Be a visiting "Local" in Berlin

My first time in Berlin I played the tourist role. We went to all the major sites, did all the free and paid walks, drank and ate from the Main Street restaurants and engulfed ourselves in the intense and complex history. This time I wanted to experience what it is like to be local is this thriving metropolis! Thankfully my best friend and (former) roommate speaks German and is in the process of moving here, so it made this task easier than I first imagined. However, playing the role of a local wouldn't have been nearly as successful without the help of the staff from Henri Hotel in Charlottenburg. We arrived on a Sunday evening and were immediately impressed by the look and feel of Henri. The long foyer welcomes you into a small reception where you are greeted with a warm smile and friendly banter. Off the reception is large living and dining room with the loveliest of kitchens, decorated with a modern spin on an early 1900s style.

The dwelling which now houses Henri hotel was built is 1899 and housed nine families on each of the floors. This way of living was quite common for the time period and the large floors with 20 plus rooms were still much larger than any common living space of our generation. After both World Wars, the house transformed to meet the needs of the time and became a hotel about 40 years ago. The new owners have spent considerable time, effort and money to restore the house to its glory years. Each room is beautifully constructed with high ceilings, magnificently large windows spanning from floor to ceiling, original floors and moulding, and decorated with spectacular 1900s period antiques; some of which are even original to the house. No two rooms are exactly the same, allowing you to feel like that room is actually your home for the length of your stay (and leaving you curious about what all the others might hold inside).

If you're travelling for business, with family and friends, or just wanting a quiet place to curl up with a book after a long day of exploring Berlin, then the living space is open for you. There is a mini bar and coffee and tea station that will quench any of your thirsts while you unwind.

It was the fabulous staff which encouraged us to explore the city on bike. The hotel offers €12 euro rentals just right outside the front door. However, this method of transportation is so popular that we ended up renting two bikes for 24 hours from a city bike rental company called Donkey Republic instead of the hotel option. This was by far the most efficient and easy bike rental process I've ever experienced. It makes the saying "it's as easy as 1-2-3" seem complicated. We simply downloaded an app, booked a bike and started riding. The really cool part is that the bike lock connects to the app through Bluetooth so no one else can walk away or unlock the bike you’ve rented.

One of the main observations I've found while being a Berlin local is the perfect harmony walkers, bikers and cars seem to have with each other. It's something I haven't experienced before in a city of this size. The intricate bike lanes making moving around the city quick and safe. There seems to be an understood respect regarding who has the right away. Transport with wheels yield to pedestrians and cars yield to bikes. I frankly don't understand why other nations haven't followed the Germans’ example and set up this system in their own cities. We spent the day biking from area to area, checking out the local cuisine and determining which "vibes" we preferred. One of my favourite discoveries was the old airport based in the Center of town. The airport was closed in the last decade and now serves, in part, as a Syrian Refugee camp. But during its prime it was the main hub for the US military when flying supplies in and out of West Berlin before the wall fell. Biking along the runways past the flight signs and the back of the old airport was rather surreal. It provided a completely different perspective than I normally get while in an airport. If you're going to rent bikes while visiting, I highly suggest you make the old airport one of your stops. Riding along the back of the airport won't take long, but you might wish to stop and have a drink or a meal from one of the little park bars or you can stroll through the community gardens which have popped up on the green in between runways.

In the evening, based on a recommendation from our lovely Henri hosts we checked out Marjellchen for dinner. We were told it was proper Eastern Berlin cuisine and the best food around. We were not disappointed. The owner's presence is well known in the local area, as she still serves tables every night and she ensures each meal meets satisfaction. Check out my blog on Where to Eat Like a Local to find out more. The weather has been fabulous this trip and we decided to take advantage of the sun and the rental car (we've had parked in a garage for €20 a day since we got here) and make our way to the outskirts of the city for a day lying in the sand at Plotzensee aka Diamond Beach. This place is amazing. For a mere €5 we gained access to a massive green space, beach with swimming access, multiple beach side bars and food joints. The toilets were free, the beer was cheap and the music was pumping! The most intriguing part to me was the bit of cultural experience we encountered when we realised (not really) tucked away in the left hand corner was the nude area. Along the dock and behind a (not so) private dividing wall lay about 75 completely naked men and women of varying ages. Even from a distance we could tell that no tan lines were visible on any of their bodies. I wondered what mental discussions must have happened in order to get to the point where walking naked in public doesn't bother you at all. I decided to make this bold confidence one of my life goals.

There are so many observations I made over the course of the week about the German people living in Berlin, but the one that made the biggest impression is how genuinely lovely, patient and helpful everyone is. There will always be hustle and bustle in a city, but the majority of my experiences were very pleasant. I look forward to coming back and exploring more of what it's like to be local in Berlin very soon!

Have you been to Berlin? Are you a local? I want to know all your favorite spots! Please leave a comment or drop me a message. I have three more trips planned before December and want to make sure nothing is missed!