My First Solo Trip: Part Four of the Swiss Adventure- Discovering Basel

I began the day slightly gutted as I should have woken up earlier. I had wanted to make it up another mountain before my journey to Basel Euro airport. Thing was my flight departed at around 5pm and the journey to Basel alone was 2 hours. No point risking it... I decided to go with my original plan of having a wander around Basel before I left to catch my flight home. I have to admit I didn't quite feel ready to be leaving Switzerland (but am I ever really ready to leave?) Seriously though, I hadn't seen half of what I had hoped to... though thinking about it I had squeezed in a lot over the past couple of days and my purse was looking increasingly sad haha. 

I checked out of Lion Lodge and had a final walk through Luzern, taking pictures along the way to commemorate my last day in this inspirational city. 

After my 2 hour train journey I arrived in Basel. It was bitter sweet as I still had a new city to explore but I only had a few hours to do it in and I am one to take my time. I find it usually takes around 2-3 days to begin to feel at home in a city- and get a jist of how things work. I didn't have 2-3 days so I decided to hop on a tram and hope for the best. If I remember correctly it was the #1 Tram that lead from the Banhof into the city centre. We passed lots of elegant old buildings with new spring flowers hanging from balconies everywhere. There was this elogance to the city that I hadn't felt in Luzern... slightly more modern and trendy whilst it retained it's old architecture and feel.

I soon felt lost as I hadn't a clue where I was actually heading and by the time I thought I had arrived in the 'city centre' I was just amongst tall cement buildings. I was slightly disappointed as there was no real obvious town centre. I had clearly got on the wrong tram or entered a district less upbeat and more city slicker. 

After a while of wandering I became more relaxed and began to take in my surroundings.

It wasn't long before I came across the Kunstmuseum Basel Hauptbau (there is three branches in Basel) where I then spent the rest of the afternoon. Entry was free thanks to my trusty Swiss Pass (click to read about whether I think it's worth the purchase!) though I was gutted as it was 'no photography allowed' however I met one nice security guard that allowed me to sneak a piccy!

Basel was a nice city, but it didn't hit my high expectations that Luzern had built up. If I had possibly spent more time there I feel I would have been able to explore deeper and gain a better insight into the overall vibe. I mean I didnt even get to visit the river Rhein!!

Interesting contrast of old vs. new

I hope to visit again at some point although it most definitely won't be the only stop on my journey through Switzerland.

Peace&Love,
Willow

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COPENHAGEN - The City Centre & Christiana

It was my second day in Copenhagen with my love, Shaylee, and it was really time to explore!

Shaylee had a full day planned and as I wasn't actually visiting for very long we had so much to squeeze in!

We began with a hearty breakfast nice and early, something I commend the Danish for. I usually skip breakfast due to laziness- a habit I am trying to break- but during my trip, I never actually missed a meal! 

We set off into Copenhagen by train. Now since I'm such a public transport enthusiast- I'm only kidding I don't drive (yet) so I'm forced to take in the ever so scenic train and bus each day- I couldn't help notice the super spacious trains! Literally, there are separate carriages for buggies and bikes and they can hold approx 10/15 bikes. No one else really uses these carriages unless they have a bike or pushchair because people are respectful of each other's needs, and wouldn't want to take up space. Well, that was the vibe I got anyway.

Within 25 minutes we were in the centre of Copenhagen! Shaylee and I took a stroll through the pretty streets and went into the famous department store Illum. Copenhagen, I couldn't help but notice has a very different atmosphere to the likes of London. The pace seems much slower, more relaxed and far less busy. It is as if people are actually enjoying their day rather than rushing off somewhere. Although the prices are roughly the same...I exchanged my £ to Krona in one of the only exchange places in the city... and it was a rip off! I lost around £30 to commission!!!

Cool House! 

After doing a bit of shopping, and picking up a super cute top in Zara for 69K (basically £6.99), we headed for an all you can eat Turkish Buffet. Yum!

After having a tasty lunch, we caught the metro to Christiana. The metro in Copenhagen only has 2 lines, which I thought was crazy in comparison to the London Underground, so as you can imagine it really didn't take long. Shaylee and I met with Patrick after hopping off the metro and took a stroll along the canal down to the small village of  Christiana.

