On the train.
Completely bizarre trees.
Excitement on the train. For TEN HOURS.
Sweet luggage! (even if the show is too scary)
Polish garden plots
Okay, this was ridiculously cool, and yes, we're still on the train. Somehow, the way the light shone through the tinted windows, the image from the opposite window reflected--in an orange-red glow on my window. Amazingness ensued. Cool, huh? HUH?
Still sooooo cooooool, right? No? Fine. We'll move on.
Okay, I lied--but only for a second. I posted this one up because it shows a rather interesting phenomenon in Poland: the totally destroyed small village train station. Exhibit A.
And now, Berlin!
Starbucks? Is that you??
The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church--it was bombed out during the war, so they made it into a memorial.
Berlin bear! (Not to bee confused with a Chicago cow)
The Little Green Men were really controversial, actually, because they differed between East and West Berlin and after the wall fell, they started transition all of the East Berlin men (pictured) to be the Western type. People threw a fit. Now they're doing the opposite, and replacing the western ones with these fellas, and embracing that little bit o' heritage. Whoever knew stoplights could be so dramatic.
Someone is......
....excited for the zoo!
The Berlin Zoo! Amazing!
Soooo many choices!
Nala and the gang.
Seriously, what a pain in the ass.
Seriously, don't do it. How many ways do I have to say it?
Who's watching who here?
Out of this world
Lazy brown bears. Before the fight.
Coolest playground toy ever.
Knut! The world's favorite polar bear! He was rescued after being abandoned by his mother and become an international sensation. The Germans *LOVE* him. They started talking to him, and trying to get him to pose for pictures.
He obliged.
POLAR BEAR VS. WOLF! AMAZING!
Only in a German zoo.
Yes, there are pigeons. In a cage in the zoo.
New friend
This seemed to us like an anti-animal kindness fountain...
Berlin. We stayed with our friend, Jay, who's a Lexia-Berlin survivor. He lives in a neighborhood that's predominantly made up of immigrants from Turkey. It's a fantastic place.
We went to the Turkish Market, open only Fridays. It was packed, and filled with more fresh produce than I think all of Poland has ever even dreamed of, let alone stocked in its grocery stores.
"Excited" Jay--and a stranger.
Shopkeepers (I've gotten better at taking decent pictures of strangers. Yesssssss)
Two fellas discussing who-knows-what along one of the canals right next to the Turkish Market.
Crowds
Sunglasses
Behind the market
Jay and Christine walking back with our blessed, blessed produce.
Tortured into posing for a picture.
This is the courtyard of Jay's apartment.
A few portraits.
More of Berlin, the next day, wandering about and heading toward the S- & U-Bahn stops.
In the U-bahn. Not so amused.
Alexanderplatz. The World Clock.
Famous!
We got bratwurst. I was, initially, extremely pleased with the purchase.
Christine wasn't.
But she grew happier with the hot dog concept.
I, however, soon suffered some serious buyer's regret.
Torture implements? Or bike rack?
We went to this club the night before. It was pretty kickin'.
The Cathedral, and many reminders that Berlin is still a city being built.
We stopped and hung out for a bit.
And now, Museum Island
Lacoste blows.
Segway tourists!
Christine and I later went into a craft store type place.
As you can see from the greeting card selection, Berlin's age demographic is significantly weighted toward the elderly.
You could buy schmuck there.
Creeeepy
We then went to a small summer palace build by Frederick III for his wife.
The gardens were lovely
Okay, so I might have gotten a bit carried away here, but the weather was great, and I got shutter-happy.
Sigh. How I adore this picture.
Skin Cancer. It happens.
One of the ice cafe/ice cream parlors we went to. De-licious.
Kristian and Jay, having a fun.
"The Stage" in Jay's apartment--a mysterious structure, made of wood. He has no idea what it's from, but Christine and I slept there. It was a little rough on the ol' back, but otherwise, not too shabby.
NOUGAT PILLOWS! Only the best candy, erm, cereal ever. Think: Puppy chow filled with Nutella. What a brilliant idea.
Needless to say, I really DUG Berlin. The end.
