Thursday 13th in Potsdam

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Up early to catch the train to Potsdam to do a tour and see the Sansouci Palace and Park. Upon arriving for our train at the Berlin Central Station we discovered that there were multiple trains to Potsdam, even some of the locals we pick up near our hotel. Oh well, over planning is OK. We arrived early in Potsdam and walked to a park near where we were meeting our guide, had a nice cappuccino at a café that favored 60s US music. Fun.

We walked the area and were impressed with the small signage that keeps the area looking neat and attractive while allowing for commerce. Met up with our guide, Till from Seg2Go, and had a nice practice session in the local park before going out on the road. We settle on the Green Tour that focused on the riverfront and some of the parks in old East Germany and the British section of Berlin. Till was detailed in his sharing about the history of Potsdam and the kings and emperors who called it home or summer cottage. He also went into some detail on what happened during the division of east and west, especially as the dividing line with the British section of Berlin (farthest western part) was in the waters of the river and lake. This meant lots of turmoil and a great deal of despoiling the waterfront with guard posts and barbed wire. Sad time for Germany and Till talked about how Potsdam went wild when the wall fell in 1989.

We went over the famous Spy Bridge into the old British Section. What incredible history as this was where all the spies were exchanged between the Soviet Union and the western powers. And where the exchange in the movie Bridge of Spies took place.

After returning the Segways we went to the park with all the palaces in it. We started with the New Palaces. Immense structures with hundreds of columns and statues of every conceivable sort. We went into the Rococo style palace completed by Frederick the Great as a place to bring friends for the weekend. If this is what you do for the weekend, what incredible thing can be done for a holiday. Hundreds of rooms, tons of marble, thousands of sea shells and semi precious stone. What a place … but not too homey!

Having done the tour of the palace we walked down the avenue in the middle of the park toward the SanSouci Palace but never made it. After a mile or two in the hot weather we decided to take a cab and return to the station and Berlin. We did see a number of buildings and gardens on the way but missed the last one. We were happy with the territory we had covered … and happy indeed to return to Berlin and a beer along the Spree.

Early evening found us back in our room preparing for the trip home tomorrow.

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