar and a restaurant. They do traditional German pretty well--and it is fairly priced. Good lunch spot. The bathrooms are downstairs--go check out the markings on how they differentiate the men's from the women's rooms. Good stuff.
• There are many cool beer gardens in Berlin. I am not sure there are any I haven't visited. One of my favorites is Schleusenkrug.  https://www.schleusenkrug.de/ It is near the zoo and is nice and green with a river view. Great place. Highly recommend. 
•  Prater Beer Garden is the one you hear about a lot. It is huge. It is a bit more difficult to get to but is somewhat iconic. All beer gardens have good beer-drinking food. Have beers and get some snacks. 
• The museums are first class. Hit up many of them. The Pergamon is my favorite, but I think it is closed. Most of the museums are in the same area down by Alexanderplatz
• The one museum that is great that is off by itself is the Gemaldegalerie. It is the old masters museum and is fantastic. 
• Near the Brandenburg Gate is the Memorial to the Murdered Jews. It is impressive. Go see it.
• The Wall Museum is good. Maybe get a private guide if you can. 

Stopping here for now. I will add one more thing. Go to Potsdam by train if you have an afternoon to kills. It is really nice. Beautiful grounds. 

Finally, carry some change. Many of the public bathrooms are pay-for-use. 

[Brisketexan 104,746]

16 minutes ago, squib said:

Here are some more thoughts on things to do in Berlin. I will be a bit more succinct. 

• Fight the urge to go to Check Point Charlie. You won't listen to me and you will go anyway. It's a waste. (There is a bit of an outdoor museum thing there that salvages it a bit). Tourist trap. Skip it.  Agree.
• Berlin is spread out. I would do the Hop-on/Hop-off bus tour on my first day to get a lay of the land. The accompanying audioguide is fairly educational.  Agree.
• From Brandenburg Gate you can walk west through a nice green area to the Victory Column. It's a nice stroll.  Agree.
• You can also walk east along the main road and go past Humboldt Univ., the museum area, the cathedral, the Neue Wache monument and probably some book sellers. It's a nice stroll as well. You will eventually come to Alexanderplatz and the TV tower.  Agree.
• There is a restaurant at the top of the TV tower. I have had several work functions up there. The food is not terrible and you get a nice view. It won't be your best meal, but... Never been.  Interedasting.
• If you keep walking you will come to the Hofbrau Wirtshaus. Yes, it is a chain-type thing. It is also a lot of fun. The house band is fantastic. It gets rocking in there on Friday and Saturday nights. It is a fun stop. The big fried pig knuckle is pretty dang good with a beer.  Never been.  Interedasting.  But YES, go somewhere and get the big fried pork knuckle.
• Also along that walk is another pretty good place for traditional German food. The Treffpunkt--on the corner of Friedrichstase and Mittelstrase. https://www.treffpunktberlin.com/  It's somewhat of a cross between a bar and a restaurant. They do traditional German pretty well--and it is fairly priced. Good lunch spot. The bathrooms are downstairs--go check out the markings on how they differentiate the men's from the women's rooms. Good stuff. Never been.  Interedasting.
• There are many cool beer gardens in Berlin. I am not sure there are any I haven't visited. One of my favorites is Schleusenkrug.  https://www.schleusenkrug.de/ It is near the zoo and is nice and green with a river view. Great place. Highly recommend. Yep, lots of beer gardens. 
•  Prater Beer Garden is the one you hear about a lot. It is huge. It is a bit more difficult to get to but is somewhat iconic. All beer gardens have good beer-drinking food. Have beers and get some snacks.  Same.
• The museums are first class. Hit up many of them. The Pergamon is my favorite, but I think it is closed. Most of the museums are in the same area down by Alexanderplatz  There's a whole "museum island."  All the museums there are closed.  I think the Pergamon is PARTIALLY open, but note: you need to get tickets IN ADVANCE.  Can't just walk up.
• The one museum that is great that is off by itself is the Gemaldegalerie. It is the old masters museum and is fantastic.  Never been.  Interedasting.
• Near the Brandenburg Gate is the Memorial to the Murdered Jews. It is impressive. Go see it.  Agree.
• The Wall Museum is good. Maybe get a private guide if you can.  Agree, although never done a private guide.

