Days 33-36, Germany: Berlin

Nathan, Nathan’s girlfriend Michelle, and I arrived at Berlin on a Easyjet flight. Berlin was COLD in November. Usually in DC I’d only have a sweatshirt on – but here I wore 5 layers. In NOVEMBER. According to Michelle, this was what she pictured Berlin as anyways: bleak, gloomy, cold. I thought about it, and that’s kind of how I pictured it too before.

Berlin’s unique feature is the divide between the East and West. Despite it being almost 20 years after the Berlin Wall had fallen down, It’s pretty obvious when you’re in the East versus the West side. The west has buildings like you see in Paris or Madrid. The east has a few notable buildings like a tower and some cathedrals, but also numerous lifeless buildings without character – the effect of being part of a communist bloc. When we were in the East side, away from their monuments, the building around us were downright sad, which is what you would expect in a communist bloc.

I enjoyed Berlin immensely. I was surprised to see that there were not many beer gardens – apparently it was a Bavarian thing and only popular in Southern Germany. Berlin had a lot of character, there were lots of sights to see and to fill up our 4 days, and the contrasts between the east and west was intriguing.

Ballin’! Random metal hoop beside a church on the East side.

Dom Berlin – I thought it was one of the more interesting Dome-like cathedrals I’d been to.

The most famous remnant of the Berlin Wall – the East Side Gallery – basically 1.5km of art plastered on the wall. Super cool.

Brandenburg gate – wasn’t that crazily special just looking at it, but knowing that it was symbol of tearing down the Berlin Wall made added something to it.

I tried to have beer with every meal. Too little time in Germany.

Church that was bombed, restored partially, and then two ugly “modern” churches were constructed right next to it.

Buddy the bear! Nathan and I saw this thing everywhere – the bear is the symbol of Berlin.

Where you would normally see cuts of beef, pork, and chicken, you see like 20 types of sausages. Germans love their sausages.

And I liked German sausages too. This was called currywurst – basically ketchup and curry powder on sausage.

We went to the Stasi Museum, which was in the headquarters of the secret police in the eastern communist bloc. That’s a camera inside the watering pot. Big brother is watching.

At the end of our Berlin stay, Nathan and I took the overnight train to Warsaw, an 11 hour journey that we stayed in a little couchette with 6 bunk beds. Surprisingly clean and decently comfortable.

Next up? Warsaw and Krakow!

Days 25-30, Morocco: Marrakech, Ouarzazate, Zagora and UK: London (First time around)

As I am writing this, I am waiting for dinner at Nathan’s place in London. Him and his girlfriend Michelle are making a Sunday roast, a British tradition which according to Wikipedia, “dates back to when the squire would treat his serfs to a meal of roast oxen every Sunday to reward them for the week's work.” I guess Nathan’s my squire and I’m his serf.

In London, I’ve taken a break from being a tourist in London and have been just relaxing, meeting Nathan’s friends, chilling before we start on our second venture to Eastern Europe. I’ll do more touristy stuff when I return on the 26th. For now, I’ll just enjoy the Sunday roast.

Recap of the last week in Morocco:

2 Day 1 Night Tour from Marrakech: Ait Ben Haddou, Ouarzazate, Zagara (Sahara Desert)

Nathan and I arrived at Marrakech and immediately we began to scour the city, exploring the deep dark regions of the city and immersing ourselves into the city.

Not. I had a fantasy basketball draft to attend to, and Nathan had to work out his travel plans back to London. We spent the afternoon in our Ibis Hotel (a hotel chain) lobby on the computer. Real good use of our time in Morocco. At least I got Chris Paul with my first pick.

We ventured out to the city to sign up for a 2 day 1 night tour with a company named Sahara Expeditions in our plight to visit the Sahara Desert before we left. That night, we didn’t do much except visit the famous square in Marrakech, Djemma el Fna. Awesome place. We slept early because the next day we had to wake up at 6 for the tour.

Almost all of the tour was spent on a 4x4, ferociously driving out to the desert and stopping along the sites. Compared to our usual relaxed sightseeing schedule, Nathan and I felt like we were animals being directed around. Nonetheless, the sights we saw were fabulous and the desert experience despite not being what we thought it would be, unforgettable.

The beast that took us around

Our meal of beef tagine, shared with the couple that was also on our trip. Underneath the stars, in the desert, outside our tent, it was sweet.

We woke up at 6am to have breakfast.

I thought I was pretty cool holding my camera above my head and taking a picture of our camel ride out of the desert. Ait Ben Haddou, apparent where Gladiator and countless other movies were shot. I was trying to look for Russell Crowe but couldn’t find him.

