From Uber to UBahn

We get to and from Berlin on public transportation. We can get from point A to point B via the U­Bahn or the bus. What I find very interesting about the public transportation in Berlin is that you do not pay to enter the station, you buy a ticket and if a public transportation guard stops you to see your pass that is your form of payment. I have been on the U­Bahn around 3­6 times every day since I’ve gotten here and I have not been stopped by a guard yet! If you did not purchase a ticket and you get stopped by the guard you face a very high fine. The public transportation here is fantastic. We never have to wait more than 4 minutes unless it is late at night. All of the train stops that I’ve been to are conveniently located and the train rides are gorgeous. I get to and from class via the U­Bahn. The building where we have class is only three stops away from our hostel. In the next few days we are moving hostels, we will be moving even closer to our classroom.

The train ride is less than 10 minutes and the trains usually run every 3­4 minutes. We have been warned by the professors on our trip to not take public transportation alone at night. This is advice adults advise students regardless of where they are studying. Specifically in Berlin there are high rates of crime on the train late at night. One of the cons of public transportation in Berlin is that the train does not run late on weeknights. If some fellow students and I are interested in getting food or drinks late at night we have to take the alternative route of public transportation which means taking the bus. I personally feel more comfortable taking the train than I do taking the bus. The reason that I feel more comfortable doing so is because I am more familiar with the train system than I am with the bus system. I spent the past 6 months on co­op in NYC and have lived in Boston my whole life. If it is late at night I feel very comfortable and often decide to take Uber home. Here, we cannot take Uber. It is not safe and the majority of the cars that are affiliated with Uber are not certified. We have been advised to look for specific Taxis that are certified as legal Taxis. This can be frustrating because I always want to take a safe (affordable) route home and it seems like both Uber and Taxi aren’t the best ways to get home late at night. When our group goes on excursions together we take very large busses that are similar to a Peter Pan bus back in Boston. These busses come with a restroom and many different seats so we feel comfortable on long bus rides. We recently took a day trip to Hamburg that consisted of us being on the bus for 7 hours total.