Stopping here for now. I will add one more thing. Go to Potsdam by train if you have an afternoon to kills. It is really nice. Beautiful grounds.  Definitely agree.  You also can take a nice boat trip around the lake at Wansee, fantastic on a nice summer day.

Finally, carry some change. Many of the public bathrooms are pay-for-use.  Good tip.  Also, Germany is big on cash -- carry Euros.  It's odd, as everywhere else is big on cards and electronic transactions, but it's a Germany thing to want you to pay with cash.

Great post.  Some extra thoughts in bold above.

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

18 hours ago, squib said:

Here are some more thoughts on things to do in Berlin. I will be a bit more succinct. 

• Fight the urge to go to Check Point Charlie. You won't listen to me and you will go anyway. It's a waste. (There is a bit of an outdoor museum thing there that salvages it a bit). Tourist trap. Skip it.
• Berlin is spread out. I would do the Hop-on/Hop-off bus tour on my first day to get a lay of the land. The accompanying audioguide is fairly educational.
• From Brandenburg Gate you can walk west through a nice green area to the Victory Column. It's a nice stroll. 
• You can also walk east along the main road and go past Humboldt Univ., the museum area, the cathedral, the Neue Wache monument and probably some book sellers. It's a nice stroll as well. You will eventually come to Alexanderplatz and the TV tower. 
• There is a restaurant at the top of the TV tower. I have had several work functions up there. The food is not terrible and you get a nice view. It won't be your best meal, but...
• If you keep walking you will come to the Hofbrau Wirtshaus. Yes, it is a chain-type thing. It is also a lot of fun. The house band is fantastic. It gets rocking in there on Friday and Saturday nights. It is a fun stop. The big fried pig knuckle is pretty dang good with a beer. 
• Also along that walk is another pretty good place for traditional German food. The Treffpunkt--on the corner of Friedrichstase and Mittelstrase. https://www.treffpunktberlin.com/  It's somewhat of a cross between a bar and a restaurant. They do traditional German pretty well--and it is fairly priced. Good lunch spot. The bathrooms are downstairs--go check out the markings on how they differentiate the men's from the women's rooms. Good stuff.
• There are many cool beer gardens in Berlin. I am not sure there are any I haven't visited. One of my favorites is Schleusenkrug.  https://www.schleusenkrug.de/ It is near the zoo and is nice and green with a river view. Great place. Highly recommend. 
•  Prater Beer Garden is the one you hear about a lot. It is huge. It is a bit more difficult to get to but is somewhat iconic. All beer gardens have good beer-drinking food. Have beers and get some snacks. 
• The museums are first class. Hit up many of them. The Pergamon is my favorite, but I think it is closed. Most of the museums are in the same area down by Alexanderplatz
• The one museum that is great that is off by itself is the Gemaldegalerie. It is the old masters museum and is fantastic. 
• Near the Brandenburg Gate is the Memorial to the Murdered Jews. It is impressive. Go see it.
• The Wall Museum is good. Maybe get a private guide if you can. 

Stopping here for now. I will add one more thing. Go to Potsdam by train if you have an afternoon to kills. It is really nice. Beautiful grounds. 

Finally, carry some change. Many of the public bathrooms are pay-for-use. 

A few additional points (and maybe one very minor disagreement):

Potsdam is definitely worth a day.  You can get there either by train from the Hauptbahnhof or by the S-Bahn.  And for what is a suburb, there is an amazing density of sights within a short distance.  From the Potsdam Hauptbahnhof, you can take the tram to the Glienicke Bridge, which was the "Bridge of Spies" during the Cold War.  It was part of the border between West Berlin and East Germany, and the only one manned by Soviet troops rather than East German border police.  And so it was the one place where the United States and the Soviet Union could exchange prisoners without dealing with the East Germans and their fuckery.

About a mile north along a nice walking path on the shore of the Wannsee is the Cecilienhof, which is where the Potsdam Conference was held between Truman, Attlee, and Stalin.  There's a little museum inside about the conference.  But the main draw is the nice walk through the park to get there, tbh.

Back in town is Frederick the Great's palace at Sans Souci.  It's honestly pretty quick to do a tour of the palace, as there are only a handful of rooms.  The surrounding gardens and buildings can take a lot more time if you want.

