Berlin

Nothing very exciting on our train ride from Prague to Berlin - only we figure we must be getting used to the travel now as the five hour trip felt like it was over very quickly - more like two hours. Some German ladies did think we were wonderful as we changed seats with them so they could share the 4 seater section. Little did they know we wanted to swtich so Phil could face forwards. In return for our generosity :) we were rewarded with two cans of wine - a very interesting concept to us but not wanting to be rude we accepted and we enjoyed them.

We arrived in Berlin to a few clowds and we were happy that it looked to be clearing. We easy understood the Berlin train system and managed to make our way to our station. We found the hotel, checked in and headed out for a walk. We didn't take the camera with us as we figured we would be doing plenty of walking around today. On a few occassions Phil commented that he wished he had the camera as the lighting was perfect for some shots of a couple of different buildings we passed.

We found a fish & chip place to grab a snack - we had missed lunch again (a problem we seem to have here) and it was too early for dinner. I think the guy thought we were American because we both ended up with a litre of tartare sauce on our chips.

We decided to head back to the hotel, where we made the most of having a shower that worked properly - we both have a new found appreciation for clean hair :)Next challenge was some dinner....

We found a tapas bar/steak house which was very nice - we may have liked it because it had gas heaters & shelter from the wind :) The food was great, only problem we had was I got in trouble for not eating the salad and we also got weird looks when we said we didn't want any bread. We knew all was ok though when we asked for the bill and the cheeky waiter said NO (keeping in mind he didn't speak a lot of English) and walked off with a cheesy grin & giggling. He went inside and was watching us through the window - still grinning away. He came back a couple of minutes later with a receipt that they had written up in English for us :) and was smiling even more when we left him a tip.

Today we headed out on the tour that Michelle L had recommended to us - The Famous Insider Walk!! We were really looking forward to this one as it looked like it was going to show us a lot of sights that we were both keen to see.

Phil jumped out of bed and ran to the window and yes... you guessed it... it was pouring rain. Really why did we think this tour would be any different to the rest of Europe :) but as the brochure said - we walk rain or shine... so off we went.

Our Scottish guide, Kenny, first came to Berlin 10 years ago and has been doing tours for the last 4. He was a great guide - his humor & excellent knowledge made for an interesting day. His ability to build up a story really put you into the moment.

We ventured around the city - East & West - and learnt many new things about this amazing town. So hard to believe that these things were still going on in our life time.

We saw the remains of the Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate, the sight of Hitler's Bunker, SS & Gestapo headquarter buildings, the Jewish memorial, Checkpoint Charlie & many more.
The four hour tour lasted over 5 (a rather interesting finish of a swallow crashing into the window we were standing next to - I think a few people missed the closing minutes of the tour as they were worried about the bird) and was definitely worth the $$ & effort. We highly recommend anyone coming to Berlin does this tour.

Another city & many more additions to our reading list :)

As the tour finished ... out came the sunshine. So we decided to do the tour in reverse :) and took some more pics without the water wash over the lens. Well to be honest we only made it half way in the reverse direction (seeing the main sights we wanted to revisit - along with a stop at the outdoor photo exhibit - Topography of Terror) when we realised how exhausted we were and found the train station and headed for the hotel. (But not without being approached by a few low lifes trying to sell us expired train tickets - we've been here too long to fall for that trick buddy)

Tomorrow morning we head back to the UK (via plane) and we pick up a hire car to go and see the American Air Museum (yes Craig we will get you a few piccies) and then to Stonehenge.Not sure that we will have net access until we get back to London on Wednesday so that will probably be our next update.

Hope all is well at home - not long now and we will be back in Oz (wishing we were here)

Cheers

Phil & Nic