Hallo Leute!

Heute möchte ich etwas über Essen sagen. Eigentlich möchte ich immer über Essen sprechen, aber heute werde ich nur über Frühstück sprechen. Ich liebe Frühstück. Alle Frühstücke! Von Amerikanischen Pancakes und Waffeln bis Deutschen Backwaren. Ich denke dass Frühstück mein Lieblingsessen des Tages ist.
If I am being completely honest though, Deutsches Frühstück is very different from American breakfast, in more ways than one.

I think first and foremost, the biggest difference, is the popularity of breakfast. Now that might sound a little strange so bare with me. Here in Germany, or at least in Berlin, breakfast foods tend to be quite small and common. Breakfast is just another meal of the day and is not any more special than say perhaps, a snack. One can often see people eating a pastry on the S-Bahn or even just a piece of fruit for breakfast. Breakfast is not eventful, just a necessity. Whereas in the U.S., breakfasts tend to huge meals (well every meal tends to be a huge meal actually) to get you through the day since lunch breaks are often quite late. For a busy working person a breakfast might consist of only a cup of coffee and an apple, but if one were to really sit down and eat breakfast at home, or even a restaurant (YES there are restaurants that solely serve breakfast foods), the meal would consist of at least three different dishes. Some common and popular breakfast dishes include, but are not limited to: eggs and toast, coffee, pancakes and waffles (yes both), french toast, juice, and a bowl of fruit. And this can all be served to one person. It’s both formidable and a bit incredible.

Another difference is the type of food! Traditional American breakfasts tend to be very heavy and filling, making you feel ten pounds heavier by the time you’re done eating. On the other hand, German breakfast consists of a bunch of light foods, filling you up slowly and healthily. A typical German breakfast might consist of Brot und Butter, Käse, Marmalade, Joghurt, Obst, und vielleicht Müsli. You can notice the common use of milk products in German breakfast as opposed to the heavy inclusion of starchy products in American ones.

The last difference is a small, but important one! Eggs! If you don’t know what I am talking about, ask a typical Deutsche person how they like their eggs and then ask an American. Trust me, you will notice a difference lol !

No matter what kind of breakfast it is, I love them all. Actually writing this entry has made me really want some breakfast food so I have to go! Until then, bis bald!

Mine and my friends‘ quite tasty (although unhealthy) pastry breakfast the other day!

-Milan :-)

Hallo Leute!

Letzte Woche gab es einen Film im Marianenplatz Park. Unfortunately, it was a lot more expensive than I thought it would be and I had just bought dinner at this Ethiopian restaurant so I didn’t have enough! It was my dumb fault, but the night didn’t go to waste. My friends and I ended up taking the Ethiopian food, our blankets, and our bottles of water/beer, to the next park over. There we had a nice picnic until sundown (which as you know is quite late in the day here in Berlin).
Now I highly recommend this Ethiopian restaurant, especially if you love trying new and interesting foods! It’s called Langano and is greatly priced! The service is awesome and everyone is very friendly. A cute detail about the restaurant is that in the corner, there hang a German and Ethiopian glad together :-) !

Look how cool this piece of Lion artwork is!

Our Ethiopian food picnic. Curry lentils, spinach, carrots and potatoes, and a huge pot of meat stew! Of course with traditional sourdough Injera bread :-)

Until then, bis bald!
-Milan :-)

Hallo Leute!

Letzte Woche bin ich zum Tadschikische Teestube gegangen. Ich war dort mit meiner Freundin aus den USA. For those of you that don’t know what the Tadschikische Teestube is, I’ll give you a little backstory. So! First off, this little Café, or Tea Room, if you will, is of Tajikistani heritage. The Republic of Tajikistan is a small country in Central Asia with influences from Asian cultures such as Chinese, and Eastern cultures like Russian. Tea rooms were a very big part of Tajikistani culture, as they were social centres. This specific Teestube began in 1974 when Tajikistan, then a part of the Soviet Union, gave it to the GDR as a gift and it was placed in the Soviet Pavilion in Leipzig, opening for business a few years later. All of the furniture was imported straight from Tajikistan!

       
This sounded awesome to me so I decided to give it a visit! When you first walk in and see the carved dark wood columns and beautiful artwork its takes you a few moments to remember you’re in Berlin. A calm atmosphere engulfs you almost immediately and you feel relaxed as you take off your shoes and walk to a table on the floor, taking a seat on a deep red and rich green pillow.

After you take in the incredible place and look at the menu, you realise that the furniture wasn’t even the best part. On the menu are dozens of varieties of tea, everything form simple Green Tea to a whole Russian Tea Ceremony (yes the tea has alcohol in it lol). They even have food and desserts, like cherry stuffed dumplings. Yum! Once you’re done stuffing your face with Russian food, desserts, and tea, you can stay and chat on the comfy pillows. This place was honestly such a great, secret find and I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone!

