We decided that the excursion for today was to walk to the defunct airport that is now the central exercise hub for Berliners with their bicycles and their dogs.

I had a hairdressing appointment for a blow dry at 10am so I walked the 3 blocks to see the lovely hairdresser to get ready for the trip home. She charged me 20€ which is around $32AUD.

We then made a late start and walked down the road to a Cafe called Na am Wasser (next to water). I chose the Speck quiche with salad and Scott ate the carrot and goats cheese quiche with salad. This place only accepts cash, which is a practice that is unusual after COVID and drives many people mad because card is king these days.

We then walked the 2.5 kilometres to the Templehof Airport. I managed to avoid slipping or falling in rain, snow or ice over the past few weeks but a concrete footpath in Berlin finally tripped me up. It was a light fall, mainly because all extremities are padded with leggings or gloves. 🙄

What an interesting place this is! Tempelhof Airport, covers 355 hectares of the site of the former airport, including its buildings and surrounding land. This makes it the largest inner city open space in the world and Berlin’s largest city park. We clocked up our steps and read the informative signs. During the warmer months this area is swarming with people.

At the other end of the airport, Scott booked a Sharenow car which was a small Fiat and he circumnavigated the outer buildings of the airport before heading back to the apartment.

We left the car in the supermarket car park which had other share cars there too. Scott promised me a home cooked meal so he stocked up on the ingredients to make a dill pickle soup. We first went to Netto where some dogs were tethered to purpose made hooks outside the shop. What a great idea! The supermarkets in Germany do not have separate shops for their liquor. They are just in the aisles and no one is silly about it but they do check your age if you choose some. You can even stock up at the last minute at the cashier with 40ml bottles of spirits, the vodka costing 1:19€ or $1:85AUD.

Scott is an amazing cook! He wanted to add body to the soup without thickeners so he boiled and mashed the rest of the potatoes and mixed it through the soup.

What a great way to finish the holiday with a home cooked meal! My personal cocktail waiter is also an amazing cook 👨‍🍳. It was delicious 😋 and washed down with French Martinis.

We reflected on what has been a wonderful couple of weeks of experiences while building memories.

Guten Nacht

Michele used to work with German native, Betti in Port Douglas many years ago. Betti was staying in Berlin with her partner Daniel so we arranged to meet for lunch. They have been working in Canada, where they met, and are now making plans to work in Ireland. Daniel is originally from Equador.

Scott and I walked to Neukölln Rathaus station and caught the Ubahn to Hermannplatz and then changed trains for Alexanderplatz. Sometimes you encounter some interesting people on these trains like a musician busking for money or people who want to preach to the crowd. There was one very vocal and cute passenger on the train today who had a lot to ‘say’.

We met Betti and Daniel under the Clock structure and made our way to the Bavarian restaurant. Conversations were easy and we made the best of this window of time to catch up over food and beers.

Betti and Daniel were due to catch a train back to Mannheim at 3pm. So we all made our way back to the Alexanderplatz Ubahn and went our separate ways after vowing to catch up somewhere like Ireland or Spain next year. Daniel is keen to see Spain and then Scott commented on how we always seem to want to go to the land of our colonisers!

Back in the apartment we decided to take it easy. Wolt is the online food ordering app like Menulog and we decided to have Asian chicken wings and bites for dinner.

I only have one day left after today so I wanted to start packing for the trip home. Coming over, I had my large case and a smaller carry on bag (for our Iceland trip) which I packed with the anticipation of not getting my large suitcase at my final destination. Luckily there were no luggage woes but it was a pain to drag 2 suitcases around. I wanted to see if I could fit the little one inside the larger one and pack items inside and around it. It worked! Now I’ll just stress about getting my luggage at home. 🙄

I love Scott’s apartment …. My home for the last 3 weeks ❤️

Guten Nacht

We were up very early for our 7:40am flight. The trip to the airport takes about 50 minutes, we needed to refuel the car and then claim our tax back from our purchases, so we left our cosy apartment at 5am.

After the car was returned to Europcar without any fuss, it was a very cold 5 minute walk to the Leif Erikson terminal.

It was very busy with flights going to Berlin, Frankfurt, USA, Paris this early in the morning. It was still very dark.

We didn’t see any Northern Lights on this trip. We nearly booked a sea cruise for last night but the late finish was not conducive to our early departure… and they cannot guarantee that you will actually see them but apparently they were active this week because Narelle finally saw them.

