Liquid bliss!

After work Sophie and I met Mum and Dad at the gym all ready to do a good workout...only there was one problem - Sophie forgot her trainers!

Leaving Mum and Dad to get on with their sessions, Sophie and I went straight to the pool and had almost an hour of swimming which was great, especially as the pool wasn't crowded at all. I made Sophie swim up and down almost continuously, to make up for not doing our exercises upstairs, so I think we burned off lots of calories!

Mum and Dad joined us for a short while and then it was into the spa to relax which was heavenly!

The journey home was not very blissful, though as it was pouring with rain and blowing a gale. I didn't think, with the terrible weather, we would get many trick or treaters, but I was very wrong! We had a steady procession of ghosts, ghouls, draculas and witches throughout the evening but thankfully we had more than enough treats to keep them happy!

A moonlight walk

It's been another lovely day so I made sure I was home on time this evening to go for a walk with Keith before it got dark at around 5pm. Now the clocks have gone back we've lost about an hour of daylight in the evening so very soon our walks will have to stop.

We had a great walk and think we saw a little Muntjac deer on the path over the fields. It was a bit gloomy so it was difficult to make out what it was but it certainly looked like one! It took off before we were very close but we know that there are deer about as we've seen them before. We also saw lots of pheasants and rabbits so walking at dusk is obviously a good time to see wildlife. A huge moon hung in the sky, partly obscured by clouds and I just wished I was able to capture the colours of the sky on my camera.

By the time we arrived home at 5.30pm it was properly dark and it was great to jump in the bath and get warm!

Half-term looms...!

It's half-term this week, traditionally one of the busier holidays for us as the weather can be chilly and wet. Today, however, was beautiful with lots of sunshine but despite this we were still quite busy, albeit a "nice" busy!

After work, Sophie and I found time to go to the gym and do a workout followed by a leisurely swim as swimming lessons aren't on this week. It makes a difference to be able to swim after we've worked out and we finished up in the spa as usual, soaking in the frothy bubbles!

Keith has decided to give up beer until Christmas (despite a Wine Evening booked for November!) and I'm going to try as well - not until Christmas, but at least for a couple of weeks. I'm hoping it will add to the weight loss!

A tramp over the fields

We had talked about going to London today but the weather was damp and dismal so we decided to put it off until the weather improves a bit.

Keith and I went for a walk, though, leaving the children at home. We extended our normal route and we were out for almost two hours which was great. The rain held off and although it was chilly, it was very invigorating to be out in the fresh air.

After lunch Sophie and I went for a swim (I should be stick-thin!) and then had a very pleasant half hour in the steam room and the sauna, punctuated by dips in the jacuzzi. Outside it was getting dark early so it was lovely to get home and curl up on the sofa with a glass of wine. I think I deserved it!

Computer problems

I have spent most of today grappling with our home computer as we have lost the internet connection. There was obviously a problem on Thursday night as our Anti-virus programme kicked in and said that it had pounced on a threat.

Keith and I dropped Sophie off at work and then went to PC World to buy a new wireless adapter to try that first, but that didn't really solve it. I then restored the computer back to Tuesday of last week before the virus threat and it worked! Keith was very impressed so I just hope the solution is permanent!

The weather has certainly turned colder over the last couple of days and we had some sleety rain this afternoon, right after I washed my car. Typical! The clocks go back tonight so it really feels like summer is over and winter is on its way.

Sophie and I went for a swim after she finished work and at one point we had the entire pool to ourselves. Bliss!

A stressy end to the week...

After an easy-going week, today became a little stressful and I was very glad indeed to escape and go to the gym with Sophie. We were a bit later than usual and after our workout all I wanted to do was go home and have a long hot bath. We couldn't have gone for a swim, anyway, as both the adult pool and the children's pool were closed, due, I believe, to a little angel messing in both of them. The guilty parents should have been fined, in my opinion! How long does it take to put a swim nappy on a child?

I fell asleep on the bed after my bath and felt very much like I was coming down with a cold. Oh no!

Fascinating stuff!

Over the last couple of nights I've been watching Prehistoric Autopsy on BBC2 with the excellent Alice Roberts, which I've found fascinating. Over the three nights they've been reconstructing three early humans - a Neanderthal man, a Homos Erectus boy and "Lucy" who was walking the earth about 3 million years ago. I just can't grasp that length of time and what the planet must have been like then. It does make me wonder whether humans will still be around in 3 million years time and if we are continuing to evolve.

