Traveling to Germany

After missing a trip to Berlin with some of the other Fulbright Finland grantees due to summer school, I decided to go myself- largely motivated by also being able to visit my friend in Rostock. The timing worked out since this lined up with my last free week until winter break. Luckily there is a small airport in Lappeenranta so I didn’t have to travel to Helsinki before taking a flight. There are only about 5 different flights, but Berlin is one of them. This one departed on Monday and arrived back on Friday.

I’ll call my first day in Berlin the test trial. Upon leaving the airport, I spent the next couple hours trying to navigate the train system. More than once I got off the right train only to hop onto the wrong one. Finally I got to the central bus station, where I’d be catching a bus in a few hours. My plan was to rent a locker for my large backpack, but I misinterpreted the signs. One locker read 68€ and another 215€, so I thought the advertised price was 4€ per hour instead of per day. Since I wasn’t going to pay that exuberant amount, I lugged around my backpack instead. In reality the lockers were only 4€ per day and those numbers were either due to extra late charges or downright malfunctions.

Since I didn’t plan much before coming, I headed toward the few places I knew: The Reichstag and Brandenburg Gate. The size and complexity of both were profound. Next I set off wandering the area. Something I noticed is that you have to pay for most restrooms, usually between 0.50€ and 3€. Often I was able to avoid this by buying food at a cafe or restaurant. After walking around for a while, I still had an hour left before I needed to be at the bus station. Spontaneously, I decided to take one of the city bikes. I chose an Uber bike since it was nearby, and I already had the app downloaded. Before choosing it I didn’t know the bike was an electric hybrid. The bike seemed a little unstable at first and I felt uneasy not wearing a helmet, but it was actually a beautiful way to view the city. I took a leisurely ride back to the bus station, occasionally jumping off the bike to take a picture or view something more closely.

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Unfortunately, I didn’t know I had to return the bike to a specific area. It seems the central bus station would be there, but it wasn’t. Unwilling to risk the 25€ fee for parking improperly, I raced back to the perimeter, parked / locked the bike, and rushed across the street to catch a city bus back to the station. While approaching the bus driver to pay, I realized I had left my purse in the bike basket. Panicked, I dashed off the bus and fortunately found my purse right where I had left it. Once again I crossed the street and caught a conveniently timed bus to the station. Out of breath and sweaty, I arrived to the bus station only 10 minutes before the bus was due to depart. What a whirlwind. Even though it stresses me out to plan for trips like this, I learned that it would behoove me to invest in planning a bit to possibly avoid some even more stressful situations!

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Next I rode 3 hours to visit my friend in Rostock. Sophie and I met a year and a half ago at Community United Church of Christ– a just peace, progressive, LGBT open & affirming church on the University of Illinois campus (yes this is a plug- go check them out!). She happened to be pursuing her PhD there on Fulbright and we graduated at the same time. On graduation day 3 months ago, we had no idea that we’d be able to see each other again so soon! Sophie picked me up from the bus station, and we headed back to her place to chat about the past few months.

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While Sophie was at work, I spent the next two days exploring the city. Right away I noticed that fewer Germans know English than Finns- or maybe it’s because I talked to older Germans in some shops, not quite sure. Germany also seems more dependent on cash, whereas card usage in Finland is widespread (based on the few cities I’ve visited). I enjoyed seeing the city’s beautiful architecture, bustling squares, and old gates.

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Once Sophie returned from work both days, we were able to hang out. On the first night, some of her co-workers came over for a role playing game. And the second night Sophie showed me around the Warnemünde beach area, which included a lighthouse and a cute shops / restaurants. Hopefully we’ll cross paths again while I’m still abroad!

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Early Thursday morning I caught a bus back to Berlin. This time I had more of a plan. First I rented a locker for my backpack. One of my friends suggested the Sandeman free walking tour and Sophie recommended visiting the East Side Gallery. So that’s what I did. The tour provided a great historical overview and visit to central sites in Berlin. And it was just planned enough that I didn’t feel lost. I appreciated that the tour guide stressed the significance of talking about the city’s gruesome history to remind ourselves what can happen when we allow prejudice to take over policy (…sound familiar?). I particularly enjoyed the East Side Gallery, which is a 1.3 km stretch of the Berlin Wall that is covered with murals painted by artists from all over the world. The segments are political, beautiful, abstract, and inspiring. If you’re ever in Berlin, I recommend spending some time here!

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In the evening I headed to the apartment that I found on Booking.com. I chose this place because it was only a 20-minute walk to the airport. The next morning I left a few hours early to catch my 7:25am flight back to Lappeenranta. And it happened again. Before departing Lappeenranta on Monday, I experienced a random airport check. This happens all the time, right? Yes, but when you’re the only person of color in the entire (admittedly small) airport, it’s not so random. Anyway, I shook it off so I could enjoy my first trip to Germany. But the second time left its mark. One random airport check could be a coincidence, but definitely not two. I didn’t imagine that I would get checked again, and this time the airport security even touched my hair. What could I possibly be holding in my short afro?!? If you’re familiar with the importance of hair to black culture, you’ll know how demeaning this felt. As I sat on the floor drinking coffee, I contemplated this situation, holding back stinging tears in my eyes. Coming from the U.S., this happens all the time to other brown folks, especially when wearing headdresses like turbans or hijabs. While reflecting, I recognized my privilege that this happened to me for the first time. While I wouldn’t expect much from a low-budget airport that doesn’t even have seating at the gates, it still sucks to be at the receiving end of prejudice.

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Intense stares, random airport checks, and more. It is necessary to realize that not all people can travel equally. While I’m not deterred from traveling, I’m certainly more wary of the interactions I’ll have.