Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad BitesOkay, so this post is a little long-time coming, but things have been crazy hectic and I just had not had time to roundup my Berlin & Amsterdam trips yet! These trips are combined into one post, because they were all together in one week. They happened during my school’s Reading Week…you know, the one they give you to study. Oops. When in Europe, I’m taking all given time off to travel!

I had been to Amsterdam before, when I was about 12, with my mom, sister, and aunt, but Berlin (and Germany in general!) was an entirely new experience for me. And I loved them both.

Berlin is a city unlike any other I’ve ever been to. It has such an eclectic, interesting mix of grungy, graffiti-ridden walls, combined with gorgeous historical buildings. Of course, the history is also fascinating and is evident all of the city, with memorials everywhere, and the Berlin Wall. The nightlife was insanity as well – they start to party at 2 AM. It was overwhelming/exhausting, but when in Berlin. Thank goodness we were only there for 3 nights, because one can only rally so many days in a row! We also had quite a few interesting food experiences, not all of them particularly favorable. More on those below!

Amsterdam was also incredible, and just as precious and charming as I remembered it being. We had some REALLY good food in Amsterdam, and had a wonderful time exploring the city. Of course, we had to check out the Anne Frank House, which is a must see when in Amsterdam. I had been the first time I went, but I’m glad I went again. Seeing it through older eyes was a must different experience. The Red Light District (which I have no pictures of – they aren’t allowed) was another very fascinating experience, and led to a dinner/movie night with some friends to watch a documentary about twin prostitutes who had worked there for 50 years (Meet the Fokkens, if you’re interested)!

Amsterdam and Berlin were both incredibly unique and exciting cities, and I’m so glad I got to experience both of them. I highly recommend them if you get the opportunity – there truly isn’t any place like either of them. Now, for a plethora of food/scenery pics, just keep scrolling :) First up, Berlin!

IMG_9724This picture was taken from the top of Bundestag Building in Berlin, which houses the Parliament. The inside was really cool as well, and had gorgeous views of the city. When you got to the top, there was an opening in the ceiling where we laid and looked up at the sky! Pretty awesome, and free! Always nice when traveling on a budget :)

IMG_9719This was our first meal in Berlin and it was DELICIOUS. It’s a currywurst, which is essentially a sausage topped with a curry-flavored ketchup. Those are potatoes and onions on the side. It was from a little restaurant/cafe across from the Bundestag, and I have no idea what it’s called, but currywurst is everywhere in Berlin, and for good reason. Yum.

Mustafas Gemuse Kebab in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.com Doner Wrap at Mustafas Gemuse Kebab in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comDinner was at Mustafas Gemuse Kebap. This place got a lot of hype, and I mean A LOT. Enough that we waited in line for AN HOUR for our food, outside, in the freeeeezing cold. Such commitment, considering we couldn’t feel our toes or fingers by the time we got our food. We all ordered the doner kebab wrap. It was really good, and I would definitely get it a lot if it were convenient and in my city, but after the misery we felt from waiting, I’m not sure I would do it again. If you’re there in the summer though – definitely check it out if you want a good doner wrap. The sauces were amazing, and it had grilled veggies in it which added such a delicious touch.

La Vespa in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Pizza at La Vespa in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Coffee & Pizza at La Vespa in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Caprese Salad at La Vespa in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.comWe stumbled upon this little place, called La Vespa, and decided to stop in for lunch. It was a total locals joint, and the pizza slices were HUGE and absolutely delicious. One of my favorite pizza slices I’ve had in a while (and I eat a lot of pizza). The sauce and crust were amazing, which is essential for a good pizza (obvs). The caprese salad was also delicious, but pretty standard, as caprese usually is.

Television Tower in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.comThis is the Berlin Television Tower, and it is HUGE. So tall, and you can take an elevator to the top from incredible city views. We didn’t, because it was expensive and we were trying to be budget travelers, but this building came in handy everyday because it was right near our hostel. Because it was so tall, we could look up anywhere and follow it home.

Berlin Wall Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com

The following are all pictures from the Berlin Wall. It was so incredible to walk along it and see all of the art that was put up following the collapse of the wall. These are some of my favorite murals.

Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.com Berlin Wall Art in Berlin Germany | Bakerita.comGorgeous, aren’t they? The Berlin Wall is a must do in this city.

Ritter Sport Chocolate Store in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comLet’s talk about chocolate!!! A visit to the Ritter Sport chocolate store was a must do, especially considering they have a “make-your-own chocolate bar” center.

Ritter Sport Chocolate Store in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comThis is where we could create our own chocolate bars….so many choices!

