Germany

From the stunning Cologne Cathedral to the technically sophisticated BMW Welt (BMW World) in Munich to the regal Brandenberg Gate in the yet somehow still shabby chic of Berlin, Germany has a wide range of city experiences. There is a darkness to the past that is never too far away. Carved stone skulls adorn the church walls and reminders of war abound in an effort educate. Facing the past and still carrying on with measured optimism for the future is a valuable German trait.

I was eating breakfast at the 5-star Hotel Adlon Kempinski Berlin, contemplating more caviar, reading the London Financial Times, listening to quiet classical music and looking out at the Brandenburg Gate. I looked down to see the cost of the meal was 50 Euros and I had a flash of insight — I am now the kind of person I hate. Scrimping through film school, I worked summer jobs in factories with my union comrades, maxed out credit cards to keep my rusted Honda going, and survived on nothing but peanut butter.

How did this happen?

Then I found out the breakfast was included with the room and I felt much better about everything.