April 20, Monday

April 20, Monday

Another slow day today. We got up lazily. Luke went right to making breakfast. Now we are trying to use up our left over miscellaneous foodstuffs so we don't have to throw any food away. That just kills Luke inside. So, we had the “American style bacon” and the 2 left over eggs, 1 slice of toast w/ our crappy bread, and the remaining hollandaise sauce. Luke thought he read on the package that the hi-c style container could be microwaved. Well, that was a negative. It sparked in the microwave. Luke also made espresso with the stove top espresso pot we brought with us (and coffee too). I am so glad we did, otherwise where would we be @ 7 am. I remember we couldn't get dressed in Rome with out 3 espresso.

Today our 7 day Metro ticket was expired so we had to get a day ticket at the automated machine in the subway. I takes credit cards- or coin (but only German credit cards). We only had like 1€ in coin. We did find someone's credit card in the machine- left there. We were going to leave it, but decided we would keep it safe or destroy it so no one else could tamper with it. We did destroy it. That didn't solve our problem with no coin for our €6 one day ticket x 2. We went to the Balzac Coffee and bought a coffee and got some change. The gal who helped us was very kind and we got some change for the blessed ticket machine.

We did some compromising in regards to the itinerary. We went first to Bendlerblock Resistance Museum over by Potsdamer platz. We walked a bit to get there, it felt like we walked a good amount. And then the entrance was kind of ambiguous. We found it amid a military facility of some kind- we saw many men in uniform. The museum was located where the German soldier's office was located. It was adjacent to the location where they were executed for their treason.

It was about more than VonStauffenberg. The museum highlighted resistance from young people, people who left the country before it really got bad and decided that they needed to help, the Jewish Resistance, people of the German Military etc.

The museum was free, as was the audio guide (you secured deposit with your passport). The audio guide was not comprehensive. The museum had a lot of information that I wish I could have read German. They had binders of documents and memos. I wish I could have seen what was in those memos. Oh well. I was satisfied with the museum. I was glad we we went.

We then took a double decker city bus to Alexanderplatz. It was fun to ride in one of those. I don't think I had seen a double decker city bus yet. We did some more walking once we got off the bus.

We were headed to Karl Marx Alee. This is the parade route street that was used by Stalin. In fact it had once been called Stalin Alee. The tall uniform buildings had been destroyed and then rebuilt in the old style. I liked them because they were all straight lines and neat- everything in its place- I think I said.

We walked and walked down the grand street that was 4 lanes on each side and was not busy. The sidewalks were very wide as well. I could imagine people lined up for communist parades. We stopped at the Cafe Sybil. It is a historic cafe that has a little mini museum dedicated to the history of the Karl Marx alee. They had statue Stalin's ear and part of his moustache in a case. It was interesting to see pictures of the street.

We walked back towards a nearby metro stop, saw a little market and stopped in. I was actually hungry at this point. We bought ready made cooked meatballs that looked like big chubby hamburgers in the deli case, some bread and Luke had to have a magnum ice cream bar from the freezer section. That cost about €4.85. We then found a metro station and found our selves at home at the apartment. Luke was getting antsy in the pantsy as it is his last full day here, and he doesn't want to waste time. He told me he just wanted to eat things. Mainly he was obsessing over Turkish pizza and Doner Kebabs.

I told Luke that we had food that we needed to eat at home. He was kind of crabby to hear that, but he knew it was the truth.

We had leftovers; ham salad, liver pate, cold sandwiches, Luke had a “hamburger/meatball” sandwich, beer, ice tea, cheese, etc. We texted Paul and this time asked him to reply to our texts so we knew he was getting them. I didn't believe it but he did reply and said he'd be her in 10 minutes. He picked up the key and left. A few moments later he texted us and told us to have a safe journey home. Whatever.

We packed up a little bit and got our stuff together and throw stuff away that we did not need. Luke made bread crumbs out of the yucky bread he bought and we decided to go to a park and feed the birds.

We took the 240 bus to Rosenthaler platz. Apparently there is a nice park near there. We arrived there and were amazed at the sunbathers and picnic-ers. The locals had their blankets out and their shorts on. A little man made pond was near by with 2 ducks in it, the water was quite disgusting scummy and had garbage floating on the top.

We took the bread crumbs to a more discreet area and managed to find 2 pigeons that wanted some bread. We fed them so much they got full and left. We dumped out the bag of crumbs and left, a dog will probably have a fantastic meal.

Luke and I walked toward the sunbathers and copped a squat. We sat for a few minutes and then walked to our bus stop. We saw a decent sized grocery store, and ducked in. We bought a .5 L carton of milk, a yogurt, canned corn and a carton of cream and iced coffee.

Then, we caught our bus home. I pressed the button for our stop, but I guess I didn't press it hard or long enough and the bus drove right by our stop. The next stop was a long ways away so we caught the next bus in the other direction and got off at the right spot this time. Oh well.

Now we are home, Luke warmed up those meat patty's and made one of packages of mashed potatoes and gravy, and a can of corn. I have to pack a bit and I really want to read my book. Just read read read.

Luke is drinking the Sangria in a box that Dad was unable to drink. It is very mild, tastes like juice. Speaking of wine in a box we found the brand of wine in a box that we had on the first night were in the city. We didn't buy it though.

I will do dishes and gather more of our crap together. We'll buy our bus tickets on the bus and leave maybe around 0900 or so.

