Boat Party Language Exchange

The party's just getting started at sunset.

Over the last few months we’ve been calling Berlin our home and an important part of discovering the city has been to go out, meet people and make new friends.

We found out about a few different language exchanges in Berlin and in April we decided to check out The Boat Party, which takes place every Wednesday evening.

The Boat Party is a great place to meet new people and network, especially if you are new to the city. 

We’ve been along to the Boat Party Language Exchange, hosted every week by Charles Clawson, four times now and every time there is a new crowd of people to talk to. I’ve been to many language exchanges before and this one is certainly unique for me in the fact that it takes place on a boat!

The Eastern Comfort is a boat-hostel that is permanently moored on the river Spree overlooking the Oberbaumbrüke. It is in a great location and easy to reach via Warschauerstrasse U-Bahn, tram and S-Bahn stations. Also, right outside is the start of the famous East-Side Gallery, an open-air art gallery with murals and art painted onto a strip of the original Berlin Wall that stretches all the way to the Ostbahnhof (The main East Berlin train station).

Sunset on the Spree.

The evenings kicks-off at 19:30 with a few snacks and some light chatter. Most people arrive a little later at around 20:00 when the night starts to take full swing. There is normally a very international crowd and I have had the pleasure to talk to Germans, Spaniards, Italians, Polish, Russians, Israelis, Australians, Kiwis and Americans so far!

I’ve enjoyed speaking Spanish and English but haven’t had much luck with German yet as counting from 1 to 11 and blurting out the few words of the German I already know is no proper base for a conversation!

The Oberbaumbrüke

Live music accompanies the event each week and there is normally a different band or artist to get the party atmosphere pumped up. The chatter doesn’t die down until at least 12pm which is when the bar closes, I think (I’ve either been too drunk to notice the time or left a little earlier due to lack of beer funds!).

All in all, I recommend the Boat Party to Berlin "newbies" as a great place to safely meet new and interesting people in Berlin. Have you already been? What did you think of the event?

The next Boat Party is taking place this Wednesday evening the 6th June, 2012 and costs 2 euros to attend (one euro to get in and another to pay for the band). During the summer there is also a BBQ (let's hope it's not still raining!) if you get hungry.

You can check out the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy website for updates about The Boat Party and other English language events in Berlin.

Enjoy!