Warszawa & Berlin – Day 7

Published on 18 October 2023

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Back to Brussels…

And just like that, it was time to go home again.

To keep things simple, I just had breakfast at ibis Berlin Mitte, with a view on wat seemed to be a rooftop apiary. I didn’t try the waffle maker, but I was tempted!

After checking out of the hotel, I took the M2 tram again—the tram with which every day in Berlin started and ended—to Berlin Hauptbahnhof, to take the ICE to Köln.

The ICE arrived almost in time, so I had plenty of time for a coffee at Blooming Coffeebar and Roastery, before a last beer in Germany. I was considering going for a Kölsch, like last time, but when I passed Craftbeer Corner Coeln, still well before its opening tim, there was already some movement inside, and the door was open. When I asked about their 18:00 opening, they took pity on me, and served me some beers already!

From there it was back onto an ICE, for the last stretch to Brussels. That meant the end of another wonderful trip, full of great discoveries, and happy revisits of familiar places!

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Warszawa & Berlin – Day 6

Published on 17 October 2023

Last Full Day…

My last day in Berlin started at Town Mouse Coffee with a delicious—and just spicy enough—”Mouse Trap” sourdough toastie (with Emmental, feta, and the house chutney) and a coffee. Always nice to find places like this near my hotel!

From there I went to the Mitte Museum. I usually make a habit of visiting the ‘local’ museum of any city I visit, but Berlin is so huge, it actually made sense to learn more about the ‘Bezirk’ (borough) I’ve always stayed in. Who knew porcelain was so important for Mitte?

My next stop was at the Museum in der Kulturbrauerei, to learn more about East Germany in its communist years. I had been to a museum with the same theme last year, but this one was definitely less touristy and more educational!

For lunch I went to Burgermeister, apparently an institute in Berlin. Not bad, but definitely not the best burger I’ve had…

For my after-lunch coffee I went to Bonanza Coffee.

After a little break at the hotel to recharge, e went to BrewDog Mitte—just two new beers there—and Mikkeller Berlin. I totally forgot about the Mikkeller Running Club, which had a run right when I was there!

Last time I was there, I didn’t spend enough time in Bräugier Brewpub, so I made up for that this time.

For nostalgia’s sake—I grew up in Limburg after all—for dinner I had a classic veal döner kebap at Kebap House—”Best Döner in Prenzlauer Berg” they say themselves—which is a bit different from the Gemüse Kebap with chicken you often find in Berlin…

My very last beer stop in Berlin was at another place with a banging beer list and great service: Manifest Taproom. The perfect end of my beer journey in Berlin…

Warszawa & Berlin – Day 5

Published on 16 October 2023

Back in Berlin

Although I managed to squeeze in four awesome bars after the hash yesterday, today was my first full day back in Berlin!

I quite fancied the chicken breast bagel at What Do You Fancy Love?, so that was today’s tasty—and slightly messy—breakfast.

I kept my visit to the Futurium rather short since it was—quite literally—overrun by school children…

In the Hackeschen Höfe I stopped for a coffee and cheesecake with an oriental twist at Ben Rahim.

It might not be typically German, but the collection at the Samurai Museum Berlin was very impressive, overwhelmingly so!

For lunch I thought to go to the newish Croissant Couture, but apparently it has only two modes: sold out, or horribly long queues! I did have a hunch this might be the case, so I had a very Berliner backup ready: currywurst at Cult Curry Mitte!

From there I went to BrewDog Friedrichshain. The last time I was there, it was quite late, and I was already a ‘few’ beers in, so I barely remembered what it looked like… Pretty much standard BrewDog though, and with exactly zero beers on draught I hadn’t had yet!

To keep the drinking speed within reason, I did a last coffee and cake stop at 19grams Boxi. Then, to tie me over until the next bar would open, I had one unplanned beer at Straßenbräu, thereby nullifying the effort of having a coffee…

My next bar—I actually planned to go to—was HOME Bar Berlin. There I had a few beers, before going to Haroun for an oriental dinner.

To finish the evening, I met up with friends for beers at Bräugier Ostkreuz, and some more at Protokoll, of course!

Warszawa & Berlin – Day 4

Published on 15 October 2023

On-On to Berlin H3

Today started way too early, but I had to get to Warszawa Centralna to catch the Berlin-Warszawa Express: I needed to be back in Berlin in time for my next hash. I planned on getting a kotlet schabowy in the restaurant car just before arriving in Berlin, but unfortunately they wouldn’t accept cards anymore after crossing the border. So I had the next best thing after arriving in Berlin Lichtenberg: a Schnitzelbrötchen.

Then it was a quick trip to ibis Berlin Mitte to check in and change into my running gear.

From there I went to Potsdam Hauptbahnhof, where the trail of the Berlin Hash House Harriers would start. It was a slightly longer run than yesterday, a bigger turnout as well, and definitely a longer circle. All in all: great fun!

When it was all over, I went back to Mitte for a shower and change in the hotel, and some chow, before hitting the town for some beers…

On the programme tonight: Muted Horn, Lager Lager, Biererei, and—just in time for last call—Hopfenreich. Nothing new, but all great to return to!

Warszawa & Berlin – Day 1

Published on 12 October 2023

Welcome to Warszawa!

My European Sleeper arrived in Berlin Hbf bang on time—even though the stewardess warned me it often arrives early—so I could stick to my schedule and go full Hobbit: have a second breakfast!

I actually saved most of my packaged train breakfast for later, so there was plenty of room to indulge in the breakfast buffet at the InterCityHotel Berlin Hauptbahnhof. More importantly, it provided me with a very comfortable ‘waiting room’, since my next train would be three hours later! I’ve spent enough time aimlessly wandering through the Berlin train station or just having fast food on previous trips, so having some comfortable seats, power, and clean toilets was nice for a change.

My next train was the Berlin-Warszawa Express, run by the Polish rail operator PKP Intercity. In a little over five hours it would take me to Poland’s capital Warsaw. At about 1160 km from Brussels, this also marks the furthest destination I’ve reached by train… so far!

The train was a bit of a special one: lots of 6-seater compartments, and for first class it was the only option. Not my favourite seating arrangement, when not travelling with people I know… However, since the booking system didn’t allow me to pick a specific seat, I booked first class anyway, so I would at least have slightly wider seats. And complementary snacks and drinks, apparently!

After finally arriving in Warszawa, I took a bus to the ibis budget Warszawa Centrum check-in. I booked the hotel when I was still hoping the Warsaw Beer Festival would be this week, hence the location slightly out of the centre of the city…

Bags dropped off, it was just a short and easy walk to Kawiarnia Fabryczna for some coffee.

My first beer in Poland was at Gorączka Złota. Not your typical craft beer bar, but a great start. And I managed the whole visit without a word of English being spoken! A very important phrase I looked up and memorised was “Mały, proszę” (small, please), otherwise I would have been drinking pints all night…

I had been told to check out the phenomenon of ‘milk bars’, so for dinner I went to Bar Mleczny Bambino. There I had my first taste of traditional Polish cuisine: gołąbki—stuffed cabbage leaves—and kluski leniwe—potato dumplings.