Until then, bis bald!
-Milan :-)

Hallo Leute!

So this week the title of the post is Seen, as in the word „lakes“ auf Deutsch, not „seen“ as in the past participle for the English word „see“. Boy, what a mess that sentence was! That is the title of today’s post because I’m going to be writing about none other than the lakes of Berlin. Of course not all of them, because we are a city ridden with lakes. But I will talk about the two (arguably depending on what part of Berlin you live in) most popular: Wannsee and Schlachtensee.

Starting with Wannsee, which I believe is the most well-known See in Berlin. Wannsee is split into two parts, Großer Wannsee und Kleiner Wannsee, both located on the Havel (a Fluss, not a See). Wannsee is widely popular and known for its Strandbad, which, did you know, is one of the largest beaches in landlocked Europe. There is actually a large nudist beach in the area as well! Now although it does cost about 5 Euros to get in, es lohnt sich! Wannsee is a beautiful lake that has options for the whole family. The shallow water near the Strand makes it perfect for kids, the water slide farther out appeals to teenagers and young adults, and the relaxing shores of north-east Wannsee are so useful for the adults that want a calm and relaxing day by the water. When you’re done taking a dip in this huge See, you can even take a trip to Pfaueninsel which is only a few minutes by ferry ride.

The second See I want to talk about is Schlachtensee. Now those of you who understand what the word „schlachten“ means, may not think that the lake offers a very appealing picture. But let me just tell you, do not judge a book by its, uh, title! This See has got to be my absolute favourite here in Berlin, although like everyone, I do love Wannsee as well. Schlachtensee is actually very close to Wannsee and one can actually travel the distance from one to the other by walking. This is of course assuming that you’re not too tired from having a swimming day to do so. Schlachtensee is definitely much smaller, and more weirdly shaped, than Wannsee, making it a bit difficult to find a sun-bathing spot on a sunny Sommer day. But it is also less popular, so the throngs of people you see heading to Wannsee on any given hot Wochenende won’t be found in Schlachtensee. This lake is quite popular amongst the younger generation, as it is near a student living area, but I’ve seen people of all ages taking a dip in the waters of the cleanest lake in Berlin!

Myself and a friend down in lovely Schlachtensee! Just watch out for the giant catfish :P

Both of these lakes are absolutely beautiful in both Sommer and Winter, and I really hope you get to visit them in day and enjoy them as much as I do! Until then, bis bald!

-Milan :-)

Hallo Leute!

So I thought I’d take the opportunity to just talk about my experience these last few months. I’ve had quite an adventure with Deutsch Akademie courses. The first month I started Deutsch Akademie, I was in Wittenbergplatz and then the next month I went all the way to Alexanderplatz, right under the Fernsehturm and now I’m back at Wittenbergplatz. Now this might seem a bit verrückt but I had good reason! You see I was trying to find out what time, method, and location worked for me (did you see what a did there? listed time method and location in the order of TeKaMoLo. ha ha ? get it? no? ok fine). You see for the first month, I did the intensive course at 15:00-18:00, or was it 15:30-18:30? hmm Ich kann mich nicht erinnern. I found that to be a good course but also quite in the middle of the day, making it imperative to plan my day around it rather than with it. The second course I did was from 18:15-21:15, because I wanted to try a night class, but I ended up disliking the time arrangement more than the first haha ! It was mainly because I hated traveling from Alexanderplatz to my home (around a forty minute journey per BVG) every night. Having to cook dinner at 22:00 on the weekdays was not very fun lol. So finally last month, I switched back to Wittenbergplatz, but now I am doing the early morning special at 8:30! At first it was annoying to get used to having to wake up at 7:00 to get to class on time, but I have to say I have since gotten used to it and even quite enjoy it. The public transport is a bit crowded due to everyone being on their way to work but I enjoy it a lot more than being on the S-Bahn when everyone was coming home from work. At least I’m one with the tired crowd begrudgingly making their way into the busier part of the city. Waking up early isn’t terrible, unless you had a late night out the day before lol but I am definitely not an early bird. And even though I find myself yawning at inappropriate times during the first half hour of my course, i have to say this option the best for me.

Now I’m not going to claim one class is better than the other for everyone, as it obviously has everything to do with personal preference. But for me, I am definitely more satisfied with my choice this month than I was with the previous months. If you’re an early bird, then go full swing for the earliest course! If you’re a night owl like me, then i definitely recommend the latest course. Or if you like something in the middle, D.A provides two other courses that can fit into your plan very well. Whatever your choice, I hope you enjoy D.A. and all that it has to offer. I know I do!

