Transportation: You can get virtually anywhere on public transportation. Trains, subways, trams, buses. We were really impressed by their mass transit system from city to city.
Gas Mileage: Considering we were driving a large E-Class Mercedes both on the autobahn and in the city, and mostly at high speeds we managed to get about 30mpg, and that is at an average speed over 110mph! Why haven't we managed this in the USA?
Dogs: Dogs everywhere and they are not treated as 2nd class citizens! We saw people with their dogs in the airport, train stations, stores, restaurants, and in the subways. Never did we see a mess in any of these places, but watch out for the Munchen sidewalks! Perhaps a "Doogie Poop" bag company needs to be set up there.
Environmentally: We saw solar panels and wind farms almost everywhere we went. They also are very big on recycling their trash, but I was amazed that they don't recycle metal/aluminium.
Clean: Germany is a clean country, we didn't see trash in most places. No cars parked on the side of the highways. The only exception to this is what we saw in Nurnberg which I hope was just a fluke!
Electricity: They run on 220 volt which seemed far superior to our 110 volt. Things worked faster. The stove, coffee pot, hair dryer, all of it. In addition, they conserve their electricity, with motion detector light switches. In all places we stayed, lights would come in when you enter a space, and go out when you left. I really like that idea! Of course you could override it if needed. In Amsterdam you had to put your electronic room key in a slot for your power to stay on in your room.
Breakfast in Bavaria: A typical Bavaria breakfast consist of weisswurst and a beer! On our walking tour of Munchen we saw many people having this and it wasn't the tourist. To us though it just seemed just a bit much and a bit early, perhaps next time!
Commercials: Never did we see a commercial or a billboard advertizing for an attorney or a new drug! Mark and I hate that!
Homeless People: We probably saw 2 or 3 the whole time we were in Germany. I'm not saying there aren't homeless people but they aren't very visible if they are there.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Friday, June 27, 2008
Funny Things........
Hey Everyone,
Well, we have finally managed to readjust to life back home. It took 4 days to get back on my feet and not feel run down. We had a great time on our vacation and wanted to share some of our funny situations with you.
Amsterdam:
Well, if we go back we will certainly not stay directly in the middle of party town! When we arrived we were both pretty worn out (he slept, I didn't!) and we took the train from the Schipol directly into the city. The hotel had told us that they were not far from the station but Mark wanted to stop and get a 3 day pass. We were directed over to the machines that issue tickets but it wouldn't take our credit card. (the Dutch machines don't take American credit cards!) Mark tried 3 or 4 times and being tired was a little annoyed. So.....we started out for our hotel. Mark wanted to know exactly where it was and I just wanted to walk and find it. Meantime he's being stalked by a pick-pocket, so I just turned around and looked him in the eye and he went the other direction. We ended up asking some construction people and they pointed us in the direction. Off we went and we thought we found the street but no hotel. We went further and found another street with a name very simular but not quite right. Third time was a charm. Seems all the streets running parallel have the same name with small derivations! Checking in the clerk told Mark that he did have a non-smoking room available at this time (it was 7:45a) but it was few euros more. Mark didn't understand one word he said, he was so tired that I had to explain it to him a couple of times and of course we got the room. We did the right thing and stayed up and decided to see some sites! Funny how sun light and coffee can keep you up!
Amsterdam to Deutschland:
No problem getting our tickets stamped and all that, but 10 minutes out of Amsterdam the PA came on and announced that there was a problem with the train and may have to go back to the station. We did proceed and made it into Deutschland and made an unscheduled stop at Koln. Everybody off the train and it seems that each car had it's own crowd. Now...our crowd was definitely upper middle aged and they were rather jolly all talking together. When the new train came, it was like out of the movie "It's a Mad Mad Mad World", everyone stopped and looked at each other and ran for the same car! Each one of us ended up in the very same seat we had before we changed trains. And everyone had luggage. I have to give those old people credit!
Deutschland:
Munchen Tag Zwei:
Today is the day we toured Dachau and it is Sunday. We made it back to the apartment no problem but we had to pick up something to eat so we went up the street to a restaurant recommended by our lodging. I went and sat at a table while Mark waited in line to order. Seems no one is sitting down at the tables.....so I decided to go back up and wait in line with Mark. Finally made it up to the counter to order the meal, and little did we know we were meeting the "Chicken Nazi"! Mark asked about a table and he said, Nein Sitzen - order out only-take and go! Perhaps he did not like working on Sunday, I don't know. I'll never forget that scoul on his face! Needless to say we felt like Jerry and Elaine out of the Seinfeld episode. Too bad we didn't have an amoire with recipes in it, Next! We made it back to our apartment and sat down to eat and decided to turn on the radio. Well you'll never guess what piece of music was on but, the score from the miniseries "The Winds of War". Mark and I just looked at each other. What a day; Dachau, the "Chicken Nazi", and end it all with music from the "Winds of War" miniseries! Sort of twilight zonish, huh?
