Germany! One of my favorite places to visit in Europe. It was the destination of my very first international trip and will always hold a special place in my heart. Don’t get me wrong – Lyon and Malta are gems!

I first visited Berlin five or six years ago. I loved it so much, I knew I had to go back and take Jordan. We went over a long weekend and met up with my sweet friend, Pauline, whom I haven’t seen in years!

Here are some of my favorite things I’ve done while visiting Berlin:

Berliner Dom

This 15th century cathedral is worth the few dollar fee to visit. I think we may have spent two hours here between hanging out on the lawn outside, walking down the isle to Wagner’s “here comes the bride,” (seriously, I felt just like Meghan Markle), and exploring the narrow passageways and path on top of the dome. The view of the city from the top was pretty remarkable!

Gendarmenmarkt

This well-known square not far from the Berliner Dom is known as the square with the two identical churches. One church is the German Church and the other, the French Church. In the middle of the square sits the Konzerthaus (the concert hall of Berlin).   While we were there, there was a group of people with a huge bubble pool and we got to pop a few before we walked on!

Reichstag Building

The national parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany sits in the Reichstag Building in Berlin. I honestly can’t believe they let people sign up and tour this incredibly important building, but I am so glad they do! This was my second visit to see this well-engineered structure and I would highly recommend it to anyone who happens to visit. It’s completely free and you even get a short audio guide that helps you to understand the history of the building and the surrounding area as you walk up to the top.

East Side Gallery

Most of the Berlin Wall was dismantled when the wall fell in 1989, but on Mühlenstrasse, a 1.3km stretch still remains. This stretch became the world’s largest open-air mural collection, known as the East Side Gallery (you can also walk around the wall to the “west side,” which has some graffiti (see below).

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe

Seeing and experiencing this memorial was a very somber and thought-provoking experience. What looks flat and parallel from the top, turns deep and vertical as you walk though it.

Brandenburger Tor & Checkpoint Charlie

Two iconic sites that are very symbolic for Berlin. I somehow surprised Jordan with Checkpoint Charlie (I just didn’t tell him where we were walking). And, Berlin surprised us with a World Cup viewing party at the Brandenburger Tor!

German Food – duh!

This topic deserves it’s own post, but alas, we only at at ONE restaurant while visiting (with Pauline). I figured I had to mention the food because Berlin had SO MANY amazing restaurants. You really just can’t go wrong!