cruise - done - left the boat behind in kiel yesterday
a fast train to berlin via hamburg - fast, easy, comfortable
reality bites - glide into berlin central station and take it on
we're lugging 2 large suitcases, 2 backpacks, 2 smaller bags
we know no german and all we have is an address for a hotel
google maps comes up with a route questioned by the info booth
we go with the human - find the platform for the required suburban train
tickets are then the issue - we fail negotiations with the ticket vending machine
our party of 2 then splits - 1 in luggage minding mode - the other sourcing tickets
we get on the required train and head south east - eastern berlin is our home
a taxi from station to hotel selected with the driver well aware of our digs
3 large grey high-rise hotels under common management
very bleak looking but our room is just dandy
sunday evening spent on the tram system
and a wander around freidrichshain
a kind of bohemian area in east berlin
it feels good - authentic - we like this city
monday - tram system mastered - sightseeing
there's a lot of points of interest in central berlin
considered a walking tour but the distances are long
so we have agreed on a 5 hour bike tour from 11am to 4pm
it's an easy tram journey into alexanderplatz - peak hour no problem
ditto finding the base for the bike tour - we are well early so off for coffee
upon return we are acquainted with randall our australian guide and bikes
he has a keen sense of humour and gets us relaxed and excited quickly
peddling off and it becomes apparant that berlin and bikes mix well
there's no helmets, some bike lanes and co-operative car drivers
within a few hundred meters i have been party to some mad riding
we traverse footpaths and roads and weave in and out of traffic
as with everyone else though red/and green lights are strictly obeyed
respect for all road users seems to cut across regardless of mode
the emphasis of this bike tour is to cover all the main spots
the book-burning, checkpoint charlie, the wall, the bunker
the reichstag, the victory column, museums, memorials
and the huge botannical gardens and a german lunch
5 hours flashed by and feeling well familiar now
so the evening spent traversing east to west
there's a jazz club called quasimodo
but no music tonight - cancelled
have to eat more german food
and the return journey home
berlin - love this city...
