Berlin weekend and short concert report
I finally have some time to write about my Berlin weekend. I was there the last Friday, Saturday and Sunday of August, and I'm so happy I got a ticket for Saturday, because the Friday show was cancelled due to bad weather! If I had had a ticket for Friday, I would have been devastated. But it was raining so much and apparently there was a lightning warning too, and being an open-air concert, the risk was just too high. Almut had a ticket for all three shows, and since she had nothing else to do on Friday, we decided to visit the DDR Museum together, which was very nice.
Oh, wait! Friday's highlight was actually spotting a lorry with Bela, Farin and Rod's faces printed on the side! XD I caught a glimpse of it while I was on the S-Bahn train from the airport into the city, so I don't know if it was a concert truck or an ad or something else entirely, but it was such a surreal moment. XD Another highlight was going to the Turkish market on the Maybachufer and getting a Gözleme. Man, I'd been craving one for ages!
The weather was better on Saturday, it only rained a little in the morning, which was a huge relief. Almut and I arrived at Tempelhof early and got wristbands for the front area, which was a very smart move, because that way we could go and eat something (I had a delicious halloumi vegetarian burger), then had a walk around Tempelhof and just relaxed for a while before actually getting inside. We even had dedicated toilets, instead of having to use the gross chemical toilets that were scattered around the area. Now, that's what I call VIP treatment. XD We ended up standing around the 5th row on Farin's side of the stage, which was surprisingly less crowded than Rod's side.
The concert itself was AMAZING. Oh, how I'd missed those three idiots. I also liked the opening acts, especially SDP, I had 2 of their songs stuck in my head for days afterwards. Of course I don't remember everything about the concert, but here are a few highlights:
- BELA WEARING A SKIRT!
- Monsterparty! The audience was demanding it, but Farin said they hadn't rehearsed it and couldn't remember the lyrics, so if we wanted it, we had to sing it. The audience sang the first verse and the chorus, but then we sort of got lost during the second verse, and Farin was all "A-HA! See why we don't play it?" XD
- Bela wearing a skirt!
- Rebell. I sang along so loudly I thought I would be completely voiceless the next day, but that didn't happen.
- Rod moving from his side of the stage to Farin's side and then back using an electric scooter. XD
- Did I mention Bela was WEARING A F***ING SKIRT?!
Just as the concert was ending, a light drizzle started, which got a little heavier by the time we got off the U-Bahn and were walking back to our hotel, but we didn't really care at that point.
On Sunday we had a walk around the Hauptbahnhof/Reichtag area before Almut had to go back to Tempelhof for that night's concert. I forced myself to speak German the whole time on Sunday (I always tend to speak English because it's easier); it was difficult, but not as bad as I feared. Then I picked up my luggage and went to meet my friend A. We spent a couple of hours together and I had a slice of walnut cake before I had to take the S-Bahn to go to the airport.
It was a great weekend and I managed not to cry, which was a huge accomplishment. But I must admit when I got the first glimpse of the Fernsehturm on Friday, I squealed a little. It was like I finally realised in that moment that yes, I really was back in Berlin, and yes, in little more than 24 hours I would be standing just a few meters away from DÄ again. And it was an amazing feeling.
Oh, wait! Friday's highlight was actually spotting a lorry with Bela, Farin and Rod's faces printed on the side! XD I caught a glimpse of it while I was on the S-Bahn train from the airport into the city, so I don't know if it was a concert truck or an ad or something else entirely, but it was such a surreal moment. XD Another highlight was going to the Turkish market on the Maybachufer and getting a Gözleme. Man, I'd been craving one for ages!
The weather was better on Saturday, it only rained a little in the morning, which was a huge relief. Almut and I arrived at Tempelhof early and got wristbands for the front area, which was a very smart move, because that way we could go and eat something (I had a delicious halloumi vegetarian burger), then had a walk around Tempelhof and just relaxed for a while before actually getting inside. We even had dedicated toilets, instead of having to use the gross chemical toilets that were scattered around the area. Now, that's what I call VIP treatment. XD We ended up standing around the 5th row on Farin's side of the stage, which was surprisingly less crowded than Rod's side.
The concert itself was AMAZING. Oh, how I'd missed those three idiots. I also liked the opening acts, especially SDP, I had 2 of their songs stuck in my head for days afterwards. Of course I don't remember everything about the concert, but here are a few highlights:
- BELA WEARING A SKIRT!
- Monsterparty! The audience was demanding it, but Farin said they hadn't rehearsed it and couldn't remember the lyrics, so if we wanted it, we had to sing it. The audience sang the first verse and the chorus, but then we sort of got lost during the second verse, and Farin was all "A-HA! See why we don't play it?" XD
- Bela wearing a skirt!
- Rebell. I sang along so loudly I thought I would be completely voiceless the next day, but that didn't happen.
- Rod moving from his side of the stage to Farin's side and then back using an electric scooter. XD
- Did I mention Bela was WEARING A F***ING SKIRT?!
Just as the concert was ending, a light drizzle started, which got a little heavier by the time we got off the U-Bahn and were walking back to our hotel, but we didn't really care at that point.
On Sunday we had a walk around the Hauptbahnhof/Reichtag area before Almut had to go back to Tempelhof for that night's concert. I forced myself to speak German the whole time on Sunday (I always tend to speak English because it's easier); it was difficult, but not as bad as I feared. Then I picked up my luggage and went to meet my friend A. We spent a couple of hours together and I had a slice of walnut cake before I had to take the S-Bahn to go to the airport.
It was a great weekend and I managed not to cry, which was a huge accomplishment. But I must admit when I got the first glimpse of the Fernsehturm on Friday, I squealed a little. It was like I finally realised in that moment that yes, I really was back in Berlin, and yes, in little more than 24 hours I would be standing just a few meters away from DÄ again. And it was an amazing feeling.