Germany: Berlin: Introduction: Local Savvy: 6/ Berlin is…unpretentious.

6/ Berlin is…unpretentious.

Berlin’s laid-back vibe is difficult to describe to people who have never been. But imagine arriving for breakfast at a cool Manhattan restaurant a half hour before it opens, being warmly welcomed by a waitress who is herself just arriving (and incidentally a dead-ringer for Carla Bruni. She told me to come in anyway and asked if I would like a latte while waiting for the kitchen to open. That’s what happened during my recent trip and it was not the only time that a Berliner, from a taxi driver to a shop owner, made me feel totally welcome. I can’t think of many other Euro city where a four-day trip doesn’t include a semblance of attitude (Paris, Amsterdam, Rome, Vienna, I’m looking at you).