Apart from the horrible shock of being caught by the
Kontrollieren (inspectors) on the U-Bahn without your Fahrschein (ticket), the U-Bahn in Berlin is great.
I miss having a seat on the train. I miss having space to
breathe without someone’s hair or armpit in my face. I miss not having to queue
to get on the train. I miss travelling without the barging and the shoving, and
people actually being pushed off trains!
In Berlin, you’re never packed in ridiculously like
sardines. No need for that with a transport system with a capacity for 10
million and a population of only 3.5.
Not only that, but it runs all night over the weekend (and not just mythically like in
London).
Paying on the U-Bahn is seemingly discretionary – there are
no ticket barriers – but anyone who’s been caught, and slapped with a now 60€
fine knows only too well that this is not true. It’s best to get a ticket, or
your journey will be a nervous one.
I also miss that unlike in London, people haven’t been
banned from drinking on the U-Bahn. In fact, the “weg Bier” is pretty much customary
in Berlin, particularly on the U-Bahn. Almost everyone, male, female, young and
old, carries a beer. Whether they are happily drinking away on a
night out or swigging away as you’re on your way to work in the morning.
And there is no end to what you might come across on the U-Bahn,
from a pony to a striptease, someone playing drums to someone camouflaged
against the seats.
Literally, anything goes. It’s not out of place to see a
huge rave going on at one of the U-Bahn stations, complete with DJ and decks,
on a weekend night.
In fact the BVG made a funny video to show that they are ok
with you being weird. “Ist mir egal” (“I don’t care).
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