Fits on the Road: Exploring Berlin Germany: Part 3

By Jess in Minneapolis

Well, here I am, sharing memories from our final day of touring Berlin. (You can read parts 1 and 2 here and here) Part 3 is packed full of museums!

We were up early to get started, stopping quick for a frothy latte along the way, at a place called Die Deponie Nr. 3

Berlin has a cluster of museums close together on what is referred to as "Museum Island." There are more museums on there than the ones we visited, but we only had so much time! Fortunately, I believe we saw most of the highlights.

We started at the Pergamon Museum.

A large portion of Museum Island is currently under construction, so we were routed through an alternate entrance.

Once inside, you can't miss one of the world-renowned highlights, the Pergamon Altar. Built in the first half of the 2nd century BC, it was originally located on the acropolis of the ancient city of Pergamon.

"The structure is 35.64 metres wide and 33.4 metres deep; the front stairway alone is almost 20 metres wide. The base is decorated with a frieze in high relief showing the battle between the Giants and the Olympian gods known as the Gigantomachy. There is a second, smaller and less well-preserved high relief frieze on the inner court walls which surround the actual fire altar on the upper level of the structure at the top of the stairs. In a set of consecutive scenes, it depicts events from the life of Telephus, legendary founder of the city of Pergamon and son of the hero Heracles and Auge, one of Tegean king Aleus's daughters. 

In 1878, the German engineer Carl Humann began official excavations on the acropolis of Pergamon, an effort that lasted until 1886. The excavation was undertaken in order to rescue the altar friezes and expose the foundation of the edifice. Later, other ancient structures on the acropolis were brought to light. Upon negotiating with the Turkish government (a participant in the excavation), it was agreed that all frieze fragments found at the time would become the property of the Berlin museums." source

Next was the market gate of Miletus. This large marble monument is from the second century AD, destroyed in an earthquake in the 10th or 11th century, and then excavated and rebuilt in the early 1900s.

And the final "showstopper" (trust me, there was a LOT more to the museum, but these are three big ones) was the Ishtar Gate.  This was the eighth gate to the inner city of Babylon, constructed in 575 BC by order of King Nebuchanezzer II.

We spent about two hours in this museum, before moving along to the Neues Museum.

The "highlight" here was definitely the bust of Queen Nefertiti. There were no pictures allowed of her, but here is a picture from my good friend Google. She has a room all to herself at this museum. Special lady!

"The Nefertiti Bust is a 3,300-year-old painted limestone bust of Nefertiti, the Great Royal Wife of the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten, and one of the most copied works of ancient Egypt. Owing to the work, Nefertiti has become one of the most famous women of the ancient world, and an icon of feminine beauty. The work is believed to have been crafted in 1345 BC by the sculptor Thutmose.

A German archaeological team led by Ludwig Borchardt discovered the Nefertiti bust in 1912 in Thutmose's workshop in Amarna, Egypt. It has been kept at several locations in Germany since its discovery, including a salt mine in Merkers-Kieselbach, the Dahlem museum (then in West Berlin), the Egyptian Museum in Charlottenburg and the Altes Museum. It is currently on display at the restored and recently re-opened Neues Museum in Berlin, where it was displayed before World War II." source

There was tons to see in the Neues Museum, including the Berlin Gold Hat, which is a late Bronze Age artifact made of thin gold leaf. It once served as the external covering on a long conical brimmed headdress.

And on to the next museum...the German History Museum, or "Deutsches Historiches Museum". 

This is a museum for "enlightenment and understanding of the shared history of Germany and Europe." 

This museum was huge, as it traced the entire history of Germany. It had a little bit of everything! Of course, there was a grand exhibit on the Nazi regime, and then the Berlin Wall. But we actually found the older history pretty interesting as well. 

I mean, where else can you find shields this big?

And what's a lesson in German history without my pal Martin Luther and his 95 thesis? 

We Minnesotans are usually fans of this guy.

I also found this mask fascinating. This was for protection from the plague!

Whew. So you'd think after all that museum time, we'd need a break?

Nope. Just ONE more museum to squeeze into the day. This one was small, but actually really fascinating. Throughout our stay in Berlin, we both became very curious about Communist life in East Berlin, and this DDR Museum shed some light on the topic for us.