I joked with Keith that if Earth is still here and we haven't destroyed it completely, humans will probably have huge brains and huge thumbs with no legs and will be known as "Techno Man"! We will have lost the ability to talk to one another with all communication taking place through computers that will have ultimate power over our lives...

I do hope I'm wrong!

Girls' Night out v Boys' Night in!

After work Sophie and I went off to the gym and had a really good workout, followed by a swim and a spell in the jacuzzi and sauna. It was liquid bliss! We'd booked to go to the cinema to see Taken 2 so before we went I treated Sophie to a meal at Pizza Hut as she was so good for Mum and Dad while we were away in Berlin.

We had a good, if somewhat rushed, meal and then set off in the misty gloom for Sixfields to see the film. I was a bit surprised to see so many seats taken but luckily I had no-one next to me! I always joke that nobody ever sits next to me so I was pretty pleased! It happens in the pool now as well - I can empty a lane within minutes of getting into the water!

The film was enjoyable, but definitely not as good as the first Taken and was a bit far-fetched in places. However, Liam Neeson more than made up for the slight disappointment so I wasn't worried. We arrived home late to find Keith and Mikey satisfied with their evening as well - curry and football...what more could you want?!

Season of mists...

For the past two days it's been very foggy and damp and we haven't seen any sun at all. It's real Autumnal weather and when we got home from work Keith and I walked up to Mum and Dad's house and marvelled at all the leaves that have fallen over the last few days. It does make me wonder how many leaves fall each year and where they all end up!

Time for candles in the house tonight, I think...to chase away the gloom!

A very disturbed night!

We had a lovely Sunday evening, inviting my parents around for a meal to thank them for looking after the children while we were away and drinking some very delicious red wines - a gorgeous Rioja and a South African Merlot called Thelema from Majestic Wines. The Thelema was 15% alcohol!

I was a bit weary when Keith and I went to bed at around 11pm and was in a lovely sleep when Sophie came into our room to say she'd been sick. I went into her bed with her which was the right decision as she was sick on the hour, every hour until 5.30am. When Keith woke me up at 6.30am I felt like I'd been hit over the head with a hard object!

The plan was for me to go into work at 7.30am as we had a team of men coming to repair one section of our car park that was full of potholes. However, as I fell asleep on the sofa again, Keith very kindly offered to go in for me so I could get ready more slowly!

I went in at around 10am and took Sophie's borrowed camera back to her school. At work I was completely alone which was a novel experience but it was great as I was able to get on with things and by 3pm I was back home with the invalid who, although she hadn't been sick, wasn't feeling brilliant. No school for her again tomorrow, then!

Keith and I went back into work at 4pm and admired the new car park which is lovely and smooth. I just hope that it stays that way over the winter!

Wrong timing!

This weekend has been a mite frustrating, I have to say! Yesterday I dropped Sophie off at work and then rather than go to one of the local Wholesaler's we use to buy some stuff we needed straight away, I went home to have  a shower and decided to pop in on my way to pick her up at 4pm.

When I got to the wholesaler's at just after 3pm I noticed that their opening hours were 9am until 3pm. Drat! I now had an hour to fill before I could go and pick Sophie up so I decided to drive down to Homesense on the other side of Northampton and buy some candles there. However, the traffic was an absolute nightmare and when I eventually got to the retail park, there was not a parking space to be had anywhere!

Gritting my teeth and trying not to swear I drove back across town to try and get my dirty little car washed before picking Sophie up, which is what I did, although I did resent the hour spent just driving around!

This morning we went to the gym again and decided just to go for a swim, but we were much earlier than usual and the pool was like a human soup as the swimming lessons were still going on...arrrggggh!! We sat in the jacuzzi for twenty minutes but realised that the pool wouldn't be completely free for another half hour at least, so deciding to give up on the swimming we went and changed and had a coffee in the restaurant. What a waste of time! We should have stuck to our normal routine and had a workout first!

We then went to the Wholesaler's and I noticed as we were paying that yesterday they were open until 4pm anyway!! Hmmm!! Maybe I should have just spent the weekend in bed!

