Checking out Berlin

Back to Easter!

I spent my Easter in Berlin with my boyfriend. That was our second trip abroad together, last spring we were in London.

We left on Easter Friday evening from Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, and my cousin came to pick us up from Berlin Tegel Airport. We went to my other cousins place and had some sparkling wine and then went out eating. My cousins hadn't met my boyfriend yet so it was also about getting to know each other. We had a dinner in a Mexican restaurant called Lonestar in Kreuzberg. I totally recommend that place, great food, amazing drinks and a nice atmosphere. In a reasonable price!

On Saturday we did some shopping and walking around in Ku'damm (Kurfürstendamm). We also ate our first Curry Wursts around the Memory Church (Gedächtniskirche). We weren't looking for anything special, just walking around, I just happened to find a couple of cute scarves. In the evening we met also my other cousin's girlfriend and as she doesn't speak Finnish at all, we were talking English all night. First we went to one bar in Sony Center, to hang out and eat something, and then we headed to Friedrichstrasse to a hip hop club called Tubestation. I was there already last summer and I definitely enjoyed the place. There's no such club in Finland. Luckily we had a driver in our gang and we got a ride "home".

We were obviously a bit tired on Sunday and we slept late in the morning. We decided to visit the longest remain of the Berlin Wall: East Side Gallery, that was let for artists to decorate. I had seen it already last summer when I spent five days alone in Berlin, but my boyfriend was very impressed. The weather was also super!

In the afternoon we headed to northern Berlin, Frohnau, where my aunt lives with his husband. We went to pick up some pastries and cakes on the way. As we arrived, we had some coffee with the sweet treats and catched up a bit with my aunt. Frohnau is verdant and peaceful neighborhood with beautiful houses, and its always a huge contrast to go there after spending time in the central city. Then we drove back and went to a Greek restaurant called Ach Niko Ach! :D I ordered a country salad and fried cheese (Horiatiki & Saganaki) and my cousin and boyfriend had portions of gyros. Everyone was happy with their choices.

We went early in bed and woke up refreshed in the next morning. The plan of the day was a Medieval Easter Festival in Spandau. The location was amazing: an old fortress (Zitadelle Spandau) with an inner court that was set according to the theme. The numerous stalls were offering medieval snacks and drinks, for example mead. A playful tournament was set by actors dressed as knights and live music was played. We climbed up to the citadel admiring the views and enjoying the beautiful weather. 

On Tuesday we planned to do shopping since the shops were closed during Easter. There is one Primark in Berlin, and my cousin thought that it wouldn't be that crowded on Tuesday morning but oh boy she was wrong. We made a tactic decision and I sent my boyfriend somewhere else in the vicinity of that shop. :D I spent one and half hours in Primark (of which 30 minutes in a queue of the fitting rooms, and another 30 minutes in the cashier line). I think I made some awesome bargains, for example a denim jacket for 13 euros. Next we headed to Alexanderplatz, we saw the TV tower of Berlin and went to a shopping mall Alexa. My boyfriend wasn't mood for shopping (he had done his shopping already on Saturday at Ku'damm) so he decided to go back to Alexanderplatz and have a few beers. I spent my money at Alexa, bought nice New Balance trainers, a backpack and some cosmetics from Kiko.

On that day I also got two job offers for summer, so it was definitely a day of happiness and joy! :D In the evening we went eating out with my both cousins, to an Italian restaurant right next to my cousins door. We said good bye to my other cousin, and made a short walking trip down the Bergmannstrasse and went to sleep.

On Wednesday morning I made my last cosmetics shopping in Dm, and it was about time to leave to the airport. First we thought we would go with public transport, but with three big bags it seemed impossible. So we took a cab and in 20 minutes we were in Tegel airport. The flight went great and soon we were back home :)

Nice to know I'm going back there on October... for a much longer time!

A geology field trip 2011: part 2/2

So, Berlin already experienced, more of that later on.

...And where was I? Ah, flight to Honolulu. We landed safely at Oahu island, Honolulu airport. We found our hotel and went out to the famous Waikiki beach to have some piña coladas. The weather was great and the drinks tasted delicious. Next day we went to some scenery view to hear some stories about the geology of Oahu. I guess we went out that night, to a cosy bar and we even did some line dancing. That was pretty fun.

                                

                                      Wondering what is this turquoise thing ahead us.