Life in East Berlin was definitely unique...Just take a look at this little tidbit of information about the collective potty breaks at the daycares. No one stops until everyone is done!

There was tons of information about life in communist East Berlin, the black market between East and West Berlin, and even a Trabant, the popular car produced in East Berlin. 

We also saw the Berlin Cathedral, or the "Berliner Dom."

With that, you have a pretty good idea of our third day exploring. I definitely feel like we got a really good feel for the city. Of course, the pictures I have posted are mostly the tourist attractions. Yet in between all that, we were able to really explore some neighborhoods, stopping at many different places for a bite to eat or to check out an interesting store.

I fell in love with Berlin's "Ampelmannchen" or "little traffic guy" as well. He's the little symbol on their traffic lights. He has become a bit of a cult symbol now too, with stores dedicated to Ampelmannchen wares!

See now? Running isn't just about exercise. Thanks to running, we had this opportunity to explore Berlin, and learn about life (and history) of this funky city.

Fits on the Road: Exploring Berlin, Germany Part 1

By Jess in Minneapolis

The primary reason we were in Berlin last week was of course the Berlin Marathon. But post-race, we had a solid three days to explore this interesting city.

Monday morning, we were up early to walk over to the Reichstag building. If you recall, this building was close to the staging area before the marathon, so we had already taken a few pictures in front of it on race day.

Pre-marathon

Even though we had seen the outside of the building, we wanted the full tour. In order to do so, we had to pre-register to obtain clearance to visit. We had read that it could take over a week for an appointment, yet we heard back within twenty minutes that we were cleared. This could have been because we weren't trying to visit on the weekend; I'm sure the weekends are much busier. You can register online, but you will need your passport to register, and to obtain entry.

"The large glass dome at the very top of the Reichstag has a 360-degree view of the surrounding Berlin cityscape. The main hall of the parliament below can also be seen from inside the dome, and natural light from above radiates down to the parliament floor. A large sun shield tracks the movement of the sun electronically and blocks direct sunlight which would not only cause large solar gain, but dazzle those below." source

We both thought that tour was very well done. We had English audio guides that were activated by a GPS system, meaning it would begin discussing whatever item of interest you were facing, etc. The glass dome was really cool, and the 360 degree views were amazing.

After the Reichstag tour, we went on our way to explore more of the city. We saw a lot just by walking around and occasionally popping onto the U-bahn, which was pretty easy to understand. Eventually, we made our way to Checkpoint Charlie. Checkpoint Charlie, or Checkpoint "C" was the name given to the Berlin wall crossing point between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War. This crossing became synomous with the Cold War, as Allied troops faced off with Soviet troops here during the Berlin Crisis of 1961. 

Checkpoint Charlie is now a tourist attraction, with actors dressing up as soldiers for pictures. Honestly, there were definitely a lot more interesting things to see in Berlin, so if you're pressed for time, I don't think Checkpoint Charlie is a must-see.

We then explored the Topographie des Terrors, a museum alongside a remaining part of the Berlin Wall.  This site was remarkable because of the Berlin Wall, but it was also the headquarters of the Secret State Police, the SS, and the Reich Security Main office.

"As the "site of the perpetrators," the Topography of Terror" fulfills a special role among the many remembrance sites, monuments, and museums in Berlin today that commemorate the era of National Socialism. Located in the center of the capital, it provides information at an authentic site about the headquarters of the National Socialist SS and police state and reveals the European dimensions of the Nazi reign of terror." source

After exploring this museum, we were ready for lunch. Berlin is well-known for their street food called "Currywurst, " which is basically a sausage served with ketchup and curry powder. Dustin was eager to try one, so we found a reputable food stand under the U-bahn.

Then we took a quick beer break (this IS Germany!). Berliners are big on the Pilsner beers, and apparently, they also like to mix it with Sprite or Fanta. We figured we should try to do what the locals do, so we each ordered our Pilsner radler or with Sprite. Not too bad!

After a break, we were back to exploring. One of the highlights was the East Side Gallery, a 1.3 kilometer section of the Berlin Wall that remains. There, 105 artists painted murals on the east side of the wall in 1990. A lot of the murals have been destroyed by graffiti, but there is work being done to restore them. A full list of the artists can be found HERE, but here are a handful of pictures that we took.