Look at all these darn alarms on my phone! Waking up early still isn’t easy lol

Until then, bis bald!

-Milan :-)

Well, hallo Leute! Ich heiße Milan und ich bin dein Persönlicher Blog-Schriftsteller! Ich habe den März/April Blog für Alexanderplatz geschrieben, inzwischen bin ich wieder in Wittenbergplatz. Deshalb bin ich hier, zu Hause, und schreibe für euch… Manchmal schreibe ich auf Deutsch und manchmal schreibe ich auf Englisch. Eigentlich, schreibe ich oft mit beiden! Das heißt „Denglisch“ lol.

If you read the Blog months ago, you may remember me and my entries, but if not, then hello! Welcome to Wittenbergplatz Blog. Wie ich gerade geschrieben habe, heiße ich Milan. Ich komme aus den USA. Ich bin seit fast fünf Monaten in Berlin. Ich lerne seit vier Monaten Deutsch bei Deutsch Akadamie. I liebe Berlin und ich hoffe dass du auch Berlin liebst. Over the next few weeks I’m going to be doing a whole bunch of things in Berlin (now that it’s around Sommer) and telling you all about them! Hopefully you enjoy read about my little adventures and embark on them yourself!

Hallo! It is I!
Secret Blogger Identity initiated!

Until then, bis bald!

-Milan :-)

Hallo zusammen!

So heute war der letze Tag von A 2.1. Ich fühle mich traurig weil, im März ich leider zum anderem Deutsch Akademie Platz gehen muss. ( Ach! I honestly hope that was all correct. Probably not! But that’s ok, I’m still learning.) I will no longer be going to Wittenbergplatz for the months of März and April. I will be back in Mai! :-) Honestly, this has been such a great month for me and I have to say that I am sooooooo happy and satisfied with the results. Finally I have found a Sprachschule that I actually enjoy and I’m so glad I found it online that one day in Amerika. In my class not only have I learned so much, but I’ve also made connections with people. i have become friends with people I thought I would never talk to. I have enjoyed having my instructor and am so disappointed that I have to switch locations. But a „girls gotta do what a girls gotta do“. And also, thats ok because I’m sure I will love the Alexanderplatz location just as much as I love the Wittenbergplatz one.

Luckily for you (haha just kidding) i am not able to continue writing this Wittenbergplatz blog for you all so, but at least I will write for the Alexanderplatz Blog. That will provide some consistency for me. lol Well, it has been so great writing for you and I hope to do it again in Mai. Class starts again on Monday so until then, bis bald!

This view might not look like much, but it was the view I enjoyed everyday for the past few weeks. I will miss it.

P.S. Pretty soon my Alexanderplatz Blog is about to get a little more exciting as I will be travelling quite a bit in the next two months wooh !! If you want to read any of it, visit the Alexanderplatz Blog as well!
-your friend Milan♥︎

Hallo zusammen!

So! It’s finally starting to warm up! Can you believe it? I for one, am honestly so glad that I can finally see and feel the warmth of the sun again. Before I came here, I was so glad and excited to finally see snow and experience cold weather, but now that I have been here for about a onth, I think I have had enough. Of course, I will miss the falling snowflakes and the frozen over lakes that one can ice skate on, but boy, I will not miss the harsh bite of winter. Not only can I not feel my extremities, but during the winter it is so much harder to exercise.

Now I might not be the most athletic person in the world, but I do like to go outside and have a little active fun. Normally, during the warmer months, that would include swimming, playing football with my brothers, volleyball, or even just talking a long walk in the forests. But all those are basically impossible when the temperature is below 0. So, if you’re like me, and you crave physical activity without freezing your fingers off, then I recommend joining a gym. Of course, some you might be a little hesitant for whatever reason (privacy maybe? or perhaps price?), but can I just say, it is absolutely worth it. Here in Berlin there are myriad gyms to choose form depending on what your looking for. If you are a woman and you want a place to train with only other women, theres a place for you! If you want an all-inclusive gym with classes and a sauna, theres a place for you! If you want, a gym with an indoor swimming pool so you can still enjoy the water during the cold months, theres a place for you! For most gyms, all it requires for you to sign up is an EC Bank card and your passport/proof of residence. Not too shabby, eh? There’s also a bunch of different contracts and non-contracts for you to choose from, whether you want to pay monthly or yearly, etc. To make this a little easier for you, here is a nice list og awesome gyms to choose from.

I signed up with Superfit, for a yearly contract of only 20 Euros a month. They have included classes such as Zumba, Yoga, and even martial arts. When I signed up, they even gave me a free gift bag with a Flasche, towel, and Membershipcard holder. Awesome, right?

Anyways, hopefully you find a place that works just for you! Until then, bis bald!

-Milan⚖

Hallo zusammen!

