The past few days in Berlin have not been what I’d call very summer-y. It’s been raining and cold, dreary and wet. I suppose that’s not terrible because one of my main goals for living in Berlin for a summer (or what’s left of it) has been to catch up on some much-needed computer work. With a brand new MacBook Pro in hand I can finally get some of the things I’ve put off for a long time. And it’s good to have a way to listen to all my music again (remember how I was iPod-less for nearly four months?)!
All this rain just has me thinking of escaping the city. If it’s going to be raining and cold, then I might as well be spending my time trapped in a John Constable painting. That could be fun actually. If Berlin hadn’t panned out, one of my other ideas for this summer (albeit just a fleeting thought that I didn’t spend much time thinking of) was to get to London and then escape to the countryside, perhaps one of the holiday cottages in Wales, and read the complete works of Shakespeare. I’m not joking! It was on my Moleskine list of possibilities for the summer. Maybe next year?
Luckily I’m still enjoying Berlin despite the bad weather. After spending the past week or so getting settled in my new flat and my new neighborhood, I’m pretty much caught up on all my missed sleep from partying too hard in Berlin. Now I’m ready to really make this my little home for the time being. Even if I have to get wet.
Things to do on a rainy day in Berlin
And even with rain and clouds in Berlin, there are still plenty of interesting things to do. The city is cold and dreary so often, it’s well adapted to a life inside. Here’s a few selected things to do on a rainy day in Berlin from my travel guide to Berlin:
- Visit a museum or gallery!
I’m partial to the C/O gallery, the Pergamon Museum or the Bauhaus Archive. There’s also the Film Museum and at least 250 other museums in Berlin - Read a book!
Stop by one of Berlin’s best bookstores (Shakespeare & Sons in Prenzlauer Berg)—and then head to a cafe - Look cool in a trendy cafe
Berlin’s coffee culture is something not to miss. The coffee & cafe culture in Berlin is not only about finding good coffee but just as much it’s about lookin’ good. - Visit a cinema
Lots of the cinemas in Berlin play movies in English or with subtitles. Those around Potsdamer Platz are often the most popular (and rather pricey). The kino in Kreuzberg at Kottbusser Tor also shows good films, and the kino on Kottbusser Damm at Schonleinstrasse shows many independent films. Yorck Kino International (at Schillingstrasse u-bahn) has a weekly gay-film night called Mongay where you can catch international, independent films relating to LGBT culture.
I kind of thrive on days like that. Just hunker down and get all that stuff done you’ve been wanting to do.
Yep. Though I could probably do with a day or two without internet just so I could catch up on my book reading.
I found it really interesting that you were thinking of staying in the Wales countryside and reading the complete works of William Shakespeare. Do you have a favorite play by him? Great post by the way!
Thanks Bob!
As of now, I’ve only read a few biographies of Shakespeare and the more famous plays. I’ve loved some of the biographies though which is why I really want to read more. I think it’d be a lot of fun. Aaaaand…. I’m a huge nerd.
Its nice sometimes to have a great excuse to stay indoors and do nothing…
Yep – sometimes I need the push to get things done.