Our Awesome German Friends

One of the perks of doing a week in Germany, and specifically visiting Berlin, is that a friend of mine from work, Anton, and his wife Jaqi moved out here a few years ago, and I've been wanting to visit them for awhile. So luckily all the stars aligned and such a visit worked out this trip. I've said it before and I'll say it again, there's almost no better kind of travel than the kind where you get to visit your friends. And the same held true with visiting these two wonderful people.

We got to hangout with them twice. The first time was actually the first night we arrived in Berlin, and it was awesome. Quite possibly the best night we had of our Europe travels thus far. What made the night so great may have been the simplicity of what we did. After some back and forth on potential ideas for plans, Nate, Tim, Katie, and myself just went over to their place for the evening. We watched a German Cup semifinal football match on TV. We got to try two of Anton and Jaqi's homebrew beer creations that they conveniently had on tap in their living room. They introduced us to a special German spirit called Pfefferminzlikor, which was delicious. And, we learned the German way to "cheers" or "prost" with direct eye contact to avoid bad luck. They gave us their insights into German culture and various happenings around the area. And best of all we just got to catch up on life, share stories, and enjoy the good company of old friends. 

Anton, Jaqi, me, and Katie showing off our couch surfing skills at the end of the night.

Anton pouring us all some "Pfeffe"

The second time we got to catch up with them (and this time their son as well) was at a brewery called Vagabund Brauerei. The craft beer scene in Germany is pretty new. This place just started up a couple years ago thanks to a kick-starter campaign. Anton and Jaqi were among their first supporters being fans of good craft beer, so they seemed well known by several people at the bar. All four beers (American pale, double IPA, Irish red, and birthday cake porter) we tried were delicious, and we again had a great time just catching up on life. 

Our flight at Vagund Brauerei

Our time with them was too short, but that's how things go when you are in and out of a country in just a week. And it was especially too bad it didn't work out to play any soccer with Anton while we were around since that was our closest connection several years ago back in Michigan. Sadly I didn't bring the right footwear. Alas. Hopefully we can have a trip back to visit them again in the future, or at the very least catch up with them the next time they're back in the States.