Ritter Sport Chocolate Store in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comThis place was seriously chocolate heaven. They had soooo many flavors, and all the chocolate was so cheap! I filled up a bag with lots of minis so I could try all of the flavors. :)
Ritter Sport Chocolate Store in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comThis woman was packaging all of the custom chocolate bars. We were waiting impatiently for ours. Yum!

Ritter Sport Chocolate Store in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comWhy yes, that is chocolate coming out of a faucet. Ain’t nothing wrong with that, except that they wouldn’t let me drink out of it.

Olympia Chocolate at Ritter Sport Chocolate Store in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comThis chocolate bar was what dreams are made of. Apparently it was brought out for the Olympics one year as a special edition, but people demanded it be brought back because it was so good. Let me tell you, it is. It’s milk chocolate with yogurt, honeycomb, hazelnuts, and honey. It was AWESOME.

IMG_0569Now this meal was a weird one. Let’s start with beer – this was the most successful part of the meal. That’s because you can’t really mess up beer.

Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comThis was one of our appetizers. It sounded amazing – bread with fried onions and other good stuff. Reality: cold bread with a weird fatty substance, topped with too-hard, weird onion bits. Not good. Our other appetizer was too unappetizing to put a picture of. That was supposed to be a cheesy spread that was in reality and lumpy cheese mixture that was placed in scoops on a plate with pretzel sticks. Appetizer round: 0 points.

IMG_0574The pretzels were slightly redeeming, but in Germany, I expected amazing pretzels, and these were just decent. In comparison to everything else though – pretty darn good. In that pot was white sausages which we were supposed to suck out of the casing. Ummm…no thanks. They didn’t have much flavor, and eating them was quite an awkward experience. When our waiter was picking up our food, he told us he hated this meal because it was so weird to eat. Could you have told us that when we ordered three of them?!?!

IMG_0575 IMG_0576Dessert was apple strudel and apple fritter. Neither was bad, per se, but nothing to write home about either.

Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comOn the plus side, there was a pretty amusing German band in cool outfits. +1 point for that. Not the best final meal in Berlin…

Berlin Cathedral in Berlin, Germany | Bakerita.comFinally, this is the Berlin Cathedral. Absolutely gorgeous building, especially all lit up at night! Overall, Berlin was an incredible city, and I highly recommend visiting if you can! Now onto Amsterdam…

Falafel Pita in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad BitesOur first meal in Amsterdam was falafel pitas, from a little hole in the wall place near our hostel. I have no idea what the place was called, but it was delicious!! I’ve only recently discovered falafel, and I’m now really into it. Yum.

Strawberry & Nutella Crepe in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad BitesWe also got crepes, for obvious reasons. This one was Nutella and strawberry, and while delicious, they definitely could’ve used more Nutella. They were stingy.

Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad Bites Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad Bites Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad Bites Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad BitesWe spent the most of our first and second day exploring the city, wandering around the canals and just winding through the streets!

Strawberries & Whipped Cream Pancakes at Cafe de Klos in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad Bites Bacon & Cheese Pancake at Cafe de Klos in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad BitesWe were determined to get pancakes, so one morning for breakfast we went on a mission to find them! Izzy got strawberry and  whipped cream (yuuuum), but I decided to go savory with bacon and cheese. Hers is definitely prettier, but both were majorly delicious, depending on what you were in the mood for :)

Heineken Experience in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad Bites Heineken Experience in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad Bites Heineken Experience in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad BitesQuite a few people told us that the Heineken Experience was a must do! It was really cool to see how the beer was made, and the whole thing was really interactive (and you get beer!). Pro tip: no taking small sips of beer, you need to “chug like a man” (tip your head back far and get a big ole’ mouthful of beer + foam) for the full flavor experience.

Waffle with Nutella, Strawberry & Whipped Cream at Edit: I originally forgot the put in this waffle when I posted this, but I had to come back and add it. OMG. This place was really close to our hostel, and every time we would walk by it the smell would have us all gazing inside, so one day we gave in and all got waffles. I got mine topped with Nutella, strawberries, and whipped cream. It was heaven. It almost tasted like a sugar cookie in fluffy waffle form…oh so good.

Burger at Brasserie Luden in Amsterdam, Netherlands | Bakerita.com Abroad BitesOn our last full day, we woke up late and had a huge breakfast/lunch. I got this burger, and omg. The bun was what dreams of made of. I’m big on crunch, and this burger bun was deliciously crunchy. The burger itself was absolutely amazing, and everything is made better with cheese, fried onions, and bacon. It’s from an adorable restaurant called Brasserie Luden.

There it is, folks! Berlin and Amsterdam, all wrapped up into a super-picture heavy post. Hope everyone’s Monday’s weren’t too bad, and have a good week! Next up on Abroad Bites…Budapest!

Share This: