The First two days in Berlin

It is hot! And we are bused out. Using the 48hr hopon hopoff bus ticket to the max we have seen the sights and discovered how bad the traffic is. Sometimes the traffic in Berlin resembles that of Rome. The major sights have been looked at and now have to investigated.

One of these will not be the Brandenburg Gate, the Iconic symbol of Berlin. In its wisdom the City decided that the area should become a place to celebrate the Football World Cup victory by Germany - "How's that going for yer Fritz?" and erected large screens in the Park on the West side which severely disturbed the Tourists views and traffic circulation.

A trip to "Checkpoint Charlie" (CPC) was a definite yes but when was the question. On the bus two stops were very close - the moving 'Typography of Terror" - a chronological replay of Hitler's seizure of power in 1933, sited at a section of the Wall, and CPC. We alit at the wall and the panels, studied them and I was struck by the parallels between modern times and 1933 and then we walked past the Trabant Museum, where a collection of the DDR iconic motor car was assembled and then on to CPC.

At CPC there is a recreation of the actual Guard Station as well as two people dressed as sentries. It costs 3 euros for a picture. Doreen had one taken. The hat blew off in the next shot because it was so windy. At this time we were so engrossed in getting a snack - it had to be a 'currywurst' and it was, that we forgot to enter the CPC Museum. So the second day's  order of business was a trip to the CPC Museum. Must say it is not worth the price of admission; 14 euros. But a 'must-see'. There are very few real artifacts in the Museum but the panels told a powerful story.

Food and prices here are cheaper than Scandinavia but still are what we would call usual 'eurozone' high, but we expected that and are pleasantly surprised when we find "bargains". Last night was one of those. Fred, our travelling companion, googled to find Asian food. The "Saigon and More" came back as a hit. Fantastic food at half the normal price. The owner, a Turkish resident of 47 years, and his Mexican wife produce 'msg free' food and an unusual ambience - definitely a five fork performance.


As part of the bus ticket there was a boat ride - one hour on the River Spree aboard a double decker cruiser. We never ventured upstairs and just relaxed and cruised - a great break from the sun and bustle. Back to the real world I had to buy a replacement camera, mine has really under-performed and finally yesterday the electronics failed and died. In the Europa Centre, a huge shopping mall was an electronic heaven - Saturn. Found what I wanted and now just have to make it work.

So reflections on Berlin - food good, weather hot, traffic intense