Wow, I can’t believe that I’m writing my 11th weekly update and this time it’s from my new apartment! This week I said goodbye to my first roommate in Berlin and moved into a new apartment across town. I loved being able to easily explore Kreuzberg and Neukölln during my first few months in Berlin, but now I am even more excited to try out another neighborhood. After starting off the week slow with a final morning roomie coffee at the croissanterie, I packed every day to the brim with Christmas markets, curry, Christmas shopping and decorating my new room. I love my new apartment and I can’t wait to explore everything in Prenzlauer Berg!
fAREWELL TO MY FIRST FAVORITE BAKERY
It’s been one week and I already miss my close proximity to the Croissanterie. I loved being able to wake up in the morning and easily grab a fresh oat milk latte and croissant before work. After months of visiting the same bakery every morning I felt like a local and I miss my favorite baristas just as much as the pastries and caffeine. Lucky for me, my new neighborhood has plenty of coffee shops that I can explore. Maybe I can find a new regular spot.
Early Morning Move In!
I normally wake up early, but this week I woke up extra early and moved into my new apartment! It wasn’t that difficult to make the move because I only own two bags of clothes and a few random trinkets from my travels. So on Wednesday, I got one final shot of espresso and a croissant from the bakery, then grabbed my two bags and jumped in an Uber headed to my new home.
Setting up the vibes
Moving into my apartment was a breeze because the previous tenant left his dresser, bed frame and futon frame. Then, after 10 mins on Facebook marketplace I was able to find a desk, a desk chair, a relaxing chair and a bookshelf…all within walking distance! Collecting the furniture quickly let me move on to the fun part of moving into a blank space, decorating! I lucked out with all white furniture from Facebook marketplace, which already makes the room feel extra bright. In order to keep the space open and light I decided to keep the all white theme with my sheets and add in small pops of gold or burnt orange throughout the room. I’ve never been a huge orange fan, but when I saw the color in Zara Home, I immediately thought it would match perfectly with the walls of the room and the all wood and white furniture. Once I got the bedroom set up I focused on setting up the bathroom. I’m still in the beginning stages of turning my bathroom into a little spa, but I think the candles and matching towels are a great start.
Morning Coffee
I love my new morning routine. Instead of walking down the street to get a coffee, now I walk down the hall to the kitchen and make a fancy cup of joe on our kitchen machine. This coffee machine couldn’t have come into my life at a better time. As the weather keeps getting colder, I am going to need this warm coffee to get me out of bed. To make my coffee a little special, I will keep exploring different coffee shops in Berlin and bringing home a new bag to try each week.
Morning Runs in Mitte
The weather was cold this week, but I decided to go on a few runs to get a feel of my new area. The weather each morning was beautiful and the sunrises over the spree really start your day off on the right foot.
Lucia Christmas Market
The Christmas market in Prenzlauer Berg is by far my favorite. This week I went to the Lucia Christmas market with my new roommate and a few friends. This market was perfect because there was a nice mix of Glühwein, fried foods, Christmas shopping tents and fun games. We stayed at the market for a few drinks and I learned a special trick to drinking Glühwein… always add a shot of liquor. After drinking at Christmas markets for awhile we decided to spend the rest of the night inside a warm apartment and make our own Glühwein while we danced to 80s German songs and snacked on classic Christmas candy.
AlexanderPlatz Christmas Market
This week I also went to the Alexander Platz Christmas market. Compared to the Lucia market, it was only okay. It’s not fair that I visited both markets in the same week because the Lucia market was so exceptionally cute, it skewed my perception of the others. Alexander Platz was still a cute market though and we got a nice hearty dinner and Glühwein, so no complaints from me.
Trip Planning
This January we are planning to ski in Switzerland and Austria, which means skyping my friends back home to plan out the details. Connecting with friends 6 hours away isn’t always the easiest, but it seems that 8pm or 9pm is the sweet spot.
Balancing the Christmas Markets with colorful dinner
To balance out the heavy food and Christmas Glühwein, I tried to eat extra healthy for my other meals. This week I made big salads packed full of tomatoes, tofu, carrots, avocado, hummus and beans. I also tried to make a lettuce wrap with the same ingredients, but it fell apart after one bite. Still, it made a good salad!
Feel Seoul Good
For my solo meal this week I went to Feel Seoul Good and got the All Time Classic bowl, which is ramen noodles on red curry with coconut milk, tofu and various seasonal vegetables. The ramen was so good and to complete the meal I also ordered summer rolls and a tiger beer. There are so many cute restaurants in my new neighborhood and I can’t wait to bop around and try out all of the hidden gems.
Curry36
Opposite to homemade salads and Korean ramen bowls, I also visited Curry36 again this week and got the delicious vegan currywurst. It’s not something I would eat every day, but when it’s cold and you’ve had a glass of wine… currywurst is the way to go.
Exploring my new Neighborhood
I’ve only been living in this neighborhood for a few days now, but I’m already loving it. The cobblestone streets, cute cafes and parks are everything I wanted in a European neighborhood. While walking around this week I stumbled onto multiple street fairs and a little neighborhood library carved into a tree. I’m excited to keep exploring my neighborhood this winter and even more excited to see it all come to life in the Spring.