For those who are unaware, Christiana is Copenhagen's 'free town'. It is an outlandish place where societies rejects are welcomed. 

Also known as a hippie village, Christiana is a great place to visit for music and arts festivals, organic and vegan-friendly foods, and of course cheap beer! It is also popular for its Amsterdam style attitude towards smoking. For 50K I thought, 'When in Rome'... In Denmark however, Weed is illegal, so therefore the market style stalls that sell the illicit product have reinforced the law of the land: No Photography!! Fair enough, no one wants to get caught!


Our day ended with a scrumptious bowl of tagliatelle conjured up by Shaylee's (and now my) friend, Alex who is training to be a chef. I, of course, assisted as the Sous Chef, by setting the table and mixing the pan... and yes, the food was wonderful. Thank you ALEX! 

Peace&Love,
Willow

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BERLIN - DAY 3/3

Our final day in Berlin...

DAY 3

We checked out of the hotel at 11am and began to make our way to the airport, located south east of Berlin. As we arrived in Alexanderplatz I realised that we had forgot to check in online! Scheisse! With no internet connection the both of us some how stayed calm and after a moments thought, walked over to our trusty Carambar from last night- Why? To use their WiFi of course. Thank you Carambar. With the euros we had left, we bought some food (another Halloumi Kebab for me, with lots of garlic sauce and all the salad!) to eat on the train. On the way in, the journey had seemed fairly simple, so rather than planning our route ahead we hoped for the best and went for it! BIG MISTAKE.
All I remember for the next couple hours were spanish tourists, wrong train, half an hour waiting times and a lot of panic. 

When another train pulled in around 10 minutes later, and we had confirmed it was going to take us in the direction of the airport. We tried our hardest to hop on, but in the way stood a large group of Spaniards and their suitcases. They were obviously going in the same direction as us and started saying 'No airport, no airport' as we tried our best to hop on, before the doors began to close. This obviously caused doubts and so we got off again, flustered and confused, and beginning to run out of time. We originally had 3 hours to get to the airport, which on our way in, took around 1. Now checking the time, we had about 2. We asked a lady working in the café on the same platform, what train to look out for and she told us the very one we had hopped off of was going in our direction. Scheisse! So we waited for the next one. 

Possibly another 20-30 minutes later, the next train pulled in. We all got on this one which then terminated at the next stop. We were sure it was the right train... what was going on? With a little help from a ticket inspector she guided us to the U-Bahn station we needed, in order to get the correct underground train to the airport. 
After a lot more confusion and trying our best to ditch the Spaniards whom we were worried would end up in front of us on arrival and then going through security (holding us up even more), we made it, may I add... AS OUR GATE WAS SCHEDULED TO CLOSE. Scheisse! Run!
Around maybe 10 minutes later (at most) we arrived at our gate. To our surprise, the gate was still indeed open for business. Phew! We could relax...

Peace&Love
Willow 

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BERLIN - DAY 2/3

DAY 2

When purchasing our ticket, once again we used the Welcome Card which gave us around 50% off, meaning our entrance to this attraction was 9,70€, a huge saving. After waiting for our ticket number to be called (on a busy day you can wait up to an hour, luckily we waited around 25 minutes), we went through security and then into the lift. There are two lifts in the building to keep things moving and they both move at 6m/s- wow! The alternative is the 986 steps you could climb to the top...err I don't think so!

Question: How long did it take for us to reach the top- not the very top, the first floor of the globe at 203m?
The guide/lift operative gave us some facts about the TV Tower (after asking what languages were spoken within the small group and then speaking very quickly in German and English, making it hard to even differentiate between the two), then ding! we were at the top. The views were incredible! 
What I noticed the most was the key differences in German architecture. Though I am no expert in the field, the Plattenbauten style buildings (meaning plain concrete slab buildings) throughout Berlin focus on steering clear of gentrification (something London, is having to face on a tremendous scale, but lets not go there ay) which some believe to help maintain the social continuity after the ever so recent demolish of the Eastern Bloc/Berlin Wall. 