Taking off from the airport, the runways were bordered by lots and lots of snow. They must start early to clear away the snow.

We flew with Icelandair and had paid for the extra legroom in row 5 again plus we were aware of the metal divider that gets in the way – watch your head!

Once in the air, the cart comes around for you to make purchases of food or drink. I ordered the chicken soup and it was just ok – a bit chewy but tasty.

I had time to reflect on the things that I didn’t need to pack for this short trip –

1. Thick socks – I only wore thick stockings and fleecy leggings.

2. Slippers – all floors are warm and you are usually walking around in your stockinged feet.

3. Carry bags – when wearing coats there are lots of pockets, enough for a lipstick and iPhone.

4. Cash – I don’t even know what an Icelandic Krona looks like

5. Too many clothes – always halve what you pack.

Items that I definitely needed:

1. Warm gloves

2. Fleecy Leggings

3. 140(or more) denier stockings

4. Very warm long jacket

5. Beanie or ear muffs

6. Rubber soled shoes/ non slip soles

7. Personal Debit/credit Card

8. Power pack or back up charger

9. International Ac adapter

The return flight took 3 1/2 hours and we lost an hour of time by crossing a time zone. We entered Berlin’s Brandenburg airport and picked up some food as we progressed through the massive terminal!

Scott booked a Sharenow Mini and we walked to the share car( there are a number of different companies doing this) carpark and finished our journey for the day.

Back at Scott’s Berlin apartment we chilled and watched the series ‘Wednesday’ on Netflix. Scott made some cocktails and picked up some food from a cafe up the road for our dinner.

Guten Nacht.

I awoke to a strange noise and after investigation I realised that it was the wind. It did not sound inviting!

There is a high temperature of -1C expected today … warm by Icelandic standards.

We started the day with a walk to the shops so Scott could purchase the rug he had decided was his. Breakfast was hotdogs from the famous stand.

The plan for today was to explore the western part of Reykjavik and to see the Fly over Iceland exhibit recommended by Narelle.

No gloves or beanie were needed for today, the wind had settled and it was just cold. We walked past the harbour where the water was frozen. There was plenty of snow all around and walking was conducted in a careful manner.

Flyover Iceland was housed in a purpose built complex and cost 5490 ISK or around $55AUD or 36€ each.

There was a lovely little cafe in the foyer where we bought a drink while waiting for the experience.

Once your session starts, you are led upstairs and taken through two rooms of multi media outlining some of the history of Iceland and the role of trolls. There are lots of steps and standing at the beginning.

Then you are strapped into a set of seats which are suspended in the air while you are being whisked across fields, lakes, rivers, glaciers and basalt mountains. The experience is also enhanced by a fine spray of water when appropriate and the smell of sulphur in thermal areas. It is quite exhilarating and highly recommended.

Lunch was decided easily when we saw a sign for Lobster soup at small cosy cafe.

We could see clouds coming across the harbour when we returned to the apartment. My personal cocktail waiter made us Bloody Mary’s to help keep us warm. It snowed the teensiest bit in the afternoon leaving a light dusting on cars.

We agreed that we had to have the Icelandic taster menu and Tapas Barinn had great reviews on the web. I realised that it was a Saturday night so I booked online – 5:30 or after 9 pm were the only choices available. I was lucky to get the 5:30 booking because the place was very busy.

The tapas menu here was varied with many choices. The option for the Icelandic gourmet feast was exquisite, offering 9 courses. The cost was 10,900 ISK which is about $110AUD or 72€ each but it was worth it!

The lamb was so tender, the lobster was amazing, the Minke Whale was chewy and not to my liking.

The Puffin was a little fishy but delicious. To taste the local delicacies is a must if you want the whole cultural experience.

Tapas Barinn was only 3 minutes walk from the apartment so we retired for the day to prepare for the early morning flight.

Fireworks could be seen and heard being let off in various places .

G óða Nótt

Scott had bad news today! There is no McDonalds in Iceland. It was expected to be partly cloudy today with a maximum temperature of -6C with some wind. It was a good day to take a car trip.

I prepared for the cooler regional outing with the thick tights, fleecy leggings, warm boots, a polo skivvy, my merino wool sports jacket, my denim dress, a warm scarf, gloves and the green puffer coat. I needed all the layers today!