We had a full first day of exploring, and ended the night with an awesome meal at Caffe Bocconi, per a recommendation from our Santa Barbara friends. By the time we returned to our hotel around 10 pm, our feet were sore, but we were pleased with all the ground we had covered, and all the sights we had seen. 

Stay tuned for day two of Fits on the Road in Berlin!

Fits Do Race Reviews: The Berlin Marathon 2013

By Jess in Minneapolis

I’m back from Germany, recovering from the jet lag, and ready to share my Berlin Marathon experience with you all!

When I was preparing for this race, I did a lot of googling for "Berlin Marathon tips" or "Berlin Marathon reviews." I ended up reading a lot of other bloggers recaps from previous year's races. And I ate those recaps up! Seriously, I found them very valuable in my preparation, and I appreciated that they were out there for me to peruse.  So I want to keep the cycle of information going. I want to provide other future Berlin Marathoners with any and all information that could possibly help them (maybe you?) prepare!

With that said, this is a long post. It's very factual with a lot of detail, and it's probably the most useful if you are actually considering checking the Berlin Marathon (one of the World Majors) off your marathon-to-do list.

I also recognize that there is some negative feedback in my recap, but I want you to know that I still really enjoyed my overall Berlin marathon experience. However, I have to be honest in my review about the things that I would say about any other marathon.

Traveling for an International Marathon/Dealing with Jet Lag:

We left Minneapolis on Thursday night around 9 pm. I did the best that I could to sleep as much as I possibly could on the eight hour flight to Amsterdam. I tuned out the world with my Bose headphones and used a cozy sweatshirt as a pillow. We weren't able to upgrade to first-class with frequent flier miles as we had hoped, but we did pay up for economy-plus seats, which gave us that valuable extra leg space. If you can afford it, I definitely suggest first-class on the way to your international marathon.  

I also suggest Bose noise-cancelling headphones. My Bose headphones are my travel must-have. (I think this is the pair I have HERE). They'll set you back about $300, but they are totally worth it. I am seriously able to shut out all the crying babies, the coughing people spreading their germs in that stagnant air, the annoying guy who can't stop talking...I love, love, love my Bose noise-cancelling headphones! These headphones are the key to sleeping for me on a flight.

On the Minneapolis to Amsterdam flight, I drank a glass of wine, and settled in for the "night". Note that it was just one glass of wine, as I suggest you avoid too much alcohol and try to stay hydrated. Flying can be dehydrating already, so no need to exacerbate it with drinking. You'll have plenty of time to drink after the marathon.  I actually slept quite a bit on the Minneapolis to Amsterdam leg, which probably helped a lot. Then, the Amsterdam to Berlin leg was quite short, and we arrived in Berlin around 5 pm Friday local time. We were able to stay awake for dinner when we arrived, before crashing around 9:30 pm. We both slept really well the first night in Berlin. In fact, we slept until about 9 am the next morning- that's nearly ten hours of rest! I thought that seemed pretty solid for two nights before the race, right? 

However, for whatever reason, the second night - i.e. the night before the marathon- was terrible for both of us, and I don’t think it was nerves. We went to bed on Saturday again around 10 pm, but we were both awake until nearly 3 am….just lying there stressing about how we couldn’t get to sleep! Insomnia has never been an issue for me, even the night before a marathon, so it had to have been the jet lag. Fortunately, Berlin had a 8:45 am start, and our alarm wasn’t set to go off until 6 am, so we did manage 3-4 hours of sleep this night, but it was definitely the worst night in terms of jet lag messing with our bodies. I'm no expert on this, but I would suggest perhaps giving yourself one extra day on the front side of your international marathon trip in order to adjust a bit more to the time difference.

Accommodations:

We stayed at an amazing boutique hotel called the Mandala Hotel in Potzdamer Platz. 

Potzdamer Platz is a modern little square that is extremely convenient for the marathon. It wasn’t the most charming area, nor was it centrally located for other tourist attractions. Yet in terms of the marathon, it couldn’t have been better. The Berlin marathon course is a large loop, starting and finishing around the Tiergarten (i.e. the Central Park of Berlin) and the Brandenburg Gate, and Potzdamer Platz (and the Mandala Hotel) is very close to the start line.