So, the other day, I was talking to another Deutsch Akademie student from America. Both of us were similar in the fact that we both have pets, but the difference is, she had to leave hers in the USA. It is not because she didn’t want to bring her pet, but merely because she didn’t know how. Of course, the process to take you pet to a foreign country is detailed and lengthy, but it is definitely possible, and a lot easier when you know what to do. Unfortunately, I know some one you have pets you had to leave back home and it may be better for you that way, but if you are absolutely and extremely attached to your pets (as I am), then this blog entry might be helpful for you. If you don’t have any pets you can skip right along, but if you’re interested, stay a while.

So where to begin, to bring a pet from another country to Deutschland has many steps that you need to follow correctly. Coming from a Western country is definitely a lot easier than coming from any other one, but all are still ok. If you’re travelling between EU countries, all you need to do is to get a Tierarzt check your pet and then get a EU pet passport! Pretty simple right? But if you’re bringing a pet from lets say, America, then the process is much different. First, you have to make sure your pets have a Microchip that is ISO compatible (an international standard), if they don’t have one, then you need to get one. Then you have to get a Rabies vaccination for your pets at least three months, but no more than six months before your travel date. (Sometimes more vaccinations are needed, depending on what country your travelling form.) Then, when that’s completed you need to make sure the vaccine worked and get a Rabies Titillation test done on your pet. When that’s all completed you can wait until ten days before your departure date to Deutschland. Within those ten days you need to go to the Tierarzt and get them to fill out a special pet Deutschland/USA Health Certificate and get it certified by your local Animal/Agriculture Department.

And even after all that is done, you have to make sure you buy your pet a plane ticket, either on board with you (a better and safer decision) or under the hold. You also have to make sure to buy an airline approved pet holder. You can buy your pet calming drops from Hyland which help you and your animal if they get scared easily or get anxiety when travelling. It’ll keep them quiet as well so you don’t have people looking at you on the plane as if you brought along a crying baby. Like I mentioned before, bringing a pet to Deutschland is a long, arduous process, but if you absolutely can’t say goodbye to your little friend, it is definitely one you should undergo. Good luck! Bis bald!

my little friend

P.S.: Deutschland is an incredible place to have a dog!

-Milan♘

Hallo zusammen!

So this blog entry will be a little but different from others, as it will not really be me blogging about Deutsch Akademie or Berlin, but more about things that I’ve enjoyed whilst in Berlin. Since February is coming to an end, these are my February Favourites.

• Music: The music that I’ve been recently blasting through my earphones while on the S/U-Bahn is actually from a genre that I’ve only recently started listening to: Jazz! And now I don’t mean new age Jazz. I’m talking about classic Jazz from the 20’s to the 40’s. Incredibly enough, you can listen to music that’s almost a hundred years old on that app! Now this kind of music is not for everyone but if you want to hear something different, I suggest Sidney Bechet („Petite Fleur“ is my favourite right now), Annette Henshaw, and Mildred Bailey.
• Tv: So coming from America, where there are thousands upon thousands of programs that I can watch, to Berlin where there are only a select few provides a very big change. Honestly, I was never a huge TV watcher in the first place. Netflix has been my best buddy these past few years and luckily, Netflix DE is just as good as Netflix in USA. This last month I have been into Black Mirror, which is a great sci-fi drama series about technology, and Rick and Morty, which is an adult animated series full of crazy scientific plots and very funny weird jokes.
• Restaurants: Ok, so as I have mentioned in a previous blog post, I came from California. Over there, there is incredible authentic Mexican food that I would eat quite often (I love Mexican food, probably mainly because part Mexican but also because it tastes great lol). Now that I’ve been here for a month, I was starting to get an itch for the familiar cuisine again, and I think I found a great place. It’s called Dolores It is an absolutely great Mexican place where you can make bowls and burritos for a great price, and there are two of them placed conveniently at Wittenbergplatz and Alexanderplatz.
• Shopping: So, if you have been in Berlin for longer than a week, then you are obviously familiar with the big department store in the KuDamm known as KaDeWe. Although it may have great things to offer, it is definitely very expensive, and a budget-ing girl like me cannot afford to spend 100 Euros on a shirt, so… I go to Humana! Humana is a chain of Vintage and Second-Hand clothes shops located all around Berlin. You can find great deals there, all the way from 1 Euro T-Shirts to 20 Euro leather jackets! Also, you are probably familiar with Flohmärkte, but which ones? The one I went to last weekend was in Treptower on Eichenstraße. I a few great things and even saw some really cool antiques. I’ll include a picture of one that caught my eye below. Now I don’t know how fond you are of used items, but if that doesn’t bother you that much, then I strongly suggest you go check these two places out! Until next time, bis bald!
  

  Check this thing out!

-Milan⚛