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http://www.berlin.de/english/index.html.parisinfo.com
http://www.berlin-tourist-information.de/english/berlin-infos/index.php
Today we boarded a train for Berlin with a stop
in Hamburg. What we didn’t (can’t find the
apostrophe on this ...yet another weird
keyboard!) know was that this part of the journey
would involve passage by ferry. When we got to
the southernmost part of Denmark we were
loaded on to a ferry... I mean the entire train was
loaded onto the ferry. Then we took off for a 45-
minute passage to Germany. They allowed us
off the train to the upper deck. On the top deck
there was a casino, a gift shop, and an
observation deck and three restaurants. The
ferry seemed to be run by the Scandinavian
Cruise Lines.
We just got back on dry ground and are now in
Puttgarten, Germany.
19 July 05
Today was a long day. Adam and I got up very
early and headed to the Dunkin Donuts across
the street from the Train Station to meet up for a
free 5 hour walking tour of Berlin. While we
waited we used the Internet at the cafe that was
actually part of the Dunkin Donuts. Then we
took the underground U train to the heart of
Berlin for the tour. When we got there we were
at what they called Pottsdam Square. Our tour
guide "Per" was from Brittain and knew a lot
about history. He was quite animated and really
knew how to tell a story, so it was informative as
well as entertaining. We saw sights like the
Brandenburg Gate, the Berlin Wall, The
Holocaust Monument, Checkpoint Charlie, The
Dome of Berlin, The Opera House, The History
Museum, and University where Einstein worked
before he came to America (thankfully right
before Hitler took power). What an interesting
such a bitter reality for the people of Berlin. The
fall of the Berlin Wall completely altered the
country allowing dramatic changes to take place
place in Berlin right now. Most of the city was
gutted during the war so everything in Berlin has
been totally rebuilt or is in the middle of being
rebuilt. It’s an astonishing saga for the German
people. Adam and I both learned a lot on the
tour.
The tour guide worked for tips, so we left a tip
and took the "S" train back to the Zoo Station
near our hotel. There we met up with Anne
Erdrick. Anne was a foreign exchange student
from Germany at Lawrence Central three years
ago. She is now studying medicine to be a
doctor. She has 5 years left. Right now she is
doing an internship in Berlin, but her university
is actually closer to Leipzig. She took a
placement test last year to get into medical
school and passed, so now she has to put in a
lot of hours at the hospital.
Anne has a boyfriend at the university, he is
also studying to be a doctor, and also a guy in
Berlin, but she is very busy with her work... 9
plus hours a day so finding time for a real
meaningful committed relationship is difficult. We
talked a long time and then she left to meet a
friend who was celebrating her birthday. It was
good to see Anne.
This has been a long day and we are ready to
relax and prepare to leave for the Dresden -
Leipzig leg of the trip. We will need to rent a car
to see all the small towns where the Silbermann
organs are.