Blitz: Berlin

Friday afternoon through Monday morning I biked around Berlin like a crazy woman, seeing as much as I possibly could, inversely eating little in the mornings because there was no time. It reminded me of my father, for we used to give him a hard time about traveling and not eating until 2. Yet, I found myself on Sunday eating only pretzels and peanut butter until 2, and then a small sausage sandwich until 8. However, it was worth it. I went to the DDR museum (interesting displays of limited groceries), the Checkpoint Charlie museum (fabulous stories of successful escapes), the Topography of Terror (explanations of the Nazi rise to power), the German History museum (fantastic museum--needs hours and hours to get through all of the narrative), a bombed out 13th century church, and enjoyed the Reich (their capitol building), and the Brandenburg gate. It was a phenomenal insight into both Hitler's experience, the final battles of WWII in Germany, and the very recent separation of East and West Berlin. I couldn't believe that the wall sauntered around the Brandenburg gate! They had this amazing section of the wall still up, but used now as platforms for murals, which were fabulous to look at. Two of my nights I spent with a local woman named Anna Maria, who rented out rooms through airbnb. My room was artful and spacious, if a bit hard to find initially. It was a busy, quick view of Berlin, but I was satisfied by the time I got on the plane to leave Germany after 4 weeks of relishing in the rich history and culture.