Oktober 15 - Berlin

Yes, we slept in...but got up very quickly to continue our touring of Berlin. After a brief episode of not being able to find Ryan's drivers license (we looked everywhere in a panic and after Ryan has almost fainted from shock I found MY driver's license in my pocket and I thought I had put it in my security belt (this pouch we are wearing around our waists under our clothes for protection...very smart). Ryan tells me to put mine in the pouch, as he thinks his has been stolen or lost, and I do and guess what I find.....bingo, his I.D. After a brief pummeling of Scott for causing Ryan a near heart attack (and a pretty good poop) we started our day.

One thing that we have definately come away from this trip with is that we love, love, love to 1) walk around anywhere and everywhere, 2) people watch, and 3) well, we still love to shop! So we walked down our street until we found a neat pizza place and had some grub. Then walked to the Galleria Kauphof to buy these duvets that all Germans use...instead of having one big bed duvet, each person has their own personal duvet. They also do not use Flat Sheets and instead cover the duvets and wash those covers. It is such a brilliant concept and we wanted to bring some of them home.

Sunday, everything is closed. It isn't dead, however, because the streets, subways, and buses are filled will local people as well as tourists. So we did a ton of sightseeing, including Checkpoint Charlie which has an incredible history lesson. The still-standing booth isn't really the attraction...but this long wall timeline with pictures and snippets of text that explain everything about the creation and reasons for the Berlin Wall, but also the political climate in Germany after the war and until now.

To give a little bit of respect to the U.S. after my seemingly unpatriotic post yesterday, the assistance and strength of the U.S. against the Soviets is a main reason for keeping the German in Germany and not letting this turn into a communist country. However, the people of Berlin made the wall come down and reminds me of what can happen when a lot of people with the same thought get together instead of closing their eyes.

We both enjoyed that very much. It is now almost 6 in the evening so we are going to have a nice cocktail here at the bar and then eat at a respectable hour...we have only been eating breakfast and a 4 p.m. dinner which is not what the Germans do. They do a big breakfast, a little lunch, and a late dinner. One more night in Berlin and then we are off to Düsseldorf for our last night....sad, sad, sad, sad.