Munchen Tag Funf:
OK girls, one for us. Last night I was feeling a bit uncomfortable and woke up this morning feeling a need for something from the Apoteke (Pharmacy). Mark was up earlier than I and wanted to go to the U-bahn station and buy another pass and pick up something from the bakery. Well I asked him to pick up some medicine for me. WRONG! He looked up the word and when he went to the Apoteke, used this word in describing my situation. Unfortunately, this is not the word they use for it in Germany. When the girls behind the counter figured out what I needed there was some laughing because the word "Pilz" (mushroom) had come into conversation somewhere and there was quite a bit of gesturing! Needless to say, I became the "Mushroom Woman" for a day.........:-()
Berlin Tag Zwolf:
You have to give my husband credit, when he needs to find something he will! He went out the day I was ill and had to go to the bank. The first bank he went to did not have a Teller machine so they sent him down the street, then right, then left. Of course Mark went where he thought they said and could not find a machine. Turns out there was a bank directly across the street from where he had been and they had a lobby with Teller machines! Who says the Germans don't have a sense of humor? I bet they watched him till he was out of site.....and laughed!
Berlin Tag Viersehn:
When touring the Flak towers our guide was giving us all measurements in meters. He must of saw a puzzled look on my face because he stopped and asked, "Is there anyone here in a country that still uses the old Imperial Units? If so please petition your government to update your system with the rest of the world"! He broke things down though but I believe he's probably right!
Berlin Tag Funfsehn:
Oh my god....it's the "Pergamon Polizei"! I swear the staff at that museum were just the worst.....and not too polite about it. God forbid you put your ass somewhere it should not be, "Sitzen sie nicht!". And I think he followed us through all the exhibitions as Mark and I saw him almost the whole time! We just clicked away on the camera (Nein flash) and saw what we wanted to. When we got out we just laughed!!
The whole trip:
Throughout the whole trip we evidentally passed as Germans, which we both considered a good thing. It seemed like everywhere we went people were asking us for directions! We parked our Mercedes in Fussen and got out and walked down the street only to be asked for directions twice from people pulling up in their cars. And it always seems to be Germans looking to find the way.
Well, we have finally managed to readjust to life back home. It took 4 days to get back on my feet and not feel run down. We had a great time on our vacation and wanted to share some of our funny situations with you.
Amsterdam:
Well, if we go back we will certainly not stay directly in the middle of party town! When we arrived we were both pretty worn out (he slept, I didn't!) and we took the train from the Schipol directly into the city. The hotel had told us that they were not far from the station but Mark wanted to stop and get a 3 day pass. We were directed over to the machines that issue tickets but it wouldn't take our credit card. (the Dutch machines don't take American credit cards!) Mark tried 3 or 4 times and being tired was a little annoyed. So.....we started out for our hotel. Mark wanted to know exactly where it was and I just wanted to walk and find it. Meantime he's being stalked by a pick-pocket, so I just turned around and looked him in the eye and he went the other direction. We ended up asking some construction people and they pointed us in the direction. Off we went and we thought we found the street but no hotel. We went further and found another street with a name very simular but not quite right. Third time was a charm. Seems all the streets running parallel have the same name with small derivations! Checking in the clerk told Mark that he did have a non-smoking room available at this time (it was 7:45a) but it was few euros more. Mark didn't understand one word he said, he was so tired that I had to explain it to him a couple of times and of course we got the room. We did the right thing and stayed up and decided to see some sites! Funny how sun light and coffee can keep you up!
Amsterdam to Deutschland:
No problem getting our tickets stamped and all that, but 10 minutes out of Amsterdam the PA came on and announced that there was a problem with the train and may have to go back to the station. We did proceed and made it into Deutschland and made an unscheduled stop at Koln. Everybody off the train and it seems that each car had it's own crowd. Now...our crowd was definitely upper middle aged and they were rather jolly all talking together. When the new train came, it was like out of the movie "It's a Mad Mad Mad World", everyone stopped and looked at each other and ran for the same car! Each one of us ended up in the very same seat we had before we changed trains. And everyone had luggage. I have to give those old people credit!
Deutschland:
Munchen Tag Zwei:
Today is the day we toured Dachau and it is Sunday. We made it back to the apartment no problem but we had to pick up something to eat so we went up the street to a restaurant recommended by our lodging. I went and sat at a table while Mark waited in line to order. Seems no one is sitting down at the tables.....so I decided to go back up and wait in line with Mark. Finally made it up to the counter to order the meal, and little did we know we were meeting the "Chicken Nazi"! Mark asked about a table and he said, Nein Sitzen - order out only-take and go! Perhaps he did not like working on Sunday, I don't know. I'll never forget that scoul on his face! Needless to say we felt like Jerry and Elaine out of the Seinfeld episode. Too bad we didn't have an amoire with recipes in it, Next! We made it back to our apartment and sat down to eat and decided to turn on the radio. Well you'll never guess what piece of music was on but, the score from the miniseries "The Winds of War". Mark and I just looked at each other. What a day; Dachau, the "Chicken Nazi", and end it all with music from the "Winds of War" miniseries! Sort of twilight zonish, huh?
Munchen Tag Funf:
OK girls, one for us. Last night I was feeling a bit uncomfortable and woke up this morning feeling a need for something from the Apoteke (Pharmacy). Mark was up earlier than I and wanted to go to the U-bahn station and buy another pass and pick up something from the bakery. Well I asked him to pick up some medicine for me. WRONG! He looked up the word and when he went to the Apoteke, used this word in describing my situation. Unfortunately, this is not the word they use for it in Germany. When the girls behind the counter figured out what I needed there was some laughing because the word "Pilz" (mushroom) had come into conversation somewhere and there was quite a bit of gesturing! Needless to say, I became the "Mushroom Woman" for a day.........:-()
Berlin Tag Zwolf:
You have to give my husband credit, when he needs to find something he will! He went out the day I was ill and had to go to the bank. The first bank he went to did not have a Teller machine so they sent him down the street, then right, then left. Of course Mark went where he thought they said and could not find a machine. Turns out there was a bank directly across the street from where he had been and they had a lobby with Teller machines! Who says the Germans don't have a sense of humor? I bet they watched him till he was out of site.....and laughed!