Sunday April 19

Sunday April 19

Today is the day Mom and Dad leave for home. They are all packed. They had a a quick breakfast of coffee and toast with nutella. We walked them to the bus stop at about 8.30. I hope their day goes smoothly.

Since it was so early,Luke and I went back to bed. We are like high schoolers. I don't think he was able to sleep. I think he read his book. After we got up we headed to the prenzlauerburg area markets.

We tried to take a tram/ U/S-bahn route there. Once we walked a ways to find the right tram, we took it for only 1 stop before we had to transfer, why we just didn't walk there, whatever. So we decided to quit looking for bus/tram routes and just walked there. The weather is nice today cool, breezy sunny.

We eventually got to the Sunday markets. The market goers had their big Ikea bags and were scouring for deals. We didn't find any. It was a busy busy area. The vendors were selling all kinds of things but mostly like garage sale style and “vintage” things. Not really vintage, but like some cool shoes or clothes that were from the past. Some people sold some more handmade stuff, jewelry, bags. Also sold bikes, chairs, some glassware misc. items. None was anything to really stop and look at. One person made handbags out of deer pelts. One made simple handbags out of painted leather to look all cool and mod.

The crowd was big and close in, so we looked down a few aisles and I got us out of there to people watch from the adjacent Mauer Park or Wall Park. We couldn't figure out why all the aerosol cans were around, well, it was because of all the graffiti on the wall. Here is the thing, we couldn't figure out if it was just a brick wall or if it was the wall. So, I didn't take a picture or anything.

We sat on a bench and people and dog watched. We must miss our dog dearly. Poor Kaiser. We saw a group of three dogs running all around playing. 2 of the bigger dogs would hump each other occasionally while playing. Then the one getting humped would bite the other one. We did see some naughty dogs today. Prior to today we had seen only good dogs. We saw some that weren't listening or ones that would bark at other dogs or pull on leashes. We walked up toward the wall and along it for a short time, we saw a Hund Weise-. It was gated and we saw people and dogs behind it. We couldn't figure out how to get into that part. We figured out it was a dog park.

One thing we also noticed is that we've seen no stray cats or dogs on the street. We have only seen one vet however. We had on the list to find this beer garden type restaurant that is kind of close by this area. We found it and were real disappointed. It was a cafe w/ outdoor seating and a giant long table inside. No food on the menu, just drinks/ beer. Oh well, we had a beer anyway. Sat and people watched some more.

We hopped a tram, and decided to go to Alexanderplatz again. We were there earlier this week, but we wanted to see a bit more. We thought there was a mall inside one of those buildings but we were wrong, it was just a food court area beside the subway stops. Oh well. Luke insisted that I pick where we ate. I wasn't happy with the places in that building or around on the street for that matter. We did get a crepe though. I got a cheese and ham one. It was expensive, but it was really good. Luke got his standby- Nutella und Banan. They guy was quick and good. The gal in front of us in line took a few steps and dropped her crepe on the ground. She was crushed, I don't even know if she got 2 bites off it.

We sat at the bus stop and ate our crepes and also had a special treat of Fanta from our bag. We packed Fanta instead of h20 today.

We figured out the proper tram to take home and took it and then a message came over that said all must get off as this is the end of the line, it was not the end of the line but I suppose those tram drivers need to get off shift somehow. So we got off and were going to wait for the next one to come by, but decided to go explore this little area. Supposedly it was a “market area” but it was just many nice restaurants with outdoor seating. Everybody was out. It was nice in the sun, but too cold in the shade. Luke figured we could just walk home the rest of the way. We were in the area of the Pergamnon and the Altes Museum from the other day. It was nice to see the street and street level. That is one thing that the subway steals from you is the street view.

We went to the apt and still hadn't had anything but a crepe and beer for lunch. Luke went to our crutch restaurant right next to our apt door and ordered a ½ rotisserie chicken and pomme frites. Would you believe it cost only €3.50? We brought that in and shared that. We also agreed that tonight we'd make Kase and noodles, home made mac and cheese with all our butter Kase. Sounds good.

We have the duty of trying to use up all the food in the fridge. Tomorrow is our last touring day. It will be a funner sight seeing day like today was.

Luke is reading his book now and I even took a 20 min nap before I began the diary.

I am feeling a bit better now, I can breathe through my nose and am not coughing so much. The wood floored apartment needs to be swept in a MAJOR way, but we have no broom. That pale wood shows all the dirt, as do the bottoms of my feet.

Mom left her string bag here. I worry about all the little incidentals that we'll have to bring home. We'll see. We really haven't bought anything other than Buenos. OH I guess I did buy 2 children's books. Only because they had furry animals in them. One was titled “Why do rabbits have such long ears?” Like I could pass that book up! Luke let me buy them. I love furry little animals.

We texted Paul to meet and give him the extra key. Then we'll be able to just leave on Tues and not have to wait for him before we leave. He'd be late and we'd miss our plane. We won't do that.

Luke is almost asleep now. I will read my book now. We may go out locally for a beer tonight. Who knows. ljf

LUke made us mac n cheese with Butter Kase. It was delish- see picture below. Oh, we even had a vegetable that wasn't saurkraut or cucumber!

NOTE

Please see our previous posts. I have added pictures to all the entries. I have forgotten how long it takes to add photos to blogspot. It certainly takes a while.

Saturday April 18

April 18, Saturday

Woke up feeling better already. I only blew my nose twice last night. Luke made eggs bene for breakfast. I also had some chocolate flavored muslix. We of course had some espresso as well.