Simple pleasures!

The best part of today was when Sophie and I went off to photograph the fantastic sunset this evening. The sky was a rich pink with the clouds adding texture and tone (according to Sophie). We managed to catch the sun as it had just gone down and spent a good half hour taking photos of the trees outlined against the sky.

To top it all off, on the way home we listened to two arias from Puccini which were part of the musical score of A Room With A View. The first, "Chi il bel sogno di doretta" from "La Rondine" makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, it's so beautiful and is when the two characters in the film, played by Helena Bonham Carter and Julian Sands, first kiss. Sublime!

Thank goodness it's Friday...

Despite it being a short week for me! Today was a bit trying at work so it was great to finally leave work and go to the gym for a good workout, followed by a lazy dip in the jacuzzi.

Roll on the weekend!

Wacky races!

Mum and I went back down to Kent today to see Nan again and she was extremely fed up when we saw her on the ward. Her leg did look better though, but they still haven't got a date for her to come home.

We left at 4pm and had an excellent journey home, despite the queues at Junction 15 again! I didn't realise Northampton was such a popular destination! Coming off the M1 and travelling along the main road into the town was like being part of the Wacky Races, though...it was hell! I dread to think how a novice driver would cope with the other drivers changing lanes, cutting in front of people and tail-gating in their extreme impatience to get wherever they were going. I was driving Mum and Dad's nippy little Mini which was fun to drive and I certainly didn't let the bigger cars bully me!

Back to the gym.

It's been a while since we went to the gym so I was really looking forward to getting back into our routine this afternoon and doing some exercise. I do think, though, that the gym certainly helped with all the walking we did in Berlin and all the steps we had to climb - each train station had flights and flights of them! On previous visits to the city I've always felt shattered by the end of day two but this time I felt absolutely fine and my legs didn't ache at all.

We had a very good workout but the spa was closed for maintenance so we went home to shower. I did miss slipping into the lovely warm water, though, so when we next go it'll be all the more welcome!

Hospital visiting

While we were in Berlin my Nan had to go into hospital as she has an infection in her leg. Mum promised that we would go and see her today and when we walked into the ward she was really very fed-up and tearful. After we sorted her out, though, and delivered some goodies we'd brought from her flat she cheered up a lot. Her leg looked very swollen and red but she may be allowed home towards the end of the week.

I absolutely hate hospitals and I would do anything rather than go in one! It just makes me all the more determined to stay as healthy and fit as possible!

We stayed with Nan until 4pm making sure she had everything she needed and saying that we would try and come down later in the week. We both felt horrible leaving her there but she really is in the best place until she can become more mobile again.

The journey home was very good indeed until we turned off the motorway at Northampton and became embroiled in a long traffic jam...typical!

Back down to earth with a bump!

It was horrible this morning to see torrential rain and grey skies after the brilliant sunshine of our weekend. We took Sophie to school and then went for breakfast at Frankie and Benny's in Kettering before heading to Tesco to get some essential supplies. By the time we got home the rain had cleared and the rest of the day was a bit better but I really did miss Berlin and the freedom we had over the weekend!

To make matters worse I had a dentist appointment in the afternoon with the children so we had to deal with that (always scary) and then we called into the chemist as Mikey was complaining about a sore finger. The chemist had a quick look and said he had an infection in it, so we went off to our GP's surgery to see the nurse who gave us some cream to put on it and a great pile of bandages.

Keith had decided to walk down to the pub as we didn't arrive home until after 6pm, something he really didn't feel like doing as our feet are still sore from all the exercise they had in Berlin!

Visiting Berlin - 12-14 October 2012

I am a tramp magnet...

This morning I woke up and noticed I had a swelling under my left eye, which remains a mystery as I write this blog after our visit. I can only think I was allergic to the shampoo provided by the hotel as in the shower on Sunday morning a red rash also appeared on my upper arms which alarmed me slightly!

Neither of us felt we could do justice to the hotel breakfast as we were still full from our dinner of last night so we left the hotel early, content in the knowledge that we'd arranged a late checkout of 1pm as our flight back home didn't leave until 10pm in the evening.

