Week three in Berlin flew by! I finally have the moving logistics knocked out, the Marathon has been run and now I get to relax and explore my new home in Germany. My main goal for this week was to rest and reset before all of my October plans. I went on lovely sunrise walks each morning, cooked delicious meals at home and met up with old friends and new friends for dinner and drinks. Another perfect week in Europe and I can’t wait for more!
MORNING ROUTINE TO A T
The weather this week was beautiful, so I decided to start every day with a sunrise walk around the neighborhood. Normally I would strap on my running shoes to cover more ground, but I’m giving myself a nice break after moving to a new country, running the Berlin marathon and traveling to Amsterdam and Copenhagen. I loved walking along the canal and Spree at sunrise and watching Berlin slowly wake up each morning. It was a great way to start the day and I might keep up my practice of morning walks moving forward.
Another key part of my morning routine involves walking to the local Croissant cafe and getting a fresh croissant and latte with oat milk. Step one, grab the giant mug from Copenhagen and reusable bees wax wrap from the Waste Free Festival. Step two, ich nehme eine Croissant und ein latte mit haffermilch bitte 🙂
CROISSANT Catch Up WITH HANNAH
This week I also had a catch up with Hannah featuring the infamous Croissianterie croissants. Did I mention that I really love croissants? We met up on an especially sunny day and walked along the canal for an hour talking about Berlin and future sailing plans. Hannah was the first person I ever stayed with in Berlin and it was really cool being able to walk around with her as an actual resident and neighbor this time!
DINNER AND DRINKS WITH GIUSEPPE
Hey Stephen, look I found your brother in Berlin! Giuseppe and I met up at the East Berlin Art Gallery and walked along the water at sunset comparing the lifestyles of my new home in Berlin to his in Munster. We got to see live music at Mercedes Platz and then once it got cold we walked to find food in Kreuzberg. For dinner we decided on Restaurant Baraka, which is a Egyptian spot I’ve been dying to try. We split the vegetarian mezze platter, which came with a ton of tasty bowls and a basket of fluffy bread. My favorites dishes were the baba ganoush and candied beets.
After our mini feast at Baraka we headed south to explore new bars. Our first stop was Fimkunstbar Fitzcarraldo, which was surprisingly eccentric… but, I guess that is Berlin’s whole thing. The ceiling of the ground level was all disco balls, red lights and plants. To be completely honest, when you first walked in the room felt like a really vibey rain forest café. We walked past the main area and further into the bar to find a sign pointing downstairs that read “Film Archive.” Naturally we walked down the stairs covered in more red lights and we discovered that the entire basement of this bar was a maze of rooms filled with DVDs. They had categorized shelves upon shelves of every type of film available AND you were able to borrow any of them. We took some time looking at the DVDs, finished our beers and then headed out to try and continue our luck of hidden gems. After leaving we walked even further south and stumbled upon Mama Bar in Neukölln. This bar was less ‘unique’ than the film bar, but still a solid find. The walls were covered in local artist work and the drinks were cheap, so can you really ask for anything else.
It was so much fun exploring Kreuzberg and Neukölln with a new friend. Giuseppe, good luck on your travels and see you when you’re back in Germany! 🙂
Solo Dinner for the soul
I am a huge fan of eating dinner at restaurants alone. I did it all the time while living in NYC and it was how I found some of my favorite spots. I plan to continue this tradition in Germany and to kick off my solo dinner survey of Berlin cuisine I went to MaoThai in Prenzlaurer Berg. I didn’t plan to go to this specific restaurant in Pberg, but when I walked by the front door the atmosphere of the restaurant seemed perfect for a little unaccompanied umami experience.
The restaurant was busy, but finding a table was easy…one of the many perks to solo dinners. Once I sat down I quickly knew what I wanted and for anyone who knows me it’s an easy guess… Green Curry! Green curry lunch specials were a staple for me in NYC and I surprisingly haven’t had any curry since I moved to Europe. Three weeks without my favorite meal is too long, but MaoThai was able to right this wrong with their amazing Gaeng Kiew Whan Phak. The curry was a combination of mixed vegetables, bean
curd, tofu, coconut milk and basil with green curry, served in a stone crock pot with a little tea light underneath. Sorry to all my lunch special go-tos in NYC, but this green curry was one of the best I’ve had in a long time. While I was at the restaurant I also saw the dishes that my table neighbors ordered and needless to say, I will definitely be going back to MaoThai for more of their Menu.
canadian thanksgiving – the Wein und Käse edition
I hosted my first apartment party with Alice for Canadian Thanksgiving an din traditional Jade fashion, there were hella charcuterie boards. The goal was for people to bring wine and flowers while we supplied the snacks and not to toot my own horn, but it was beautifully executed. It was such a cute first party in Berlin and afterwards we all went out to Dschungel and hung out in the jungle. It was funny going to Dschungel on an actual night out because it’s the same casual bar Pat and I ‘discovered’ during my first week in Berlin. Turns out it is actually a main spot in the neighborhood and not as secret as we thought.
Now that we had a successful Canadian thanksgiving, I’m even more excited for our American thanksgiving party in November!
Käse und Käse und Käse 
Hi Alice 🙂 
Zero waste paprika chutney 
The final four
FLYING TO ALLIe
Visiting Allie and her pup in Paris. Running partners for 4 years, best friends for life 🙂
As a fun surprise for Allie I spent the day filling her apartment with flowers and candles while she was away on a day trip to the beach with Sabo. It was honestly a great way to explore the city and a fun challenge because everything in Europe is closed on Sunday. The weather was amazing all day long and walking around her neighborhood in La Muette was beautiful.
If you’re out on the road
Feeling lonely, and so cold
All you have to do is call my name
And I’ll be there on the next train
Carole King
