The Schwules Museum was interesting to see because the treatment of gay people in Germany has changed so drastically. Currently, Berlin is a more progressive place for gay rights, although it took a long and tragic time to get here. While the museum was very interesting, I do wish that it had been more inclusive; there was barely any mention of lesbians.
The mosque has been one of my favorite places to visit. The building itself is stunning, and our guide was fantastic. He does interfaith work for a living and tours like the one we had for free-- that's just as beautiful as the building. Interfaith outreach and work is crucial when there are so many religious misunderstandings.
As for the Gemaldegalerie, the sheer amount of art was overwhelming. It's only one of the art museums here too, and the city is full of galleries. I especially missed my camera with was in my lost luggage for the week. (Don't worry though, my camera and I are reunited and happily snapping photos together.)
While all of these things helped illustrate the variety found in Berlin, my host family was my first introduction to Berlin's diversity. At dinner, they served French food, listened to Spanish Music, talked about German history, and tried to teach me how to beatbox. The ease that they can switch between speaking English, French, Spanish, and German makes my struggle to learn a second language downright embarrassing. Of course, they did start learning when they were much younger than I am. (Why don't we do that in America? Also embarrassing is how little I know about European politics when they know all about America.) I'm staying in Kreuzberg, a neighborhood that my travel guide called eclectic and alternative, and my train stop is a mix of business suits, jeans, and blue and purple striped hair. Colorful is an accurate description.
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