Exploring Berlin: Bikes, History, Chocolate, and Grit

Welcome back to Track Us Down! If you’re new here, we’re Doug and Monique—early retirees who moved abroad and are now exploring the world while living a better second half of life. Travel is a big part of that journey, and this time, we found ourselves in Berlin, Germany.

We had heard mixed reviews before arriving—some people love Berlin for its history and culture, while others say it’s not their favorite. After spending a little over a week here, we can honestly say: Berlin is a city of layers. It’s gritty, raw, full of history, but also vibrant and endlessly fascinating. Here’s what we discovered.

Staying in Berlin: Our Airbnb Experience

For our stay, we booked a furnished studio apartment through Airbnb—not someone’s private home, but a serviced apartment with cleaning included and a small laundry station downstairs. At around €130 per night, it was a great find.

The apartment was compact but thoughtfully designed, with a little seating area and kitchen. The location wasn’t right in the center, more on the outskirts, but it worked well as a base for our adventures.

Biking Through History

One of the best things you can do in Berlin is rent a bike. The city is built for it—wide boulevards, dedicated bike lanes everywhere, and more cyclists than cars in some areas. We even witnessed one bike collision, just from how busy the lanes were!

We joined a Berlin bike tour, and it was the perfect introduction. In just a few hours, we covered:

• The Berlin Wall

• Checkpoint Charlie

• The Brandenburg Gate

• Berlin’s cathedrals and neoclassical architecture

• Museum Island

• The Holocaust Memorial

Seeing these iconic places by bike gave us both the distance and perspective we wouldn’t have gotten on foot. It also brought back memories of the late ’80s when the Wall fell—moments we remember watching on the news, now standing before them in real life.

🚲 Tip: Use the Call a Bike app to rent bikes. It connects to your debit or credit card, costs about €9 max per day, and is incredibly easy to use. Bikes can be paused and locked directly from the app, and virtual stations are everywhere.

One interesting cultural note: in North America, helmets are the norm, but in Berlin, about 95% of cyclists don’t wear them. Instead, people bike in business clothes, dressed up with their hair styled, on their way to work.

Berlin’s Scars—Emotional and Physical

What struck us most about Berlin is how openly it acknowledges its history. The Holocaust memorials and small gold plaques (Stolpersteine) outside homes—marking where Jewish families were taken—are deeply moving.

Physically, too, the past is visible. Bullet holes and war scars remain etched into stone buildings across the city, giving you a visceral reminder of what Berlin endured. It makes the city feel layered, alive, and honest about its past.

Sweet Moments: Germany’s Famous Chocolate

After such a heavy day of history, we lightened things up with a trip to the Rausch Chocolate Store—which claims to be the largest chocolate shop in the world. Inside, you’ll find incredible chocolate replicas of Berlin’s landmarks, plus (of course) plenty of chocolate to sample and take home.

Palaces, Parks, and the TV Tower

Another highlight was cycling to Charlottenburg Palace, Berlin’s largest royal palace. With its grand gardens, Versailles-style architecture, and gilded rooms, it was a treat to explore. Each room flows into the next—a deliberate design to impress visitors with a sense of endless space.

Later, we biked to the Berlin TV Tower (Fernsehturm), a Cold War–era icon of the city. At €25 per person, it felt a little overpriced compared to other towers we’ve visited around the world (Empire State Building, CN Tower, Petronas Towers, etc.). Still, the view from the top gave us that “check it off the list” feeling.

Museum Island: A Cultural Treasure

Berlin is home to Museum Island, a UNESCO World Heritage site with five world-class museums. The famous Pergamon Museum is closed for renovations until 2027, so we visited the Neues Museum instead.

Inside, we explored prehistoric, Roman, and Egyptian collections—including the star attraction, the bust of Nefertiti. She sits alone under glass, impossibly well-preserved. We also loved the astrological artifacts dating back to 3000 BC.

Allow at least 4 hours here. The museum itself is stunning—grand staircases, massive halls, and even more history visible through the windows as you look out across Berlin.

Kayaking, Wall Art, and Monkey Bars

For something different, we booked a 3-hour kayak tour (€58 for two people). While it was fun to be out on the water, in hindsight, we’d recommend opting for a river cruise along the Spree instead. That way, you’ll see more of Berlin’s highlights from the water.

No trip to Berlin is complete without the East Side Gallery, the longest surviving stretch of the Berlin Wall. It’s been transformed into an outdoor gallery, covered in vibrant murals from artists around the world. Across the street, we spotted Uber Platz, Berlin’s massive performance venue.

We also popped into the Monkey Bar, a rooftop bar overlooking the Berlin Zoo. Drinks with a view—and if you’re lucky, you might spot some real monkeys (we didn’t; the only ones were us!).

The Gritty Side of Berlin

Berlin isn’t all polished beauty. Venture beyond the main tourist areas, and you’ll notice trash, discarded furniture, and graffiti scattered around. The city embraces its punk-rock, alternative identity—from spiky-haired punks to techno clubs and underground nightlife. It feels a bit like stepping back into a 1980s music video.

As one sign in our hotel put it: “Berlin is poor but sexy.” That seems to capture the city perfectly.

Final Thoughts: Do We Like Berlin?

So—do we like Berlin?

Yes. Berlin is a big city with grit, scars, and layers upon layers of history. It’s not the prettiest city in Europe, but it’s one of the most fascinating. From biking past world-changing landmarks, to eating chocolate shaped like cathedrals, to standing in front of bullet holes that survived the war—Berlin doesn’t let you forget where it’s been.

For us, it was absolutely worth the trip.

Thanks for spending some time with us today, and as always—Track Us Down on our next adventure!