I'm forty!!! How did that happen???

Okay, so I know how it happened.  But really, forty!  Considering I am usually more in tune with my 18-something self, I really don't know how I am meant to handle this new found badge of honour.

From around the age of 35, you start to see the light of 40 approaching.  It is the tick box culture we are in, the age group spectrum.  So leading up to the big coming of age, the event planner in me took over... what to do, where to go, how to make it slightly memorable, special, incredible.... self inflicted pressure.  I decided to take the foot off the pedal, slow down, no planning, something small.  Wait and see attitude.  You see my birthday came at a time where we were planning for Miss Teen to fly the coup in search of adventure on her gap year, and my big little Sis was coming to visit.  I put myself third in the priority list and decided as I was going to be 40 for an entire year there was no real need to celebrate it all in one day.

Then early in the planning stage of my Sisters visit, she mentioned that she may like to head to Germany to see a friend.  That sounds fab, lets go, Berlin we think is the location of said friend.  Hey, it's a bank holiday, and my birthday... perfect... Berlin it is.  Mentioning this plan to a dear friend, she said I'd love to come too.  Hmm, if you have one, you may as well invite everyone.  It's bank holiday the precious last before Christmas, no-one will be able to join us.  Well that's what I thought.  14 friends later, it looked like the big 40 was going to be an epic 4-day weekend!  Planning hat back on.

A person truly blessed with incredible people in my life, in both hemisphere's.  My pinch me moments are not solely restricted to architectural wonders, they extend to the incredible people I have around me.  To have this mad pack group of friends choosing to give up their long weekend to party with me, how jolly lucky am I!  Fast forward to August, and the itinerary is coming together, I've managed to shortlist my must see wish list and create a balance for my company of lovers of travel to have some time to explore on their.

Berlin has been on my city stop wish list for a while.  It was the first ever European city getaway for Mr B, and he has raved about it ever since.  For him, it is his loves of sauerkraut, curry-wurst and underground clubs which came together in this fascinating city.  For me, I wanted to see how Berliners were living, the changes in the past 20 years, to sense the history and grab a peek at the exciting emerging culture.

The city didn't disappoint.  Easy to navigate, wide streets, beautiful architecture, incredible food, diverse districts, and history which it unashamedly wears on its sleeve.  No real history buff, I am never one to be relied on to remember dates, to recall names or places.  But I do love feeling history, to walk in peoples footsteps to gain some sort of understanding of what has been and how they now reside.

Without a trusty guide, I cobbled together an itinerary to whet the appetite for new visitors, and to show those who were returning, a slightly different Berlin.  The weekend celebrated all of my life loves.  Family, Friends, Architecture, People, Discovery, Art, Food, History and having Fun!


To sum up the weekend is nigh on impossible for me.  But I'll give it a try.  Highlights include a humorous hop on hop off bus trip where we never got off due to a slightly hungover teen (great way to get a sense of direction); superb fine dining experience at the two Michelin starred Reinstoff (set in a remodelled “old warehouse”); walking tour of Tacheles, whose history stems back to the fall of the wall, a famous art squat which was seen as a no man's land of creativity and freedom (it sucummed to the man not long after our visit, and after years of battles it was closed down); magnificent views from the roof of the Reichstag, originally built in 1894 and once the home of Parliament the dome and terrace created by Norman Foster offers a fabulous architectural experience whilst giving 360 degree views of the city; seeing the Brandenburg Gate allowing everyone to enter freely and used as a backdrop for marvellous photos; wonderful birthday dinner of local produce at Katz Orange another gem of a find in a city brimming with dining options; overwhelming sense of awe at the East Side Gallery where the line between art and graffiti is blurred, the sense of oppression or exclusion felt standing in front of the wall meant that I sought out the art to move these feelings away; wandering the flea market of Mauerpark flanked by a remaining section of The Wall; a meal of wiener schnitzel bigger than my head!; a cruise along the River Spree; mixed emotions at Checkpoint Charlie of history vs commercialism; and lastly the overwhelming feelings of "how lucky I am to be me" when wandering the Topography of Terror where the city openly and freely reports on its history.

 

All that said, it was really my Friends and Family who made the weekend for me.  Birthday wishes from near and far.  Spoilt with gifts, love and precious time.  I have some of the most incredible people in my life, and to be able to discover a new-to-me -city with them, made many dreams come true.

And at the age of 40, I can say I feel the same, I am proud of the past 40 years and look back only with fond memories... but still very rarely consider myself an adult and think - I am such a lucky girl! 

 

 

ps. and the friend we went to visit... they live in Munich ;-)