Berlin Tag Viersehn:
When touring the Flak towers our guide was giving us all measurements in meters. He must of saw a puzzled look on my face because he stopped and asked, "Is there anyone here in a country that still uses the old Imperial Units? If so please petition your government to update your system with the rest of the world"! He broke things down though but I believe he's probably right!
Berlin Tag Funfsehn:
Oh my god....it's the "Pergamon Polizei"! I swear the staff at that museum were just the worst.....and not too polite about it. God forbid you put your ass somewhere it should not be, "Sitzen sie nicht!". And I think he followed us through all the exhibitions as Mark and I saw him almost the whole time! We just clicked away on the camera (Nein flash) and saw what we wanted to. When we got out we just laughed!!
The whole trip:
Throughout the whole trip we evidentally passed as Germans, which we both considered a good thing. It seemed like everywhere we went people were asking us for directions! We parked our Mercedes in Fussen and got out and walked down the street only to be asked for directions twice from people pulling up in their cars. And it always seems to be Germans looking to find the way.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Germany to the USA!
Travel today, we are on our way back home. We are scheduled to catch a flight at 11:40a and have arranged through the office to have a taxi meet us downstairs at 8:30a. We cleaned up the unit and made sure that all our stuff was packed. At 8:20a, we closed up and went downstairs and good thing! Five minutes later a taxi pulled up and whisked us off to Tegel airport. Our taxi driver is saving for a trip to the USA, funny how we each save for a trip to see each others country. He will be going to the west coast, and then to Miami. The ride to the airport was actually quite short and traffic was not too bad so we got there quite early. We found the customs, then over to the "Tax Free" to get our tax refund You have to have in hand what you bought and he asked to see the handbag and I took it off my shoulder and placed it on the counter. Next time, it needs to be in the package but he let it go. Security and Customs at Tegel were very good with one at each gate. I walked right by the Zoll counter (Customs) and then realized and came back (he was waiting for me!) and handed my passport and ticket over. No problem and this time my passport didn't have wings! We boarded the plane and had some champagne while the rest got on board. We had a great flight and the food was very good. Seems like the flight back was easier than the flight over.
We got into JFK on time and headed for the Crown Room. A gentleman that got off the plane came up to us speaking in German. Evidentally we pass for Germans as this is not the first time! Anyway, he had some time before his flight and wondered should he go out of the airport to eat or was there something good here. We explained that if he went out of the airport that he would have to go back through security to get back in so staying in the airport would probably be best. On to the Crown Room where we relaxed for about an hour and then we headed for our gate. It was a mad house at the gate! They called for zone 1, the scanner machine wouldn't work so they took tickets by hand. People from all zones were trying to board and the Gate agent finally got on the intercom and came down on the crowd. We finally got on board, managed to get a bloody mary and sat in to relax. JFK around 5p is a nightmare! We sat on the runway for over an hour waiting to take off which made our flight an hour late getting into Atlanta and that was already with an extra hour allowed in our flightplan! When we hit the runway people in coach actually stood up and started getting things out of the overhead bins before the seatbelt signs went off. The head flight attendant became quite cross and finally got everyone back in their seat. When we finally pulled up to the gate it was like a herd of people from coach rushed up to the door. Mark and I had been in transit by this time for over 14 hours so I said the hell with it let's get up and go. I have to say the flight from NYC to Atlanta was nicht gut, we had quite a bit of turbulance, rude passengers that didn't obey basic flight rules. We were finally glad to be back and going home after such a long day!
We got into JFK on time and headed for the Crown Room. A gentleman that got off the plane came up to us speaking in German. Evidentally we pass for Germans as this is not the first time! Anyway, he had some time before his flight and wondered should he go out of the airport to eat or was there something good here. We explained that if he went out of the airport that he would have to go back through security to get back in so staying in the airport would probably be best. On to the Crown Room where we relaxed for about an hour and then we headed for our gate. It was a mad house at the gate! They called for zone 1, the scanner machine wouldn't work so they took tickets by hand. People from all zones were trying to board and the Gate agent finally got on the intercom and came down on the crowd. We finally got on board, managed to get a bloody mary and sat in to relax. JFK around 5p is a nightmare! We sat on the runway for over an hour waiting to take off which made our flight an hour late getting into Atlanta and that was already with an extra hour allowed in our flightplan! When we hit the runway people in coach actually stood up and started getting things out of the overhead bins before the seatbelt signs went off. The head flight attendant became quite cross and finally got everyone back in their seat. When we finally pulled up to the gate it was like a herd of people from coach rushed up to the door. Mark and I had been in transit by this time for over 14 hours so I said the hell with it let's get up and go. I have to say the flight from NYC to Atlanta was nicht gut, we had quite a bit of turbulance, rude passengers that didn't obey basic flight rules. We were finally glad to be back and going home after such a long day!
