Our last few days in Berlin have been spent riding bikes around to various points of interest in the city and eating some pretty delicious food. DawnO got to taste the famous currywurst and said it wasn’t the worst wurst. She talked me into sampling the fries with curry seasoning, mayo and ketchup. Yum!
Currywurst
Pomme frites
We spent some time walking along the section of the Berlin Wall that has murals painted along each section. This walk is known as the East Side Gallery. It was fascinating to see the artwork in person and realize how large and detailed each mural was.
I have to admit, I always thought this was a picture of Richard Nixon kissing Leonid Brezhnev (the leader of the USSR during the 1970s). It turns out I was only partially correct. The guy that looks like Nixon is actually Brezhnev, and the other fellow was Erich Honecker, the general secretary of the Socialist Unity Party (East Berlin). Originally painted in 1990 and repainted in 2009, ‘The Fraternal Kiss’ is a recreation of a photograph taken of Leo and Richie in 1979. The caption translates as “My God, help me to survive this deadly love”.
The Wall is just another example of how Berlin features the scars of its past as warnings for the future.
Later in the day we visited a relic of WWII that barely survived a Soviet air raid. Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church was almost completely destroyed in April of 1945. What remains has been restored and new buildings on either side of the church now serve as a place of worship.
The ceiling of the original building.
Inside the newer octagon-shaped church.
We also made our way to the Templehof airport which is no longer in operation. The city has turned this airport into a giant park where people can walk along the Tarmac, visit the food trucks, and stroll through the fields in between. They have also designated a portion of the airport as housing for incoming refugees.
All-in-all I enjoyed my time in Berlin. I will say that it is not the city for me. I had high expectations after so many people recommended it. However, the constant barrage of second hand smoke is making me quite nauseous. I guess I prefer Berlin in smaller doses.
I will leave you with a few more pictures, and will blog again in October when I surprise DawnO with a trip to… stay tuned.
Great pics and blog. Thank you for sharing your adventures��