The alarm went off at 2am this morning, and we were showered, dressed and ready to go just before 3am. The journey to Heathrow's Terminal 5 was easy and straightforward, and we saw two foxes and a badger on the way to the A43!
I'd booked the car into Maple Parking at Terminal 5, and we boarded a waiting shuttle bus. We didn't need to go to Bag Drop today, as we were only taking our brand new cabin cases, so it was straight through to security. Even though there was only a handful of us heading to the security area, we were made to go through the stupid "up and down" lines that I loathe...
Once through the dreaded security, we headed for Pret A Manger for a bite to eat and coffee. As we sat and waited, the area gradually filled up with people, and I marvelled at a family sitting opposite who were engrossed in their phones! Our gate number appeared, and we set off on the long trek to our plane. On the way, the gate number changed and we had to board the transit shuttle, something I've never done before!
Once settled on the plane, we had a good flight and it was lovely to see the sun and banks of clouds disappearing into the distance. We were given a much-needed bottle of water and a packet of biscuits and I briefly napped. The flight seemed to be over very quickly, and soon we were landing at Berlin Brandenburg airport.
Welcome to Berlin!
As soon as the seatbelt signs were switched off, people leapt to their feet and retrieved their luggage from the overhead lockers. We sat and waited, as there was no point even trying to get up and retrieve ours. Consequently, we were among the last to leave the plane, and we were a little dismayed to see long lines waiting to be processed through passport control.
It took us about an hour to get through, and we listened to several people holding very important conversations on their phones, and one man even balancing a laptop and writing as he queued! Our passport man was a real bundle of fun, but didn't fire questions at us as he did the other travellers! It would have been great to see his face break out into a smile, but no... welcome to Berlin!
We had decided, unanimously, to take the train to the hotel this time. As Brandenburg is a brand new airport, we weren't sure of how to get to the train station. Before, you had to exit the airport and follow a long covered walkway to the station. Today, we followed signs and discovered the trains were part of the airport itself.
Sophie had worked out which line we needed and how we could avoid the dreaded Alexanderplatz station, but all we could see was the S9 line to Spandau. One train was waiting, but we were reluctant to board it in case it was the wrong one. We even tried to see if we could get to the opposite platform but in the end, we had to wait for another train heading to Spandau, with a change to the U2 line at Alexanderplatz, something we didn't want to do. We felt like we'd never been to Berlin before!
When the train arrived, we sat down, and apart from us, there was only one other passenger. The train was lovely and clean and it was great to be back in our beloved city!
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| Keith looking, I think, very German! |
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| Sophie was annoyed that her information had been out of date! |
The train set off and gradually became busier as we made our way into the city. A young mother got on with a toddler and a pram and sat behind Keith. She looked exhausted and pale and sniffed continually. We were then treated to the appearance of a homeless man who, thankfully, sat further along the carriage behind another young mother with two children. He was quiet, apart from the sniffing! It was that kind of weather today - cold and grey with heavy cloud cover. I have no idea what happened to the promised sunny forecast of a few days ago!
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| Where are we going? |
At Alexanderplatz, we changed to the U2 line and travelled the short distance to Markisches Museum. To save Keith's legs we took the lift to the surface and walked to the hotel. We noticed that the usual entrance to the station was barricaded shut.
A small disappointment...
At reception, we were told that our room was ready. We had booked a suite with a living room and sofa bed, and a double bedroom. As the receptionist was processing our booking, Keith wandered over to the bar and came back to say that because of "operational issues" it was closed for a week. We had been looking forward to sitting in the bar and having a drink or two, and Keith was going to sit there on Wednesday night while Sophie and I went to see Ben. We were bitterly disappointed, but not surprised, as this has happened before, and now we no longer have any confidence in the bar being open when we visit. We just wished we had been told beforehand!
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| The bar, closed for our visit. |
We were on floor 4, with views over Wallstrasse. We unpacked quickly and then made our way over to the Nikolaiviertal where we planned to have lunch. The itinerary that Sophie had devised weeks ago was slowly starting to unravel; we'd planned on having breakfast at the Literaturhaus on Thursday but that was closed for renovations, and we wondered what other surprises Berlin had in store for us!
Roadworks were going on along the broad road that we cross to get to the Nikolaiviertal, and trenches had been dug all the way to the traffic lights with new pipework being installed. Once across the road, we gazed at one of our favourite views over to the other bank of the river and Ephraim's, but we couldn't see the very top of the Television Tower, which was shrouded in mist.
A lovely lunch.
Preparations were underway in the Nikolaiviertal for Christmas and the outdoor cinema was being set up, along with the cabin selling gluhwein. Decorations were being put up by a crane and we just wished that Ben had timed his tour to coincide with the Christmas markets like ten years ago!
We had planned on having lunch at Spreeblick, a sweet and homely restaurant on the banks of the river, opposite the large St George statue. We were greeted by a friendly waiter who invited us to take any table we wanted. We chose one by the window and opposite a large group of mostly women, who were waiting for their lunch.
