Our second day in Berlin was filled with many adventures. So, to start the day, Mandi awoke and frantically got us up in attempts to make our historical walking tour. Upon showering and beginning to get ready, our blow dryer decided it had too many volts for European sockets, and caught fire!! This basically ruined our morning, and we had to go back to bed. After our "nap", awoke to find we had missed our second tour, and decided we needed to make our own! So, we ventured on the "U", aka train, and made it to Potsdamer Platz, the site of many war and Holocaust memorials.
We were able to see the Brandenburg Gate, the original site of entry into Berlin. We saw parts of the remaining Berlin wall and had our passports/visas stamped with Checkpoint Charlie and other entry points during WWII. In addition to these historical sites, we stumbled across this amazing playground of hundreds of concrete rectangular structures called steles. They were of various heights and covered more than an acre of the city. We immediately dubbed this the "concrete jungle" and began frolicking, jumping, and posing for photos in this "park". We were amazed at the beauty of the structures and the view we were able to see from them. As we left, we noticed a sign forbidding such activities and felt bad for breaking the city ordinances. We felt even worse however, when a a hostel-mate, the next day, pointed out that we had been frolicking on the Holocaust Memorial!! :( Again to prove the point on ignorant Americans.
On a better note, we discovered that there are other universal entities besides a smile. STARBUCKS!! :D It's everywhere and you can order your venti skinny vanilla latte the same way. After our Starbucks we visited "soldiers" and various street performers, along with the police, for photos. Our soldiers were more taken with our American spirit than expected, and before leaving, had professed love to us. Krystal bowed her head in shame, but admitted she enjoyed the flattery. We were a bit more concerned with dinner and joining our new friends for our last evening in Berlin, and ventured back to find food.
Our last night in Berlin, was spent at the Wombat "skybar" with our new friends from around the world. Amy decided to call it a night at 12am, Mandi stayed out a bit later, and Krystal decided it would be best not to sleep, for fear of not making our train in the morning.... and missing out on more new friends! Don't worry, we successfully navigated to the Berlin train station and boarded our train to Prague!
More to come soon!
We were able to see the Brandenburg Gate, the original site of entry into Berlin. We saw parts of the remaining Berlin wall and had our passports/visas stamped with Checkpoint Charlie and other entry points during WWII. In addition to these historical sites, we stumbled across this amazing playground of hundreds of concrete rectangular structures called steles. They were of various heights and covered more than an acre of the city. We immediately dubbed this the "concrete jungle" and began frolicking, jumping, and posing for photos in this "park". We were amazed at the beauty of the structures and the view we were able to see from them. As we left, we noticed a sign forbidding such activities and felt bad for breaking the city ordinances. We felt even worse however, when a a hostel-mate, the next day, pointed out that we had been frolicking on the Holocaust Memorial!! :( Again to prove the point on ignorant Americans.
On a better note, we discovered that there are other universal entities besides a smile. STARBUCKS!! :D It's everywhere and you can order your venti skinny vanilla latte the same way. After our Starbucks we visited "soldiers" and various street performers, along with the police, for photos. Our soldiers were more taken with our American spirit than expected, and before leaving, had professed love to us. Krystal bowed her head in shame, but admitted she enjoyed the flattery. We were a bit more concerned with dinner and joining our new friends for our last evening in Berlin, and ventured back to find food.
Our last night in Berlin, was spent at the Wombat "skybar" with our new friends from around the world. Amy decided to call it a night at 12am, Mandi stayed out a bit later, and Krystal decided it would be best not to sleep, for fear of not making our train in the morning.... and missing out on more new friends! Don't worry, we successfully navigated to the Berlin train station and boarded our train to Prague!
More to come soon!
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