The Golden Circle is a tourist route that takes in some of the interesting natural beauty of Iceland.

There was a mobile phone inside the apartment with a designated number that operated the boom gate for our parking area. The car had sat in the car park for two days so a layer of ice had formed on the windows. They need to be scraped before you can drive anywhere.

The landscape is insane with white mountains and snow broken up with some black roads and horses. Heads up – there are a lot of videos in this post.

First stop was the Kerid crater. It was very cold and the little lake at the bottom was frozen over which took about an hour to reach this destination. We paid $12 each for the privilege of freezing while we avoided slipping over to see the frozen crater.

Back in the car, the next stop was about 45 minutes away to see the Geysir. There was a service centre here so we ate before walking across to see the Geysir.

Lunch was delicious fish soup with bread (that was more like a cake texture). Scott rescued the bread basket from a table beside ours set for tour groups. The place was teeming with tourists. We carefully navigated the icy paths to view the Geysir only to be sprayed with volcanic water on the second spurt.

Gullfoss waterfalls was about 10 minutes away by car and it was lovely. The temperature was -6 but felt like triple that with the wind chill, like -19C.

You can’t get the vastness of what we were seeing on film. The full moon was captivating.

It was really cool to see the wind sweeping the snow across the roads.

We really were so lucky with the weather, as cold as it was, we did not have to worry about blizzards or rain. Apparently Neil Armstrong trained out here because it is so like the moon landscape.

While driving, many signs are covered in snow so thank heavens for Google maps!

Someone summed up Iceland as uncomfortably cold and uncomfortably expensive, and they are right!

You don’t need a special travel card for financial transactions – all transactions are on my debit card so there is no need for cash. I have not had to go to an ATM to get krona for any transaction. The exchange rate is set by the bank . Even for Germany, I have only had to go to an ATM to get Euros for the hairdresser and this can be done once you are in the country. No need to load currencies onto cards… it’s just unnecessary.

We decided that it was time for fish and chips so we ate at the restaurant around the corner and then settled in for the night at our apartment.

G óða Nótt

The morning light revealed the white cliffs across the harbour that can be seen from the windows of the apartment. I think it is Engey Island where Puffins can be found, it is uninhabited but there are lights suggesting some sort of structures.

The sun does not rise here until about 11:15am but I could see activity at the apparent bus stop, for hotel connections and scenic tours, start early in the dark as a grader scraped snow and ice off the road.

Most establishments do not open until 10am so we took our time preparing for the day of exploring the city centre on foot. I layered up with my thick stockings and fleecy leggings, a wool jumper under my tunic, a warm scarf, gloves and my long warm lined boots from Krakow. The boots have a rubber sole so they are non slip, important when we might encounter ice on the journey.

We headed past the Christmas Cat sculpture and visited stores as we ambled along. The main reason for all the ‘shopping’ was to get out of the cold and warm up again. It was a crisp cold luckily with no wind.

We found the Rainbow Road which is on the way to the famous Hallgrimskir church. In the approach to the church, there is a statue of Leif Erikson also known as Leif the Lucky. He was a Norse explorer who is thought to have been the first European to have set foot on continental North America (Vinland) approximately half a millennium before Christopher Columbus.

The church is an imposing structure that dominates the skyline. There were many tourists milling around but not so many to make it annoying. We entered the church for warmth and knew that we could view the city from the top of the tower. Fortunately there is an elevator to take us up the 8 floors to the viewing platform. We marveled at the vistas of the city from the barred open windows. Visibility was excellent!

Time for some sustenance, so we decided to try the soup restaurant, Svarta Kaffið that Narelle recommended. They only serve two types of soup each day, one with meat and a vego option. We both chose the lamb, tomato, barley and vegetable soup which was served in a rye cob. This was washed down with a shot of Brennivin, an Icelandic clear herbal spirit. Very tasty and warming!

The waxing gibbous moon is very visible in the sky and will be a full moon tomorrow.

There are lots of souvenir shops and wool stores and it is true that everything is very expensive when converted into our currency.

We made our way down to the harbour and the impressive Concert Hall named Harpa. The building features a distinctive coloured glass facade inspired by the basalt landscape of Iceland.

It was warm inside and we admired the structure of glass ‘cells’ that captured the light.