Heading back to Berlin, the next stop on the S-Bahn is at Wannsee.  And from the Wannsee station it is a short walk to the Wannsee Villa, where the Wannsee Conference that worked out the particulars of the Final Solution was worked out in January 1942.  There is a good little museum inside.

 

Back in the Center of Berlin, you can go on a pretty short little walking tour that will take you through the entire history of Berlin in a very short distance.  Start at Pariser Platz just to the east of the Brandenburg Gate.  As you face west toward the Brandenburg Gate, the American embassy is on your left; the French embassy is to the right.  The entirety of Pariser Platz was in no-man's land during the Cold War, and so all of the buildings around the Platz are reasonably new.

If you walk west and go through the Brandenburg Gate, you're following the parade route followed by the Nazis on their various torchlight parades, most notably on January 30, 1933 when Hitler was appointed chancellor.  But it's also the parade route followed by the Soviets in 1944 and Napeleon's troops in 1806.  And in the street to the west of the Gate, you'll see a line in the cobblestones marking the route of the Berlin Wall.

In this part of town, the Berlin Wall followed the route of the original city wall.  The Berlin city was wasn't a medieval fortification like what you see in Rothenberg; Berlin is too new for that.  It was a city wall built to regulate commerce with the gates acting as toll gates.  The Brandenburg Gate was one of those gates, as was the Potsdam Gate a few blocks south.

So turn in that direction (i.e., left) and head south along Ebertstrasse.  This will take you through the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.  

On the south side of that Memorial you'll see an interesting kind of constitutional thing about Germany--there are the embassies of three of the German states: Saarland, Niedersachsen, and Rheinland-Pfalz.  "Embassy" probably isn't the right word (it's "Vertratung" in German).  But that's essentially what it is.  Germany's federal system reserves for the states a lot more power than the modern American system.  And consistent with that, each of the states has its own embassy in the national capital.

Anyhoo, that interesting little bit of comparative government behind us, continue another couple blocks south along Ebertstrasse.  And again--here you're following the route of the Berlin Wall, which was itself following the route of the original city wall.  And you get to Potsdammer Platz and, just to the east, Leipziger Platz.  Leipziger Platz was inside the city wall, and it was home to the first market that merchants could sell their wares at inside the city walls.  It is laid out with Prussian precision.  It's an octagonal square surrounded on all sides by 12-story buildings.  It is, and always has been, boring, unpersonal, and unfriendly. 

But just on the other side of the former city wall is Potsdammer Platz.  It grew up outside of city regulation.  So the streets go through it in a haphazard way.  This is where the merchants would set up when they didn't want to pay the duty to cross inside the city wall.  And so this has always been the fun spot.  It was completely leveled in the War.  And during the Cold War, the area was in no-man's land.  So everything along Potsdammer Platz has been built within the last 20 years.  And now, once again, it's a place with a bunch of restaurants and bars and hotels and shopping and stuff.

Go east through Leipziger Platz on Leipziger Strasse one block to Wilhelmstrasse.  Wilhelmstrasse was, before WWII, the metonym for the German government (akin to how "Whitehall" means the British government or "Foggy Bottom" means the U.S. State Department).  And on the southwest corner is the old Luftwaffeministerium--the headquarters of the Luftwaffe (the Washington Generals of the History Channel).  Ironically, it was the only governmental building in the center of Berlin that survived the aerial bombing of Berlin.  It is now the Finance Ministry.  It is one of the few surviving pieces of Nazi-era stripped neoclassicism that you'll find in Berlin (another being Berlin Templehof Airport, which is worth a stop particularly if you're a fan of Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade).  And in the north portico facing onto Leipziger Strasse is the 1950's-era Max Linger mural, which is an excellent (albeit hideous) example of East German socialist realism.

Anyway--turn left on Wilhelmstrasse, and then at the next block a left on Vosstrasse.  This is the street that Hitler's chancellery faced out on.  The the next block, take a right on Gertrud-Kolmar-Strasse, which is a street that didn't exist during the War--you'd be going right into the chancellery building.  In a block and a half, you come to the street "In der Ministergarten," and on the right side is a very nondescript surface parking lot of an apartment building.  Underneath that parking lot is the Fuhrerbunker.  The site where Hitler's body was burned is right where the tree is on the southeast corner of that parking lot.  There's now a small sign along the street pointing out the spot.

