2004-2014: 10 years, 10 cities, 10 language schools!

10 one-month stays, sometimes longer…

Small tribute to each of the ten cities, from A to Z.

6th city: Berlin (Germany).

My stay lasted 2 months (July-August 2010).

A

A like… Allemagne. See “G like Germany”.

B

B like… Brandenburger Tor. Berlin’s most famous gate.

C

C like… Currywurst. A Berliner sausage served in pieces and with a tomato sauce sprinkled with curry, hence the name, plus chips. A light and healthy snack to savour without moderation. A sausage that has its museum!

D

D like… DDR. Deutsche Demokratische Republik (1949-1990). Deceased country whose capital was East Berlin.

E

E like… España. I was with countless German fans in Berlin the day they lost against Spain in the semi-finals of the 2010 World Cup. The decisive goal from Spain instantly restored its usual calm to Tiergarten, the large park in the city centre. Germany did much better 4 years later.

F

F like… Friedrichshain. A district of Berlin, in which the Karl-Marx-Allee and its colourful architecture (see photo) are located, as well as – just for a weekend – the longest beer garden in the world.

G

G like… Germany. Country whose capital is Berlin.

H

H like… Hauptbahnhof. Berlin Central Station. Inaugurated in 2006.

I

I like… Innumerable! Well, OK, numerable, they are 166! 166 museums in Berlin! Have a nice time!

J

J like… Jura. One thing I’ve learned during my German lessons: in German, Jura is not only the name of a Swiss province and some Swiss mountains, as well as a famous Scottish island (well known by whisky lovers), but it means “law”, I mean, the “law” you study at University.

K

K like… Karl Marx. And his friend Engels. Guess who is who on the photo…

L

L like… Linden. Lime, in English. There are many, the lime trees in Berlin, more than 150,000.

M

M like… Mauer. The Wall. The Berlin Wall. Probably the best known of all the walls.

Here below, a short reminder (in German)…

N

N like… No, the Berliner Ballen do not come from Berlin. A local variant exists, however, and is called Faschingsbrezeln.

O

O like… Oh yes. Yes, indeed, the Berlin comes from Berlin!

P

P like… Potsdam. A town near Berlin. Potsdam and the Sanssouci Palace, built by the famous architect Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff.

Thank you Wikipedia 😉

Q

Q like… Quarter. Berlin was divided into 4 quarters (sectors) during the Cold War: Soviet, French, British and American.

R

R like… Restaurants. Arrived in Berlin from Heidelberg, I was surprised by the menu prices at restaurants, sometimes up to 50% lower. Berlin: a good place to eat out.

S

S like… Schloss Charlottenburg. Charlottenburg Palace is located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin, and was named in memory of Queen Sophia-Charlotte.

T

T like… Trabant. The iconic car of East Germany. It is possible to visit Berlin on board a vintage Trabant.

U

U like… U-Bahn. The ubiquitous and highly practical Berlin underground…

V

V like… “Viele kleine Leute…” The rest of this wise African thought, painted on a piece of the Berlin Wall, is to read on the photo.

W

W comme… Weiße. Berliner Weiße. Berlin’s beer par excellence. Called “White” (Weiße), it’s nevertheless taking a green or red colour, depending on which “Schuss” you put, either Waldmeister or Himbeersirup.

X

X like… aleXanderplatz. The ideal place to admire the Fernsehturm, 368 meters high.

Y

Y like… Yes, Alexanderplatz is the ideal place to admire the Fernsehturm, 368 meters high.

Z

Z like… alexanderplatZ, I was saying, the ideal place to admire the Fernsehturm, 368 meters high.

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Do you have some tips for people planning a long stay in Berlin and its region?

Feel free to let them as a comment below this article 🙂

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Next month: Vienna (Austria).