Mom and Dad pugged in lots of stuff today because of all the days they missed out of sightseeing because of our housing switches. Poor Mom. They left a bit before 1000.

I showered and we left about 1030 or so. We went first to the Ka DeWe. Kah Dah Vay is how it is pronounced. It is a 7 floor gigantic department store. Gigantic. We looked at a few kitchen things. It was very expensive.

I found some knife guards that Luke thought were overpiced. They were Whustoff brand and about 5.5 € each. I thought they were OK. We went on and did not buy them. The department store was very very high class. Very expensive. I heard someone compare it to Harrod's.

We went to the 6th floor. What a 6th floor. The entire floor was a grocery or market, it was organized according to type of food. One area was a giant fish counter that was as large as an entire grocery store cold case. One thing that was also interesting is that there were little eating areas around a bar where you could order a select few items in each area. For instance, if you were sitting in the seafood section, you had 6 seafood menu choices. They served wine and food at a hightop bar setting, you watched the cooks make your food in front of you. These little stands were very popular. They must have had 12 + of these little stands. Each had fridge, dishwasher, stove, etc.

I'll try to remember the sections; cheese, fresh meat, fish, smoked meat, preserved meat- sausages, caviar, eggs, cheese, to go salad, fresh salad, wine, chocolate, shellfish, cold pasta and salads, pasta bar, oyster bar, bread, pastries, home made chocolates, spices, mustards, oil/ vinegar, vegetables, fruits, american foods, chineese food, mexican.


We were walking around to all the sections and were waiting to find the cheese section. I said discreetly to Luke, “Oh, it smells like somebody pooped their pants,” I found the odor quite offensive. Then in about 8 paces we saw the cheese counter. We were closest to the soft cheeses. ISH. I am kind of cheesed out by now. I know it is sad to admit, but I am.

I was torn between taking pictures and trying to blend in. But there were so many people on that floor it was just CRAZY. No one noticed that I was taking pictures. It probably took us at least an hour to walk by everything.

Did we buy anything you ask? Well, yes we did. We bought 3 types of salad. 1.) Kartoffel salad – potato salad with bacon and tiny cut up pickles 2.) Berliner Kartoffel salad -potato salad with slices of onion, green/red peppers, turkey 3.) tomaten salat – mozzarella balls with halved cherry tomatoes and basil in olive oil. We had to wait in line and got small containers. I want to say it cost like 12€.

Then we went up to the 7th floor where it was a caffeteria. We thought maybe it would be low key and we could find a table to sit at. We read from Rick that it was kind of expensive. We went in with an open mind and got a tray so we looked serious about buying something. It was expensive. EXPENSIVE. It was like 11€ for an entree, and like 7€ for pasta salad portion, fountain pop was expensive I want to say 4€. Crazy. The food looked really good and obviously took some time to prepare. Needless to say, we didn't buy anything. I put the tray down on our way out. We were just so outclassed in this place.

We took the elevator down to ground. That is where all the big names were, Gucci, Prada, fancy jewellers. We walked ½ block away and found some benches around a grassy spot. Saw some dogs and little sparrows. We picked up some bread at a nearby shop. A hardroll was .20€/ At the dept store they were like 1€. So, no way. We also shared a cafe macchiato. We even were smart enough to bring our own sugar free sugar. Splenda and Equal doesn't exist here.

It was kind of cool out. We broke down and put on our jackets. Our red and orange jackets. Once we put them on, and looked around, we stuck out like a sore thumb. I promised Luke that he wouldn't have to wear an orange jacket on our next trip. I'd get him a black or a grey one. My red one isn't so bad by itself, but with Luke's orange one next to me is just awful. We put them on because we were chilled.

We ate our salads, fed the little sparrows some bread, people watched, drank our coffee, discussed the economy, you know things like that. We watched the birdies and we have a special facination with Crigeons. Crigeons are a the superior evolutionary species that resulted from a pigeon- crow cross. They are so smart and hold self preservation actions high. We haven't ever been able to photograph one up close until today. Luke compared Crigoen and Pigeon as T-rex to all the other inferior dinosaurs. The crigeon is the boss of all the birds. He flys in to a group of pigoens on the grass and the pigeons all run away. The Crigeon is large and smart, he doesn't hop delicately he does the Easter bunny hop. You must think we are bird watchers.


We were enjoying ourself when a (I assume) homeless man sat on the next bench. He was talking loudly to himeslf and laughing(he was not on a hands free device). He unpacked his little sachel and there was a box of wine, some chips, some beer etc. As soon as we heard him talking to himself, Luke suggested we go. We did.

Actually we saw another guy 5 benches over and across from us, enjoying a beer. We didn't really notice him so much. Luke saw him drinking vodka out of a little 2 oz or so bottle. Then we saw him w/ a beer a bit later....then he got up to throw away his “lunch” and it was 6 bottles of beer and liquor. No wonder he looked haggard. Poor guy.

We went to go do the only other thing on our list for today, Tiergarten. Tiergarten is the equivalent to Central Park in NY. We didn't see much of it, but walked along the Berlin Zoo perimeter along a cobbled path. We had opportunity to look through the fence at the zoo animals. We saw cows, camels, rhino, goats etc. Then we arrived at our desination, a beer garden, Schleusen Krug.



