Journey to Berlin

I like to think of myself as super organised - and I am. But... sometimes I miss the forest for the trees. Let me explain.

Back in June I decided I'd meet up with a friend of mine in Berlin. She and I travelled through India for six weeks a few years back, and the experience bonded us for life: think lots of long, sweaty train trips, being spat on and groped by locals on a crammed bus, and a severe case of Delhi-Belly... We've seen each other at our worst, and best, but haven't seen each other in the flesh for almost two years. So we decided to meet up in Germany's biggest city, for some girly catch-ups, and some currywurst. All-in-all the weekend was fabulous, it was just getting there and back that tried my patience - although, I have no one but myself to blame.

Blond Moment No. 1: Booking an 0630 hrs flight out of Luton Airport

In an effort to save a few pounds (and it really was only three or four), I booked an easyJet flight to Berlin's Schoenefeld Airport at 6.30am for Saturday the 22nd September, not really thinking about the logistics of getting myself to Luton (about an hour out of London) in time for the 4.30am check-in. All last week I sought out damage control - given that the Underground doesn't open until after 5am - and came up with various options, from going to Luton at midnight the night before and sleeping at the airport, to paying through the roof for a cab, but I eventually booked myself on the 24-hour easyBus shuttle from Victoria station. My plan was to catch a 3.41am train from Clapham Junction to Victoria in time for my 4.10am shuttle, and to check-in online the day before... but then we have...

Blond moment No. 2: Missing my 3.41am train

It would be true enough to say that my organisational qualities stem from a slight case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). I am definitely a creature of habit, and one of my more stringent practices is my morning breakfast routine. It doesn't matter what time I have to get up, I can't go a morning without my hot water and lemon juice (with my multi-vitamin and omega-3 tablets), followed by my cup of green tea, then my shower, then my cereal (half All-Bran, half Bran Flakes), washed down with a refreshing cup of peppermint tea. That to me is brekky, and there ain't no way around it. So on Saturday morning I woke to my alarm at 2.40am and went through the motions... until I decided to look at my watch mid-cereal, only to realise that my train was due to arrive at the station in less than ten minutes and I was only halfway through my bowl, not to mention my as-yet-untouched mug of peppermint tea! I stared at my reflection in the night window and weighed up the real possibility of missing my flight all for my bowl of bran - it was a tougher choice than you'd think. I reluctantly spooned my uneaten cereal into the bin and drained my peppermint tea, then I took flight down the stairs of my apartment building and ran like a crazy woman to the station.

Moment of Clarity No. 1: Taking a mini-cab to Victoria

Now to some this wouldn't seem the clear option at all (given the horror stories of women in London and mini-cab drivers) but at 3.38am with the station's back entrance closed and the likelihood of me making it around to the high street entrance incredibly slim, I swallowed my pride and forked out the 12 quid for a trip to the shuttle check-point. Once on-board I promptly fell asleep. An hour later I was a Luton, and making my way through security...

Blond Moment No. 3: Not taking note of any German phrases

Having been swept up in the brilliance of travelling in Germany with a local (my girlfriend hailing from Frankfurt), I completely forgot to brush-up on my please-and-thank-yous (or should I say, bitte-und-dankes). This posed a bit of a problem given that I arrived in Berlin a good three hours before my GF and had to get myself from Schoenefeld to our apartment in Ostbahnhof, via the S-bahn (overground train) and a bus. I made it, with the help of an English DJ (now living in Berlin) - and even scored mine and my GF's name on the door at an apparently ultra-hip club called Picnic...

THE RETURN JOURNEY:

Blond Moment No. 4: GF and I not reading what time the check-out was

Spending our final morning in the city doing a spot of retail therapy, for GF, not me of course, given that as yet, my health fund doesn't cover such holistic treatments, we arrived back at the Loft to find a lovely little cleaner busy at work on our sheets and pillows. Luckily my OCD had meant that I had already packed, but the abrupt shoo-out of the building left us wandering the streets of Ostbahnhof luggage in tow.

Blond Moment No 5: Back in London missing the stop at Waterloo

Having caught the slowest train from Luton into London Bridge I was rather hoping for a quick transfer on the Overground and a connecting train straight to Clapham Junction. I was told, however, that my best bet was getting a train back to Waterloo and then making my way home from there - a trip that should have taken no more than 15 minutes... But a stickler for correct descriptions I took Waterloo as 'Waterloo' and therefore stayed put on the train as it passed Waterloo East, only to realise as my train took me once again across the Thames that my instructor had obviously meant his directions to encompass all-things Loo... What followed was a mistaken trip from Charing Cross on the Bakerloo line heading North (not my desired Southwards journey) and then two train delays at Piccadilly Circus. Having landed at Luton at 1701 hrs, I didn't touch base back home in Clapham until well after 8pm. Tired, hungry and with a belly-full of airport sweets, I entered my flat and proceeded to unpack. After all, you can't let a little thing like public transport get in the way of sorting out your dirty laundry. Or is that just me?

Note: In tomorrow's post I'll give you the run down of some cool little cafes to visit and the monuments that are must-sees