Once at the Cathedral we paid our Student Entry, at 5€ each (nice price!) and made our way into the beautiful building. We looked around, admiring the fascinating décor... and here I took the chance to light a candle for my mother, who passed away in 2006, as well as the rest of the friends and relatives who join her. We continued up the walkway to the top of the Dome where we could then take in more impressive views in the outdoor viewing gallery. 270 steps later, through narrow, winding and seemingly everlasting stairways we were at the top. It was chilly and in all honesty not as amazing as I had anticipated, however I do recommend still taking the journey up-for the experience!

We then decided to hop on the U-Bahn and head to the East Side Gallery, but first had a stop off at Checkpoint Charlie.

For those of you that are unaware, Checkpoint Charlie was the border crossing used during the Cold War to separate East and West Berlin. This point is noted as a geographical focal point for the Cold War, where the divide between Berlin began and eventually ended. This is not to mention the countless demonstrations that went on, successful and unsuccessful attempts to escape from the Eastern Bloc and where the USA intervened to defend the fundamental rights of the German people.

Checkpoint Charlie itself has clearly changed from what it used to be. The tense unwelcoming sensation that once existed was no longer present and rather a more upbeat vibe that invited visitors into the ground breaking (literally- underground escapes were a real thing!) history that stood before them.
We strolled along the lengthy stretch, past Checkpoint Charlie that then took us out of the East and into the West of Berlin. Before the destruction of the wall in 1990, this area was ran by the USA. Back then it was the place of freedom, and also where many families resided in hope of being reunited one day, with their relatives on the other side of the checkpoint. For us in 2016 the atmosphere of the city had somewhat changed. It was prominent that this area had taken much of the original backlash after the summer of 1990. Rather than the trendy and hip city we had got used to, this area in West Berlin had a more cutting edge, highlighting the poverty and disruption the Eastern Bloc caused, even till today. Filled with heart felt graffiti, this was the moment we realised that Berlin was about much more than we anticipated. The city held a painful and moving past that we were slowly uncovering.

After hopping off the U-Bahn at Schesisches Tor and strolling down to the East Side Gallery, we were confronted with the only remaining section of the Berlin Wall, stretching 1.3km and covered from top to bottom in glorious and aspiration art. This timeless gallery is completely free and displays world famous pieces.

Time passed rather quickly and before we knew it, the sun had set. We caught the bus back to the station (as we were feeling lazy to re-walk the 1.3km) and to our surprise were dropped only a fragment of the distance back, right next to Mercedes Benz World.

The memorial was our final stop located in Potsdamerplatz  a short walk from the U-Bahn and S-Bahn. It is a 4.7 acre site that is covered in 2711 concrete slabs, arranged in a grid pattern on sloping ground and ranging in heights from 0.2 to 4.7m. As you can imagine, at first impressions this attraction can be slightly overwhelming but taking the time to submerge yourself into the grounds of the site opens your eyes as well as your heart. The design of the Holocaust Memorial was made to feel regimented and claustrophobic in honour of what millions suffered through less than a century ago.

On our way to the hotel we decided to stop for some drinks at a nice looking bar next to the tram stop (yes last stop, I promise). Carambar is a nightclub, restaurant and bar located in Alexanderplatz. As it was a Sunday it had a great chilled 
atmosphere as the nightclub was closed, yet the outdoor seating (and heating), awesome DJ - DJ Seip, and strong drinks kept us there till 1am.  A fair few beers and 'Zombie' cocktails later we figured it would be best to head to the hotel for a good nights sleep, in preparation for check out the following morning.
I grabbed a super tasty Halloumi kebab, covered in garlic sauce and with all the salad from the kebab shop across the road and we waited for the tram to whisk us off to bed... totally not ready for our flight the following day!

Peace&Love
Willow


This link will take you to a short account I found online, from a man who travelled into the Eastern Bloc during the communist ruling. It is well worth a read!
https://www.quora.com/What-was-it-like-to-live-in-West-Berlin-during-the-Cold-War  

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BERLIN - DAY 1/3

To kick things off, I begin with the account of BERLIN, GERMANY.