We then strolled back to our apartment, intending to grab some hotdogs from the famous Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur (The City’s Best Hotdog) which is located on the corner of Tryggvagata (our apartment street) and Pósthússtræti. The stand reached global fame when former US President Bill Clinton visited Iceland in 2004.

The queue was too long and it was not worth the waiting in the cold. We bought some supplies at the Pósthús and took them to our apartment.

It’s like living in a postcard when I look out at our windows of our airBnB apartment.

The white cliffs morph as the sun makes it way across the sky. Sunset was at around 3:15pm.

Scott went out searching for a Christmas souvenir and then returned with hotdogs from the famous hotdog stand. They were tasty and the the fried onions were crunchy. We decided to stay in the warmth of our apartment for the rest of the evening.

G óða Nótt

It was raining constantly for the first time since I have been here. Today is the day that we are flying Icelandair to Reykjavik, with carry on only. It was also the day that the Christmas Tree was packed away and Scott’s lounge room was less festive.

The challenge is to pack under 10 kilo of warm clothing for a very cold climate. Sunglasses are apparently an essential item for Iceland in summer or winter … plus sun screen.

After careful consideration I packed the thick (140 denier) stockings, a couple of thick fleecy leggings (I bought from previous trips in Europe for cold weather), 2 long sleeved tops for layering, a merino wool fitness jacket, some warm scarves and some dresses. For the plane I just wore the stockings, with the intention of putting the extra leggings on at Reykjavik airport (which I didn’t until later). I wore a black wool jumper under my denim dress and took my new warm green jacket. I left the black euro coat behind as it is quite bulky. My warm long boots would be too hot for the plane, so they went in my luggage and I wore black sneakers for the trip.

We found a share car right outside Scott’s apartment so the rain wasn’t an issue. It was a nice Fiat, although someone had inconsiderately left their rubbish in the car.

The weather forecast for Berlin for the next few days is rain so we are escaping the miserable wet.

We drove to Berlin’s new Brandenburg airport and parked the car in the designated share car park. The trip took about 30 minutes from Scott’s place. It was a quick walk in the rain to the massive terminal.

We had a bit of a wait at security because of all the people leaving everything to the last minute (liquids etc). … and also the fact that you have to take off layers. Gate 35 was about 10 minutes walk from the duty free area.

We bought some supplies (alcohol is very expensive in Iceland) of Vodka, Hendricks Gin and Kylie Minogue Prosecco. Closer to the gate we saw a food outlet and decided to buy lunch since we had 20 minutes until boarding time. The food was supplied by one of our favourite food chains in Europe called Marche. The service here was frustratingly inefficient and took about 15 minutes to buy a couple of sandwiches.

We then followed the moving walkways to our gate. We did not board for a good 20 minutes after that, so we didn’t have to rush after all.

Scott was impressed with the seats I had chosen for us on the plane – row 5 seats were the ones with extra legroom, immediately behind premium class. They were an extra fee for this privilege.

Once in the air, Icelandair does offer WiFi but it is limited so I ended up using the option of paying 10€ for good Wifi while we were in the air. It was worth it.

In economy, you have to buy your drinks and snacks. Of course they have the ‘buy 2 bottles specials’ so I bought white wines and Scott bought beers. We didn’t need snacks because we had eaten before we boarded the plane.

My ZipZap charger was needed on this flight because my iPhone was draining battery for some reason.

We were offered to buy more drinks about an hour before the flight ended. I love that every airline has English speakers so it is easy to communicate with staff …. It is the universal language in these parts.

The flight took about 3 1/2 hours but because Iceland is one hour behind Berlin, we landed at 3:20 pm …. Just on sunset 🌅

While we were in the air, Aunty Irene turned a year older, so Happy Birthday to you, Irene 😘.

Flying into Reykjavik was awesome….. the snow covered mountains and the sheer cliffs of the ocean. We needed some sustenance before continuing onto the city. At the airport, you cannot buy food to eat until you have passed the border. The offerings were not as good as in the duty free area.

We ate at the only food outlet in the exit section of the airport, it had a very American feel about the food.

We decided that we could hire a car since the forecast is not too sinister. We do have an allocated parking space at our apartment so why not? It cost about 300€ ($468AUD) for the 4 days we are here. The airport is 50km from the city centre so it took 45 minutes to drive past snow covered vistas on the well maintained highway.