Go back down to Vosstrasse and turn left (i.e., east) on Mohrenstrasse (to the west, it's Vosstrasse; to the east, it's called Mohrenstrasse.  But it's the same street).  Go five blocks to Friedrichstrasse.

Now look--my friends above say you don't need to turn right (i.e., south) to go see Checkpoint Charlie.  I say my friends are dead wrong.  As a Gen Xer and child of the Cold War, you want to at least walk the three blocks down to see the little shack and take a photo beneath the sign.  I wouldn't go into the little museum--that's a waste of time.  But you're right there; why wouldn't you go see the damned sign?

But you don't care?  Ok--continue on Mohrenstrasse to Markgrafenstrasse and turn left (i.e., north) and go up until it dead ends into the Bebelplatz.  I mean--kind of dead-ends.  You have to take a little jog over to the right to go into the Bebelplatz.  This is where the Nazis held the book burnings.  Now, in the center of the square is a small window/skylight that looks down into the library of Humboldt University.  I think that's pretty cool.

And now you're back on Under der Linden.  Across the street is Humboldt University, and just to the right of that is the Neue Wache, which was originally a guardhouse for the royal palace and was later the East German memorial to the victims of fascism and militarism.  It is now the German Memorial to the Victims of War and Tyranny.  There's still a changing of the guard, as when I originally saw it when it was in East Berlin.  But they don't goosestep anymore.  

From there, you can head west back to the Brandenburg Gate or east to the Museum Island and Alexander Platz.

A few other spots I generally like:

Hackesacher Markt is one stop on the S-Bahn from Alexanderplatz.  There are a lot of restaurants and bars built in underneath the train viaduct with a lot of outdoor seating for a nice day.  It's been a while, but there was a Spanish place that Mrs.LL and I liked.  But regardless--it's a fun area to spend an afternoon drinking a beer and watching the people.

Speaking of sitting outside and drinking a beer and watching the people, there's a little snack/beer pavilion on the south side of Platz der Republik, which is the green space that faces onto the Reichstag building to the west.  That's a nice spot to stop and ponder the wild history that has taken place right there in front of you.

And if you walk behind that pavilion along the path through the Tiergarten you wind up on Strasse des 17. Juni right next to the Soviet War Memorial.  There are a couple T-34 tanks out front, which is cool.  And if you go through it, there are some displays of the history of the memorial, including photos of when it was built amidst the rubble of postwar Berlin.  The stone for the memorial was taken from the destroyed Reich Chancellery.  I mean, I think it's worth a stop.

One last outdoor drinking spot--and I think you're starting to get a feel for what I like to do on vacation--is at the Jannowitzbrucke (one stop on the S-Bahn from Alexanderplatz in the opposite direction from Hackesacher Markt).  Berlin has a pretty river running through it, and I just don't think it does as much with the Spree and Havel as it should.  But right next to the train station is a nice little beer stand where you can grab a beer and a table and sit overlooking the river.

[TxEx84 375]

I'm going to Checkpoint Charlie, dammit!  😄

[TxEx84 375]

Thanks @squib and @Ghost of LL for the detailed recommendations. Just returned. Great time but too short of a trip. The marathon took up a good chunk of the time in Berlin.  But we managed to hit up Scheer's Schnitzel and Markthalle Neun by ESG, a few museums, and Hitler's bunker, among other places.  My favorite was Checkpoint Charlie.  Oktoberfest was fun as always.

[Mango4 189]

On 9/16/2024 at 3:43 AM, squib said:

@TxEX84 

Thanks for the reminder. 

I used to work in Berlin quite a bit. I'm a huge fan. The city has a grit that reminds me a somewhat of Chicago--just seems very real. 

Here are some things I would hit up I you have time. 

The East Side Gallery. This is outside and free. You can just walk along and enjoy. The are several sections that get repainted so only some is historic, but it is always interesting. My recollection is that artists have to submit a plan for approval and then they get a time frame on a section. It is different everytime I am there.  To get there probably best to just take the U to Warschauer Strause U stop. I think it is the last stop on that line. Neat old stop in a massive brick structure.

