A bright, sunny day in Berlin. My heart goes out to them as they seem to have really brutal winters, and it's much cooler and slower to welcome spring than northern France.
The not-to distant past is always present here. The city was mostly destroyed in WWII, but memorials and reminders popped up everywhere. We walked over to the bombed ruins of the Kaiser William Church, and then on to the Berlin Zoo.
Seeing the Elephants look bored and the apes with their looks of melancholy makes me feel guilty for staring.
Afterwards, a walk in a couple parks. I loved how everyone was out, picnicking and drinking beer. Drinking in public still just feels weird to me. I still try to tuck the bottle out of sight behind my handbag or wrap my jacket around it. I feel like a closeted puritan.
A friend was telling us about how the Journeyman carpenter guild has to wear a vest and tophat as they roam around the country for three years. You can approach one and ask for them to do work around your house and they can't refuse.
How weird, right? They take vows of poverty and depend on the charity of others to get fed and sheltered as they work their way around the country.
We also checked out Treptower Park.
It's an enormous memorial and cemetery dedicated to the Soviets. It's...odd.
All over the city, you can still find the guard towers that lined the border between East and West.
I felt like 3 days here wasn't nearly enough. Its sprawling, and there's a lot to take in. Learning the metro system was kind of a challenge since the maps were devoid of any geographical details, but once we figured out the basics, it was easy to get around. It also would be an excellent place to rent bikes as it was very bike-friendly, with paths on almost every major road. Plus, the nightlife is really happening here and I didn't even dip my toe into that aspect.
Despite the Currywurst, I would plan on going back for some more wandering and museum-gawking.
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