Though the Berlin public transportation is really easy, we were still happy to not have to even bother with it for the marathon. We were able to walk the 1/2 mile from our hotel to the start line very easily, and then back home again after the finish. I would highly recommend the Mandala Hotel if you are running the Berlin marathon. The rooms were extremely spacious, especially by European standards. We also took advantage of the ONO Spa within the hotel, both getting lovely massages after the race.

Our room had a separate little living room area, a large bathroom, a TV that flipped between facing the living room and the bedroom, a little kitchen area, and even a huge separate closet room for our luggage. It wasn't cheap, but for a marathon trip, you end up spending a little more time in your room in the days leading up to the race, so you might as well spend up and make it a nice room.

Carbo-Loading:

There was a very popular Italian chain right by the Hotel Mandala called Vapiano. It was a little like the Noodles & Co. chain, Berlin style. It was counter service, but each customer would have to stay in their spot in line until the dish was cooked, which turned out to be extremely confusing for the customers as well as extremely inefficient. We had planned to eat here the night before the race, but the line seriously must have been over two hours long! It was insanely packed. We ended up grabbing lunch at Vapiano later in the trip, and it was tasty. However, I can’t really recommend this place for a pre-marathon meal, unless somehow you beat the crowds, and go really early in the day. The food was good, but its location close to the marathon start/finish meant it was just too busy in that area. We tried to eat there the night before the marathon, waiting for about 45 minutes before calling it quits, and heading to Weilands Wellfood instead. 

Weilands Wellfood

Weilands Wellfood was also conveniently located by our hotel, serving up healthy whole-wheat pasta dishes, but without the long lines and crazy crowds. The pasta dishes were light but filling- just what we needed. 

The Expo:

The expo was pretty cool. It was held at an old (Nazi-built) airport, the Flughafen Tempelhof. 

This now-closed airport made for an interesting setting for an expo. It was partially outdoors, partially indoors, and BIG. 

The expo was easy enough for us to get to on the U-bahn. FYI, Berlin has an S-Bahn and a U-Bahn. The S-bahn is primarly above ground, and the U-bahn is primarily underground, although those aren’t the only differences. The S-bahn doesn’t run quite as frequently (at least in our experience) and services more of the outer limits of the city vs. the U-bahn. The two systems are managed by different companies, though we were able to buy one "Berlin Welcome Card" which was good for both trains. (Definitely buy this card if you are in town for the marathon! So easy, and it only cost about 35 Euro.) We took the U-bahn most of the time within the city, and the S-bahn to get to the suburb of Oranienburg to tour Sachsenhausen, the concentration camp (more on that later, in a Fits on the Road post).

A huge downside of the expo was the size. I had to wait in line for over an hour to just use the bathrooms. The day before a marathon, everyone is drinking a ton of water; therefore everyone needs the bathrooms, and there just weren't enough I guess. 

There was also a huge line just to get into a little area where you picked up your packet. We had to wait in this line for over an hour, and it was not an organized line, but rather, a very pushy crowd of people, all speaking different languages, and all confused about the organization of the so-called "line."

Line to get into packet pickup

Unfortunately, big crowds and a bit of rudeness was a somewhat  common theme with this marathon. I was really surprised about the poor race etiquette, as well as the pushiness of people overall. Particularly at the water stops during the race, but also at the expo, people were just so, so pushy! There was cutting in line, elbow jabbing, and just plain meanness....Am I just too used to the small, charming marathons, where everyone is so friendly?

Even with all my complaints, there were still definitely some good parts to the expo...like the outdoor area with this hot air balloon!

Who doesn't love a little street performance/living statues, courtesy of Brooks?

...and this is Germany so there was a beer house at the expo (though we passed on beers the day before the race)

There was some unique gear for sale at the expo as well. Dustin and I both purchased some of these custom Berlin Marathon race bib "snaps." These little items replaced safety pins for our bibs, and they worked really well without poking holes in our running tops.

All in, the whole expo process- getting there on the U-bahn, waiting in the lines, and finally getting back to our hotel- probably took us nearly six hours. That's six hours on our feet, which probably wasn't ideal for the day before the race....#excuses?

My tip? Be prepared for a long day at the expo. If you happen to arrive in Berlin on Friday, try to go on that day, as the crowds might not have been quite as bad.

Now on to the race....