In terms of public transportation, you generally don't scan in and out of turnstiles, etc. There is just an assumption that you have a pass. Don't get complacent though as everyonce in a while a transit officer will board a train car and ask to see everyone's pass. If you can't show yours, they will drag you off at the next stop. I don't know what happens to those people, but they always look pretty worried as the train pulls away. 

Ok. Now I have a low-rent rec near the ESG and the Warschauer Strause stop.  The gallery is on the northside of the river. There is a bridge over the river just a bit east of the ESG. On the corner where you would turn south for the bridge is a guilty pleasure--Scheer's Schnitzel. It's a hole in the wall--basically a place that makes schnitzel and fries and that is about it. It's gritty, it's greasy, and it is fantastic. I have had schnitzel all over Germany and Austria, many at high end places like Figlmuller in Vienna. If I was told I could have only one more in my life, I would go get one from Scheer's served on a paper plate with a slice of lemon and one of their sauces from a squeeze bottle. I like the mayo/garlic one best, but many are good. 

From there, you can walk across that bridge to the south to hit up several of my other Berlin favorites. The walk across the bridge is a bit disgusting--lots of little nooks for people to piss in, and this section of town is a bit bar-driven so prepare your nose.  The next stop down from Warschauer S is Schlesisches Tor U stop. You can ride the U if you want to skip the bridge stroll, but walking across the bridge gives you a good view of Molecule Men art installation that is in the river to the east. It's huge. You won't miss it. You can walk down to it on the southside of the river, but I am not sure it is any better up close--and that particular part of Berlin is sketchy--more on that later.  All that side, I would walk across the bridge. It is better than waiting on the U. 

Now you are in a fun part of town that many locals go to for drinking and just being outside. Again, a bit gritty though. Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg--south. I have a few must do's here and one must avoid. 

Under the U tracks and just a bit north of the Schlesisches Tor U stop is Burgermeister--maybe the best burgers on the planet. Now you may still have a bellyfull of Scheer's so just come back here after you are drunk--more on that in the next paragraph. But, stop here you must at some point. It seems that all of Berlin ends up at Burgermeister at some point late in the night. There are several Burgermesiters around Berlin, but this is the one to hit up. https://burgermeister.com/our-story/?lang=en

This one is the OG--and the stall is an old public toilet. There are no tables to sit out--in fact it is outside. It is basically a stall under the U tracks. You order from a green shack then you wait for your order. There are little round tables you can stand at to eat with whatever other person is also standing there. Everyone just shares tables. On Friday and Saturday nights there will be hundreds of people there laughing and talking and enjoying great burgers and fries. The shack doesn't sell booze but there is a liquor store right across the street and you can buy a tallboy beer and walk back to the table while your burger is grilling. I have met people from all over the world sharing a table. One of my favorite encounters was with some guys from Galway. They had just gotten of the plane and said they always went there first thing to get burgers before going to clubs. (The Matrix is one of those famous Berlin clubs and is back across the bridge), When I told them all I knew about Galway (I had not been to Galway then; I have now) came from Steve Earle imploring about his Galway girl and what could he do cuz her hair was black and her eyes were blue. One of the guys laughed and said well move over a bit and you get to meet a Galway girl--a blackhaired/blue-eyed stunningly beautiful girl then walked up with the sack of burgers for her boyfriend and the other two guys at our little table. Anyway, get a burger from Burgermeister after you hit up my favorite beer spot in Berlin--next paragraph.

There are great beer gardens around Berlin, but they all have the standard German beer choices. You won't see any if at all local craft beer at a beer garden. And Berlin and Germany has some good craft beer; you just have to search it out. My favorite of these hidden craft places is just a few blocks from Burgermeister. The place is small and fantastic: Hopfenreich, located on Wrangelstrause. http://hopfenreich.de/

Great group of owners who are really into beer. It's not a big place but is comfortable and has inside and outside seating on a small residential street. The beer is great, the music is good and the taps/furniture are all really cool old repurposed industrial equipment and tools. The beer taps come out of a huge lathe, some of the tables still have vices and clamps attached. Just look around for cool stuff. I usually sit here for hours then go get a Burgermeister.   

