We found it on the internet, and it is utterly charming. There's something about this sunny vacation flat that makes you feel like playing house. We immediately brought in flowers.
Click on any picture to enlarge it!
We even have wifi internet access! The laptop now has a place of honor on the little wooden table in the living room and functions as our phone, newspaper, and mailbox..
Those before us have filled the guestbook with their vacation memories, linking our experience with previous occupants from Australia, South Africa, Italy, Spain, the UK, Denmark, Germany, and one from Indianapolis. .
The kitchen has a table for two by the window.It is well-stocked with dishes, towels, cleaning supplies, salt, coffee, sugar, dishes - move-in ready!
What else? See School Days in Berlin, Jewish History in Berlin, and Night Life in Berlin
After a day of sightseeing, we retreat to the living room to read and check our mail. There are even a few novels and mysteries on hand for vacation reading.
Today we took the U-Bahn for the first time, traveling to Dieffenbacherstrasse in Kreuzburg where we had found a used bike shop Radlager, through searching web sites.
The bikes were all used, and, according to the internet ad, completely restored. Chuck looked them over carefully and made his decision on a 159 Euro bike.
In front of our apartment and ready to roll! "It would have cost me 180 euro to rent a better bike but I would have been liable for damage or loss to the tune of 400 euro."
Perfect for exploring by bike, Berlin is very flat with wide streets and calm traffic. The Tiergarten, a large park nearby, offers a network of off-street bike trails through the woods.
The bike is resting against the Berlin Wall - about two
blocks from our house, which is in East Berlin. How near the West must have seemed, and yet
how far.
Bikes are fine, but I like a good walk! Original Berlin Walks meets by the Haagen Dazs shop at the Hackescher Markt.
With a guide from Minnesota, we crossed the Spree to the Museum Island, which houses several museums and the massive Berliner Dom, rebuilt after extensive damage in WWII.
Next door, the Altes Museum, is the new home of the Egyptian collection and Neferteri. When we were here in 2004 she was in the Egyptian Museum near the Charlottenburg Palace.
The historic Unter den Linden was the boulevard leading to the City Palace (destroyed in 1951 by the East German government). Hitler had the linden trees cut down to accommodate his torchlight parades, but they have been replanted.
The modern avenue takes you past the German History Museum, the opera house, Humboldt University, theaters, cafes, and memorials.
For a smart and orginal take on cultural diversity, check out Geoffrey Taylor's Blog: Small World
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The "Ghost station," sealed off by the DDR, connected points
in West Berlin. While under East Berlin, the train slowed to 10 mph to conceal its
existence from the populace walking above.
This memorial to victims of war, Mary cradling the dying Christ in her arms, was designed by a woman who had lost a husband in WWI and a son in WWII.
On May 10, 1933, 25,000 books were burned by the Nazis. The memorial at Bebelplatz lies at your feet, a window into an underground library lined with empty bookshelves. As you gaze down at the shelves, you see your own reflection.
The Brandenburg Gate, flanked on the left by the new American Embassy, set to open on July 4, 2008.
Right behind the American Embassy, across from the buried bunker where Hitler spent his last days, stands the new Holocaust Memorial, silent, looming, and unforgettable.
Looking over it from outside, one thinks of sheer numbers. Walking between the cold slabs within, one feels dwarfed by their immensity.
The heavy hand of state power – this Nazi Airforce HQ became a DDR administrative center.
The idealized Socialist State characterized by men and women, blue-collar and white-collar workers striving together for the common good.