For our second day in Berlin we had until about two in the afternoon to continue exploring the city before leaving for the airport. I slept really well having been awake for almost two days but was ready for breakfast, coffee and more walking. Our first sight to see was the Berlin Victory Column located in the middle of the famous Tiergarten (actually, I'd never heard of the place until now). Our hotel was located on the edge of the park and we cut across the Tiergarten using one of the many bike and pedestrian paths. This huge park, which was about two miles long and a half mile wide, had designated bike and running paths everywhere, and even though it was pretty cold, there were abundant people biking and walking this morning. As we walked towards the Victory Column we stopped to take photos of statues, trees and lakes. The path was covered with wet, fallen leaves but there were still red and orange colored leaves on the trees.
Getting to the intersection where the Victory Column was located was easy, getting to the column itself took some time. There were no cross walks to cross the street and after walking in circles we finally found the underground path. There was a three Euro admission to enter and once inside we found that there was a whole museum containing various artifacts and pictures. Our main goal was to get to the top, or as far up as the steps led. Well, there was a spiral column of 285 steps to the very top and I got winded walking up as I tend to climb too fast. Once at the top you have a full 360 degree view of the garden and surrounding city. But just like the day before, it was cold and cloudy so the visibility was limited. The statue on top of the column was above us and was larger than it looked from the bottom. After taking or fill of photos we walked back down to the warm rooms of the museum and then left for our next sight.
As we had walked through the park we saw a building with old tanks in front, so that was our destination. Once there we found out that the building was a Soviet war memorial. There are memorials all around this part of town, and later we'd visit the Jewish memorial. The Soviet memorial was all outside, and if there was something inside it wasn't open. After taking photos of the tanks and guns we walked back towards the Brandenburg Gate, stopping briefly in front of the Reichstag building, now used by the German parliament. Just past the Brandenburg Gate was the Jewish Memorial. This memorial is very different than any other I've seen. It was about the size of a city block consisting of rows of rectangular blocks ranging in height from four to ten feet. The blocks had no writing on them and you could wander the maze between the blocks.
Well, it was now past noon, and we had a late check-out from the hotel, so we headed back to the hotel but first we had to figure out how to take the Metro to the Hard Rock Cafe, which was my sister's suggestion for lunch and to kill time so we didn't get to the airport too early. The subways did not have clear directions on how to get to our destination, so back in the hotel my sister got online and spent 20 minutes figuring out what Metro to take and what stop to get off on. So we checked out of the hotel and walked down to the Metro station. The trip took about 10 minutes, defiantly not walking distance. As you may know, each Hard Rock Cafe has a local menu item unique to the city. Their's was a curry sausage burger. I had seen signs all over the town advertising curry sausage and until my dish arrived I didn't know what it was or tasted like. Luckily it was really good! My sister said the other customers were looking at my plate as the waiter brought it too me, but I didn't see anyone else ordering it.
After lunch, we were ready to go to the airport and jumped into a taxi. Our time in Berlin was short, and there was defiantly more to see, but I did get a good feel for the city. It has been over 20 years since the Berlin Wall was torn down the the East and West united. I could see no difference between the old East and West sections of town, and if it weren't for the maps to reference, I would not have known which was which. The city still seems to be under construction. At the top of domes and columns you could see tall cranes where building were being constructed or renovated and there were still vacant lots where new buildings could be built. I'd recommend that if you have a chance, visit Berlin.
Our taxi got us to the airport in plenty of time and the driver was really nice. He took the time to let us determine which terminal our flight left from. There was a large digital sign just outside the airport that listed all the departing flights and what gates they were departing from. Once we checked our bags, we spent some time in the Lufthansa lounge before heading to the gate. Our flight from Berlin to Paris was only one hour, but it seemed to take almost that long once we exited the plane in Paris to get to the luggage carousel. We took the longest moving walkway I have ever seen! Our next adventure was how to get to our hotel. We attempted to find a city bus but our long walk to the other terminal ended when we found out the bus left from the terminal we landed in. The signs were very confusing - or we were really tired. So taxi it was. It was later in the evening so we were hoping for little traffic and a quick trip to the hotel. There was some traffic in a very long tunnel, and then again once we got to our street, the Champs Elysees. Now, I'm still trying to figure out how to pronounce these words. I don't know any French, and if you pronounce the words like they are spelled in English, you'll get laughed right out of the country.