Race Morning:

As I mentioned earlier, the Mandala Hotel was perfectly located for the marathon. We were able to walk over to the Tiergarten around 7:30 am. There was tight security at the race start. We all had received bracelets at the expo that would allow us into the staging area, and we also could only use the Berlin bags for gear check. 

Waiting for the start near the Reichstag building (the Berlin equivalent of the White House) was pretty cool!

It was a little challenging to find the right place for my gear check. Apparently this race was 80% men, which is very different than marathons in the US. Therefore, the female gear check was small and tucked away in a corner of the staging area. It took us quite a while to find it, so by the time we were done dropping off my bag, we only had time for a quick stop in the porta-potty line, and then off to our respective corrals. 

Dustin was in Zone A, and I was in Zone B (3:45-4:15 predicted finish time). Each zone was made up of multiple corrals. Dustin was in corral D, and I was in G. We had to split up on our way to the start, as I was routed through the Tiergarten to my corral. There, in the middle of essentially the equivalent of Central Park, I came upon nearly 30 people peeing in the "woods"....No one seemed to care. No one seemed modest or cared to cover themselves at all. That theme carried over to the finish area as well, where all the European women comfortably changed right in front of Dustin, cooling off completely topless! There were also the men who had no problem stripping down to "shower" in a little sink-with-a-hose area post-race. I guess we Americans are prudes!?!

So....there I was in Zone 2, awaiting the start, and I was privvy to what the Berliners called the "Energy Dance!" Yup. The Energy Dance (well, that the English translation- I think it was basically a warmup) was a ten minute dance-off! It consisted of 8-10 perky blond German girls leading the runners in some jumping jacks, high knees, lunges, etc. to warm up to Avicii, Robin Thicke, and all the good ol' US of A pop hits.  

It's time for the ENERGY DANCE! It was really entertaining, though I didn't participate. I figured I should save my energy for the 42 kilometers ahead of me.

The announcer for the start line actually introduced all of the elite runners, giving a short bio for each, in both German and English. It was cool to hear about all the really amazing runners who were present this day. I got chills hearing about their accomplishments.

THE MARATHON

Zone 1 started right at 8:45. Five minutes later, Zone 2- me!- was on the go. I started nice and slow, and tried to take it all in. If you want the full details of my splits, they are posted below. I felt that I started conservatively. By the time I got to the 22k mark (i.e. about half way) I felt awesome and ready to kick it in. 

Unfortunately, even though I was feeling great, and thought I had a PR in the bank (#nailedit), it turns out those crowds just weren't on my side. I'm not sure what happened. I suppose it really was so packed throughout the whole race. Every support stop turned into a complete traffic jam. I ended up coming to a complete stop every time, which effectively cost me 10-15 seconds at every other mile where the support stops were. I know this sounds like a silly excuse, but I really do blame the crowds. I felt that I ran a smart race, but unfortunately, it was not a PR day for this middle-of-the-pack runner.

Support Stops:

The support stops were strange too. At first, I panicked a little because there was no Gatorade or Powerade! There was just water, apples, and get this- HOT TEA! Yup. I thought it must actually be Gatorade, so I grabbed a cup, right as a Danish man knocked it on my chest. Ouch! Hot tea on the boobs!

Fortunately after about 10k, the support stops started to carry some sort of Powerade (Power Bar brand)- Cytomax, maybe? Thank god! I have never run a marathon on just water, and I needed those electrolytes.

Crowd Support:

This race had a ton of crowd support. There were spectactors all along the course. There were a lot of bands and music. It was such a cool way to see a lot of the neighborhoods in Berlin, with all different kinds of people from each neighborhood. 

One con of the spectators though was the SMOKING. In fact, this was one of the STINKIEST marathons I have ever done. Between the B.O. of other runners (sorry, I know that sounds awful, but it's true), the sewage/city smell that goes along with any big city, and then all the smoking of the spectators, I was definitely not breathing the fresh air like you would at the Twin Cities Marathon.

Though there was great crowd support, the cheering wasn't quite the same as an American marathon because most of the spectators did not cheer as much for anyone other than those runners who were clearly from their home country. i.e. the Danish spectators cheered loudly for other Danish runners, but not for me. (Actually, there were 10,000 Danish runners! I have to admit, I wished I was from Denmark during this marathon, their support was so strong!) 

