The sun is out again! The weather has been slightly disappointing recently, so it’s a real treat to have to wear my Sonnenbrilles again! My cycle to and from Wittenbergplatz has been fantastic. On my way home today I did my homework in Tiergarten. I love the parks in the city, my favourite is Gorlitzer Park in Kreuzberg. A lot of my friends live near there, and there are many nice places to eat and drink around there so it’s a good place to meet. There is also a minigolf course there! It is lit entirely by UV lighting and it only costs 5,50€ for a game. Strongly recommend it for a rainy day. Sunny days on the other hand…

It’s the last week of my German class this week! It has gone really quickly, and has been such a great experience. It has really improved my confidence in speaking, and I feel I have a much stronger understanding of how sentences are structured. I can now read and understand German a lot better. The grammar (and the hundreds of verbs!) are still a little tricky to get my head around, but I’m getting there. Our teacher Laura is so helpful and friendly. She speaks clearly and explains things in a very understandable and uncomplicated way. Our little class was lovely and I met some great people. We had a lot of fun together and have been sharing our new experiences of Berlin.

One of the things I love about living in a new place, is discovering the different versions of universal institutions, like the pub. Pubs are huge in England, and they are a big part of life. Here it’s slightly different, there is the ‚Späti‘, a shop you can sit outside and drink, which doesn’t exist in England. But there are also Kneipes, which are the German equivalent of a pub. I live above one! I like that in a city so full of young and trendy people, there are still places for the older locals to go and spend time. Next on my list is find a good bar for the young Berliners in Wedding…