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Berlin Tag Siebzehn
Third Reich eagles at Tempelhof
Your's truly at Tempelhof
Tempelhof main lobby
Tempelhof main building
MohrenStrasse U-Bahn station
Propaganda Ministry building
Speer's street lights
A Stumbling stone
MohrenStrasse U-Bahn station
Propaganda Ministry building
Speer's street lights
A Stumbling stone
Hello Everyone from Heis Berlin!
It's over 90 degrees here today, and without air conditioning you definitely know it! We did some exploring today to check out a few things that we had not seen yet, and there is so much more to see!!!
First off, we took the U-Bahn to Tempelhof airport. I really wanted to see this airfield as I believe that the city of Berlin plans on closing it down in October, but they do plan on preserving the buildings. What they are going to do with it I have no idea! The U-Bahn delivered us directly to it and we took a few pictures looked around and then off to our next stop.
Now we are off to Mohrenstrasse U-Bahn station to see some of the red marble that was taken from Hitler's Chancellery. It's on the walls and floors, very beautiful! Just down the street we had missed the "Propaganda Ministry" of Dr. Goebbels. No plaque to note the place, just the building. We felt there should be a plaque to honor the people that he inspired such hatred towards.
Off to catch the 100 bus, we saw it getting ready to turn the corner and Mark waved at the bus driver but he pointed towards a stop....behind him. We started towards the stop and he threw his hands up in the air and opened the door and beckoned us to come in, Vielen Dank! We were off to find Albert Speer's lamp posts on the Unter Den Linden which is now the 17 Juni Strasse. We had to walk quite a while till we came upon them, we almost gave up! Took some pictures and then off to the S-Bahn. We got off the train at the main Bahnhof and ran across a "Stumbling Stone". Now you have to watch where you step in Berlin as it is an old city and the sidewalks are made of cobblestones and other shaped paving stones, but this one was in gold and set slightly above the other stones....so if you are not careful you will stumble. We took a look at it and it was in memory of a Jewish man that lived at that address and had been deported to Auschwitz. I had heard about these but it was the first one I had seen. This is such a wonderful thing for Berlin to do and I felt rather emotional about it. This doctor had lived here probably all his life and then was scooped up, had no rights and was herded into a train. A personal touch to memorials, not just one memorial for the fallen Jewish people. I will have to go back and find the old Jewish neighborhood to see more of them; take pictures and make sure they make it to the internet!
It's over 90 degrees here today, and without air conditioning you definitely know it! We did some exploring today to check out a few things that we had not seen yet, and there is so much more to see!!!
First off, we took the U-Bahn to Tempelhof airport. I really wanted to see this airfield as I believe that the city of Berlin plans on closing it down in October, but they do plan on preserving the buildings. What they are going to do with it I have no idea! The U-Bahn delivered us directly to it and we took a few pictures looked around and then off to our next stop.
Now we are off to Mohrenstrasse U-Bahn station to see some of the red marble that was taken from Hitler's Chancellery. It's on the walls and floors, very beautiful! Just down the street we had missed the "Propaganda Ministry" of Dr. Goebbels. No plaque to note the place, just the building. We felt there should be a plaque to honor the people that he inspired such hatred towards.
Off to catch the 100 bus, we saw it getting ready to turn the corner and Mark waved at the bus driver but he pointed towards a stop....behind him. We started towards the stop and he threw his hands up in the air and opened the door and beckoned us to come in, Vielen Dank! We were off to find Albert Speer's lamp posts on the Unter Den Linden which is now the 17 Juni Strasse. We had to walk quite a while till we came upon them, we almost gave up! Took some pictures and then off to the S-Bahn. We got off the train at the main Bahnhof and ran across a "Stumbling Stone". Now you have to watch where you step in Berlin as it is an old city and the sidewalks are made of cobblestones and other shaped paving stones, but this one was in gold and set slightly above the other stones....so if you are not careful you will stumble. We took a look at it and it was in memory of a Jewish man that lived at that address and had been deported to Auschwitz. I had heard about these but it was the first one I had seen. This is such a wonderful thing for Berlin to do and I felt rather emotional about it. This doctor had lived here probably all his life and then was scooped up, had no rights and was herded into a train. A personal touch to memorials, not just one memorial for the fallen Jewish people. I will have to go back and find the old Jewish neighborhood to see more of them; take pictures and make sure they make it to the internet!
We had lunch at a biergarten around the corner than back to the loft to pack.
We got back to the loft and started packing up and left out clothes for our dinner tonight. We have a reservation at the restaurant on top of the Reichstag. We left a bit early so we could take a leisurely stroll to the Chancellery as it is still quite warm. We made it there early and went to the handicap entrance (if you have a reservation, this is where you go instead of waiting in the "schlange"). No problem through security, then into the elevator and first stop was on the main level to pick up some people from the schlange. Then up to the roof! Nice and breezy up here much cooler than the street level. We were seated in the restaurant near the terrace with a nice breeze and I ordered a cosmopolitan and Mark a beer. The waitress came back with what was obviously a "German Cosmo"........it looked like a Shirley Temple full of cracked ice. I took a sip, and when the waitress came back she noticed that I didn't touch the drink and asked if it was all right. I told her I would have to go back and show them how to make one, perhaps we could have something else. We decided to have a bottle of German sparkling wine which was sehr gut. The dinner is a four course affair and started with appetizers, all good. Then fresh spargel (asparagus) with a couple other things, straight out of the commercial where the couple go to the great restaurant and get "small" food. We both laughed! Then veal which was cooked perfectly and oh so tender with white asparagus which was quite large. All the asparagus here in Germany we've seen has been white (which may explain the tiny one piece of green asparagus and I mean tiny!) and I have to say that I actually prefer it white......but oh the after effect! We also had potatoes with a sauce to put on them. After we finished a small itty bitty mousse with cherries came. It was tasty and again in the "small food" variety. When the waitress came back we asked for the bill and she said, before dessert? She explained that it was just to cleanse the palate and so we had dessert. We finished up and walked all over the roof and up into the dome. From our vantage point we had a great view of the city and a view into the Reichstag from above. A symbolic gesture that the people of Germany can always "Watch Over" their government. A really cool place. We walked home and off to bed for our travel home Monday. We have enjoyed our trip to Germany immensely!