I did have my name on my top, so occasionally I would get a "Go Yessie!"  I suppose it was because everyone was speaking different languages, but it wasn't the same as a big marathon in the US. But, the music and bands made up for the lack of actual cheering. There really were a ton of bands and drums and music. I loved it!

My Garmin ended up with almost 27 miles. I am sure that the course wasn't long, but I guarantee I was swerving around other runners, and trying to avoid a traffic jam. Several of our friends, who are sub-3 hour marathoners, also ended up with over 26.5 miles, so I think this was an issue for all runners except perhaps the elite.

THE FINISH

The finish under the Branderburg Gate (picture of the gate below, though not at the race) was pretty cool. 

However, the finish line was just as crowded as the rest of the race. It also took me forever to figure out where to drop off my chip from my shoe (which was not at the finish line, but quite a bit away).  Dustin and I had planned a particular meeting spot by the female gear check (perhaps he knew that those European ladies would be topless? Suspicious  Dustin!) so I did find him pretty easily after dropping off my timing chip. 

Oddly enough, they were serving "alkoholfrei" beer at the finish, which was a little strange. Dustin had two large ones! I grabbed one, but it just wasn't for me at that time. 

Usually, immediately after the marathon, I feel super nauseous and beat up, and all I want to do is take a shower and lie down. However, I do get my appetite back a lot quicker than Dustin. He can't eat until much much later in the day. We made the walk back to our hotel around 2 pm, and after showers, we ordered room service and lounged around in our fancy Mandala Hotel robes for the rest of the afternoon, until joining some friends for dinner. These friends were actually friends of Abby's husband Andrew. They were all from Santa Barbara, California, and were very friendly. I love how runners are so welcoming to other runners! By the time dinner was over, we had been invited to come join their run club, and we had received an open invitation to stay with one of the couples if we ever visit Santa Barbara!

Did I mention that there was an inline skating marathon the day before the running marathon? Apparently, inline skating is a much bigger deal in Berlin, as this race seemed ultra competitive.

It might seem that I had a lot of complaints about this marathon, and I suppose I did. I think it's only because I'm not sure the really big marathons like this are for me. I think I prefer a mid-size race like the Twin Cities Marathon (10,000 participants) or Steamtown in Scranton, PA (7,000 participants). I am still really glad that I did this race. It was a very unique and memorable experience. It was really cool to be on the same course that the world record was set. I also just love to travel, and we had a lot of fun exploring Berlin. In that respect, it was fun to have this marathon as the reason to travel abroad. I'll give this marathon an 8/10. 

Summary of Pros and Cons:

Pros:

Very exciting to be running a WORLD MAJOR!!!

Very flat course

A chance to see 26.2 miles of Berlin, a city I had never visited

Lots of spectators

Kilometers pass by a lot faster than miles!

Lots of bands and music along the course

Very cool finish under the Brandenburg Gate

Easy to get to the start and home after the finish

Cons:

Not as "fast" of a course for middle-of-the-pack runners (like me, a four hour marathoner)

Super crowded course the whole way

Lots of smokers on the sidelines

No funny signs- at least not in English!

Did I mention crowded?

Crazy traffic jams at the water stops. 

Hot tea at support stops

My Performance:

Mile 1: 9:11

Mile 2: 8:59

Mile 3: 9:00

Mile 4: 9:05

Mile 5: 8:49

Mile 6: 9:17

Mile 7: 9:06

Mile 8: 9:11

Mile 9: 8:54

Mile 10: 9:18

Mile 11: 9:10

Mile 12: 9:09

Mile 13: 8:43

Mile 14: 8:39

Mile 15: 8:37

Mile 16: 9:35

Mile 17: 8:38

Mile 18: 9:23

Mile 19: 9:06

Mile 20: 8:50

Mile 21: 8:37

Mile 22: 8:34

Mile 23: 9:03

Mile 24: 9:11

Mile 25: 8:45

Mile 26: 8:42

As you can see, I never blew up, or had any terribly slow miles. There was no walking. I suppose it was a consistent marathon, but I really thought I had that PR in the bank. Unfortunately, my time didn't agree. 

Now it's time to figure out what's next! I had thought Berlin would be it for a little while, but I'm ready to pick out a spring marathon in the April/May/June time frame. Any suggestions?