We stopped in, were unsure as to the ordering process. We saw a menu and some beer, but the menu looked weird and incomplete. Then a bike tour group came through. We waited for them all to get through and order. We also learned from them that you order your beer at that counter or salads then you go in the beer garten futher and then you ordered your grill food down there. I got a beer .5 L. Luke got a beer, a Berliner Weiss that is served with a shot of syrup or shuss because it is a “young” beer and is still kind of sour.

We eventually got some food, even though we didn't really need any. Luke got 2 weiners on a bed of cold cous cous with a little salad of vinegar kraut and cucumber vinegar salad. Luke ordered me a ham meat loaf, vinegar kraut/cucumber salad. The total for the food was 12€. I wasn't that hungry, Luke finished my plate. Luke also finished his small beer, and we had enough Euro change to buy another .5 L beer to split. It was good enough.

We had a good time watching the little sparrows. They were trained sparrows, they would wait for people to leave their dishes and they would flock and clean up the leftover morsels. We baited some to come to the edge of our table. We put out cous cous for them. We also pushed our “done” dishes to the edge of the table and we got a few more. The sparrows are much better to have around then those darn pigeons, which I haven't seen so many of.

We walked back to the Zoo Station. And decided to get going home. It was about 1530. We arrived home and Luke bought some more beer at the little oriental food cafe right outside our door. He pays 1.50€ for each Berliner beer.

Luke was shopping while I wrote this. He bought some purple kraut in a jar, milk, some bread, Haribou gummy bears, yogurt, a cheap beer, Fanta, ham salad, and several goulash sauce mixes to take home.

I may be able to read my book a little before Mom and Dad get home. They fly out tomorrow. Luke and I have another quite quiet day tomorrow.

Luke made his dinner of Sauerbraten, red cabbage and buttered spaetzle, beef roast with cooked carrots. It was a slow cooked braised meat. Luke started it yesterday evening, letting it cook until we went to bed. Then it was warmed up for dinner. It was real tasty. Dad opened up a tall boy can of Danish lager, it was probably 500 ml. It was kind of strong, but pale and good enough. The spaezele was very good.

Mom and Dad are packing now. Luke is falling asleep in front of the TV.

April 17 Friday

Boy was I tired when I woke up this am. I had a fever in the night, I woke up FRIGID cold and cuddled up to luke and covered me with my and his duvet. I woke up later just soaked in sweat. My throat hurt so bad this morning, I could do little more than clear my throat.

We got ready pretty quick. Luke made an egg sandwich with swiss cheese and german senf (mustard). My hair went in a pony tail and we were off. It is cooler out today like mid 60s. Still nice, sunny.

We took the metro and went first to the Bergguen Museum which is a mostly Picasso. There were some tours of kids from school who were rowdy and couldn't care less. I found that I liked the pencil and pen drawings. Yes, we did see several portrait paintings of the divided faces and the eyes hanging off the face. I also liked some of his doodle pictures that were framed and on scratch paper.

We went through that museum very quickly and it was on our Museum card. Just across the courtyard is the Brohan museum which is devoted to art deco era furnishings, and tableware. It was also on the museum card, though we did have to pay 2 € for the special exhibit.

I really liked this museum. But then again, I love glass and dishes and silverware and pretty pieces of furniture. It was quiet, we could go though the lovely rooms at our own pace, not having to read or study, just enjoy. I was so glad we went.

We then took the bus/ subway to the Gemaldgalerie which holds paintings from 1400s -1900. We had trouble finding the entrance, we followed an American couple that was on our same bus. There were many religious pictures of course, some big names like Caravaggio, German Lucas Cranach, Durer, Rubens and Botticelli. We got a free audio guide so they meant a bit more to us. The museum was GIGANTIC though, so even walking quickly, it took an hour plus. We hurried. We even saw the American couple again as we exited.

Then we decided to quick head to the Jewish Museum across town. Luke wasn't too keen to go to this one. Especially since I vetoed him on the Bendlerblock exhibit/memorial.

I decided I needed to smooth out tensions so I offered Luke a Doner Kebab. He ate it and thought it was the perfect food. We sat on a bench in a courtyard with a defunct fountain.
We watched the dogs enjoy the little bits of green grass. We even splurged and bought a Coke Light. It tasted so good.

We walked by a Kaiser's store. It is a grocery chain. We stopped there later and bought some cheese (by the pound)- butter Kase. Delicious.


We did resist the temptation to buy a plastic bag that says Kaiser's.

We finally got to the Jewish museum. We went first to the special exhibit called deadly medicine. We didn't even have to pay for that. They talked about the forced sterilization of people in mental institutions and how eventually, children diagnosed with certain “hereditary” diseases like blindness, deafness, schizophrenia etc were “disinfected” and shipped away and killed. It was pretty tragic. It was interesting to see the propaganda “if we don't practice conscientious breeding all the population will be compromised” In some of the orphanages/hospitals the kids were starved to death as a common practice. In these exhibits they provided documentation in the form of nurses notes documenting the weight changes and the food rationing taking place.

We went through the rest of the fragmented museum very quickly. We only read the exhibits towards the end. Mom and Dad said is was so big it would take 4 hours to get through it reading everything. Plus, we were wiped out. So, we didn't' give this museum the attention it deserved. We got out of that museum at 5.30. We took the U6 all the way home with no changes.