This particular adventure began months before the actual trip, when I came across very cheap return flights to Berlin for various weekends in January. Of course, it made sense as Germany would be exiting its peak time, after the excitement of the Christmas Markets. £30 return, flying with Ryanair. 

DAY 1

We departed on the morning of Saturday, 23rd January 2016 from London Stansted Airport, UK. I, as usual missed my bus to the train station that would then take me to Stratford, East London where we would meet and take the coach to the airport. (Unfortunately that weekend the Stansted Express train service was not running, making our journey take a little longer by coach). Thankfully, I did plan ahead to ensure that we had plenty of time to get to the airport. I caught the next bus and then once at Stratford, the National Express coach inspector allowed us to hop on a later coach! 50 minutes later, we arrived at Stansted.

Whilst exchanging my £'s to €'s at Stansted (I know, major rip off!) we bumped into a fellow nature lover Liam! Shout out to you Liam, what was the chance of seeing you at the airport?! Plus he was also travelling to Germany, but rather Munich. After briefly discussing how random this was we wished each other a safe flight and went to catch our plane.
 1 hour and 50 minutes after departure we landed in Berlin, which may I add was covered in SNOW! How exciting...  Now, I am not one for snow in the UK, but when you're abroad and it snows, for some reason it feels magical. In front of us were west coast Americans that had never actually seen snow in their lives! They were certainly overjoyed.

Karl-Marx-Allee

We booked the NH Alexanderplatz hotel, a tram ride away from the city center and although navigating our way there in the beginning proved tricky, locals were friendly and guided us in the correct direction. The staff were super helpful and seemed to have a better knowledge of the English language than we did, after my handbag was described as a 'transcendental dimension' . Pardon?!

Once settled in our room I breezed through the city guide we were given when purchasing our Berlin Welcome Card (3 day travel card- I advise you to buy once in Germany rather than online as the sites offering it rip you off!). Immediately, the Berlin Story Bunker caught my eye.

Gosh, where do I start with this one...
Hands down, it was one of the most frightening experiences I have ever been through in my 18 years of living... and I would do it again (maybe, eeep).

Without giving too much away, the Bunker consists of three floors; The museum on the basement level, which submerges you into life in Berlin during the Cold War, emphasising the key differences in living within the high concrete walls of east Berlin, better known back then as the GDR (German Democratic Republic), and of course West Berlin. The middle floor, that gives you an insight into the ghastly practises of the medical world during the Medieval Age as well as a taster of what's to come on the top floor. Finally this well anticipated top floor is in complete darkness. I assure you that you will scream, run and jump in fear and the hairs on your arms, back and legs will stand on end, with no mercy!  Arriving an hour before closing time, in the height of winter meant it was very dark outside, which along with the enthusiastic staff, all contributed to the eerie, spine-chilling atmosphere. Entry to this attraction was half price when presenting the Welcome Card, which meant for the both of us, we paid just 9€.
Once departing from our first official adventure in Berlin, food was on the brain. We made our way back, the both of us could not help notice the high energy, hustle and bustle of the city. In comparison to the day time Berlin had really come alive! Multiple bodies swarmed Alexanderplatz as well as U-Bahn and S-Bahn stations. Throughout this, buskers played lively upbeat tempos creating a soundtrack against the hip backdrop of Berlin.

Begging for BMW money?
At least you know where your donations are going!

On arrival at Erdton, we realised that we were the only customers. This did raise some caution though now having built up an appetite, we decided to stay and thank goodness we did! The food was fantastic!
If you happen to be in Berlin and you get a chance to venture slightly further out of town... take a chance and dine in Erdton (Friedenstrasse 39) just opposite Lidl, which is actually where we headed to next. I know, I know, the food couldn't have been that great if we headed directly to Lidl afterwards, but the both of us had forgotten to bring along toothpaste! We did contemplate simply not brushing our teeth for the night, as that way we may have been able to re-taste the flavoursome meal one more time. 
Finally, after a long day it was back to the hotel for some well-deserved sleep.

Peace&Love 
Willow

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