We'd decided last night to do one of two things - a three and a half hour boat trip which left at 1.30pm or do some shopping in the wonderful department store of KaDeWe (a twin of Harrods) and enjoy a glass or two of champagne at one of the bars there. It all depended on the weather, which, as it turned out, was yet another gorgeous day.

We had to find the bridge where the boat trip departed from so we walked over to Alexanderplatz to buy our train tickets and to see if we could find a cafe serving coffee (I needed my fix of caffeine!). On the way we saw numerous police cars and noticed a tape cordoning off a bar and a couple of shops. It looked like there had been trouble the night before with broken glass and two cream roses lying on the ground.

I don't like Alexanderplatz. The place always has an air of menace, it looks and smells dirty and there are undesirables wandering around and making nuisances of themselves. We have been accosted in the past by gypsies, beggars and drunks so it's definitely not my favourite place in Berlin and presents the dark, seedy side of the city.

We popped into a cafe and had a coffee and a very light breakfast (croissant and mini pancakes) and then took the train to the next stop, Jannowitzbrucke. On the underground train we heard a man mumbling away to himself getting closer and closer, and yes, he came and stood right next to me. He was bent over, filthy dirty and stank to high heaven so I really didn't appreciate him standing right behind me! No doubt he was harmless, but it still scared me and I wondered just what had happened to him to make him like that. I dread to think.

At Jannowitzbrucke, we emerged from the smelly station and found the jetty where the boats left from. Our only concern was the lateness of the trip as it meant we wouldn't get back until 5pm and we'd then have to find somewhere to eat and collect our luggage from the hotel before heading to the airport on the train.

We walked slowy back to Alexanderplatz passing the remains of the ancient city walls on the way. Berlin was originally founded on two sides of the River Spree, very near to our hotel, and consisted of the villages of Berlin and Colln who were eventually joined together. The first recorded mention was in 1237, hence the 775th Birthday of the city this year.

At Alexanderplatz we bought Mikey a teeshirt and then carried on over to the river to go to the DDR Museum which is full of objects and details of life under the DDR Government. It's a lovely little museum and has a Trabant which you can sit in (it was terrible!). I laughed when I read the details that very early on Audi was involved in the building of the car!

We had a good look around the museum, had an excellent cup of coffee in their cafe, where they served authentic DDR food and drinks, and then had a look at the open air exhibition near to the Berliner Dom. There were lots of brightly coloured balls on sticks so the whole area looked very interesting with boards detailing how Berlin had grown over the years and how people had moved in and out of the city.

By now, the time was getting on so we had to get back to the hotel and check out. We'd changed our minds about the boat trip and instead decided to hit the food hall in KaDeWe, but we received a bit of a shock from the Receptionist at the hotel who said that all the shops in Berlin were shut as it was Sunday...

Deciding to go and see for ourselves we took the U-Bahn to the station nearest the store but found that, indeed, it was all closed up...Hmmm! No champagne for me then! Undeterred we returned to the U-Bahn and headed for Potsdamer Platz, another mecca for shopping but amazingly, although the centre itself was open for business, none of the shops were open, just the restaurants and cafes! I couldn't imagine our very own Milton Keynes being closed on one of the busiest shopping days of the week!

We were now undecided what to do so we walked over to the Spree River near the Government buildings and saw that there were several boat trips running from a jetty near the main train station. By now our feet were a little weary so we sank down onto a seat on top of one of the boats and looked forward to an hour of slowly meandering along the river and seeing all the sights.

It was a very pleasant hour, enlivened by a drink and a man in front of us who saw himself as a bit of a joker and insisted on waving and shouting to everyone who was walking along the river path. The trip took us almost to our hotel but of course, we ended up where we started and I suggested that rather than take the train back to the Nikolai Quarter we walk. Looking back it would have been a great day to do it as the weather was still dry and warmish, but we just ran out of time and had to catch a train back from Friedrichstrasse station instead.

We wanted to have an early evening meal so we wandered about the Nikolai Quarter looking for a place to eat and finally decided on a restaurant overlooking the statue of St George and the Dragon. The place was fairly busy with lots of people just having tea and cakes but we chose mixed grills from the menu which turned out to be well-cooked and very filling!

We lingered over the meal, not really wanting to go back to the hotel and collect our luggage but knowing that a long journey back home lay ahead of us. I really wasn't looking forward to the flight home as we would be getting into Luton at around 11pm, normally when I like to be tucked up in bed!