At the store we saw a CUTE puppyish Jack russel tied up outside. Some kids tried to pet her and she didn't quite trust them, they got closer to her and I thought she was going to nip. They eventually left her alone. Luke wanted to pet her. We have seen all manner of little dogs and big dogs. Many of the dogs on the street are NOT on leashes. Many seem to be scruffy and woolly looking, lots of karin terriers.

All the German people have been kind to us. Even the people in the museums. In many other cities the attendants get harded because of all the tourist traffic. We haven't felt scared or like I needed to hold onto my purse or putting it in front of me other than when we are in a really tight location.

We see people drinking beer all over in the street. Not really drunks but just drinking beer.

Luke made creamed leeks and little pizzas w/ cheese and sausages. I got chicken noodle soup. We also had some strawberries on the table. For appetizer dad made a cheese plate and liverpate' on pieces of bread. We are drinking ultra high temp pasteurized milk from a box that doesn't need to be stored refrigerated. It is quite yummy and reasonable.

Luke drank two 0.5L beers this evening. I am going to let him add the pictures to the blog. That is all I know for now.

Only going to bed early is on my list. Tomorrow should be a more quiet day for us. Maybe we'll get to sleep in. ljf

April 16 Thursday

April 16 Thursday

We set alarm for 6 am. Dang. To set it all off I am getting sick. I haven't been sick all winter, and I get a good cold now. We eat a quick breakfast, hop the tram (which we learned is closer, quicker, more convenient and direct than the metro). To the central station to pick up the bus to the Airport. We rented a car for the day to go to see some Martin Luther sites in Wittenburg.

We checked in with no difficulties, got the car, plugged in the tom tom and got going. Luke made it look so easy driving in Berlin. It took us like 1 hour 15 min or so to get to Wittenburg. There was no speed limit in many areas on the interstate. Luke kept up with most of the traffic. Some people screamed past us in the L lane. The L lane is only to be used BRIEFLY while passing. The center lane is the fast lane and the R lane is the slow lane. If you are in the middle lane and think you can just blend in w/ traffic you are wrong. Luke finally figured it out after the screamers almost rear ended him a time or two because they were going so much faster than we were.

We arrived to Wittenburg, found a pay parking spot for all day. It took us a bit to get ourselves acquainted in this town of 20,000. We found the Castle Church where he nailed the 95 thesis and where he is buried. It is a big cold gothic style church. We then hiked a bit to the City church where he did most of his routine preaching.

We tried to go look at the Lucas Cranach museum. We went in to look at the gift shop. We were unsure if the museum was free or not. We looked for signs. We did go look in to the exhibit area, we were pretty sure going in the wrong direction. The gift shop lady called someone who spoke English to tell us that we had to pay admission to see the exhibit. We decided we didn't really want to go see the exhibit. I felt bad. We said we were sorry but I don't kow if it translated. OH well.

We carried on looking at the MANY cute little shops. Lots of shoe stores, some gifty type, souvenirs, antique, military, chocolate, drugstore etc. We stopped in many of them but bought nothing. There were LOTS of restaruants with street seating. They looked touristy but we kept going. The pace here is pretty nice. Not too many tourists, the weather was awesome again. It is supposed to be cooler tomorrow.

Mom, Dad, Luke and I next arrived at Lutherhaus. It is a gigantic high quality museum it cost 4€. It was a quality museum for that price. There were tons of all kinds of first edition Gutenberg press books with Luther's messages in them. We saw the original bible that he translated into German. He thought that religion was to be given to the people and not be held by the bishops or through sale of indulgences. It was really a very nicely done museum. We got to see also the hermetically sealed library with all kinds of original old books. It reminded me of the Vatican archives in the book Angels and Demons. NEAT!

Well after we were done with that we decided to head in the general direction of the car and get something to eat as we were fricken starving. We found this place called the City Buffetiria. Mom and dad had the special. They had schnitzel with croquettes and gigantic blond asparagus and a little green salad. Mom and I had a cup of Swiss cheese soup. It was FANTASTIC. Not like anything I have ever had before, there were little pieces of dill and shredded carrot, leeks, a few mushrooms and 2little sausage meatballs. I had a fillet of port covered with onions and bacon, a side salad, french fries and little hot dog octopus. The wiener ends were sliced and flayed to look like an octopus, it was an interesting garnish trick. I also had some cabbage on the side. It was pretty good. Luke had a beef roulade with cabbage in the center, potato dumplings, gravy, a little salad, he also had an app of currywurst. It was ketchup w/ curry powder sprinkled on top. Oh well. See the pictures.

We had beer which we enjoyed. We spend 50 for 4 people with 3 apps, 4 entrees, 3 beers.

We walked back slowly toward the car. Mom has a blister on the bottom of her foot. She didn't complain a lick about it. Poor mom. It must hurt terrible.

We got to the car with 30 minutes left on the meter, by this time we spent maybe 6 hours in Wittenburg. On the way out we saw a big grocery store that was easy to get to. Luke and I bought some meat and other stuff, were going to check out, (we had run out of euro cash) were going to use our card, they didn't take visa, we tried to use MasterCard, (they had maestro not MasterCard) and it didn't work. So we had to quick holler to dad who has TONS of cash to bail us out. Thankfully it was a nice round number of about 50€. We still felt bad there were people in line behind us.

Luke is so good at spouting out the I'm sorrys and the excuse me and how much is it in German. He is the winner.

