Two Beers, Two Brats, Two Betches {A week in Germany 2016}

Monday, August 22nd - Thursday, August 25th // Berlin, Germany

On our first morning in Berlin we headed out to a cafe we had read about that was just around the corner from our Airbnb. It ended up being closed for the week so we headed to the grocery store and got fixings to cook instead. 

We ate outside on our glorious tiny balcony and then headed out to catch the #100 bus - a route that was recommended to us because it just so happened to pass by all of the main sights in Berlin. A bus rolled up just as we walked up and we ran on and up to the top to snag the empty seats right in the front - it was awesome.

We marveled at how sharp and quick we were, which was necessary to get those primo front row seats - the bus was packed.

On the ride there, Kris coordinated with Drew - the cute American boy we had met at the pub in Brighton. He ended up meeting us, along with his traveling partner, at the end of the bus route. 

From there we walked to a cafe and had super amazing salads for lunch. They were freshly tossed and served in giant beautiful white bowls with fresh bread on the side. At lunch we talked about our motivations for traveling, where we've come from, life after divorce, and the passive income we're all working on. It was really inspiring and Drew turned out to be a super cool guy. He also had some ideas for the rest of the day and navigated us around, which was a nice break for Kris :)

After lunch we walked over to Checkpoint Charlie where they had a giant display right along the sidewalk detailing the Berlin Wall and this particular checkpoint. It was fascinating and crazy to think that it all happened so not that long ago. 

Tiergarten Park was our next stop and the park cafe was fabulous - an upscale cafeteria style place that had everything you could want. We all grabbed slices of different cakes and cups of tea that we took outside. 

We were pooped after the park and decided to walk back home (Here’s a link to our Airbnb) and make risotto and eat on our darling balcony: 

Another day we went to an amazing burger place — it was just in a little stall, but had a few picnic tables outside you could sit at. It was a great little taste of home:

The remaining few days in Berlin were spent much the same way - we'd wake up, cook breakfast, head out to see the sights, and then return home to cook dinner since our place was so well equipped and pleasant to be in.

One afternoon Kris navigated a walking tour that took us through this really beautiful series of alley’s filled with awesome grafitti and beautiful chocolate shops and hidden boutiques. It was so cool:

We were eating our chocolates in the alley and Elizabeth took these cute pictures and then wrote this cute thing about us:

We popped out of the alleys and literally just randomly stumbled into the best cafe we have ever been too. Like, ever. It rivaled Sandri. There was the most darling older man behind the counter and his case full of cakes were exquisite. The coffee was epic. It was just so fucking delicious and was complete with the most darling sidewalk seating out front on the quiet little street:

At one point Elizabeth decided Kris needed to start rolling up his shorts a bit for more style:

We also walked through a really cool, old cemetery:

And played frisbee/walked through this beautiful park:

We also discovered the most darling coffee shop that had really cute little seating nooks:

Thursday, August 25-Sunday August 28 // Giessen, Germany

On Thursday we boarded a train for Geissen to visit our dear friends, Olaf and Janina and their beautiful daughters. That was one of the highlights of our trip. We visited them in 2013 and remembered it so fondly and this time was just as wonderful of a visit. Janina picked us up and we enjoyed a wonderful tapas style dinner spread on her back patio. Olaf joined us a bit later and we sat up late talking and laughing with Kris playing guitar. 

Friday morning we discovered Janina has the grain mill we've been looking at for a year. It was beautiful and so functional. She put oat berries in it and we enjoyed freshly pressed rolled oats with milk, bananas, and cacao for breakfast. Later in the afternoon she ground up some flour and made pizzas for lunch, and then blended up some frozen berries for dessert. It was all so delicious and was perfect weather for enjoying every meal outside. 

After a long leisurely lunch they took us to the public pool in Geissen. It was nothing like the public pools you picture in the U.S. It was lush and green and beautiful. There was a high dive, but no life guards, lap pools and very deep water. Everyone was respectful and there was such a nice order to things even though it was totally unregulated.

Near to the pool was an old castle and a lookout point so we hiked all the way to the top to see the view.

Afterwards we enjoyed another dinner on the patio. They are such a beautiful family and the way they are raising their daughters is so inspiring. For example, their youngest daughter had an embarrassing moment at dinner and put her head down on the table in protest of it all. But that was all she did. She wasn't loud or obnoxious. She just put her head down and had her little moment. And Olaf and Janina just let her have it. They didn't try to stop her or understand her or talk to her. They just let her do her thing and then when she was done she crawled into her dad's lap and everything was fine. We literally spent three solid days with them and just saw moment after moment like that. It was so refreshing. 

Saturday morning we headed to the gigantic farmer's market and then had a little picnic. Later in the evening we headed across the street to a bbq at their neighbors house. There was abundant beer and bratwurst. It was hilarious and so classic. Germans are the best. 

Sunday we had another lazy morning and enjoyed our last few hours hanging out, talking, and lounging with them. I made a giant taco salad for lunch and everybody loved it. Olaf drove us to the airport later that evening and we started making our way to Venice to begin a two-week jaunt through Italy.