So reluctantly we paid the bill, collected our luggage from the hotel and caught the train to Alexanderplatz just as it was getting dark. Luckily there was a train just about to leave but there were hordes of people waiting to get on it which meant that I had to stand all the way to the airport. Hmmm! At the station near the airport there were hundreds of people streaming into the terminal building and my heart sank as the departure lounge at Schonefeld is tiny with very little seating. We found a table in the small cafe and Keith went to have a look at what was going on while I had the best cup of coffee of the entire weekend!

When he came back he said that the queue to go through to the departure lounge was horrendous so we quickly gathered up our belongings and joined all the people waiting. I was very worried that we would miss our flight as the queue was so long, although we were still two hours away from our departure time. Indeed, some of the check-in staff were hurrying passengers through to the front of the queue if their planes were already loading. Unbelievable!

We finally got through after about half an hour's wait but there were no seats at all in departures and the place was packed with people. I've said it before but this really is the last time I fly into this crappy little airport. We used to fly with Air Berlin into Tegel which is wonderful so next time we visit I really will think hard about which airport will get my custom!

I managed to get a couple of little presents for the children and then it was time to board the plane. Imagine my annoyance when they got to me and said that from now on all our bags had to go into the hold! Keith swanned through but I had to take out what I needed (my purse and car keys) and then it was taken away from me. Some passengers were really very angry about the whole situation and on the plane one woman kept arguing and arguing with the steward.

It seems as if easyJet are a victim of their own success at Schonefeld. They have their own terminal which is always very busy but now that they charge passengers to take hold luggage I would say 95% of people had a cabin bag with them which means that easyJet run out of space on the aircraft. On the way out they were asking us to put our bags in the hold in return for speedy boarding but here in Germany we were told the bag was going into the hold and that was that!

Luckily the flight was only an hour and a half which was a really good thing as I had a couple next to me who were stuck together like glue for the whole flight, kissing and canoodling and generally being downright embarrassing. Keith and I had two aisle seats so I was able to turn my back on them and ignore them but it was a bit off-putting! It seemed that as soon as we were up, we were going back down again and we landed at Luton at about 10.35pm. Keith got directed to a chip and pin machine to process his passport while I joined the short queue and by the time he joined me in the UK proper I had almost read War and Peace. Ha! It was supposed to be so quick and easy, but like the self-service checkouts at the supermarket, technology can go wrong!!

We raced out of the terminal to the shuttle buses and within minutes we were reunited with a very chilly and damp little A1, and then it was back up the M1 and thankfully home!

Visiting Berlin - 12-14 October 2012

After a fairly good night's sleep - Keith forced two Drambuies on me last night when we got back to the hotel and with all the alcohol I did wake up at one point during the night - it was down to the hotel's buffet breakfast to fill up for the day. We paid 32 euros for our breakfasts so we were determined to get our money's worth and the choice was excellent. I started with muesli and fruit, followed by boiled eggs, cold meats and some delicious bread all washed down with copious amounts of coffee. There was also little cakes (I refrained) and even some sparkling wine to accompany the fruit juices. Breakfast was very busy and we were lucky to get a table so there were numerous people hanging about, glaring at us as we ate, who were obviously not so lucky!

Our plan for today (if the weather was good, and it was!) was to go to Potsdam, a town outside Berlin so a fair ride on the train. I'd been wanting to go for ages but we never seemed to visit at the right time.

We set off for Alexanderplatz and tried to work out when the trains to Potsdam left, but there was no mention of the town on the timetables. I suggested we go to the main train station in Berlin and try and get a train from there, but when we went up to the platform the sign said there was a train going to Potsdam arriving in five minutes!

It was a very pleasant journey to Potsdam (I love the motion of the train as it sends me to sleep) but we had to change at a station called Wannsee. Everyone got off but I said to Keith that it wasn't our stop yet even though we were the only ones left! It transpired that we had to change to another train for one stop and the really funny thing was that all the people we were sitting with on the old train kept together so we were sitting with them on the new train...weird!

At Potsdam we managed to work out which bus we needed to get to the "Neues Palais" which is right at one end of the enormous Park Sansoucci. The Neues Palais is literally "New Palace" and was built by Frederick the Great as a summer residence as his old castle, Schloss Sansoucci, just didn't have enough room for all his guests. It's an imposing Baroque building and certainly dominates the surrounding park.