Pat and Mark
Pat and Mark
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Berlin Tag Sechszehn
Sony Center roof 
Kaiser Wilhelm church
Kaiser Wilhelm church 
Victory column
Russian WWII Memorial 
Bendlerblock National Socialist Resistance Museum 
Wreath commemorating the assassinated Count von Stauffenberg and conspirators.
View of the courtyard of the Bendlerblock.
Hi All,
Today is Saturday and we spent the day in Berlin catching up on areas that we had wanted to get to but had not made it there yet.
We started the day by catching a U-Bahn (U6) and then a S-Bahn (S2) train to get to Potsdamer Platz. This area is like the Times Square of Berlin. Numerous high-rise buildings and many very modern structures. Including the very famous Sony Center, with it's very unique tent like roof. We have pictures, it is pretty interesting.
From Potsdamer Platz we took the U-Bahn (U2) train West to go to the Zoo area. There we viewed the very historical Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, which was originally built in 1895, and left as ruins after WWII as a reminder.
A side note here on what we saw as we exited the U2 station here. There is a very plain looking, billboard type of sign, with the names of about 20 concentration camps listed on it, vertically. Above it, in German, is a caption that says basically "So we do not forget". As we said earlier, the history of this country is in their face every single day, they do not try to hide their history, it is very easy to find it, almost anywhere you go.
After the church we went to the largest retail department store in Europe, the Kaufhaus des Westens (or KaDeWe). This is just down the street from the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. This is a 7 story store with 1,200 employees, all ready to help you with anything you may be looking for. There is even a bar, restaurant, and a Japanese sushi bar inside. Oh Heaven!!!!! This is a girls dream store with about each and every designer you can think of, no Wal-Mart here!! As my birthday was just a few days ago I was in the mood for something........Mark of course doesn't want to spend too much time here as most of the items are sehr teuer (very expensive)! We left.....but all I could think of was the zombies from "The Mummy" chanting "KaDeWe", I now know where there all were wanting to go!
After the KaDeWe we caught the 100 Bus which runs from the Zoo all the way over to the East side of Berlin, past Alexander Platz. This is a great tourist bus as it passes many of the popular sites. We have a 7 day pass, which in Berlin covers all of the U-Bahn, S-Bahn, buses and trams. So we just hopped onto a 100 bus and headed towards the Tiergarten, and the Siegessaule (Victory Column)
The victory column sits in the middle of the vast Tiergarten and rises 69 meters high (210 feet). The column is very beautiful, and is so large that is has a staircase inside that you can climb up to the observation deck, which is just below the statue on top. The column was originally built in 1873 in front of the Reichstag building, but Hitler had it moved to the Tiergarten in 1938 as the statue did not fit into the Nazi plans for the remodeling of Berlin into Germania. The column is topped by a 24 foot high statue of Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory.
After the victory column we got back onto a 100 bus and headed over to the East end of the Tiergarten, past the Reichstag and over to the Brandenburg gate again. This time we walked West past the gate and made our way to the Russian WWII memorial. This memorial to the soldiers who gave their lives in WWII, especially Berlin, actually is built with granite stones that the Russians took from the rubble of Hitler's Chancellery building. Also, the memorial sits in what was actually West Berlin during the cold war, and the Allies actually allowed Soviet soldiers to guard the memorial.
From the Soviet memorial we headed out on foot south to find the Museum for the German Resistance Movement. This is an important museum but we could tell it was not visited by many people. Probably because there is no mass transit that goes anywhere near it. It is kind of in a hard to get to area, and we had to walk about 20 minutes to find it, which we were able to do with no problem. The building is yet another WWII Nazi building that has preserved to today. During the war, this building was where the German generals planned Hitler's war campaigns. Also here was the supreme command of the Wehrmacht, which commanded the army, navy, and air force, as well as the German counter intelligence office. Here was also the office of Claus von Stauffenberg, who was one of the leaders in the failed assassination attempts on Hitler. After the failed attempt, Stauffenberg and his conspirators were all shot in the courtyard of the building. There is now a wreath on the wall and a plaque with their names in the place where they were shot.
This is where we had a very interesting encounter. Pat was waiting outside for me while I was in the WC inside before we made our way from the museum. She was sitting nearby the wall with the wreath on it in the courtyard between the buildings. I came up to Pat and at the same time an older German man came up and asked if we "Sprecken Deutsch". Pat responded in German that she knows a little, and at that point he started to tell us, in German, that his father had been shot at this spot, at the wreath. He was pointing and very animated, and he started to cry. He said a lot more that we could not understand, and then he gave a thumbs up gesture and said all is good now. Then he pointed his finger at Pat and said something I wish we knew what it was. It sounded like a gesture that he hopes we never have to see this again, maybe that is what he said. Then he turned and walked out of the courtyard and down the street. I wish we knew his name, and all that he said, but we both understood very clearly the part about his father. There was no misunderstanding that part.