Our waiter bore a strong resemblance to Gary Numan and was lovely. We were given menus and Sophie and I both chose the currywurst served with French fries. Keith opted for an omelette with salad. We all chose beers, dark ones for Sophie and me, and a traditional lager for Keith.
I enjoyed the currywurst but there was too much sauce covering the French fries. The sausage itself was meaty and succulent, but I didn't finish my meal because of the overpowering sauce. Sophie and I shared a chocolate cake served with ice cream for dessert and it was great to relax and people-watch. The group of women in front of us were having a wonderful time and we tried to work out how they all knew each other? To me, they looked like members of the Women's Institute, but two men were present... a large extended family? Their ages ranged from late 20s to 80s. We would never know!
We paid the bill, and left a tip for our friendly waiter who asked us if we were American! Er, no! We told him where we came from and he launched into a speech about the Eurotunnel and how fantastic it was. Had we driven? Again, no!
Early Christmas shopping.
One of the places we wanted to visit was the delightful Christmas shop. Keith stood outside while Sophie and I went in and had a good look around.
I was mesmerised by the ornate Cuckoo clocks that were selling for hundreds of euros. They were beautiful and so much work must have gone into them. One chimed while I watched, and the cuckoo noise was lovely!
I bought an Advent candle and some smaller ones to go into our candlesticks, and Sophie bought a decoration for one of the trees and a lace hanging for her room. The shop had exquisite wooden carvings and I could have spent thousands of euros!
The woman serving today wasn't the same as the one we chatted to a couple of years ago about our new King. She was a bit stressed as other customers had been in when we arrived and wanted gifts they'd bought to be wrapped. We paid and left and wandered around the Nikolaiviertal spotting several cosy cafés serving gluhwein.
Keith decided to head back to the hotel while Sophie and I continued to wander around. We went into a shop selling incense, scarves and jewellery and Sophie picked out a beautiful new ring that matched her other rings perfectly. The owner tried to sell me a gorgeous silk scarf for about 65 euros. I was sorely tempted!
On the way back to the hotel we popped into a supermarket and bought three bottles of beer for Keith, as well as bottles of shampoo and conditioner because we hadn't been able to put any in our cabin luggage.
Back at the hotel, we all had naps as we were so tired. I've said in the past that it's horrible getting up so early and then doing a full day in Berlin and I'm not sure I'll do this again! I think it's better to arrive mid-afternoon and feel more energetic!
Cocktails and a wonderful dinner.
As our bar was closed, we decided to cross the road and visit the Wall Street Park Plaza Hotel instead, a place we'd stayed at before in 2016. The bar is lovely and dimly lit, with a mirrored wall of bottles to choose from, and an extensive cocktail menu.
We sat on bar stools and I chose an Aperol Spritz, Keith a large lager and Sophie a Negroni. I had been thirsty all day, probably from the breakfast bap I'd had at the airport! We sat and relaxed and chatted about the day and how annoyed we were that Chrizz wasn't available to make us cocktails. Sophie had been looking forward to sampling more of his White Russians!
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| Sophie's Negroni |
We'd booked a table at Ephraim's for 7.30pm, so had time for another drink. Sophie had another Negroni, Keith had a smaller beer and I chose a glass of Prosecco after discovering the bar had run out of its house white. I wasn't prepared to choose a small glass of wine for 10 euros!
As it neared 7.30pm we walked back over to the Nikolaiviertal and gazed at the foggy views:
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| Ephraim's, far right |
Ephraim's is a lovely, very cosy and comfortable restaurant right on the River Spree. Our table was in a "living room" with squashy sofas, lace curtains, dressers and ornaments.
A young couple were sitting opposite and it looked like they'd had an argument as he was doing his best to appease her, and she was shrinking away from him... They were seated on a sofa and I wished him luck in trying to win her over again!
Our waiter was lovely, and I asked Sophie if she could bring a man just like him home as a son-in-law! He was very attentive and we ordered carafes of Riesling for Sophie and me, and a beer for Keith. I was delighted to see calves' liver on the menu, served with mashed potatoes, gravy and apple rings! Keith chose lamb shank and Sophie opted for chicken in a curry sauce and pineapple served with rice.
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| Cheers! |
The food was delicious and my liver was tender and flavoursome. It's such a treat to see it on a restaurant menu!
Sophie and I chose desserts of honey and walnut cake and pancakes filled with blueberries, while Keith enjoyed an Irish coffee.
I ordered another carafe of wine and we relaxed after the meal, enjoying the beautiful surroundings. I could have stayed for hours! It's such a lovely restaurant and always feels, for me, like having dinner in a private house.
Reluctantly, we paid the bill and strolled back to the hotel, crossing the still-busy Muhlendammbrucke. The road was ablaze with lights from the works going on and there was a man fishing from the bridge.
As we neared the hotel, Sophie took pictures of the hotel and the Spreekanal next to it.
The Italian restaurant opposite our hotel was called Verona and was on the ground floor of a huge block of flats. When Keith and I first visited Berlin in 2006, this was a German pub and we ate here on our only night in the city. Maybe next time we'll visit for spaghetti!
Back in the room, even though it was only 9pm, we were ready for bed. It had been a long day!
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