I dread to think how much it all cost as there is so much detail on the outside of the building with numerous statues (most of them nude or topless) and I believe the inside is just gorgeous. Even the servants' quarters are magnificent!

One half of the servants' quarters - now part of the campus of the Potsdam University

We followed the main drive down towards the old residence, Schloss Sansoucci, admiring the beautiful parkland with the trees in all their Autumnal glory.

The Orangerie built to house guests

 

We found a lovely bench in the full sun and I called home to make sure everyone was OK. We also swapped socks as Keith said his feet were being squeezed by the socks he was wearing! I have to say I was wearing the most comfortable walking boots I have ever owned and they performed brilliantly throughout our visit to Berlin. The last time we went to the city the soles on my feet really hurt forcing me to buy some pads to alleviate the pain but not once did my feet hurt this time. It was like wearing big comfortable slippers and I didn't care that they looked a bit big and clumsy. I took some lovely black suede boots for the evening but my footwear during the day really made all the walking we did very bearable!

After I'd called home we carried on through the park and reached the Schloss Sansoucci which sits quite high up with terraces of vines in front of the building. We really didn't do justice to the park as we didn't go inside any of the buildings as looking at fine furniture and paintings is not really Keith's thing. Maybe I can persuade him to go in next time we visit!

Schloss Sansoucci

Once we reached the end of the park we decided to get the bus back to the station and then head into the centre of Potsdam which was heavily bombed during the war but at the station we changed our minds and caught the next train back to Berlin. I almost fell asleep on the way back as it was warm and the rocking motion of the train was very soothing! The train passed Wannsee (has a beach) and the Grunewald (acres of forest with some good walks) so they will be on our list of things to do if ever we manage to stay in Berlin for longer than a few days.

By now I quite fancied a drink and something small to eat so we got off the train at Hackescher Markt and went to the famous Hackescher Hof, a series of interconnecting courtyards full of bars, restaurants and shops. Unfortunately, it seemed that everyone else had the same idea as the place was heaving and it was impossible to wander at leisure without constantly bumping into people.

One of the courtyards at the Hackescher Hof.

I just wanted to sit in the sun with a beer and maybe a small sandwich but every bar we passed was full of people doing exactly that! In the end we found a restaurant advertising "Currywurst" and went in...well it would have been rude not to! Most bars and restaurants are waiter service so we found a table and sat down and waited but nobody came...it turned out it was a self-service cafe (huh?) so we had to go and order our food and beers from the counter! The cheek of it! 

I had a currywurst, a frankfurter sausage covered with curry powder, and a glass of the lovely Kostritzer beer which Keith and I enjoy whenever we visit Berlin.

After our break we strolled slowly back to the hotel and had a quick look at the spa there. The idea was to pop down and have a dip in the jacuzzi but after taking a look I changed my mind as the pool was tiny and the spa itself was small and stuffy. I'm spoilt by Virgin!

Our very own private bar...

In the evening, Keith and I decided to eat at Reinhard's again. I was a bit worried about going back as we'd had such a lovely time the night before but both of us liked the menu and the food was certainly very good. We strolled over to the Nikolaiviertal after a quick drink in the hotel bar and went back to "Otello" even though it was deserted. We couldn't understand why this was as there were more restaurants than bars in the Nikolai Quarter and it really was a lovely cosy little place to enjoy a drink before dinner. Keith managed to attract the attention of one of the waiters and then our man from the night before arrived as well and took our order. I enjoyed another glass of German Riesling while Keith had a large beer and this time we had the place to ourselves completely. Our waiter kept popping in to make sure we were OK and made sure the music was playing softly in the background. Perfect!

Reinhard's was just as busy as the previous evening and we were seated at the same table! As it was Saturday night we pushed the boat out and both had mushrooms stuffed with gorgonzola and spinach to start. I chose a glass of Trollinger red wine to accompany my meal which was certainly different! Very light with a slight fizz on the tongue, I liked it but didn't love it!

Keith went for the lamb chops again while I had a steak with a sauce that was supposedly invented for the painter Max Liebermann. It was delicious! We had quite a long wait after our main course, so long in fact, that we decied to indulge in a dessert - Tiramisu for me and Apple Strudel for Keith, both of which were very good and filled us to the brim!

