We woke up to a cold rainy day so I went and chopped some kindling from the logs of wood outside the house. We managed to create a magnificent fire to keep us warm.

The plan was to drive to Swinoujście, a north western town of Poland about a half hour drive away, in order to investigate the where we could get a ferry across the Baltic sea to Trelleborg, Sweden.

The Oder river had sheets of ice moving along with the current with birds hitching rides on the floating ice.

We stopped at a Zabka store, which are a general store franchise throughout Poland. Scott would ask staff if they could speak German or English. Of course German is common because of its proximity to the border. Apparently there is a viral trend for people to eat a Zabka frankfurt which is served in a cylindrical tube of bread. It was quite delicious.

After searching the roads for a while, we finally found the terminal for TTferries and Polferries. We were told that it would be best to buy our tickets online, so we decided to do that at the end of the day using Scott’s laptop.

We then drove back to Szczecin to find the Stare Miasto (old town) and find a nice restaurant for a late lunch.

After walking around and admiring the buildings we settled for a meal in Harna’s. 

Zurek soup, placki with goulash and pierogies were ordered.

We had to take a detour on our drive out of Szczecin to find the massive cat mural in the suburbs.

On the way home, the clouds had cleared away and we could see the stars. Our accommodation is very rural so the night sky was impressive when we finally finished the day. We built an impressive fire to keep us warm for the evening.

Dobranoc

Scott collected a Sixt Peugeot for our adventure into Poland. The advantage with Sixt is that the share car becomes the hire car … you can take it out of the city and drive across borders…..makes so much sense!

The weather was a bit warmer so the roads were slushy and dirty. Cars look dirty because of this slush. 

The road out of Berlin was covered in a light fog which melded into the white snow on each side of the road and the view was just white. Our trip expected to be about 3 hours to reach our destination.

Scott noticed that the petrol was low and it was disappointing that we did not have a full tank to start with. After contacting Sixt, they explained that if we went to a partner petrol station we could fill the tank using the app and not have to pay ourselves as long as we did this in Germany. It was a great system.

Once close to Szczecin in Poland we needed to find somewhere to have a late lunch. The cold snowy weather encouraged us to find traditional polish soups and food.

We found the Karczma Pod Kogutem which was a traditional timber restaurant with cultural trimmings. We ordered the Hunter Soup each and meat pierogis and cheese pierogis to share. There was a self service station for bread, smaltz (pork fat) and pickled cucumbers. It was all delicious! 

Then it was time to drive the extra hour to find our farmhouse accommodation in Brzozowo. It was dark already and off the beaten track, we tried to locate our own hut but took a wrong turn. Trying to turn the car around, Scott backed into a ditch….we were bogged in snow. I had to get behind the wheel while he pushed the car. Success!

A lovely fire was keeping our farm cottage warm. It had all the comforts of home except for a television. It was decorated with traditional Polish designs and Knick knacks. There was WiFi so we could use our devices for entertainment if needed.

Scott chose the loft bedroom and Teresa had the comfortable bed in the downstairs bedroom.

We prodded the fire and tried to keep it going but realised that our fire experience was lacking and did our best.

It was lovely to go to sleep in the absolute silence of the countryside. 

Dobranoc

The second season of the Night Manager dropped yesterday! The first 3 episodes were available and then more will be added each Sunday. It’s as good as ever!

It was the perfect day to stay in the warmth and enjoy the entertainment. Scott popped down to the local supermarket to get supplies. I was particularly impressed with the frozen chocolate coated mango pieces. Herrings, pickles and caviar were also purchased along with Prosecco for an Aperol Spritz. Lunch consisted of the left overs from Kramer.

At 2:30pm it started to snow, lightly at first then increasing to a pleasing scene. I needed to get some spikes for my boots so I could walk in the snow and ice more confidently so it was decided to go to The Mall of Berlin for some retail therapy. Scott booked a share car and we drove through the snowy streets to the mall.

I purchased the spikes for my shoes and Scott bought new shoes for himself. We wandered around and purchased some other items before walking out into the lovely Potsdam Plaza with its trees of lights.

The most challenging thing about getting a share car is to find a parking spot within walking distance of your destination, especially at dusk when people have finished work. We managed to find a good park and walked through the snow to the apartment.