We were lucky to have two days off at Oahu. We had been travelling in a strict schedule (typical for excursions) so it was nice to have a little break. We rented a car with 5 other girls and decided to do a Oahu roadtrip. All of us wanted to try surfing so we drove to the west coast and asked for a surf lesson. The price was reasonable so we sat down to wait for the teacher. The teacher was late and covered in white paint (including face and hair :D), she had obviously been painting before showing up to the beach. We were first rehearsing at the sand, just getting on the surf board, standing in the right position etc. After a while we went to water, paddling away from the beach to reach bigger waves. Really the waves were tiny, since we all were beginners. I had some moments of success and joy, as I got up standing and surfed a moment towards the beach. And every time  I fell down, I saw cute sea turtles so it definitely wasn't bad at all. After surfing we continued driving around the island and saw amazing views along the trip. 

After a few days it was time for the next flight, from Honolulu to Hilo, Big Island. The Big Island is the youngest of the Hawaii Islands, and the biggest of all the islands as the name suggests. It still has volcanism going on it and it's the one with most variation in topography. Hawaii Islands are formed from a hot spot creating a volcano on top of it, and as the lithosphere plates are slowly moving, the islands seem to move over the hot spot and form a new volcano island. So, Big Island has still two active volcanoes: Kilauea and Mauna Loa.

We visited at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park by the Halemaumau Crater. The tours we made at the area were super interesting and the views were once again inspiring and educational. We stayed at a gorgeous villa with a large tub outside. We made day trips to interesting locations at the eastern part of the island and we also had a party at our villa one night. After a day at field we spent a moment in our tub, having our own Philosopher's club with sparkling win. That was pretty fun and unforgettable.

Walking towards the very top of Mauna Kea

We continued to the west coast after maybe 5 or 6 days in the neighborhood of Kapoho. We were sleeping in a bit frowzy apartment hotel at Kailua-Kona area. Next we went to the top of Mauna Kea. When measuring from the oceanic base, Mauna Kea is even higher than Mount Everest. But above sea level, it is "only" 4,207 meters high. We had a guided tour at the Subaru Observatory, although I barely remember anything of it since the elevation made me a bit lightheaded. It looked like you were in Mars of in the Moon or something. After the responsibilities (read: scheduled program) were fulfilled, we had a day off. We went to the Beach 69 (or something) that was recommended for us. I think I slept almost an hour in the sun after snorkeling around and checking the turtles and the fish. The journey home was about to begin, with one longer stop left.

Mauna Kea: Keck and Subaru

After returning to Hilo, we flew to Honolulu, and then again to Las Vegas. We had a full day ahead in that whacky city. We were staying at the Stratosphere Hotel that has a high needle and even a small amusement park on the top of the building. I had to try the rides on the top of the Stratosphere needle, and it was definitely worth it. Frightening but awesome! We went to eat out in the city, took some photos of Bellagio and other huge and glittering buildings, casinos and monuments.

At the front of Bellagio.

After a night at the hotel, it was time to continue the journey home. After a few flights more, we arrived to Helsinki.

A geology field trip 2011: part 1/2

11 days before flying to Berlin, I'm so excited! :)

Today I was planning to write about a field trip/excursion I made two and half years ago to Iceland, USA west-coast and Hawaii.  I'm studying geology and every now and then there is a huge excursion abroad. On September 2010 the travel plans were made, and it was time to make the decisions of the 22 students participating the trip. Over 60 geology students were willing to come along, and of course the older students had privileges. There were almost 10 second year students (including me) in the list, and we had to carry out a draw. You can guess the rest... I was the lucky one!

                                        The map of our route in a big scale

We were raising funds for the trip throughout the following year and got more and more enthusiastic as the time passed by. Finally, the August 2011 arrived. We were allowed to take only hand luggage with us, for almost five week trip, to very versatile climate conditions and circumstances. Difficult decisions definitely: what to take with you, and what to leave home.

On the first day everyone was enthusiastic, and we flew from Helsinki to Keflavik-airport in Iceland. We were sleeping on this chilly apartment of the local Salvation Army.

                                           Somewhere in the middle of Iceland

During the next few days we drove mainly around western Iceland, and we went to see the Strokkur-geysir, waterfall Gullfoss, and then to one geothermal spa spring somewhere in the middle of Iceland. The trip back from the spa was frightening though exciting. It was getting dark and foggy, and during the drive the headlights went off for a while. The road was really bumpy and bouncy... The trip back took approximately two more hours than planned. But after all we got safe in our beds about 2 am. Iceland was really chilly during our days there.

Next we flew to Las Vegas and stayed there a night at the Excalibur Hotel & Casino. After a night in a decent bed we drove to Hoover Dam. During the West Coast part we had a guide from USGS and also one of our own professors. Then we drove to the sweltering town called Laughlin. Me and some other students were feeling a bit sick after the chilly Iceland, and we went to see a doctor. The doctor's diagnosis was sinusitis for two of us, and stomach flu for one of us. We three plus our driver decided to have a "sick leave" for a couple of days, take our antibiotics and rest. We made a plan to drive to Bakersfield as the others continued to Death Valley and Yosemite National Park. In Bakersfield we stayed in two different hotels and ate the best ice cream in the world at Rosemary's Family Creamery. After about four days we drove from Bakersfield to San Francisco (long distances) and met the rest of the group there.