The other really cool venue near there is Markthalle Neun. This is the old market hall (#9) for the area. It is huge. https://markthalleneun.de/

It is a great place to kill an hour or so and sample cheeses, breads, all kinds of food and other stuff depending on the day. In the summer on Thursday nights, they even bring in food trucks and it gets packed. Super fun. In the back left corner is a small beer nook--this place has great beer and one of the other places in Berlin to get some craft. Can't recommend Markthalle Neun highly enough. Maybe even get dinner there. There are lots of choices and it is fun. Communal tables--eat and then go to Hopfenreich. 

There are other cool places in that neighborhood including a great icecream place that is also busy in the evenings. But you can just explore around. The one place to avoid though is Görlitzer Park .  This is a bad scene. Drug fiends and a bad crowd in general. When you have heard of bad shit going down in Berlin--people getting attacked by mobs and such--it likely happened here. I ended up walking though Gorli with my wife one Sunday afternoon,and it is the only time in all my travels around the world where I honestly thought we were in danger. We got surrounded by a group of about a dozen youngish punks, and I am not sure why they finally let us walk away. I have since seen numerous stories about that exact thing happening to people with terrible outcomes. Don't go over there. 

Ok. I will add some more stuff in a bit. 

Successful day in Berlin after a day on Museum Island. Didn’t go to the original Burgermeister because my wife didn’t want to sit outside because she was cold. Burger was still amazing. 

[956 Worldwide 34,501]

Just got back from a couple weeks on the continent and spent a weekend in Nuremberg. Really, really cool city with a beautiful walled old town and castle where the Holy Roman Imperial diet used to meet.  I made the trek out to the Nazi Party rally grounds. You can peddle a pink swan around the unfinished Congress hall. 
 

[956 Worldwide 34,501]

On 8/20/2024 at 4:27 PM, Ghost of LL said:

I don't see an Austria thread, so I guess I'll just toss these thoughts into here.

I'm thinking of 2-3 weeks bouncing around the country--perhaps flying into Munich and out Vienna.  I figure maybe 3 days in Munich, 2-3 days in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 4-5 days in Tirol (I found a place that looks like the Austrian version of a Great Wolf Lodge, which the kids would probably enjoy), a handful of days in Salzburg, and then 4 days or so in Vienna.  

But nothing is booked, and I'm obviously up for suggestions.

The kids like stuff that is more active (e.g., canyoning and rafting in Tirol).  Mrs.LL is going to like just spending an afternoon at the Viktuelenmarkt eating breadroll sandwiches and drinking beer.  I'm the dad--I'm good with whatever.

So fire away.  @texasdago--thoughts on a day trip down to Bolzen?  

Anybody else have thoughts on a day trip from Vienna to Bratislava?

Bratislava is worth the visit, IMO if you have time.  I lived there for three years.  The coolest site is outside of town, Devin Castle ruins which sits over the confluence of the Morava and Danube rivers. There is also a memorial to Czechoslovaks who got shot trying to swim the river into Austria.  They also make black and red currant wine so you can try that and enjoy the views.  
 

Bratislava Old Town is fairly staid and boring in the day time but it gets lively in the evenings and it’s nearly all Slovaks.  It’s a real experience. In my estimation Slovak women may be the most beautiful in Europe. 

[Brisketexan 104,746]

SO....early January in Germany (starting out in Frankfurt/Mainz area)....what to do/see?

Seems that we will be going there for a late family Christmas.  Many thanks to Vlad Putin (because of the war and the flood of Ukrainian refugees, the boy is stuck in Germany and can't leave. He is studying in Germany, and needs a student visa, which you get in-country....but all appointments are booked for months and months by the refugee flood, so he just has to stay put and not risk not being let back in the country to finish his studies).  Daughter will fly over from the UK to meet us.  We are pretty sure we need to say WITHIN Germany, due to the boy's visa concerns (we just aren't sure about him traveling in the rest of the Schengen area).  We'll be in Mainz at first, where he is studying.

We will spend family time together, probably get together with German family outside of Koblenz that weekend, but we'll have some time to be "touristy" for a few days.  I'm sure that the first week of January is not a peak tourist season.  Many sites may be closed.  BUT, some won't be, there will be some other things to see and do.  We haven't seen Nuremberg, Munich, or Dresden...maybe stuff there?  We all love Berlin, maybe we visit there for a few days.

Bottom line, any good options to see/do in central to southern Germany the first week of January?

