A Very Busy Day

Yesterday was exhausting. I met with Jeff in the morning, and we took a walk around Berlin and then he showed me the neighborhood where he lives.


We ate at this wonderful pasta restaurant, where I had the Mediterranean Pasta. It was delicious. Then, I headed back to Berlin to check out the North Side Gallery. This is a segment of the Berlin Wall that is still standing. Before the wall fell, West Berliners would paint graffiti all over this side of the wall. Now, they have invited the original artists back to re-paint their famous art. (Funny aside here. I had originally intended to go to the Reichstag first, but I got on the wrong subway train, found out I was heading towards the wall, and said....heck with this, I'm going to the East Side Gallery!)


Next I headed to the Reichstag. There was a line to get into the state house, but I waited as it was only about 30 minutes and I had time before the museums opened up at 6 pm for free. The Reichstag is awesome. There is dome at the top with this column of mirrors that hangs down. When you look into the mirrors you can see the government in action! Also, you get to walk on the roof and look out over Berlin.
Next up was Museum Island. Only the Neueu, Bode, and National Gallery museums were free tonight. I still want to visit the Altes and Pergammon museums, but it was nice that these were free. The others will just have to wait until Monday or perhaps Saturday. The museums are all spectacular and huge! I was tired and had only planned on quickly walking through them, but it still took a tremendous amount of time. The best part of the buildings is the way that they build their exhibits. They look of the rooms that house the artifacts is a treat itself.


Today, I will probably visit one of the concentration camps on the outskirts of Berlin. I also have a 6 pm gaming session planned with Jeff and Gunter. Sadly, Mike will not be able to visit with me in the Cotswolds, so I will have to come up with an alternative for those days once I am in London. My thoughts thus far include a trip to Paris, France or perhaps visiting Wensleydale!

When I returned to Gunter's place last night I was so tired. I had thought that my legs would hold up, but they didn't quite make it. Today, I am going to go a bit easier.