Tales from Finland...

After our meal we were glad of the walk back to our hotel and before going to bed paid a visit to the bar which was busy with other guests enjoying a nightcap. I fancied a White Russian (a drink!!!) while Keith opted for a bottle of Kostritzer. We chatted to two couples next to us who were from Epping (I thought their accents were Kentish) and then got chatting to a man from Finland who was on his own in the bar and who had corrected me when I thought that Absolut Vodka was from Russia! (It's from Sweden). 

We had a really great chat about Berlin, his country, travelling and fishing and when we all eventually staggered up to our rooms, discovered he was our next door neighbour...how weird is that!

Visiting Berlin - October 12-14 2012

We had a very early start this morning for our journey to Berlin and although I went to bed at a reasonable hour last night, I was still wide awake at 11pm! Rather than lie in bed worrying about the minutes ticking past, I got up and went downstairs to watch the end of Grand Designs and then I caught a programme called World’s Weirdest Restaurants which featured a diner in Japan that had monkeys serving beer and hot napkins after the customers had eaten. It was hilarious and certainly sent me to bed with a smile on my face!

It only seemed like minutes had passed when I was aware of Keith moving about and getting showered. It was 2.15am… As soon as he’d finished I jumped into the shower myself, then finished packing and stripped our bed ready for mum to come and use her own quilt and pillows. There was no way I was going to re-make our bed so early in the morning!

We left home at 3am and had a fairly good journey down to Luton although at one point the  M1 was reduced to just one lane because of roadworks.  I’d booked the car into the long term parking and just as we were about to jump onto the shuttle bus, my mobile rang. It was Sophie saying that the smoke alarms were going off which must have been the noises we heard last night. Keith told her what to do and we could hear them being silenced but I couldn’t believe what had happened! The last time we travelled to Berlin (two years ago) she’d called me as we were parking the car to say that Mikey was having a coughing fit! 

Luton was very busy indeed and after going straight into Departures, as we’d checked in online, I went in search of coffee but most of the cafes and restaurants were still closed.  The queue in the one open place was horrendous so I resigned myself to having to wait for my fix of caffeine. It looked like all the first flights were leaving at 6am so you would think that the numerous cafes would be ready and waiting for the checked-in travellers at 4am, but no! I did eventually get my coffee but the place was heaving with people queuing for breakfasts (and in some cases, alcohol…ugh!) and it was a relief to get to the relative quiet of the departure gate.

We joined the scrum getting onto the plane and managed to grab two aisle seats near the front. The flight was great, just 90 minutes, and we were soon at Berlin Schonefeld airport and delighted to see blue skies and sunshine. As we had no luggage to collect we were soon speeding out of the terminal and into the train station. I did smile to myself when I remembered our first attempt to catch a train here when we were new to Berlin. We just walked onto a platform and didn’t even think about where to get tickets! We could have ended up in Poland!

We bought two day tickets and didn’t have to wait long for our train which was a good thing as we had a visit to the Reichstag booked for 11am and time was in short supply! Luckily we arrived at our hotel before 10am, checked in and put our bags in the left luggage store and then dashed back down to the underground to catch the U-Bahn to the German government buildings. We had to take our passports with us as proof of ID and we made it with twenty minutes to spare. The last time we had walked past the Reichstag there was just a normal queue to get in but now the whole of the front of the building was cordoned off and all visitors have to go through a security checkpoint to gain access. I think all visits have to be booked in advance and are free.

We’d originally booked just for the roof terrace as the Dome was being cleaned but to our delight, the Dome was opened early and we were able to go in and then follow the gently sloping walkway right to the top. The views were spectacular with the bright sunlight reflecting off all the glass and steel  and making everything shine and glitter.

We spent a while gazing at the views and pointing out all the familiar landmarks before descending to the ground level and deciding what to do next. Our main aim today had been to make our appointment which we’d done and Keith was over the moon that we’d been to the Dome as we’d wanted to go in every time we’d visited Berlin but the queues had always been too long. 

We were starting to feel a little hungry so we made our way to Potsdamer Platz via the Brandenburg Gate and Unter den Linden. The streets were packed with tourists and there were various mime artists and street musicians performing in the area around the Gate.

