If you are interested in Art, Berlin is an incredible hotspot which offers new and experienced Artists a place to network, build and create.  After the wall was torn down, which divided West and East Berlin, many artists had hopes of turning this grey and monotonous city into a free, colourful and self-expressive space.   Berlin is since known for showcasing extreme and unique artists, or ‘provocative art’, whether via statues, private showcasing or street graffiti. There are many walking tours which guide you through the city, stopping at many well-known exhibits, the most famous being being The Berlin Wall.  

If you are an aspiring artists I suggest you explore this vibrant city and come get inspired!

Kelsie

Be a part of the best German courses in Berlin!

Since Berlin is such a large city with many people moving here from all over the world, there are many language schools ready to help you transition into German life easier.  I have read and reviewed many language schools before deciding on the best German courses in Berlin at Deutsch Akademie, and I am sure glad I did. 

At the Deutsch Akademie there are always helpful staff, teachers and friendly students to help you on your way. They also offer free tutoring, online tutorials, morning or evening classes and even organize social events for students to meet and mingle!  I especially like some of the school’s locations, right near Alexanderplatz.  The two locations, one on Alexanderstr. 9, and the other Panoramastr. 1, make you feel that you are truly apart of this incredible city! Come and see for yourself!

Kelsie 

 

The best German language school right @Alexanderplatz

Alexanderplatz is one of the most well-known locations in Berlin.  Not only is this the location where I visit the best German language school in Berlin. There stands the famous TV Tower, St.Mary’s church (Marienkirche), many shopping stores and the famous Alexanderplatz U-bahn station.  It is always extremely busy during spring/summer months by tourists, and in the winter the famous Weihnachtsmarkt takes place throughout December and going into January.  An interesting fact: the TV tower (Fernsehturm), is the tallest building in Germany at 368 meters.   

Kelsie 

The birds are singing, flowers are blooming, people are starting to wear shorts again – yes spring is here!  One of the many things I love about a Berlin spring/summer are the Flea Markets.

There are so many antiques, clothes, books, music, furniture pieces, anything you are looking for, Im sure you can find!  I have countless things, probably most of which I will never use, that I have found all over Berlin.

One of the most famous Markets is open every Sunday, Mauer Park.  There is also live music, endless food stalls and many handmade goods! 

Kelsie

Did you know that Berlin has more bridges then Venice?  Berlin has over 1700 bridges in total.  

The most famous bridge being Oberbaum Bridge (Oberbaumbrücke), it is a double-deck bridge crossing Berlin’s River Spree.

It is truly mesmerizing to walk along these bridges, especially when the sun is setting and it’s rays reflect off the water!  We are so lucky to have these calming places when we need them. 

Kelsie

A city to fall in love with

I moved to Berlin over one year ago and like many other Berliners, I have fallen in love with this city!  I visited Berlin numerous times over the last four years and each visit I became more interested in its culture, people and amazing food.

Although Berlin is a very international city, where almost everyone seems English, it is still apart of Germany and therefore, if you are to live here it is important to speak Deutsch, if not the basics.  I had learned some German before visiting the Deutsch Akademie but I needed help putting the pieces together.  I have been very thankful to my teacher and other students who have helped me in the Akademie.  I mostly enjoyed our hands-on activities, and that each of the classes have around 10 students, so the teacher is able to be attentive to our needs.

I would recommend the Deutsch Akademie to everyone, especially those want to get the most out of their German experience.

Kelsie

Completing my course at the best German school in Berlin

Sara, 10. Januar 2020

It is hard to believe that I have completed the B1.1 level a couple of weeks ago. The past months have been intense as I was balancing German classes with graphic design classes. I am very happy with what I have achieved so far and I am aiming to achieve more in the new year! After class, my classmates, teacher and I went to the Christmas market. It was really fun to spend time together having Glühwein and casual conversations in German and English. This last reunion felt bittersweet as many people I have been learning for more than a month with are leaving Berlin, or are taking on new jobs and cannot attend the course next month. 

In the future, I will continue learning German at the best German school in Berlin until I reach the C level. In the meantime, I will be looking for a job in Berlin while always practicing my German. Now that the holidays are here, I am traveling to Lebanon for 2 weeks. A friend of mine gave me a book in German to read, she said it was an easy read and the book looks interesting, so this is my next challenge for the holidays. One thing I have learned from this experience is that you always need to challenge yourself, even if it is with little things like reading a book in a new language or watching a German movie without subtitles.

Funny moments with my new language

Sara, 09. Januar 2020

When I first arrived to Berlin, I could not pronounce the word “Straße”. Now that I look back, I laugh because it seems so easy compared to other words and sounds I’ve learned. At first, I would say strabe, then straze… little did I know that the eszett letter (ß) was pronounced as a double s: “ss”. Another thing that seemed impossible was pronouncing the name of the U-Bahn station: Schlesisches Tor. I would get so stressed when I had to say it and try to avoid having to say it out loud. The umlauted o (ö) was especially hard to get used to at first. It made me feel like I was stretching words and I could not get used to it at all. A couple of months have passed since then and I believe that my pronunciation is somewhat acceptable now.

The funniest thing that happened to me because of the language barrier, was that I repeatedly kept buying chicken or ham slices instead of turkey slices at the supermarket as the packaging was unclear. By the end, I would just consider it a surprise. I wouldn’t bother spending 15 minutes trying to figure out which pack was the turkey. I would wait to get home and hope it was what I wanted… if not, I’d laugh and eat it anyway.

 

Exercises in the best German course in Berlin

Sara, 08. Januar 2020

We started learning the Zukunft (Future) tense in class and it didn’t seem too complicated. However, as is everything in German, it was a little confusing since we need to use the verb “werden” (become) in the sentence as a main verb and use the other verb at the end of the sentence in its infinitive form. Another thing that made it tricky was that the sentence structure became similar to the one used for passive sentences.

One of the various exercises in the best German course in Berlin was: The teacher split the class in groups of two and asked us to pick a subject and write about it in the future tense. My partner and I chose the subject “Wohnung” (living) and wrote a text about the living situation in Berlin in 180 years. I enjoyed the exercise a lot. I found it very helpful to learn something new in groups and with a little bit of freedom in our writing. The whole class loved our text as it was fun and engaging. It allowed us to learn in a quick and entertaining manner.

Tips for your new German courses in Berlin

Sara, 07. Januar 2020

My advice for your new German courses in Berlin would be: be patient and be ready for anything. The language is difficult to learn and is very challenging. You need to give yourself time to take in it and to understand it. Another thing I highly recommend is to include German in your everyday life. I added German subtitles on Netflix; whenever I am watching something, I catch some words in the subtitles and learn something new. Another helpful tip would be to change the language of your phone to German. That way you are exposed to basic everyday words and end up memorizing them.

There are also good German shows I recommend to watch. “Dark” is a mystery-drama series available on Netflix with 2 seasons. Three classic German movies I really enjoyed are “Good Bye Lenin”, “Metropolis” and “Run Lola Run”. I highly recommend watching those movies in German with English subtitles. The thing to keep in mind while learning German is to practice as much as possible and to give yourself time. No one learns a new language overnight.