 

[dcbc 14,441]

1 hour ago, Brisketexan said:

SO....early January in Germany (starting out in Frankfurt/Mainz area)....what to do/see?

Seems that we will be going there for a late family Christmas.  Many thanks to Vlad Putin (because of the war and the flood of Ukrainian refugees, the boy is stuck in Germany and can't leave. He is studying in Germany, and needs a student visa, which you get in-country....but all appointments are booked for months and months by the refugee flood, so he just has to stay put and not risk not being let back in the country to finish his studies).  Daughter will fly over from the UK to meet us.  We are pretty sure we need to say WITHIN Germany, due to the boy's visa concerns (we just aren't sure about him traveling in the rest of the Schengen area).  We'll be in Mainz at first, where he is studying.

We will spend family time together, probably get together with German family outside of Koblenz that weekend, but we'll have some time to be "touristy" for a few days.  I'm sure that the first week of January is not a peak tourist season.  Many sites may be closed.  BUT, some won't be, there will be some other things to see and do.  We haven't seen Nuremberg, Munich, or Dresden...maybe stuff there?  We all love Berlin, maybe we visit there for a few days.

Bottom line, any good options to see/do in central to southern Germany the first week of January?

 

Cologne doesn't look like it's too far from Mainz on the map.  It's beautiful and worth a trip if you've never been.

[Brisketexan 104,746]

2 minutes ago, dcbc said:

Cologne doesn't look like it's too far from Mainz on the map.  It's beautiful and worth a trip if you've never been.

We've been, but it was just for a day and overnight -- did the Xmas market and cathedral.  Didn't get to do the big museum or anything else.  And sigh....this is getting to be a fucking mess.

We WOULD go over there earlier (like, be there over new years), but my wife has a 12/31 wedding that she obviously can't move (she booked it when we presumed the kids could come home).  So, we can't depart here until January 1.  AND.....our daughter has to be back at work on January 6th.  She could work from Germany (it's remote work, but it is during the work day, remote calls and such), but bottom line, we'll be able to see her that long weekend, and that's it.  

This is going to be complicated.  And expensive (was already planning on two int'l airfares, but wasn't planning on a week's worth of hotels and other travel, trains, etc.).

Edited Tuesday at 04:42 PM by Brisketexan

[dcbc 14,441]

8 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

We've been, but it was just for a day and overnight -- did the Xmas market and cathedral.  Didn't get to do the big museum or anything else.  And sigh....this is getting to be a fucking mess.

We WOULD go over there earlier (like, be there over new years), but my wife has a 12/31 wedding that she obviously can't move (she booked it when we presumed the kids could come home).  So, we can't depart here until January 1.  AND.....our daughter has to be back at work on January 6th.  She could work from Germany (it's remote work, but it is during the work day, remote calls and such), but bottom line, we'll be able to see her that long weekend, and that's it.  

This is going to be complicated.  And expensive (was already planning on two int'l airfares, but wasn't planning on a week's worth of hotels and other travel, trains, etc.).

Sounds like my only trip to Cologne, and it was on a Sunday, no less (not much open).  Took in the Cathedral and then just hit the beer bar/restaurant for Kolsch followed by a nice self-guided walking tour before we caught the train back to Amsterdam.  My son is taking German next semester.  I think I know where this is leading, and I'm for it.

Edited Tuesday at 04:48 PM by dcbc

[Ghost of LL 15,495]

FSV Mainz is at home on January 11.  But it looks like Bundesliga takes a break over New Years.

[Spankytoes 1,736]

On 11/12/2024 at 11:40 AM, Brisketexan said:

We've been, but it was just for a day and overnight -- did the Xmas market and cathedral.  Didn't get to do the big museum or anything else.  And sigh....this is getting to be a fucking mess.

We WOULD go over there earlier (like, be there over new years), but my wife has a 12/31 wedding that she obviously can't move (she booked it when we presumed the kids could come home).  So, we can't depart here until January 1.  AND.....our daughter has to be back at work on January 6th.  She could work from Germany (it's remote work, but it is during the work day, remote calls and such), but bottom line, we'll be able to see her that long weekend, and that's it.  

This is going to be complicated.  And expensive (was already planning on two int'l airfares, but wasn't planning on a week's worth of hotels and other travel, trains, etc.).

Romantic Road, of course