Day 5 – Berlin
By Mikinzie Moydell 

Our day, like any other, started at 7:00 a.m. as we woke to grab some breakfast. The usual cereal, roll with nutella, and fruit was served. All of us were very excited because after breakfast we would be leaving to finally go shopping at the center of Berlin. So after breakfast we loaded back onto the bus and we were on our way.

It took about an hour and a half to finally reach our destination, but the drive was worth it. When we reached the center of Berlin we were amazed at how many stores were available to choose from. Finding a place to park took a little while so we had time to figure out who was going to be in each group. In my group was Lauren, Vo, Kristy, Katie, and Carrie. After finding a place to park the bus, each group received 50 euros to spend on lunch and then we were on our way to discover the wonders of shopping in Berlin.

The shops were incredibly colorful, and surprisingly, somewhat similar to the stores at some malls in the U.S. The first store my group and I went into was a store called Six. The clothes were a lot more colorful than clothes in the U.S. and it was so much fun to see a different culture. Even though, the street stores were fun to look in, my group was really looking forward to going to the biggest department store in Germany, the Ka De We. The Ka De We was incredible. Right when you walked in, there were about twenty of the “hottest” make-up and perfume counters. It was one of the hugest stores I have ever been in. My group had a blast trying on clothes and buying our favorite items. After the Ka De We, my group decided to eat. We wanted something fast since we only had three hours to do some major shopping, so we all agreed on a Pizza Hut booth where you could just ask for a piece of pizza and they would hand it over. And let me tell you, it was the most amazing cheese pizza from Pizza Hut that I have ever eaten!

Since we had gone almost everywhere we wanted to go, we started looking at the fun “flea-market” style booths. My group and I found a cool booth where you could buy bracelets and magnetic earrings for a decent price. I bought a brown leather bracelet and a magnetic earring, while some of my group mates bought ankle bracelets. When it was finally time to gather back on the bus each of us had acquired something that made us satisfied. Before we went home though, we had one more task. We were on a journey to see Checkpoint Charlie, the most famous of the four openings in the Berlin Wall. It was the most famous because it was the checkpoint the American Army manned or patrolled. It was very interesting to be able to see where exactly it was that the American soldiers stood. Since we played at 4:30 that night, we had only about twenty minutes to check it out, but the time was the perfect amount to see Checkpoint Charlie.

Once on the bus, again it took around an hour and a half to get back to our dorms. By that time, it was already 3:40, so we rushed in, grabbed our belongings and hurriedly traveled to the gym. Today we would be playing the German team at 4:30 and the Czech team at 6:30. Unfortunately we started out a little slow and lost to the Germans in two games, but we came back to beat the Czech team in two games. After playing, the coaches informed us that we would be having a barbecue with the Northern Lights girls, along with the German and Czech teams.

The barbecue was so much fun! Once the German and Czech teams arrived we all were allowed to get in line for food. We could choose from chicken or bratwurst, along with side dishes which included rolls, potato salad, carrots, pickled cucumbers, and a sweet cabbage dish. I had a bratwurst with potato salad and pickled cucumber. It was delicious! Since the point of the barbecue was so that we could all get to know each other, we decided that we should go and ask the German and Czech girls to come and eat with us on the steps. The first girls I went up to ask didn’t understand me at first, but one of them who could speak English asked if I could speak slower. I felt bad that I didn’t speak slower in the first place because if I were the one being asked a question in German and only knew a little bit, I wouldn’t have a clue what they were saying if they were talking at normal speed for them. Anyway, we finally got everyone over to the steps to eat dinner and we had the best time laughing and trying to understand each other. After everyone had eaten dinner, we all gathered into a huge circle and started dancing. I have never had such a fun time in my life, or laughed so hard. I will never forget how great it was to get to know the girls and realize that you can have fun even if someone doesn’t really understand your language or if you don’t know theirs.

Since we had so much fun at dinner, we asked the Czech and Germans to go swimming with us in the lake. The Germans couldn’t come, but the Czech girls did. We had a blast swimming together in the lake and we were all surprised that the water was so warm. Once everyone was gone, it was time to go home for curfew. We walked back to our dorms and into our rooms, where another day was successful and fun. I know everyone had a blast and that we will never forget the opportunity we had to meet those girls.