Berlin, Day 2

What a difference a good night’s sleep makes! Barb and I managed to fight off jet lag and stay awake until after 8 PM on our arrival day, so when we awoke on day 2, we were energized.

We left our hotel at 10 AM, completely prepared for whatever the day would throw at us. Sun, rain, high winds, pestilence…we were ready!

Here are some highlights of our next 12 hours.

Believe it or not, these blocks of varying heights are the Holocaust Memorial. Don’t ask me what they symbolize. Our diligent search for an explanation didn’t turn up a single plaque anywhere.

Yesterday while riding the HOHO, we saw many important buildings. Did either of us remember anything about them? Well, we DID remember seeing them, but that’s about it.

The Berliners are very fond of domes…and columns…and bears.

We thoroughly enjoyed Museum Island, even though we only visited one —the Neues Museum. Let’s face it: we have pretty fantastic museums in New York, Boston and DC. Still, the Neues Museum had some artifacts that were really spectacular. Click on the image if you want to see more.

Did you see the little Lego figure in the boat? It’s good to know museum staff members have a sense of humor.

One advantage to traveling on foot is you can stop to enjoy your surroundings. And we did. Frequently. But we still managed to walk almost 10 miles, according to my Apple Watch.

What is it about men and cars? if a hood is open, they simply HAVE to gaze inside.

I had no idea there were so many bridges in Berlin. Yesterday’s HOHO audio guide claimed that Berlin has more bridges than Venice!

I’m sure this tower commemorates some victory, but I can’t recall which one. Not a problem, because I’ll bet you really don’t care either.

The museum on the ground floor contains tiny reproductions of famous buildings from around the world, like the Roman colosseum, the Statue of Liberty and the Brandenburg Gate.

The first viewing platform has gorgeous mosaics, depicting humans attacking each other. I’m gonna take a wild guess and speculate that the artist wasn’t a woman.

The BEST part is you can climb to the tower’s top for a panoramic view of Berlin. Was it worth climbing 282 steps (I counted) up a spiral staircase?

We had a few hours till we were due to board our boat for our sunset river cruise, so we ambled along the Tiergarten, a beautiful oasis in the midst of all the concrete and high rises.

How was the boat ride? Well, it was a beautiful evening, the wine was unlimited, the 4 course meal was delicious, and we got to see Berlin from a different vantage point.

As usual, my posts are done on the fly, and lag a bit behind my activity.

Barb and I are completing our final “on our own” activity and will be joining the group tour later this PM.