We found our apartment in Tryggvagata 13, Reykjavík, Hauptstadtregion 101, Iceland. The allocated parking space was across the road in a boom gated parking area which we did not have access to before we went inside. So Scott managed a creative manoeuvre to get around the boom to find our space. The thick snow obscured the plaques but we managed to find ours.

Narelle and Andreas are friends from my time living in Coffs Harbour. Andreas is a native Icelander and I am so excited that they are in Iceland while we are here. We met in a new food establishment in the old Post Office called Pósthús. It was a mix of different food outlets and bars patronised by the locals …. and some tourists (they are the ones who are wearing the matching Icelandic jumpers 😆).

Scott bought 3 rye martini cocktails which cost 55€($86AUD), unfortunately Andreas had a previous engagement so he had to leave us but it was great to see him.

We then sought out food choosing some chicken bites, spiced cauliflower bites, chicken tacos and a plate of fries topped with grated Parmesan. Every dish is accompanied by a different sauce, including the fries which Narelle pointed out as being an Icelandic habit. The meal cost around 60€($93AUD) and it was delicious. We also bought a bottle of Organic Prosecco which, when I checked my account, cost $100AUD (we were warned and it’s all part of the experience).

The local currency is the Icelandic Krona so 152 ISK is equivalent to 1 Euro or $1.55AUD. So we now know that basically you divide by 100 to get the roundabout Australian conversion.

Narelle then took us on a mini tour of the main street to point out where some good, and not so good places are. We met the Christmas Cat statue and marveled at the claw and teeth details. The temperature was -12C as we wandered around. Narelle also showed us the local supermarket where we could gather supplies when needed.

We finished the night with more cocktails in a swanky bar called Apotek. It was cosy and warm. It was absolutely lovely to spend time with Narelle and I so appreciated her advice about what to do in Iceland. We then said our goodbyes to Narelle and retired to our lovely apartment for a good night’s sleep.

G óða Nótt

It was promising to be cooler today but the sun came back this morning after the previous warm and cloudy days.

Another trip to the Friseur(hairdresser) was necessary before we went out to lunch at the Telekom Tower and the flight to Reykjavik, Iceland on the next day. While I was walking to the hairdresser I found a sign explaining about the history of Bouchéstraße, the street with Scott’s apartment.

Lunch was booked for 1:30pm so we took our time preparing for the day. It was terrible to see the helicopter accident at SeaWorld in Australia on the BBC news. They also talked about how travellers from any countries outside the Shengeng zone will have to apply for a visa waiver(ETIAS) from November 2023, including Croatia who only just joined the alliance. Lucky for us, we travel with Polish passports when we are in Europe.

Preparing for the cooler weather I chose to wear the 140 denier stockings with my dark blue suede boots (I realised that the stockings will not be enough on their own for the expected temperatures in Iceland) but it was cooler in Berlin today and I could feel the cold wind on my legs. I wore a long sleeved cotton top under my floral dress. I needed a scarf today and the new green coat kept me very warm.

We collected a Citroen car this time and drove back to Alexanderplatz which led us past the Eastside gallery and it’s painted walls and tourists.

The Platz looked different in the daytime and we walked past some awesome Soviet buildings from where we left the car.

The Fernsehturm (Telekom Tower) is a television tower with a revolving restaurant and observation deck at the top.

The tower was constructed between 1965 and 1969 by the government of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). It was intended to be both a symbol of Communist power and of the city. It remains a landmark today with its height of 368 metres (including the antenna) it is the tallest structure in Germany and the third-tallest structure in the European Union.

It is a popular tourist destination and I would always recommend booking the restaurant to really enjoy the view without having to bustle through crowds of people. There were queues at the bottom but we had a reservation and entered immediately. There is a foyer dedicated to selling souvenirs and you need to go up the steps, through a security scanning station (Scott was worried about my little bag of salt ) and we were ushered through without incident. You are then counted into the elevators of which there was no social distancing. The elevator is quiet and quick. The restaurant is then accessed up another flight of stairs so it is above the observation deck.

There is an a la carte menu available but our booking was for a 3 course set menu with some options which included a glass of champagne each on arrival plus 2 mini carafes each of red or white wine as we ate our meal.

Scott chose the Salad for his entree and I had the Pumpkin soup. For our mains, I chose the fish and Scott had the lamb dish which were all delicious. The service was attentive and the waiter spoke English. All the while we were slowly being beguiled by the extensive views of the city of Berlin. The first rotation took about an hour and we had great visibility but there were some clouds. For the second rotation, the clouds moved away and we had sunshine to enjoy before watching a lovely sunset on the third round. Visibility distance was about 80 kilometres.