Our insane driver. Almost got us killed apparently, but I was clueless-ly sleeping in the back of the 4x4.

Part of our drive. The driver was insane and drove at like 80 mph on these tall mountains.

Marrakech

There’s a reason why when people talk about Morocco they know about Marrakech. It’s a large, unique, and bustling city. The medina is a lot more modern then the one in Fes, but nonetheless it’s still a medina - meaning lots of shops and people, and the possibility of getting lost at any time. Except since Marrakech was more developed then Fes, there were now also motorcycles zooming around in addition to donkeys. Nathan and I stayed at a Riad, meaning a traditional Moroccan guest house where it has an open air courtyard in the middle and the rooms are lined up in a square. Very unique experience and the place was beautifully architecturally. Marrakech was definitely a memorable experience.

On the streets in the Medina. Donkeys, people, and the possibility of getting hit by a motorcycle at anytime.

Closeup of a street stall. Nathan didn’t want to get sick (understandable) so we didn’t eat there.

Chicken tagine - we ate tagine for like most of the meals. Nathan got sick of Moroccan food but I still liked it by the end.

This is one of the “tourist attractions”. A palace that USED to be grand. Nathan and I were unimpressed.

Pastry shop that I went to like 5 times in 3 days. They learned well from their ex-colonial rulers, the French, because it was damn good and cheap.

Notice the meat/butcher shop right next to the shoe shop. Doesn’t make sense at all.

Another pastilla, this time filled with chicken and egg.

The big square in Marrakech. Huge and lots of people.

Next Up? Berlin with Nathan and Michelle!

Days 21-24, Morocco: Fes, Rabat, Casablanca

Fes

Looking back, we started off the Morocco leg of our trip with the most undeveloped/rustic city. Fes has a walled-off medina (old town) that dates back to the medieval ages, and walking through it with a guide it seemed like nothing much had changed. We hired a guide, but the countless twists and turns, narrow alleyways, made our first experience in a medina a blur. We would stop at a notable sight such as a mosque or shop, stay there for like 10 minutes, then rapidly move on to the next sight through a bunch of narrow alleyways. Our guide was pretty funny, saying stuff like “Moroccan dates are like Viagra”, and also pretty knowledgeable with history which allowed us to learn a lot about Morocco. Reflecting on Fes, the day went by so fast that it’s quite hard to remember all the places we went to – I wish I had taken a video but I was so focused on the surroundings and our guide that I didn’t.

Donkeys everywhere.

Inside of a mosque, but obviously only Muslims could go in.

Typical alleyway, well the narrowness of it at least. Here are some clothes being dyed.

A view of part of the Medina

Used to be a market. The weight in the front was badass.

Yah, that’s a camel head. I debated on whether or not to show this, but it was too cool not to post it.

Rabat

Compared to Fes, Rabat the capital of Morocco was a lot tamer. Nathan and I basically finished looking at the sites in a day when we had budgeted 2 days for it. Nathan also had stomach problems so it was a good time to unwind, chill out, talk to our girlfriends, and taste some Moroccan delicacies as well as common meals.

Challah, remains of Roman-era town/fort. On the top of that minaret to the right are some stork’s nests- pretty cool.

Underground tombs – apparently there are eels in there. Folklore says that woman who are infertile should throw eggs in there so that eels will eat it. (umm…symbol for human’s reproductive system)

View of the Kasbah, supposedly a self contained city, from our rowboat.

That’s rotisserie chicken, fries, rice, sauce, and soda – common meal for them. I had it 3 meals in a row; needless to say I got sick of it. Never thought I could get sick of fries and rotisserie chicken.

A Moroccan delicacy – pastilla. I had it for my main course, and thats powdered sugar on top of a pastry filled with nuts, chicken/pigeon, onions, and other stuff. It was tasty, although kind of weird that I was having a sweet main course.

Casablanca

Casablanca – the notable tourist site is the Mosque Hassan II. Third largest mosque in the world. Highest minaret. Retractable ceilings. Electric doors. Escalators. And yes, it’s a mosque.

We also had a stroll along a waterfront 5 km outside the city center, where expats and rich folk hang out. I was pleasantly surprised to see a TGI Friday’s there – man I love that chain. We didn’t eat there, but got some freshly grilled fish instead, since we were next to the waterfront and it seemed the right thing to do. We stayed one night in Casablanca, and that was more than enough.

Huge Mosque.

Yah, the ceiling is retractable in 3 minutes. Technology and religion mixed together is a beautiful thing.

Had myself some mint tea and chilled. With sugar it was kind of like drinking spearmint gum. Delicious.

Next Up? Marrakesh!