After the museum we walked back to the closest U or S bahn station, which happened to be Potsdamer Platz, the very place we started our day earlier today.
It took us about 20 minutes to get to Potsdamer Platz. As I said, this museum is kind of hard to get to if you do not have a car. Once at Potsdamer Platz, and sitting at the Sony Center we decided we had not really done any shopping (of course I thought of that!) while we were here so we go back on the U-Bahn and went back over to the KaDeWe. I felt that it would be a light, happy thing to do after such a heavy time at the Bendlerblock/Resistance Museum. I as was scoping out die handtaschen (handbags) that happened to be within a reasonable price range (under 500 euros!) I finally found one, a beautiful brown leather bag. The sales ladies came over to help us and told us that if we went up to customer service and got a KaDeWe card, they would take 20% off.....so up to get KaDeWe'd we go! Got the card and back down to purchase the handbag (one of my favorite things!). Then after the purchase, back up to customer service to get a "Tax Free" form so we wouldn't have to pay VAT on the bag. Up and down, they get you in and want you to see the store and oh the wonders! I have no doubt that the zombies had to be on the way to KaDeWe! Mark managed to get me out with only one purchase, but girls.....mission accomplished!
Back to the flat, and we made spaghetti, and had a few cold beers.. mmmmm...
Now we are watching the Euro 2008 soccer on TV. The Netherlands (in orange) are playing Russia. Germany won the other night and there were many celebrations we could hear in the area. Soccer (Fussball) is VERY big here.
Tomorrow is out last full day here in Germany, and we are leaving Monday morning.
Mark & Pat
Today is Saturday and we spent the day in Berlin catching up on areas that we had wanted to get to but had not made it there yet.
We started the day by catching a U-Bahn (U6) and then a S-Bahn (S2) train to get to Potsdamer Platz. This area is like the Times Square of Berlin. Numerous high-rise buildings and many very modern structures. Including the very famous Sony Center, with it's very unique tent like roof. We have pictures, it is pretty interesting.
From Potsdamer Platz we took the U-Bahn (U2) train West to go to the Zoo area. There we viewed the very historical Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, which was originally built in 1895, and left as ruins after WWII as a reminder.
A side note here on what we saw as we exited the U2 station here. There is a very plain looking, billboard type of sign, with the names of about 20 concentration camps listed on it, vertically. Above it, in German, is a caption that says basically "So we do not forget". As we said earlier, the history of this country is in their face every single day, they do not try to hide their history, it is very easy to find it, almost anywhere you go.
After the church we went to the largest retail department store in Europe, the Kaufhaus des Westens (or KaDeWe). This is just down the street from the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. This is a 7 story store with 1,200 employees, all ready to help you with anything you may be looking for. There is even a bar, restaurant, and a Japanese sushi bar inside. Oh Heaven!!!!! This is a girls dream store with about each and every designer you can think of, no Wal-Mart here!! As my birthday was just a few days ago I was in the mood for something........Mark of course doesn't want to spend too much time here as most of the items are sehr teuer (very expensive)! We left.....but all I could think of was the zombies from "The Mummy" chanting "KaDeWe", I now know where there all were wanting to go!
After the KaDeWe we caught the 100 Bus which runs from the Zoo all the way over to the East side of Berlin, past Alexander Platz. This is a great tourist bus as it passes many of the popular sites. We have a 7 day pass, which in Berlin covers all of the U-Bahn, S-Bahn, buses and trams. So we just hopped onto a 100 bus and headed towards the Tiergarten, and the Siegessaule (Victory Column)
The victory column sits in the middle of the vast Tiergarten and rises 69 meters high (210 feet). The column is very beautiful, and is so large that is has a staircase inside that you can climb up to the observation deck, which is just below the statue on top. The column was originally built in 1873 in front of the Reichstag building, but Hitler had it moved to the Tiergarten in 1938 as the statue did not fit into the Nazi plans for the remodeling of Berlin into Germania. The column is topped by a 24 foot high statue of Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory.
After the victory column we got back onto a 100 bus and headed over to the East end of the Tiergarten, past the Reichstag and over to the Brandenburg gate again. This time we walked West past the gate and made our way to the Russian WWII memorial. This memorial to the soldiers who gave their lives in WWII, especially Berlin, actually is built with granite stones that the Russians took from the rubble of Hitler's Chancellery building. Also, the memorial sits in what was actually West Berlin during the cold war, and the Allies actually allowed Soviet soldiers to guard the memorial.
From the Soviet memorial we headed out on foot south to find the Museum for the German Resistance Movement. This is an important museum but we could tell it was not visited by many people. Probably because there is no mass transit that goes anywhere near it. It is kind of in a hard to get to area, and we had to walk about 20 minutes to find it, which we were able to do with no problem. The building is yet another WWII Nazi building that has preserved to today. During the war, this building was where the German generals planned Hitler's war campaigns. Also here was the supreme command of the Wehrmacht, which commanded the army, navy, and air force, as well as the German counter intelligence office. Here was also the office of Claus von Stauffenberg, who was one of the leaders in the failed assassination attempts on Hitler. After the failed attempt, Stauffenberg and his conspirators were all shot in the courtyard of the building. There is now a wreath on the wall and a plaque with their names in the place where they were shot.