---

For dessert we chose the cake options, Apple cake for Scott and Black Forest cake was my choice.

We finished with a cocktail each and stayed enthralled by the views until our allocated finish time of 4pm.

We made our way home on the Ubahn train from Alexanderplatz to Hermannplatz and then changed trains to get to Neuköln Rathaus where we could walk home from. On the way we stopped at a small Turkish cafe to buy some food to have for dinner at home. We chose mini meat filled ravioli in a yoghurt sauce and a ratatouille type of vegetable dish. My personal cocktail waiter then created and served some variations of martini’s to complete the night.

Guten. Nacht.

The sun rose at 8:15am and we had organised to speak to Michele in Australia. We were pleased to video chat with her and Basil, her Cavoodle puppy (he mainly ignored us and chewed things and caused havoc). He is growing up so fast.

Scott left me in peace and went to the gym so I could finish the blog for yesterday’s adventures. Scott finally has data!!! Since his return from his trip to Cape Town he has not had access to data and could not use his phone. He’s only been trying to rectify the situation since last Wednesday. Telekom were not as efficient as you would expect of a German company.

Lunch was at home consisting of pickled herrings and soft cheeses with crackers plus my personal cocktail waiter was spoiling me with a variety of French Martinis 🍸

The weather was still mild with 15C being expected today with some wind. I decided to wear the 140 denier stockings with a high neck t-shirt, a light dress and cardigan with my red boots. I took the Europe coat with me because of the expected winds.

Scott having his phone data back meant that he could access cars again. He uses an app called Sharenow. You just look up a nearby car and use the app to hire it for as long as you need it for driving in the city. Our first car was around the corner from his place and it was a Peugeot.

Our destination today was West Berlin. I was amazed at how little traffic there was compared to driving in the heart of Sydney. At one point there were emergency vehicles sirens approaching from behind. When this happens, cars have to move out of the way.

We drove past areas that we had walked through yesterday and then we were on the other side of the Brandenburg Gate. Bundesstrasse is a very wide road which is bordered by Central Park and runs from the gate to Siegessäule – the Victory Column. You can go to the top of this monument to a deck that allows you to enjoy city views.

This place was pure capitalism! Every high end brand that you can think of is here. It is also the area where they have the Christmas markets that someone drove a truck through in 2016, killing and injuring many people.

We continued to drive past the Berlin Tiergarten and into the heart of West Berlin. We found a parking space outside the Zoologischer Garten (Berlin zoo) and that’s where we left that car for someone else to hire.

The area was also adorned beautifully with Christmas decorations and lights. I noticed a sign to the Bikini Hotel and was curious about the name. Scott mentioned that there was a bar around here that you could look over the monkey enclosure of the zoo. And there it was…. The Bikini Hotel housed the Monkey Bar! We arrived at a good time, about 4pm because this place can be very popular and there are queues. We only had to wait for a couple of minutes before being shown to the elevator which took us to the tenth floor and the bar. The Monkey bar not only looks over the monkey enclosure of Berlin zoo but also the city skyline of Berlin. They have tables and chairs as well as a sort of step system (bleachers) with cushions and small tables to make the most of the view.

Scott ordered two Mad Monkey Mai Tais which were garnished with mint leaves, pineapple slices and a very tasty and rich maraschino cherry. The food here was amazing too. It was made by the restaurant next to this bar, called Neni. The sweet potato fries were crispy and perfect, as were the Korean Fried Chicken Bites consumed with pita bread and the Babaganoush. We agreed that the food was amazing.

I noticed that the Victory Column was not lit up as would be expected of such a Major monument but this is a current strategy by the German government to conserve energy during these unstable times with Russia and the Ukraine.

Returning to the street, there were many people walking around and enjoying the atmosphere. There were pretty lights and lots of stores to entice the consumer.

KaDeWe is an enormous department store of 8 levels with Food Courts on the top levels. We wandered around observing the products, some quite quirky and very expensive.