We drove back to Berlin with no trouble. Got to the airport, found gas station filled her up. Dropped it off, our bus was waiting for us, even after mom and dad had to buy a ticket. Then we got of at central station, and our connecting bus was waiting for us as well! We ran for it with our grocery bags and we made it and even had spots to sit down. Dad ran and turned on the afterburners. Man he can move when he has to. Luke and I started jogging first toward the bus, then mom and dad began to run, next thing I know dad is in FRONT of Luke and I and hopping on the bus. The tram dropped us off right in front of our door. I guess it worked out well to figure out the trams.

We are at home now, Dad is in bed, Luke is in the shower. Luke informed me that tomorrow will be another big museum day as it is the last day of the museum pass. We'll run our buns off.

I took some benadryl so I should be able to breathe tonight and I am going to bed now. I'll post pictures at a later date. Sorry. We have some good ones too. We are doing well.

April 15, Wednesday

April 15 Wednesday

(please excuse typos and grammatical errors, I have not proofread this)

Luke and I slept very soundly. We had the windows open in the apartment during the night. The bed was adequate and quite comfortable, pillows too. They didn't even reek. Moms mattress was too thin, she felt the slats under her mattress. Just like princess and the pea. She drug her mattress off and laid it on the couch. She slept well, apparently after that.

We woke at 7. The cell phone alarm woke us up, I thought it was the landlord calling. I heard it through my earplugs.

We ate a cold breakfast of muslix with yogurt, juice, cheese, toast. It was quick and delicious. Luke and I volunteered to take the phone and deal w/ any problems if they arose from the landlord. Thankfully, they didn't.

The weather is absolutely gorgeous. It is sunny and warm and cooler in the shade. LOVELY.

We first walked to the Pergamon museum. This was a nicely put together museum that focused on Greek statues and art. They had some Greek vases and jewelry, some glass and mosaic pieces (that I love). But, most notably there was the Ishtar gate, the Pergamon alter and the turkish market. The pergamon altar was not merely an altar. It was an arcade of columns 100 or so life size statues between those columns. It almost reminded me of the exterior of the Vatican. Apparently this giant 'altar' was discovered buried and intact. It was extracted and brought to Berlin in the early 1900s. How sad. Isn't it wonderful that archaeologists don't pilfer anymore, but study,

Also there was an equally wonderful Turkish market scene. It was grand and had taller columns. I took some pictures here as well. Then we walked through to the Ishtar gate. This is a striking blue ceramic facade of a....castle if you will. The blue walls with lions in relief. It was really something. Dark cobalt blue.

On our way outside of the Pergamon museum we saw a pretzel stand. We bought a giant bready pretzel for 2.20. It was the salt variety. It was good. We also saw a lady with her 2 furry dogs.

They were so cute, they looked like little wolves and ragamuffins! They walked so close together they looked like the two headed wolfhounds in the HarryPotter movies. I got to pet one of them. They were so woolly and scroungy looking. It looked like they hadn't had a bath in 6months. They were so cute though. I wonder if they were Jack Russells and Wolfhound.

We then went to the Altes Museum which was also on our museum card. Of interest we saw Nefertiti,

we almost walked right past her. It was interesting, I assumed she'd be a little bit bigger. The rest was similar to the statues in the Pergamondestroyed them. So, now to keep them from corrosion they are stored in a chamber with argon gas. museum. Of interest, they did have a few exhibits that discussed preservation of artifacts. For instance they acquired lead jewelry of Egyptian times. It melted (for lack of a better term) when placed in an oak cabinet. The acids from the wood leeched into the artifacts and

The courtyard outside the Altesexpense. There were sunbathers out at noon. museum was very pretty, green grass across a great

We were very close to the DDR museum. This was a fun hands on museum that was small but very well done. It was about 5€ a piece. We saw fashion of the time, what the prefab homes looked like, how they shopped, music they listened to all that kind of stuff that was a day in the life behind the wall.

We then hiked over to AlexanderplatzAlexanderplatz and we walked right by the food court area. It smelled so good. The only thing getting us by was the knowledge that we were on our way to a planned restaurant. for the only let down of the day. The world clock. I didn't even take a picture of it. That also was smaller than I expected. There is this GIANT mall around

We went to Zur Letzen Instanz. We had to go one metro stop from Alexanderplatz. We got off the metro and NOBODY got off with out us. There were only 2 other people in the entire station. Couldn't believe it. It echoed it was so empty. It was a big station too. Well, we walked less than a block and saw the restaurant. It was only about 2pm at this time (which is a miracle in itself to have gotten the 3 museums done from 1030-1400). We wanted to eat outside as they had a lovely quaint dining area that was PERFECTLY shaded by this one tree. That tree was worth a million bucks. The leaves hadn't been out of their bud for but a week.

We ordered two ½ L beers. We also ordered 1.) thin sliced potatoes, creamed cheese, wrapped with leeks, a tangy onion slice side sauce, 2.) Berlin style meatball (pattied more than round) served with bacon fried potatoes, a few baby green beans and broiled cauliflower, broiled tomatoes, a big sprig of parsley for garnish and a beef demi glace 3.) Pork shank with potato dumplings in sauce with a side of red tangy cabbage sauerkraut. It was delicious. Luke said he was so satisfied. He said this was the best part of his trip.

We also enjoyed watching a little neighbor dog. He was outside peeing w/ his master. The dog was like a Chihuahua and a Pomeranian. He had these fluffy back legs. Luke called them pantaloons. The fur actually flowed behind him when he walked. They were like pantaloons. He was cute.