In San Francisco we had two days off, and we went to eat some sushi and Chinese food, did some shopping, made trip to Muir Woods National Monumental Park, and saw the foggy Golden Gate. The two days in Frisco were a bit rainy and foggy, but I still enjoyed our stay there. We were sleeping in 8-person dormitory rooms in a hostel. After Frisco, it was time to head to Los Angeles. We drove the trip in two parts, first to Paso Robles for one night. We arrived Los Angeles the next day about 6 pm and we had about 12 hours time in the city. So after shower and make up we headed to Sunset Boulevard, to eat and drink. The night was sooo fun.

                                             Melting and sweating somewhere

We were warned already that next morning would be painful. Nine hours drive from L.A. to Grand Canyon, Colorado. It was painful indeed. :D But we got to see the amazing sunset of Grand Canyon, it was definitely worth seeing. Next day we had a hike down the canyon, but after walking downhill just a few kilometers my knee started hurting a lot. My friends continued the hike downhill and I returned back up with this old voluntary ranger of the park. He was taking care of my knee, we were having breaks every now and then and he even had some snacks for me. He even called a ride for me, from the starting point of hike to our cottage. In the night we had a big gala/feast at the Grand Canyon restaurant as it was the last night with our professor and our guide. The next day we would drive to Las Vegas and fly to Honolulu... More of that soon!

Some more travel planning

Hello for a long time!

I've been so busy last weeks, I've barely had time to sleep lately. Well, lots has happened! I got chosen to Erasmus exchange program, and now it looks like in October I'll be in Berlin. For five months! I found this interesting master program called Environmental Earth Sciences from the Free University of Berlin. Now the only issue for me is to fit in to the courses, since our departments Erasmus-contract is only for bachelor studies. More from that later on.

Before I knew about this exchange, I suffered from severe travel fever. I just surfed around the internet and browsed through every travel company webpage and special offer page. I've wanted to go to Croatia for a long time, and now I found cheap flights and also a cheap apartment hotel. The only problem was that with whom would I go (back then I also had money, so that wasn't a problem if I got the trip for a reasonable price). My friends had fully booked schedule: working, school and no money, so I had an idea. My mom! We have never traveled abroad together, not even when I was little. I asked her to go to Split with me, and she immediately got enthusiastic about the trip, so we booked it. It's going to be in the middle of May, for a week. So first Berlin, in three weeks only (!!!) and then Croatia, Split! That will lower my travel fever definitely.

Now I'm also going to spare some money for next autumn so the travels will be a bit low budget travels. Luckily Berlin is a cheap city, and we don't have to pay for a hotel. I'm not sure about price level in Croatia, but it shouldn't be that bad. Now I need to go, I hopefully return in a few days.

Planning Berlin

Next Easter. Berlin. Me and my boyfriend.

Finally I convinced my boyfriend J to take a trip to Berlin with me! I think it's going to be my fifth time in the city. I have relatives  living there, so it's very easy just book the flights and show up. They always have room for couple of Finnish cool people, so I don't have to worry about the accommodation. How cool is that?

  Boatride at Spree 2011

As always, planning the trip starts by asking my cousins are they in town and is there room to sleep in their homes. After the answer "yes", booking the flights. I LOVE to compare different websites where to book flights. I compare different flights by price, by duration, by arrival/leaving time. Now the cheapest and quickest flights were found from Supersaver via Skyscanner. Just going straight to Supersaver the flights would have been 170 euros, but via a link from Skyscanner only 145 euros. Exactly the same flights!

By the way, J doesn't like to arrange anything concerning the journeys, so he appointed me "the journey captain". I'm more than glad of my nomination. ;) So I booked the flights, asked J to put his share of the flights later on to my bank account. You should have seen my face when I logged in my e-bank. There was a deposit of the total amount of our flight and a message: "Surpriseeeeee, well anticipated birthday present to my love <3". WOW! He knows how I love Berlin, and I didn't have a clue of this... And my birthday is not until March 25th. He made this girl probably the happiest on Earth!

     

 The Berlin Wall 2013

So... Now I can try to put aside some money to get a new camera for the trip. And also for shopping and eating out in Berlin. We have done some minor plans already: J wants to see the Berlin Zoo, Zoologischer Garten and the Aquarium. It's going to be my third time in the Zoo but I don't care, I like it soooo much. Also eating loads of Döner Kebab and Currywurst is a top priority. And maybe some sightseeing of course. 

Already counting days. Too many until April 19th.