Memorials to people who died trying to escape to the West

On the way we passed the British Embassy, which again, was cordoned off, and then past the Holocaust Memorial to the Murdered Jews of WWII.

 

Jewish Holocaust Memorial with the US Embassy in the background.

At Potsdamer Platz we visited the Mommseneck Restaurant, or House of 100 Beers! They do a very good daily menu and, as the name suggests, a huge range of beers from all over the world. Keith and I chose a Schneider Weisse beer at 8.2% alcohol, which was delicious, to go with our chicken and chips and pork escalope.

After lunch we waddled out of the restaurant and visited the Topography of Terrors, an exhibition all about the rise of the Nazi regime during the Second World War which is situated at the old headquarters of the Secret State Police.

Topography of Terrors

The exhibition is outside and you can see the old remains of the building behind the information boards. Behind this is one long preserved section of the Berlin Wall. The exhibition is very informative but one photo was very sad, that of a little girl who was taken away from her parents and put in a clinic because she had epilepsy which they treated as if she were a lunatic. She was never reunited with her parents and she was sent to a clinic and murdered by the Nazis. One woman who was standing next to me with her own little girl gasped loudly when she read it as it was, quite rightly, an upsetting story. The look of fear on her little face brought tears to my eyes.

By now we were both a wee bit tired so we decided to take a slow walk back to the hotel, check-in and then have a nap before dinner. We passed Checkpoint Charlie on the way and the beautiful square of Gendarmenmarkt. We saw some unusual things on the way!

This "person" obviously hasn't had his fair share of pork and potato dumplings!

Decorated sections of the Wall.

On every street corner is a vendor selling Russian artefacts

Pop Art on the Wall

Gendarmenmarkt is beautiful with its churches and opera house. We were lucky to be visiting when Berlin was celebrating its 775th Birthday and to mark the occasion, a lot of the city's monuments were being bathed in lights of different colours. We never got to see the square lit up but it must have been a gorgeous sight.

When we first visited Berlin we walked past the old East German Government building which was in the process of being demolished. It has now completely gone and a new Palace is being built in its place. There were loads of building works going on and this area is in a constant state of change. I'm looking forward to going back when it's all finished to see how it looks. There was an open air exhibition here but we decided to leave it until another time over the weekend as by now we were dead on our feet!

Luckily our room was ready so we quickly unpacked and then had a nap before showering and dressing for the evening. However, as we got ready we realised we had no toiletries as we didn't bring any with us so we did the best we could with the soaps and shampoo the hotel provided and then walked over to Alexanderplatz to try and find a chemist. The TV Tower was lit with alternating red, purple and green lights and looked even more alien than usual!

We found a chemist but the prices were horrendous (8 euros for a deodorant stick!) so we left and came upon a store very similar to our Superdrug where we bought travel size bottles of conditioner, toothpaste, deodorant and face cream. Keith bought himself a pack of bic razors so we were now all set to find somewhere for dinner.

I love the Nikolai Quarter and had a hankering to eat at Reinhard's restaurant so we headed back the way we'd come and found a tiny bar with just three other people having a drink. There was nobody serving so we waited and eventually a waiter appeared and it turned out the bar was part of Reinhard's restaurant. Years ago, on our first visit, a waiter had upset Keith by dictating to us where we should sit so Keith had walked off in a strop, vowing never to eat there, despite its good reputation. Now I managed to persaude Keith to book a table for later in the evening and we settled down for a few drinks before dinner.

The bar was called "Otello" and was lovely. It was very small and cosy with candles on the tables, red seats and lots of wood and accordions hanging from the ceiling. Soft music played in the background and it was just perfect for a quiet drink before dinner.

Heaven is...a beer and a good glass of German Riesling

We had a fabuous evening in the restaurant and Keith was forced to agree that not eating there before was a mistake as he said his meal of lamb chops was the best he'd had in Berlin. We both started with soup, French onion for Keith and leek and potato for me, which were almost meals in themselves! For my main course I had a trio of meats in a mushroom sauce served with vegetables and pan fried potoatoes. Delicious! We were both too full for dessert but lingered over the meal with our drinks, enjoying the ambience and atmosphere of the busy restaurant. It was a perfect end to a brilliant first day!