SMEurope 2014 event Berlin

For me being in Berlin is very special. I never went here before, why not I am now asking myself. I was pleasantly suprised by its atmosphere. I knew there's a lot of things going on in Germany, e.g. that they do a very good job in EU and also their unity struck me. The pride they feel about being one Germany again since the wall fell in 1989, wow!

I was a student at the Graphic Design School Sint Lucas (1988-1992) at that time and now I am wondering, why didn't we do something with the fact that the wall fell? I remember the news on tv, but that's about it. Being an art & design school, we should've used this remarkable moment in German/European history.

When walking from Alexanderplatz (former East Berlin) to the Brandenburger Tor and the government building Bundestag I noticed a sign saying there's a multimedia show at the Bundestag each day this summer, until October 3. So I waited for it to get dark and watched it and I am very impressed about the recent German history. I know we need to learn about the Dutch history, but the Germans... man they do so well economic wise, they almost are the EU (in $ numbers) by itself. How come we do not teach Dutch kids about the German history more? Ofcourse mixed with Dutch history, but looking to the nearby future, I think Dutch kids should focus on Germany more than on e.g. USA or UK for that matter. Sorry Brits!

I am in favour of the Krauts now, and not just because of the great atmosphere of Berlin. Traveling to NYC two weeks ago made me hate the Big Apple. Hate, me??? I, who always wanted to live in NYC (for a while). Yes, me. I hate it. (and yes, there's a very thin line between love and hate)

It was noisy, dirty, and loud! How on earth can people live there and do not go mad. The noise of cars and trains... a true hell to me. Maybe this is because I am a highly sensitive person, but I noticed after a few visits the glorious feeling of being in NYC fades very fast. I do love NewYorkers, so it's just about the feeling you get by the noise when you walk through this amazing city with all its high buildings and more.

Landing in Berling I was struck by its... Europeaness (is that a word). I flew in at Tegel airport, which looked so very small. You see a lot of green (trees) and the East German flats. Then it hit me, O right, Berlin was divided after the war and this must be the East part. You feel the history when you touch down. Then getting into the airport, small, oldish, but there's also a more vibrant lower level with shops and a very helpful tourist information desk.

I had to take a bus to Hauptbahnhof (Central Station) and was told in English where to go for the next leg, two stops to the hotel by S-train. I used my secondary school German and was very surprised I could easily adapt to German, as being outside Germany speaking to a German I always toss with German and English words. So well done Berlin, I got back to my German 'roots'. As a child we lived in the Eastern part of the Netherlands, and before cable we could only watch 2 Dutch tv channels...and 3 German ones and 2 Belgium ones. So we watched Der Sendung mit der Maus, yes, in German.

My kids are missing out on this! Spoiled brats ;) Keywords of this Online Marketing, Mobile & Social Media in Travel summit Europe 2014: personalisation is the future. Engage guests, use their content. In the afternoon there were also a lot of presentations about apps in travel, but you have to ask yourself, if the average uses only books a holiday once, twice a week, why would he or she download the app? Even the KLM app has bugs still, when checking in I again use the mobile website instead of the app.

Can't wait to go out to explore some more of Berlin tomorrow. It's a city that is German, but also very Dutch/North-European. Or maybe the Germans are. As the city has a long history, going back ages. The Bundestag multi-media only showed the democratic part of German history, which was very interesting as well. Frein Wahl. Wir Sind Deutschland.

I immediately had to think, why doesn't Germany use this as a hashtag also outside football? #wirsinddeutschland All I've been listening to in New York's summit was that if you campaign a good # you can create a lot of traffic and brand awareness. Deutschland, your country is so worth it. You have green woods, hills, cities, Autobahnen, and very hard working people. They are so proud of Germany being one, it's almost sweet. It's appealing and gives you a feeling of joy.

The Millenials seem like the right people to me to do so. They also know the English language well, so as a country you should use that. Frau Merkel, bitte, use your people to present this new, modern Germany. We need to get rid of the old, rusty image of this beautiful country. I will be more than happily walking around in the city of Berlin tomorrow, taking in all its beauty and peace. In these days of age, we need mindfulness and peace. I think in Berlin you can experience that and still go to Starbucks ;)

No noise of trains and cars (no high-ways, I think that's the main problem in NYC, all the high train tracks and highways spreading their noise all over the city) Berlin is so old and new at the same time, I love that. (that also might be the missing part in NYC, as USA is the new world, nothing is really old-old) There's a lot of cranes in the centre at the moment, Berlin is one big building site as well, and it will become even more beautiful. Can't wait to be back!

Team IHG winner of the mobile travel app 2014