The past couple of weeks have been absolutely frantic – I’ve been to Leipzig and Frankfurt and I am on my way to Berlin as I am writing this.
All of a sudden, my whole life is turned upside down! I can finally reveal the true reason why I went to Germany: I was invited for my final interview at the General Consulate of the United States in Frankfurt in order to get my permanent residency for the U.S.!
This seemingly never-ending process has been going on for the past nine months and it is done now… at last. And I can finally talk about it – I’ve hinted about it here and there, and if you’re following me on Snapchat (mariposa2711) you’ve seen me go through the entire process, but I couldn’t talk about it publicly while I was still in the process of being screened and evaluated.
By Dani – Full Story at Globetrotter Girls
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This week has been all about spending time with my family and about getting in shape – because I got a pretty last-minute opportunity to run a half marathon in Israel later this month!
I’ve briefly mentioned my upcoming trip in my December Life Lately round-up, and I was already super excited for my return to Israel, but this race will make it even better. The marathon route goes along the Dead Sea – one of my favorite places in Israel – so I didn’t have to think long, even though I am admittedly not in the best shape I’ve ever been.
I didn’t run a single time during my week in Berlin, and couldn’t motivate myself to go for a run when I visited my brother for a couple of days afterwards, but now that I am back at my sister’s house I’ve taken her dog Odie on a daily 5k (even though he’d gladly do a daily 10k) and have run two 10ks.
My first Polaroid of 2017 is coming to you from Germany’s capital where I escaped to after spending the Holidays with my family. While I came to Berlin mainly to get some work done and catch up with friends, I managed to fit in quite a few fun activities – like visiting several of the city’s amazing Christmas markets, which I hadn’t done in over ten years.
I have to admit that it felt a bit awkward at first in light of the recent terror attack, but I decided to adapt the ‘We won’t let terrorists ruin this joyful time of year for us’ attitude that the Berliners showed, who kept flocking to the Christmas markets.
Other than Christmas markets, I went on a bar crawl in Kreuzberg and took a friend who passed through town to the observation deck of the Park Inn hotel for a panoramic view of Berlin, climbed the 285 steps of the spiral staircase to the top of the Victory Column and revisited the East Side Gallery, the longest still standing piece of the Berlin Wall which has been painted with murals by international artists. Note to self: Leave open air viewing platforms for summer visits to Berlin – the biting cold winter air up on top of both structures was brutal.
Last week, you were able to watch as cute locals explored that gay scene of London. The week before, it was Tel Aviv.
This week, we’re crashing Berlin, the biggest city in Germany, with this super informative video tour from in-the-know Berliners.
It explores iconic nightspots popular with those who call the city home, including Sharon Stonewall Bar, GMF and HAFEN.
I’ve talked about Berlin a lot on this site, providing you with some useful guides for the city (check out:
It feels like I’ve been all over the place this week: Berlin, then Dusseldorf, and now in Cologne, where I am spending the weekend. My three days in Cologne were definitely my favorite part of the week – my last two days in Berlin and also in Dusseldorf, it was mostly about work, but I tried to take some time off this weekend to find out if I still loved Cologne as much as I did fifteen years ago. Cologne and I have a special history: I visited the city for the first time with my girlfriends when I was 15 and was instantly mesmerized by the multi-cultural, vibrant city. What a difference from my sleepy hometown it was! I decided right there and then that I was going to move to Cologne one day, and a few more visits during my last couple of years in high school reaffirmed my love for the city, which is why I ended up enrolling in the University Of Cologne in 2000.
I had to leave unexpectedly after only two years, but always thought I’d come back one day – possibly to live there. But life had other plans for me and I never returned – until now, that is. As so many cities, Cologne has changed considerably since I lived here, and I had the best time this weekend rediscovering the place I called home all those years ago. With a good friend in tow and perfect summer weather, I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect time here – from food markets to bike rides along the Rhine River to a night out in Cologne’s thriving LGBT bar scene, I loved every second of it.
After our 
Hello from Berlin! Just like New York, Berlin now feels like home to me. I spent enough time in the city over the past few years to know my way around, to navigate the comprehensive transportation network (buses, trams, overground trains, underground trains) without getting lost, I have favorite coffee shops and even a co-working space here. And this time, I even found the way to my AirBnb apartment without a map after my Google Maps app stopped working. I’d almost say that after New York, Berlin feels like my second home now.
And just like last summer, I proudly showed off this awesome city to a visitor – my first of two visitors from NYC! And this one is joining me for the fourth time this year, which I am stoked about! We must have walked at least 20 miles all over Berlin this weekend, exploring my favorite neighborhoods, devouring traditional German breakfasts, strolling over weekend flea markets and taking in German history at the Berlin Wall.
And the best way to learn about Berlin’s complicated history? In combination with some street art! A walk along the East Side Gallery, Germany’s longest still standing piece of the Berlin wall, nearly a mile long (1.3km) was of course the highlight for two street art lovers, and traveling with a fellow photographer also meant playing with our cameras a little more than I’ve been doing on recent trips, and I was excited to pursue a little Polaroid project that I had been wanting to do for a while – you’re getting a little sneak peek here.
After a few short days with my family, I returned to Berlin on Thursday for six days – and to welcome two special visitors from New York!
I have to admit that I am slightly exhausted after sightseeing for days, but I love showing people around this giant urban sprawl that can be overwhelming and hard to grasp for first time visitors.
We wandered the tree-lined streets of Kreuzberg and Prenzlauer Berg, shopped at the Sunday flea market in Mauerpark and listened to people from all over the world belt out their favorite songs in front of 1,000 people at Bearpit Karaoke. We watched an epic sunset from Berlin’s coolest rooftop bar, Klunkerkranich (which even made it in the NYT, as a must-go spot in 36 hours in Berlin) and strolled along the canals.
I also managed to get us tickets to visit the Reichstag dome on Saturday, which I hadn’t done in three years – tickets are hard to get during the summer months, probably because they’re free. Sadly I couldn’t get them for my first visitors a couple of weeks ago, so the happier I was that I was able to show these two Berlin’s best 360 degrees views.