This is where we had a very interesting encounter. Pat was waiting outside for me while I was in the WC inside before we made our way from the museum. She was sitting nearby the wall with the wreath on it in the courtyard between the buildings. I came up to Pat and at the same time an older German man came up and asked if we "Sprecken Deutsch". Pat responded in German that she knows a little, and at that point he started to tell us, in German, that his father had been shot at this spot, at the wreath. He was pointing and very animated, and he started to cry. He said a lot more that we could not understand, and then he gave a thumbs up gesture and said all is good now. Then he pointed his finger at Pat and said something I wish we knew what it was. It sounded like a gesture that he hopes we never have to see this again, maybe that is what he said. Then he turned and walked out of the courtyard and down the street. I wish we knew his name, and all that he said, but we both understood very clearly the part about his father. There was no misunderstanding that part.
After the museum we walked back to the closest U or S bahn station, which happened to be Potsdamer Platz, the very place we started our day earlier today.
It took us about 20 minutes to get to Potsdamer Platz. As I said, this museum is kind of hard to get to if you do not have a car. Once at Potsdamer Platz, and sitting at the Sony Center we decided we had not really done any shopping (of course I thought of that!) while we were here so we go back on the U-Bahn and went back over to the KaDeWe. I felt that it would be a light, happy thing to do after such a heavy time at the Bendlerblock/Resistance Museum. I as was scoping out die handtaschen (handbags) that happened to be within a reasonable price range (under 500 euros!) I finally found one, a beautiful brown leather bag. The sales ladies came over to help us and told us that if we went up to customer service and got a KaDeWe card, they would take 20% off.....so up to get KaDeWe'd we go! Got the card and back down to purchase the handbag (one of my favorite things!). Then after the purchase, back up to customer service to get a "Tax Free" form so we wouldn't have to pay VAT on the bag. Up and down, they get you in and want you to see the store and oh the wonders! I have no doubt that the zombies had to be on the way to KaDeWe! Mark managed to get me out with only one purchase, but girls.....mission accomplished!
Back to the flat, and we made spaghetti, and had a few cold beers.. mmmmm...
Now we are watching the Euro 2008 soccer on TV. The Netherlands (in orange) are playing Russia. Germany won the other night and there were many celebrations we could hear in the area. Soccer (Fussball) is VERY big here.
Tomorrow is out last full day here in Germany, and we are leaving Monday morning.
Mark & Pat
Friday, June 20, 2008
Berlin Tag Funfzehn
Bust of Queen Nefertiti
A portion of a frieze from the Pergamon
A partial view of the Pergamon alter
TV tower in Alexanderplatz, with restaurant and observation level.
Hello there,
We had a nice day today visiting two of the great museums in Berlin, and then going to the TV tower which was built by the DDR in the 60's, which is near to the museum island.
First, one note in addition to a comment we made yesterday about the history awareness in this country. Late last night, and again today, at 6:00 P.M. local time, Pat found on the German TV a program about Hitler and the Third Reich. In fact, as I am writing this, there is another one on German TV. These are in German language, on the German TV channels. The history is up front all of the time here, there is no hiding from it. I only wish Americans had any real knowledge of WWII and the implications of it all. Perhaps we would have stood up when our government chose to take away many of our rights with this so called "Patriot Act".
Anyway, we had a nice day today. We went to the museum island and first went to the Altes museum, where on the second floor is the Egyptian exhibit. We have some great pictures, as they let you take pictures in these museums as long as you have no flash. The most famous piece is the bust of Queen Nefertiti dating back to 1340 B.C., and the museum police will get you if you have a flash or sit where you should not be sitting ... :-) After the Egyptian exhibit, we went next door to the Pergamon museum. This is an awesome exhibit of some ancient Greek history. There is on display portions of the Pergamon alter and still reliefs. While most is only partially intact, there are some great pieces to view. Now let me elaborate about the "Sitzen Polizei": people are sitting on the steps of the Pergamon alter and I was listening to my audio guide on the side of the alter and sat down....well the Pergamon Police swooped upon me - Sitzen sie nicht! Well sorry, there is no " Nein Sitz" sign there! Lots of other people sitting on the steps but only where you get to walk up to the top of the alter. I did manage to get a little brave and sit for a picture in the middle of the alter, take that you Sitzen Polizei!
After the two museums, we went over to the TV tower in Alexanderplatz, that was built by the former DDR back in 1969, and is 204 meters high (600 Feet). It has a restaurant and an observatory floor. We went to the observatory floor and had a German beer and enjoyed the view. We did not eat in the restaurant as the food is notoriously bad. We took some photos, and two girls asked us to take their picture with their camera. The camera they had would not take the picture (they looked like shadows!) so we took a picture with ours. We agreed to send it to them by email but Mark has been unable to get it to go through. If your out there and read this blog, we've got your picture! Perhaps we should of just given them our email adress.
After this it was 4:30 and we decided to call it a day and head back to our flat to cook dinner, and have a beer....
Talk to you tomorrow...
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Berlin Tag Vierzehn
The Reichstag. We will be climbing the ramps inside the glass dome on Sunday. We have a dinner reservation in the restaurant at the top of the dome.