We got the check which was 48€, gave the waitress a healthy tip. We ended up splitting a final beer. So three beers and 3 entrees. The outdoor dining was priceless, no bugs not too windy, not cold nor hot. PERFECT!

We took the subway home with 2 transfers. We are now waiting at the apartment for mom and dad. We said we'd be home at 4pm. Someone has to be home at a certain time so the others can be let in.

Luke also took the opportunity to defrost the fridge. He thinks it will keep our stuff cooler that way.

I am finished blogging for the moment. We'll see if Paul will meet us today or not.

Paul eventually met us, hooked us up with the Internet and dropped the “this apartment has no laundry facility” bomb on us. Mom and dad were at their limit of wearing “dirty”clothes. So we had to hike to a laundromat. Paul gave us directions with the wrong tram line. So it took us a while w/ our rolling suitcase to find exactly where it was. We were unsure which line to take for about 30 minutes. We eventually found the tram line and the laundromat.

We spent about 15€ to wash about 3 loads and nearly completely dry our clothes. It took at least an hour. There was a really nice attendant there who ran the adjacent coffee shop. We had some coffee, Mom had a beer, Luke and I shared an XXL Macchiato. Then we went for a little walk to explore the area. We found a club that was playing live heavy rock music

April 14, Tuesday

April 14 Tuesday


We were able to sleep well on our futon...until 4am. Luke woke up and couldn't sleep, he tried to read a little bit, but I woke up and we talked a little bit, then fell asleep and slept in until 0900!!! Wow. That surprised us.
We woke up and Luke made a breakfast of fried potatoes, eggs and toast. He also made some espresso, dad sliced some cheese and apples. Yummy. I took the opportunity to wash the duvet on our bed. It was REALLY REALLY REALLY stinky. I couldn't stand it- even after tons of febreeze. We washed it in the washer in the basement and hung it to dry on the towel warmer.
Luke and I took off at about 1100. First we went to Checkpoint Charlie museum. It cost about €12 for each ticket. The museum was kind of jumbled together. It was aged and sprawling. We did enjoy the second level, it was better put together, but just as jumbled. They had lots of examples of art with the wall as the subject. Much of it looked like 8Th grade art class. It took us a while to get through it.
Then we walked over to the topography of terror. That is an outdoor exhibit with posters of pictures and very well written text about WW2. What I enjoyed were the vivid black and white pictures. Man, those Nazis sure did know how to take a good photo. They sure liked their lines. There is one pic I remember in specific where there were thousands of soldiers in lines, they were carrying Nazi emblems on tall sticks. The lines were so straight, the picture so clear you could read what was written on the signs. I saw a description that said that propaganda pictures were often posed. I was not surprised. The exhibit was outdoors in the open space where the Chancellery was. The sun was out and warming us, the slight breeze cooling us. Perfect day.
We then walked a bit to the memorial to the murdered Jews. The memorial is thousands of concrete rectangular blocks of varying heights. They look eerily like coffins.

We also saw the site of Hitler's bunker. The site is now a parking lot and a sign with a map of the former bunker and some dates and facts.
We then walked to the Brandenburg gate again. Luke read some text from the book and narrated a bit about the gate. We saw a bike shaped like an octopus. The main guide was “driving” the bike and there were 4 or 5 other people peddling a bike around in a circle. They were all contributing to the work of the bike. I also saw a guide with a couple on segways. They looked like they were having fun. I told Luke that was my kind of tour. For lazy Americans too tired to walk.

We looked at this special DZ bank that was designed by a famous architect. The building was glass and the interior was a an architectural piece of art. It served NO functional purpose other than to look at. It was big and interesting but we couldn't get very close to it as it was gated.
Then we headed towards the subway and headed home. We stopped at a few outdoor restaurants and read the menus. Then we saw dad from a distance. He was literally pacing in front of our apartment. Apparently our apartment owner had changed apartments on us. Dad was there to direct us to the new place.
Mom and Dad got called soon after they left for the day and were notified that we needed to switch apartments today. So they hiked back to the apartment and packed up all our stuff and moved it to this apartment. So, they lost their whole day of sightseeing. I felt bad. I still feel bad.
We got to the new apartment, sat on the couch, got the whole story from mom and drank a tall bottle of beer between the three of us. We each mooked out of the bottle and passed it around like high schoolers. It was good enough.

Luke made an easy meal of spaghetti with red sauce and brats, sliced bread. We had juice and coffee.
We made the decision to go out again tonight after dinner. I am pretty tired. We went to the Reichstag. We waited in line for 40 minutes at least, once we got in to the building we went through security, then up the elevator, then up the ramp to the very tip top of the mirrored dome. Luke decided not to take any pictures even though I expressly asked him to.
We scooted home and are now eating liverwurst on bread, red wine (from a bottle), chips and cheese. Yummy. Hopefully we will be able to get to bed asap. I am trying to get Luke to finalize the itinerary.
Our apartment sleeps 8. 6 in one bedroom and 2 on the couch. We will be sharing a room w/ mom and dad. We'll have to get out the ear plugs because m/d SNORE.

April 13 Monday Berlin Journal Day 1

April 13 Monday

We almost missed the flight out of Mnpls. We stopped for a bite to eat in the airport. That is the first time ever, mind you that we have “caved” into eating in the airport. We arrived to our gate, I went to the bathroom and when I came out Luke was standing at the gate. They gave the final call, if we don't get on, they'll off load our luggage! Crap! We just made it. ~

The plane food was OK. We flew from Rochester to Mnpls (28 min flight), then ~2 hour layover, Mnpls to Amsterdam(7hr 30 min flight) then~2 hour layover, then AMS to Berlin which was a 1 hour flight. We finally got our luggage and saw Rodger and Beth waiting for us.

