Berlin in 24 hours!

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Berlin - 20th-21st August 2015

I arrived in Berlin from Warsaw around 6pm after battling through their equivalent of the M25 ring road totaling a 10 hour journey.  I had recieved rather a large sum of money from my GE colleagues when I left (aswell as a load of other fab gifts) so I decided to treat myself at least once.  I booked to stay in the Radisson Blu Berlin hotel.  This was not because I have a ponchant for Raddison hotels but because of the fabulous Aquarium that runs through the middle of the foyer and what the balcony of my room looks onto.  I have always been fascinated with fish and marine life since I was little, when my Dad used to take me to look in rock pools, so this was right up my street.  Also, it was nice to have the Radisson Blu touch included as a bonus.  I sat and watched the fish for a while almost hypnotised by their movement.  It was a lovely hotel, fab room and great hot chocolate.  So again, thank you so much.  This is one treat I will always remember. 😊 I was getting hungry so decided to grab a quick bite to eat.  Hidden just around the corner was a pedestrianised street with various restaurants.  I already knew that Germans were G.L.B's so thought it best to avoid any traditional stuff.  I actually felt like something healthy but not Salad!  I perused a few menus, Italian was out, Chinese was out, but then I came across Thai.  The menu was full of great pictures of the dishes they had to offer but most looked unsuitable.  The waiter came across and I asked his advice.  I simply stipulated, No Gluten, No spice.  He nodded and pointed to the Yellow Chicken Curry.  It was amazing.  Probably bland to most people but I thought the subtle coconut and thai basil flavouring with the Al-dente vegetables and perfect rice was heaven on a plate.  I sat just outside the door of the restaurant as I loved the cool lighting within.  I continued rocking the cool vibe by washing it down with two mugs of green tea!  I obviously felt I needed to cleanse!  Now ready for bed, I settled down with my curtains not quite closed watching the fish as I felt like Ariel (the little mermaid) under the sea, waiting any minute for the song to start. In the morning I decided to take breakfast at the hotel and then be abit cheeky and asked could I take a peek at the view from the Conference facilities situated on the 7th floor. I had read, you get great views over Berlin from there. Lucky for me they agreed. It was obviously down to our winning accent. 😊 I checked out shortly after that, leaving my bags behind whilst I meandered to the start of 'The Storyline of Berlin' tour that I was booked on.  It was going to be another busy one but I was intrigued about this place.  The first time I'd heard about Berlin was when my Junior school headmaster Mr Rees showed us a peice of the wall when it was torn down, back in the 80's.
Again I still had that VIP air about me with yet another personalised tour of the area. It was interesting to see a city stitched together from the past to the present. Bullet holes were evident in many buildings across this place highlighting it's war torn past. Three sections of the wall remain in strategic locations and I was shocked at how incredibly thin the boundary wall was. It was the defence system that resided behind it, that ensured they were kept apart. The area where the wall ran is marked with a bricked line on the floor. The city is a magical place steeped in conflicts from Building design to Art. The Holocaust Memorial is another example of how structural art is a personnel interpretation. The artist wanted it to reflect a field of corn. I have to say now, I did not get that. I thought it more representative of different size gravestones. Across the city there are name plaques of Jews that lost their lives which were from Berlin. Currently there is lots of renovation and construction work going on in the area so like a Phoenix from the ashes this place is back and well worth a look. It was unfortunate I only had a 24 hrs in this unique place but I had something important I needed to be at home for. So I headed for the skies with Sunny South Wales as my next destination. 😊

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