Berlin

The morning after Queens Day, we made the 6+ hour drive to Berlin. Actually, we stayed a little outside Berlin in Potsdam. The drive took a little longer then expected due to some lane closures and traffic. Also, strangely enough at one point, the highway passed through the center of a small town with several traffic lights (think I-95 cutting through Deland). The German sense of humor, I guess? Anyway, the western landscape between Amsterdam and Berlin is quite nice. Gently rolling hills with small villages dotting the terrain. That's how you know you've left Holland... the land actually has variations in the elevation! I thought Florida was flat until driving out into eastern Holland. An ant hill could be considered a "peak" in eastern Holland! So, small, picturesque German towns and villages... very nice. We arrived at our hotel around 2:30pm, checked in, relaxed a bit, then drove and parked the car to the train station 4 kilometers away. Catching a train, we were in Berlin about 15 minutes later. There was still plenty of light as it gets dark here around 9:30pm now. We walked around checking out the Brandenburg Gate, Potsdamer Platz, the outside of the Jewish Memorial, and the surrounding area. It was May Day, and the city was finishing up the celebration they had, with food booths and stages being disassembled. We grabbed a bite at a German restaurant, with both of us having "Curry Wurst". Yeah... east meets west. Quite an unusual, unexpected, but tasty combination! We got back to the hotel around 11pm or so, and crashed. The next day, we went back to Potsdamer Platz and toured the Jewish Memorial Museum (3-4 hours). Quite interesting and moving by the stories they told. We also went to the top of the German Parliament building where they have a glass cupola which provides a beautiful 360 degree view of Berlin. These 2 sights took up most of our day as the line for the cupola was long. But they were well worth it. Again a little late, we found a place for dinner.
Back at the hotel before 11, I went to the sauna for a little heat, sweat, and relaxation. Laying there I was loving the pretend Florida heat, when someone came in. I opened my eyes and there she was right in front of me... some naked German woman! Okay. I just turned back and closed my eyes, wondering if I should leave, checking my towel making sure I was covered, wondering if she thought I was a dufus for wearing a towel, checking the towel again, listening to her breathing heavily, wondering why is she breathing heavily, listening to the wood creak every time she shifted, then the door opened and I thought she was leaving... but no... now a naked man has come in... this is not cool. My Florida dream has vanished. They start talking and it's obvious they know each other. So, I'm the only chump in their with a towel, which offers me comfort in one way but also tells me "Idiot... you're not supposed to have a towel in here!". Now it's not like I had a full body towel from armpit to calf and another in my hair like the ladies do. Just a regular towel around the "man zone". But just as I thought I could make an easy exit, I hear the boards creaking loudly in their direction, and they left! I was thinking maybe they came in there for some "sweaty fun" and I gummed up the works. But before I could vacate, they called it a night. I exited 5-10 minutes later when I thought enough time had passed, and immediately told R my predicament for her amusement.
The next day, waking up, I noticed that R had made little happy birthday signs, a little paper crown and boats, even floating one in a cup of water! She's got the creative juices in her too! Today, we went to Checkpoint Charlie, and found it and the area surrounding it to be very cheesy. It was poorly organized, and really a blown opportunity to tell the story of one of the most compelling events of the last century. The line was long, handled poorly, and the entry price was high and unposted, causing a good number of people to turn around and leave when they got to the counter and saw the price. We had a negative vibe by the time we got there too, but went in anyway. There's a lot of information inside, but it seems haphazardly displayed and constructed. I am mixed on saying whether to see this, or not if you are ever in Berlin. We went to the Bauhaus Museum as I studied about this movement in photography classes (thanks, Rick), but they were closed. But it was good to check out a different section of Berlin. The city is big, and we only scratched the surface on this visit. We found a really cool place to eat, and Radhika managed to sneak away from the table to tell the server to bring a slice of chocolate tarte with a candle in it for my birthday. That was really sweet! And, there were about 12 have drunk young Germans who had just attended a football game who sang "Happy Birthday"... sorta... as the slice came out. One even ran over, grabbed my camera, and took our picture after he pretended he was going to run off with it. Back at the hotel, another sauna session (this one without my friends) and then a good nights sleep. The next morning, we visited a castle a park nearby Potsdam, and spent several unexpected hours there as it was quite tranquil, and there were 2 nice cafes nearby to eat lunch. Unfortunately, we ordered what we thought was one thing (we wanted), but got another thing (we didn't). A big hunk of pig meet on a tiny piece of bread. Oops! Mustard, ketchup, and a waffle with ice cream made it better. We left around 2pm, not getting back to Amsterdam until around 10 due to no fewer then 4 major, long, slow downs due to lane closures, construction, and traffic. Then, we discover that my bicycle has been stolen! It's always something, isn't it?