At this time it was midmorning in Berlin. It was about 3 am for us with no sleep. We weren't in terrible shape, but we were crabby and eager to get to our apartment and relax.

Mother and Father helped us quickly get a bus ticket to take us to city center. We didn't get it fast enough and had to wait for the next one. The bus was a nice one, the tickets were €2.10 each. We stood with our luggage and it was maybe a 15-20 min. ride. It is a blessing to have our smaller suitcases for this trip.

Once off the bus we could see the Brandenburg gate and the Hotel Adlon (where Michael Jackson famously dangled his baby from the balcony). We walked to the information center at the base of Brandenburg gate and purchased our 3 day museum card for 18€ each. Mother took our picture and then I insisted we be off to the apt. We walked for a few minutes, made a few twists and turns.

I like our neighborhood. It is so very very local Berlin. There are a few coffee shops immediately outside our front door, some restaurants with outdoor seating, and even a Jewish bakery (which is closed as it is Easter Monday and Passover as well). It is spring in Berlin. The trees are just budding and have little green leaves all over the trees. The tulips are at their full height and bloom. The grass is green, the sun is out and the breeze is cool.

I have also noticed that Berlin drivers are a more courteous lot than many other European cities.

So, we arrive to the apartment which is hidden in plain sight. The building has no numbers on it's side to note address. It only has #2 written in permanent marker on the buzzer pad by the building front door.

We are on the 1^st floor, the building itself is beautiful. There is wide honey colored wood planked floors. It looks like it could be in a Minnesota cabin it is so pretty. There are jute hallway runners tacked down in the public stairwells. The stairs and railings are beautiful as well. I almost thought it was worth a picture. Maybe I'll have to take one.

Our apartment is a one bedroom. Mom and Dad took the bedroom as they should, but that left Luke and I the futon. We usually take special care to AVOID apts with only 1 bedroom, but due to special circumstances this apartment is better than no apartment. Much better.

We got acquainted with the apt, put some of our stuff away, found a home for our suitcases (in the living room mind you). And had a quick lunch as Mom and Dad were hungry. I got our bedding squared away so Luke and I could take a nap. The pillows are shaped weird. They are longer and narrower than the pillows on our bed in the US. I was kind of disappointed that the duvet and the sheets were all just tossed in the linen closet. I scrutinized VERY VERY closely to verify that they had been recently laundered or at least not DIRTY. The duvets are stinky and they are being aired out of the window as we speak. Mom said she had febreeze in her bag. I thought I found it, sprayed the duvets- then I found the real febreeze. I think I sprayed the blankets with leave in conditioner. Oh well.

Luke and I laid down in the living room while mom and dad got their stuff together to go see a few more sites while we slept. I remember being annoyed that they were making so much noise, but we didn't hear them leave, so we must have crashed pretty quickly.

We slept 3 hours and woke before the alarm went off. That is a miracle in itself. It is so hard to sleep just a bit when you are so damned tired. We only have 1 set of keys for the moment so I let Luke go to the grocery store while I wait here to let him back in. Luke LOVES going to the grocery stores in foreign countries. He will no doubt come back with some interesting things as I am not there to remind him of reason. I saw he has a recipe for braised beef brisket up on the computer.

Our kitchen is a kitchenette. But, for one of the FIRST times in our European travels- we. Have. An. Oven. What a blessing. That will open up our food possibilities beyond anything we've eaten so far.

Just moments after Luke left, I hear my dad calling my name from the street. Then immediately after, I hear my mom shush him. I come to the window quick, but not quick enough as he calls out my name again. Embarrassment never ends, even when you grow up.

I am surprised they didn't run into Luke on the street. They came up and talked a bit- then they are going to go grocery shopping as well. I think they'll travel a bit farther to go to a bigger grocery store- a “super” market. We'll see what treats they come home with.

That leaves me here to wait for Luke's return, clean up the kitchen a bit, and maybe read if I can keep my eyes open. I'll proofread and post this so you all have something to read.

Luke made potato soup w/ onion and fresh potato with the secret ingredient of a dry alfredo sauce packet. Luke also made like a rice a roni. They tried to go grocery shopping but the places close by were closed.

After dinner we brought two 7 day tickets were €21 each. We paid cash from a machine. Then we headed to do a cursory visit of checkpoint charlie and potsdamer platz and the Sony Center. We took a few pictures of the big canapoy. It looked like times square or freemont street in Vegas.

We stopped in a little mall on Friedrichstrasse metro area and mom and dad each had nutella /banana crepes.

We stopped for groceries at a place that WAS open. We can't remember the name of the place. We bought all manner of groceries. Some fruit, carrots, lots of yogurt, milk, bread, weiners, potted meat, tomato sauce, cheese, paprika potato chips, spetzele, dishwasher soap, remoulade, curry ketchup, .99€ german white wine in a box. We actually just opened and finished the white wine w/ in 30 min between the 4 of us. It was delicious. Dad has tried to pour out of the empty box several times in attempt to fill his glass again.

We've gone over our itinerary to see who is doing what tomorrow. Luke and I get to sleep on the futon tonight and we'll see how great it is.

Tomorrow the real sightseeing begins.