Berlin

(This post contains large photo collages. If you wish to see all of these pictures and more, click on the collage and it will take you to that particular photo set. I created 5 sets for this trip, according to subject. Some of the pictures in Flickr have more description of things, in case you're curious.)

Honestly, when we decided to go to Berlin for a few days, I had no idea what to expect. I knew a tiny bit about the historic aspects of the city, but nothing more. My sister Hannah had been there though, earlier this year, and based on her recommendation and those of a few other friends, we booked four nights in a hostel called Odyssee, and set off.

As it turned out, the city was fascinating. We stood next to the Berlin Wall and started to understand it for the first time.

Strangely ugly and beautiful all at once. The painting of the walls began years before the two sides of Berlin were reunited in an expression of individual protest from the West (the free side, and the only side that was also free to touch it).

We bought some books about it, and have been learning more about it. (You can also read about it at Wikipedia here.)

The boys had a great time at the zoo. In the top left corner, you can see how Daisy was able to stay warm, even on that cold and rainy day (can you spot her?)


We also visited a huge museum, and spent a whole day there.

I especially enjoyed the textile section (more notes in the Flickr set).

We also spent some time at Unter den Linden, saw the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedachtnis-Kirche (the roof was bombed out, but the church still stands, with modern portions built up on either side).

In this collage, you can also peek into the hostel we stayed at. Does anyone know the signifigance of the orange/purple/yellow mural in the bottom two rows below? It was painted across one wall of our room, and depicted some important Berlin landmarks (the Fernsehturm TV tower, for one) along with a woman in a purple hat. We couldn't figure out what it was supposed to mean.


And of course, there was the food. We ate at some hole-in-the-wall places and did a bit of fine dining as well. Quite honestly, the "finest" of the dining I found a bit pretencious, but at another restaurant just a step lower, we had some of the best Italian food we've ever had in our lives. Seriously.

In the top left corner, you can see Sparky enjoying a Kombucha Tea. This was the first time I'd found it for sale anywhere, and it's very tasty. I wish that I knew someone who would share a Kombucha mushroom with me, because I'd love to be able to make it at home.

In the bottom row, you can see the chocolate shop we visited, Melanie (on the corner of Goethestrasse and Knesebeckstrasse, in case you ever want to stop by). Some of the truffle flavors we purchased included lavendar, thyme, rosemary, and curry. I'm pretty sure it was some of the best chocolate I've ever had in my life. The actual address of this place is Goethestrasse 4, Charlottenburg.

Alltogether we had a wonderful trip, and I'd love to go back sometime.

There are some fiber things going on around here -- I've completed one Sockapalooza sock, and am spinning something that I dyed myself -- but I don't have the energy to blog about it at the moment. Also, this was a really great mail week, thanks to some fun packages, but that'll have to wait as well. I'm having one of the roughest weeks of my life, and I don't know if I've ever worked so hard. (Someone remind me why I have 3 children?!) Anyway, I'll be back with more pictures in the next post...whenever I can get to it.