We arrived at our nice, centrally located hotel before our brother and sister-in-law and after checking in and taking a short break, we went for a walk along the Champs Elysees. This is the main "drag" in Paris, and it was very busy with people walking up and down and decorated with bright lights that changed colors. The Arc de Triomphe was a short walk up the street where we stopped to take some photos, but did not go inside. That would wait until our last night there. Once back at the hotel we were surprised that our brother and his wife had already checked in they were about ready to go take the same walk we took. After discussing what time to meet in the morning and what our plans were, they left and we each had a very expensive beer. The hotel charged 10 Euros for a bottle of beer, which is about $13 USD. This wasn't so bad considering we had three rooms for four nights for free using my sister's hotel reward points. What a deal that was. By now it was almost 10 PM and our plan was to meet for breakfast at 8:30 in the morning. Paris is ten hours ahead of Pacific time, so my body had not yet adjusted to the time shift and jet lag was setting in. After uploading some photos to Facebook, I fell asleep with the help of extra strength Tylenol PM.
For our second day in Berlin we had until about two in the afternoon to continue exploring the city before leaving for the airport. I slept really well having been awake for almost two days but was ready for breakfast, coffee and more walking. Our first sight to see was the Berlin Victory Column located in the middle of the famous Tiergarten (actually, I'd never heard of the place until now). Our hotel was located on the edge of the park and we cut across the Tiergarten using one of the many bike and pedestrian paths. This huge park, which was about two miles long and a half mile wide, had designated bike and running paths everywhere, and even though it was pretty cold, there were abundant people biking and walking this morning. As we walked towards the Victory Column we stopped to take photos of statues, trees and lakes. The path was covered with wet, fallen leaves but there were still red and orange colored leaves on the trees.
Getting to the intersection where the Victory Column was located was easy, getting to the column itself took some time. There were no cross walks to cross the street and after walking in circles we finally found the underground path. There was a three Euro admission to enter and once inside we found that there was a whole museum containing various artifacts and pictures. Our main goal was to get to the top, or as far up as the steps led. Well, there was a spiral column of 285 steps to the very top and I got winded walking up as I tend to climb too fast. Once at the top you have a full 360 degree view of the garden and surrounding city. But just like the day before, it was cold and cloudy so the visibility was limited. The statue on top of the column was above us and was larger than it looked from the bottom. After taking or fill of photos we walked back down to the warm rooms of the museum and then left for our next sight.
As we had walked through the park we saw a building with old tanks in front, so that was our destination. Once there we found out that the building was a Soviet war memorial. There are memorials all around this part of town, and later we'd visit the Jewish memorial. The Soviet memorial was all outside, and if there was something inside it wasn't open. After taking photos of the tanks and guns we walked back towards the Brandenburg Gate, stopping briefly in front of the Reichstag building, now used by the German parliament. Just past the Brandenburg Gate was the Jewish Memorial. This memorial is very different than any other I've seen. It was about the size of a city block consisting of rows of rectangular blocks ranging in height from four to ten feet. The blocks had no writing on them and you could wander the maze between the blocks.
Our taxi got us to the airport in plenty of time and the driver was really nice. He took the time to let us determine which terminal our flight left from. There was a large digital sign just outside the airport that listed all the departing flights and what gates they were departing from. Once we checked our bags, we spent some time in the Lufthansa lounge before heading to the gate. Our flight from Berlin to Paris was only one hour, but it seemed to take almost that long once we exited the plane in Paris to get to the luggage carousel. We took the longest moving walkway I have ever seen! Our next adventure was how to get to our hotel. We attempted to find a city bus but our long walk to the other terminal ended when we found out the bus left from the terminal we landed in. The signs were very confusing - or we were really tired. So taxi it was. It was later in the evening so we were hoping for little traffic and a quick trip to the hotel. There was some traffic in a very long tunnel, and then again once we got to our street, the Champs Elysees. Now, I'm still trying to figure out how to pronounce these words. I don't know any French, and if you pronounce the words like they are spelled in English, you'll get laughed right out of the country.
We arrived at our nice, centrally located hotel before our brother and sister-in-law and after checking in and taking a short break, we went for a walk along the Champs Elysees. This is the main "drag" in Paris, and it was very busy with people walking up and down and decorated with bright lights that changed colors. The Arc de Triomphe was a short walk up the street where we stopped to take some photos, but did not go inside. That would wait until our last night there. Once back at the hotel we were surprised that our brother and his wife had already checked in they were about ready to go take the same walk we took. After discussing what time to meet in the morning and what our plans were, they left and we each had a very expensive beer. The hotel charged 10 Euros for a bottle of beer, which is about $13 USD. This wasn't so bad considering we had three rooms for four nights for free using my sister's hotel reward points. What a deal that was. By now it was almost 10 PM and our plan was to meet for breakfast at 8:30 in the morning. Paris is ten hours ahead of Pacific time, so my body had not yet adjusted to the time shift and jet lag was setting in. After uploading some photos to Facebook, I fell asleep with the help of extra strength Tylenol PM.
1 comment:
The hotel sent a nice thank-you for my survey comments about how nice the breakfast staff was to us.
Post a Comment