Recently 2 of my flat-mate's friends from Frankfurt came to visit Berlin! We stopped by an Irish pub called Killkenny (uhhh, South Park anyone?) right inside the Hackescher Markt train station. Now most people don't know that I love Irish pubs. I think I would much rather go to an Irish pub than a fancy bar. It's no frills, the bartenders are relaxed, and it's a great place to go with a group. Not to mention I have fond memories getting tipsy over pints of beer in good company. Anyway, here are some shots of that night!

The sisters who came to visit. They were both super sweet!


Oli and I!


Cheese!


Okay, so I got a cocktail. Apparently it's the house specialty cocktail. Why is maracuja juice amazing?


And finally the decor.

There was also a live performance happening in the other room. I got really excited when she started to sing Nora Jones! Upon leaving, we also chatted with a friendly Finnish guy outside. Overall, a very comfortable evening.

Irish Pub in Berlin: Killkenny

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• by Aya S
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You know what is really strange? Every time I think about dining out, I always think of Anthony Bourdain's episode of the Layover in NY, and how he wraps up the Upper East Side with the Papaya King (New York's institution of hot dogs and papaya smoothies).

First of all, I am not even going to start my ridiculous fangirling over Anthony Bourdain because he would actually disapprove and I think the whole world wants to be on Bourdain's good side. I also don't want to bore you with memories of going to school near Papaya King and knowing exactly what he's talking about. Instead I want to stress the idea behind why I mentioned this particular moment in television history: the fact that eating out never has to be glamorous for it to be good.

It all started with a train delay and a cup of coffee.


Weird start to the day considering I rarely drink coffee let alone buy it out. It was okay but I much prefer espresso--one whole cup is just too much buzz for me!

The rest of the day was a blur. I think I went to the gym. I think I ate rice cakes. I think I met up with Oli and got lost in Neukölln!


Needless to say it's not a neighborhood I know like the back of my hand.

Oli's friend Piotr was waiting at the bookstore we would be eating in.


We went in and saw a room filled with books and comfy chairs. The way it works is, there's a man at the register in the front. You pay 5 euros and get a plate. When the food is done, you pick whatever you want, buffet style. 5 euros for a huge plate of home cooked goodness. Who can say no to that?


Cheers!


I wish my library were this extensive.


Oli's Jever beer.


Here's an example of a plate. They had meat and veg options for all, along with a ton of bread and cheese. The carrot hash was yummy. The thing I really appreciated was that not only was it made by the owner of the bookstore but the food was not overly salty so people could kind of customize it themselves if they wished.
The three of us chatted about nonsensical things as always. Then another guy joined our conversation and we ended up talking about science fiction novels/films for a veeeery long time.

A few hours later, we left and parted ways with Piotr.


Oli and I heading back to our flat and camwhoring.   One of the greatest things about Berlin is that there are always places like this where you don't have to spend a lot of money and you don't have to be a certain type of person to enjoy yourself and make friends. It can be a Papaya King or the basement of a bookstore: just sit back and take in all what the world has to offer.

Dining Out in a Bookstore

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• beer book dinner friends restaurant vegetables •
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• by Aya S
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Hey guys, it's me Aya.

I know a lot of you (okay, a few of you) have been wondering where I've been in the blogging world. Well to tell you all the truth, I've had a crazy last few months and I'm just now starting to feel relaxed and settled again.

A few of you may know, I've been having some ups and downs in Berlin. Being foreign and living somewhere is hard (both from a legal point of view and the whole idea of starting over). I've definitely had my fair share of depressing moments, but it's time to get my head out of those rain clouds and live a little! It's SUMMER for cryin' out loud!

I decided to make up for the past few months, I'm just going to photo bomb you guys.

Long time no post! & NY Pics

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Before coming to Germany, I was not as big into beer. I mean, it's not that I didn't like it, I was just more of a wine girl. Well, let's face it, I still am. There's just something about fermented fruit that gets me.

Introducing Porter's Fruity Beers. This happened when Oliver and I went over to Kadewe in hopes of finding him a Pullover, and resulted in a mad dash around the gourmet food section to soothe our rumbling tummies before it closed.

The verdict? I like the Erdbeere (strawberry) one more than the Kirsche (cherry). It kind of tastes like Hi-chew, that delicious Japanese gummi candy I am kind of missing right now.

It didn't change my life, but give it a go! And as far as eclectic, I would say at least there's variety. And you know variety is the spice of life!



Beer for thought

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• by Aya S
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