A bell tower in the Tiergarten about 100 yards from the Tipi.
The U6 metro station close to our flat in Berlin.
Our guide (A member of the Berlin Unterweltin) at the flak tower.
A view of one of the towers, while standing on the other tower.
This is all that is visible from the street. The combination of mounds of rubble from the surrounding area, and vegetation growth have almost concealed the flak tower.Hello All!
Wir haben einen guten Tag heute! Heute ist meine geburtstag! We are having a good day today, and today is my birthday. Our first tour today was one of the "Flak Towers" that was built by the Third Reich. We had to climb many stairs to gain entrance to it, but not as bad as St Peters! Entrance is at the top of the tower now and they take you down. This tour is done by the Berlin Unterweltin Society and they control the tower and some Bunkers now, and have made it safe for people to take guided tours. We had to wear a hard-hat upon entering as it is classified as a "Ruin", and it is always possible that perhaps something like bits of concrete could fall upon you. The walls were 3.8 meters thick (around 12 ft), and the ceiling as well. The amount of rebar in the concrete is astounding! The building had originally 4 towers, the other 2 collapsed in a demolition attempt but they were unable to remove the last 2. This flak tower (Humboldthain) did not surrender to the Soviets until May 3, they were directly across a valley full of railroad tracks and the Germans shot the Soviets up from April 25th until the day after the surrender of Berlin and only when the commander killed himself! It was a great tour and perhaps we will go back and do some of the bunkers in Berlin.
Tonight we went and saw "Gayle Tufts Rocks". What a great show! Mark and I both enjoyed her, she is an ex-pat from America living in Berlin. It was at the "Tipi" in the Tiergarten. We had a nice dinner there before the show, and dessert during intermission. She asked how many Americans were in the audience, and there was only 2. She asked how long we had been there and where we were from, and I told her. Sprechen sie Deutsch? I answered "Ich sprechen bisschen Deutsch". She said my Deutsch was perfect and asked how much of her monologue I understood? I told her about 3 out of 5 words and she explained that all I needed to do was drink more and it would all come together! She couldn't believe that we had only been here a week! She sang mostly American and British rock in our native tongue, she has a great voice! If you are ever in Berlin go and see Gayle Tufts - she really does rock! I had been looking forward to this show for some time and she did not disappoint. We took a taxi home, many horns beeping and people yelling as Deutschland beat Portugal in fussball tonight.
Wir haben einen guten Tag heute! Heute ist meine geburtstag! We are having a good day today, and today is my birthday. Our first tour today was one of the "Flak Towers" that was built by the Third Reich. We had to climb many stairs to gain entrance to it, but not as bad as St Peters! Entrance is at the top of the tower now and they take you down. This tour is done by the Berlin Unterweltin Society and they control the tower and some Bunkers now, and have made it safe for people to take guided tours. We had to wear a hard-hat upon entering as it is classified as a "Ruin", and it is always possible that perhaps something like bits of concrete could fall upon you. The walls were 3.8 meters thick (around 12 ft), and the ceiling as well. The amount of rebar in the concrete is astounding! The building had originally 4 towers, the other 2 collapsed in a demolition attempt but they were unable to remove the last 2. This flak tower (Humboldthain) did not surrender to the Soviets until May 3, they were directly across a valley full of railroad tracks and the Germans shot the Soviets up from April 25th until the day after the surrender of Berlin and only when the commander killed himself! It was a great tour and perhaps we will go back and do some of the bunkers in Berlin.
Tonight we went and saw "Gayle Tufts Rocks". What a great show! Mark and I both enjoyed her, she is an ex-pat from America living in Berlin. It was at the "Tipi" in the Tiergarten. We had a nice dinner there before the show, and dessert during intermission. She asked how many Americans were in the audience, and there was only 2. She asked how long we had been there and where we were from, and I told her. Sprechen sie Deutsch? I answered "Ich sprechen bisschen Deutsch". She said my Deutsch was perfect and asked how much of her monologue I understood? I told her about 3 out of 5 words and she explained that all I needed to do was drink more and it would all come together! She couldn't believe that we had only been here a week! She sang mostly American and British rock in our native tongue, she has a great voice! If you are ever in Berlin go and see Gayle Tufts - she really does rock! I had been looking forward to this show for some time and she did not disappoint. We took a taxi home, many horns beeping and people yelling as Deutschland beat Portugal in fussball tonight.
It was interesting how much of the show had in some way to do with America. Although she is an ex-pat, the audience was all German nationals with the exception of a few people. She had some interesting monologue on America: Barack asking her for money in emails, the airport police going through all her stuff as if she was "Gayle Bin Laden" and the American obsession with botox, plastic surgery, and TV. In addition, all this grain bread is highly overrated and the Deutsch don't eat it!
I also found it interesting how Germans are so aware of their country's history. Gayle sang a song about the country's history of persecution of individuals and groups, and it was a touching song. Additionally, there are many "documentation centers" here in Germany that fully document, (with text, photographs and video) the history of the Third Reich and WWII. We have visited documentation centers in Nurnberg, Berchtesgaden (Obersalzberg), and also the Topography of Terror here in Berlin. German students even study it in school. We even saw what was obviously teachers with students on a field trip when we were at the documentation center in Nurnberg. History is everywhere here, and everyone is fully aware of it.
Well, es ist spat, gutta nacht!
Pat and Mark
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