It was time for oysters as Scott had heard that there was a very good Oyster bar in this building. The first bar we went to had staff doing their best to ignore you at the ‘Wait to be seated’ sign and there was a queue forming behind us. We could see many spare tables. After about 5 minutes, Scott got the attention of a waiter who had been ignoring the growing queue and told him how impolite it was to make eye contact and then look away and ignore people. We then found another place on the top floor with much more attentive staff. It is like an open food court with all types of food and drinks on offer, including alcohol.

The oysters were shucked as you ordered and they came from France. They were large and they were salty as oysters should be, washed down with Prosecco.

After this, Scott took me to the ‘adult lolly shop’ which stocked Gins of all types and Colours.

A glittery dress caught my eye and I thought maybe I could buy that for a party I am attending when I return home. It was quite an amazing garment but more suitable for a cooler climate and wealthier client.

Enough shopping, it was time to make our way home. The Sharenow car that was closest for us to hire was a lovely BMW. The drive back to the east was uneventful except for when Scott did not see the lights change to red at one intersection and luckily traffic had not started to move yet. Travelling speeds around these areas are only 30kmph.

It was another great day exploring Berlin.

Guten Nacht.

New Years Day saw a late start to our activities. The sun doesn’t rise until about 8:15am over here so places are not operational until later anyway. The Brandenburg Gate was on the agenda so we walked to the Ubahn station. While roaming around, there was debris from spent fireworks scattered everywhere.

The Bear is the animal emblem for Berlin. It is a pun on the city’s name – ‘little bear’ in German is Bärlein.

We navigated the Ubahn and Sbahn to arrive at our destination.We started at Rathaus Neuköln (Townhall) station. The train was clean and they have screens in each carriage that informs passengers about upcoming stops plus a screen displaying the latest news.

The Brandenburg Tor train station has an exit near the Russian embassy. It is an imposing building with many people congregating outside. One young man was seen to be doing the one finger salute into the air to express his opinion of the embassy. A tribute to Ukraine has also been set up on the land strip in the middle of Unter den Linden Strasse (Grand boulevard lined with Linden trees), attracting much interest.

The Brandenburg gate was obscured by a stage and cordoned off so workers could break down the structures. The place was teeming with tourists as expected.

I wore a high neck T-shirt under a light dress, 120 denier stockings and my green skirt. No scarf or gloves needed. Always take a warm coat in case there is a cold breeze. The expected temperature for today was cloudy and a high of 15C.

The Hotel Adlon is next to the USA embassy. It is the hotel where Michael Jackson dangled his son from the window.

We wanted to see if we could get a meal here but they were only accepting reservations. So further down the road we found the Lebensart restaurant and sat inside. It was busy but the wait staff were efficient and friendly. I chose the Currywurst which was served with chips and Scott ordered the Club Sandwich. Chosen beverages were beer and gluwein. An Apple strudel was also consumed.

The area attracts a lot of tourists so this area is maintained and kept clean.

A popular ice cream in Germany is called ‘Spaghetti Eis’. It basically is ice cream forced through small holes to form ‘spaghetti’ which is then topped with berry sauce to represent Bolognaise pasta.

The Ampelmann is an icon of Berlin. When the wall came down in 1989, the city was reunited and one of the items that differed were the walking symbols on pedestrian crossings. The Ampelmann was the symbol used in East Berlin.

After our meal we continued on foot to FriedrIchstrasse. We walked past the Galeries Lafayette where the Accenture Berlin office is located. Further down the road is Checkpoint Charlie which used to be a Berlin Wall crossing point between East and West Berlin. Of course the place is now surrounded by American fast food stores and souvenir shops. There was a tree decorated with Ukrainian flags erected beside the checkpoint.

It was evident that we were in the old east by the architecture in the area. We kept walking to Gendarmenmarkt which held the Christmas Markets but although they were lit up nicely, the markets were closed and being dismantled.

We continued onto Alexanderplatz which is where the Telekom tower is situated. There is an interesting clock sculpture that you can walk around and look at the location times around the world.

It was time for an early dinner before heading home. Scott took us to the Hofbrau Munchen Wirtshaus which is a Bavarian Inn serving Bavarian food. It is designed as one of the beer halls you would find in Munich during Oktoberfest. Scott chose the Goulash soup of beef with paprika, sour cream and fresh farmhouse bread. I enjoyed the Sausage plate with a dunkel beer. It was delicious and we had left overs to take home.

We travelled home on the Ubarn from Alexanderplatz and completed another day of a lot of walking.

Guten Nacht.