Auf Wiedersehen, Berlin

Adhil Shetty

Travel can be an eye-opener in more ways than one can imagine. Especially for jetlag-weary and jetlag-wary business travelers who are used to “checking things off the list” when they get to a new city or country. The destination becomes a glorified extension of the boardroom. The “Go, go, go!” in your head that one is so accustomed to as an entrepreneur still reverberates inside you when you travel to exotic foreign locales. Experiential excesses can wait; business takes priority. You are never far away from taking that next strategic decision for your company even if you are thousands of miles away from where the action is taking place. Blame it on being wedded to work.

My Berlin experience, thus, came as a splash of color on a parched canvass. It unshackled, enriched, catalyzed. Now, Germany is known to be industrious and regimental about things if not anything else. Hence, as I packed my bags for a trade exhibition in Berlin, I looked forward to little more than museum hopping and the occasional night of clubbing after work hours.

Imagine my pleasant consternation when I landed at one of Europe’s coolest metropolises. A strong vibe of hospitality – something that you do not associate with industriousness – was palpable everywhere. It made my stay more sublime, more endearing. But, I’m getting ahead of myself.

There is no better way than a hop-on-hop-off tour to enjoy the sights and sounds of a city when you have limited time on hand. So, on the penultimate day of my stay at Berlin, I set out armed with a city map, a lightly packed backpack and hollow dose of tempered expectations. A guided tour bus took me through a scheduled “panoramic” tour within the city. It was a great way to get a good feel of the city’s innards, with the flexibility to hop off the bus in case an attraction beckoned.

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Adhil Shetty

CEO|BankBazaar.com

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From straitjacketed boardrooms to boarding a hop-on-hop-off and taking in the scents and sights of the city like an ordinary tourist, it seemed a jump in time and space that was surreal yet somehow made sense. The Berlin hop-on hop-off tour has a guided tour commentary available in more than 10 languages. The tickets are valid for two days, making it a good deal for a relaxed visit.

The Marvelous Reichstag: No visit to Germany is complete without visiting the famous parliament known as the Reichstag. My tour started from here. I was offered a free ride to its roof terrace through a spiraling ramp, to get engrossed in a bird eye view of the cityscape. The shutterbug in me was only too happy to reel out shot after shot of the skyline of Berlin with my Digicam. For those who are not aware of German history, there is an option to pick up free audio guides.

A Visit to the East Side Gallery:  German art and culture has always been a fascination for me. One of the best ways to trace these is a visit to the East Side Gallery located along the Spree River right in the heart of Berlin. This colorful memorial to German freedom exhibits works of popular German artists including amateurs as well as professionals. The beautiful murals declaring peace and the reunification of West and East Germany in 1989 was my pick here.

A Soak into German Architecture at Museum Island: At River Spree, the Museum Island houses a complex with five great museums. It’s an amazing place to admire German history, culture and architecture at a single stretch, especially when you have only few days to spend. The weather gods were kind during my Berlin sojourn so I had only warm, sunny days to contend with. With my departure date around the corner, I decided to be selective about my pick of museums to visit. A decision, I realized in retrospect, that I mildly regretted.

Enjoy Music for Free: Western classics are always my obsession. Knowing my preferences, our guide shared a nugget of information. Classical music fans can actually enjoy free lunchtime chamber music concert sessions at Berliner Philharmonie every Tuesday. There is a good mix of rock concerts, jazz and many more, by both veterans and students.

Lake Escapades: If there is one common strand across all good travel experiences, it is variety. The lake escapades in Europe are amazing, yet, the experience here was at an altogether different level. The day after the city tour, I joined the locals to cool off at Lake Schlachtensee, which was 30 minutes from the city. Lying on the fringes of the Grunewald Forest, the clear water and its surroundings had plenty of leisure spots to hang up your boots and air your toes. I could not believe I was having this much fun on a business trip!

Nightlife – The Best Part of Berlin: The same day evening, I decided to experience German nightlife. It was different from the clubs I have visited during my trips in other countries. I was expecting to get lost in a sea of blond heads and halos of smoke, but Cookies, the club I visited, offered an uptown experience at an underground house and disco. It had a varied playlist, right from indie to hip-hop. The nightlife in Berlin starts rather late and is open until the next morning.

Lovely Food at Berlin Food Markets: Berlin is a paradise for food lovers. The one I visited was the Kollwitzplatz in Prenzlauer Berg, which was a farmer’s market. While my hotel was offering me all the exotic German food, there is no greater thrill than having some traditional German dishes and international street food right from the street. My team back in Mumbai would have never let me hear the end of it if they had caught me gobbling up street food in the markets of Berlin!

Shopping at the Berlin Flea Market: Coming from India where flea markets of different types abound, I was not surprised to see the flea markets in Berlin. I was looking for some souvenirs for my team back in India and the Sunday flea market gave me an opportunity to get good some vintage memorabilia for them. That should keep them quiet!

‘Compromise’ is a word l distinctly dislike, but compromise I had to, on the places I wanted to cover while here. Visiting Berlin has been a pronounced experience for me both professionally and personally. The kaleidoscopic sights, the distinct sounds and the lingering smells of the city have burnt themselves on to my heart for posterity.

As I prepare to depart from Berlin, I make a stunning realization – the “go, go, go” in my mind has been replaced by an enduring silence. A silence borne of tasting a culture and a people so vivid and so mesmerizing that once is never enough.

‘Auf Wiedersehen’, I say, to a city that I hope I will be visiting again.

(The author is CEO, BankBazaar.com)