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Published: April 13th 2019
My arrival was quite easy . I can not tell a lie though. Instead of figuring out the transit system I took a cab from the airport . A bit expensive but oh so easy .
But going back a bit , I had lunch with a friend in Calgary and when I boarded the plane I had no seat companions so I was able to spread across 3 seats and probably slept @5 hours which is pretty good . From gate to gate , Calgary to Frankfurt is 9hrs 15min. Customs was easy and the turn around was long enough to walk about which was good . Flying into Frankfurt was interesting . It seemed to me that there were many isolated villages . Quite close to each other , a few kilometers , all with steep red roofs .and surounded by green fields . Really pretty.
It is COLD in Berlin. +3 yesterday and no better today. The tulips and daffodils are blooming and the trees have new leaves but the warm air of the previous weeks is gone . It has not really held me back but I have been wearing all my layers and hoping this will soon pass .
Yesterday after checking in I explored the area my hotel is in . I visited the Kaiser Wilhelm Cathedral which was destroyed in WW 2. The vestibule has been reconstructed and it is very impressive . Next to it is the church which replaced it and it is interesting . Quite large , round and walls made up of squares of stained glass . On a sunny day it must spectacular. It also has a massive organ And someone was practicing while I was there . WOW ,they were really good and the space just filled wIth the sound.
Given the temp , did I add if was very grey with occassional snow flakes , I did stop into stores as I explored. Prices seemed quite normal until I remembered it was euros not dollars . Things are expensive in Germany .
Not a lot to see in this area . The hotel is good but I would stay closer to the center if I was going to come again.
Today has been full . I caught the metro to join a walking tour I had booked on line . It was great ! It really did cover the sights Berlin is known for . The Brandenburg Gate , the Holocost Memorial , a segment of the Berlin wall , Humboldt University, Checkpoint Charlie and more . The guide was really good . A Berliner born and honest about the past . I don,t think I had ever really realized that the Nazi era was only 13 years . 13 years !!! So much happened in that short time .
At 3 pm I had booked and purchased coffee and pastry at the Reichstag Dome cafe . They allow only a restricted number into the Dome on a given day and when I had checked a month ago the first available ticket was May12 .The view is incredible and the Sacher Torte served with a bowl of whipped cream was more than passable . Not as good as Marilyn,s chocolate anything, but good.
That was it for my energy today I got back to the hotel at 6:30 and have vegged out since . I must head out for supper now . A Spanish restaurant next dòor has schnitzel on the menu and I enjoyed it last night. . I did get a bit confused about the country I was in but chalk that up to being tired.
Enough for now . I am pleased that the blog notices are going out this time . If you are interested in the 4 I wrote in Mexico you need only press PREVIOUS in the top corner .
Keep in touch .
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Shirley
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Ich bin ein Berliner!
Yay! You made it; that’s a long flight; glad you were able to stretch out and sleep. Many beautiful things to see, smell, taste, touch, and hear, it seems (as usual for your adventures). Plus 14C and sunny today, hoping for rain tomorrow so little things can start growing. Love your blog. Take care.