Dinner consisted of a selection plate of bread, herrings, ham, pickles and humus. I settled in for the night and Scott ventured to the gym.

Guten Nacht

Sleep in a warm comfy bed refreshed the soul ready to enjoy my first day in Berlin. 

The day promised to be cold and clear and it was lovely to see snow covered streets.

We rugged up with our gloves, coats and headwear and headed out for the day. Scott planned to take me to a rooftop restaurant on the East side.

We walked there so we could see the Spree River iced over as well as the canals we followed to get there.  We walked past the Eastside gallery with its ever changing artworks. Once we reached the intended venue, we were informed that the restaurant is closed on Sundays and Mondays. A frustrating and puzzling concept in Berlin and Germany is that all shopping stores are shut on Sundays. 

So we carried on, avoided the cold gusts of wind and caught the U-Bahn from Warschauer Strasse to Alexanderplatz as we knew the Hofbräu restaurant would be open for some Bavarian fare.

We chose a Beef Goulash each with beers and then an Apple Strudel for a sweet treat.

Scott reserved a Free2move share car and after walking the 800 metres to get the car we sat back and enjoyed the warmth on the drive back to Bouchestrasse. 

We have seen a lot of people with little wooden sleds for their children. 

The Kramer Restaurant was booked for dinner which had good reviews and was not far from the apartment. We braved the cold and walked to the trendy and warm restaurant.

The wait staff were attentive and friendly, a young French woman, a Kiwi woman and an Aussie young man.

It was very cold on the walk back to the apartment. The warmth of the apartment was very well appreciated.

Guten Nacht

Teresa is off to Berlin again, leaving a Sydney heatwave to join the extra cold European winter.

The check in opened at about 3 1/2 hours before the flight. I did not check in online (silly mistake)so the attendant did her best to get me the best seat available, which was a middle seat but in the upstairs economy section. She assured me that there were less children up there and a more spacious configuration of 2 seats by 4 and then 2.  

At Sydney airport, Qatar airlines has an alliance with Air New Zealand, so I headed up to await my flight. The lounge has a nice outlook over to Botany Bay and a good selection of wines, spirits and beers. The food was varied with hot and cold offerings. 

When we had to line up for the aircraft I needed to remember that I have priority no matter the zone allocated. Once boarded, I had a man on each side of me, with the one on the right being a big bloke. I resigned myself to the crammed conditions. 

Luckily, about an hour into the flight, the big guy’s chair would not recline so the crew moved him downstairs. This was such a relief as it gave us a spare seat and a more comfortable sleep. It is a 14 hour flight to Doha from Sydney, so any extra space was welcomed!

Qatar Hamad airport is new, clean and spacious and easy to navigate. Once off the plane we had to go through security again before I found the Qatar Gold and Platinum lounge to wait in until my next flight to Berlin, a much shorter journey. At 4:30 am, it was quite dark and I was looking forward to daylight so I could see the landscape.

They did ask for my physical Velocity Platinum card to confirm the expiry date, although my boarding pass did say the I was eligible. After going through the app and website trying to find the expiry date, they finally said that I could go through. I think there are still some teething problems with the new alliance of Virgin and Qatar airlines. 

The Qatar lounge had the usual offerings of hot and cold breakfast foods, coffee and tea plus alcoholic beverages. It was comfortable, clean with a pleasant environment.

The lounge was near the A1 gate and I had to find C7 for my flight. Once I got there, boarding had already started. I found the priority queue and handed my boarding pass to the attendant….and it was flagged with a ‘seating issue’. To my great excitement I was upgraded to Business class for the Doha to Berlin part of the journey! First time ever….apparently they had overbooked economy seats so frequent flyers like me were upgraded. Score!

Needless to say the hospitality and extra luxuries that Business class offered were a nice surprise. The ability to lie flat for a sleep was welcomed too! 

Arrived in Berlin to see it cold and covered with snow. 

It was so cold that the canals at the end of Bouchestrasse were frozen…. And the Berliners were out with their sleds and ice skates. I was apprehensive at first but there were so many people enjoying the ice that I had to trust that it was stable enough to walk on!

Back to the warm apartment we had some warm soup and champagne and Rosé bubbles. I had to adjust to the fact that although it was dark it was not time to go to bed as it was only 4:30pm. When I finally went to bed it was for a welcome night’s sleep ready for my next adventure.

Guten Nacht