Berlin: My peek into Daily life here . . .

I was just commenting back to Shannon on my recent post and it inspired me to write this one. :)

I have to say that one of the things I have learned from Slow Travel and other experienced travelers is the ability to slow my travels down enough so I can experience the culture that I'm visiting. Maybe one day I can pick one place and stay there the entire three weeks of my vacation. That would be cool!

I've been sort of picking on the cold weather a lot lately, but to be honest I expected it to be cold.  I mean it is afterall December.  Of course, I had no idea until now just how cold it would be :). But you know that's just life.

I really love the apartment that I chose for my stay here in Berlin. I will definitely write a review of it when I return home. It is in a fantastic location. Not too far from the nearest U station.  There are several markets around and a variety of cafes. Just the other night I found this small hole in the wall family owned Thai restaurant and the food was pretty good. Further down the street is another popular cafe where they serve a decent pizza margarita and a nice salad, directly across from there is a cool cafe that sells pastries, coffee and sandwhiches.  And all these places are so cheap. 

There is a beautiful park just outside my window and a great view of the TV tower. Each morning while having my morning cup of coffee and breakfast, I can see joggers and just this morning in about an inch or two of snow I watched a local walk and have a friendly snow fight with her dog. It was amazing.  I've bumped into other residents in the elevator and am greeted with a friendly smile and hello.  Even putting my trash to the trash room (separating plastic, paper into their apppropriate recycle bins) have been an experience.  My apartment building is located right next to a day care center so each morning I watch moms and dads walking and riding their bikes to bring their little ones to the day care all bundled up with just their little pink faces showing.

I am enjoying visiting all the great landmarks and historical sites here in Berlin.  But I am also loving watching and yes even living daily life here.

So the cold freezing wind and the snow are both a part of daily life here and so I am going to embrace the experience more than whine about it from this point on.  I'm also going to put an extra layer on with some thicker socks that I just bought yesterday. :)  Well, I also have to be practical too. And maybe before heading back to the apartment, I will stop in the Christmas Market and Alexanderplatz to have another hot toddy drink (I love Annie's Hot toddy term for the mull wine Shannon recommended) and stand amongst the locals in the cold wind and falling snow. Yes folks, I am in Berlin and loving it!

This is this morning's view from my apartment balcony as I sip my morning coffee listening to Christmas songs . . . I feel so blessed and lucky to be able to travel the world and to see and have so many wonderful experiences. I only wish that mom & dad could've seen Europe. I'm working on Sis to come to Europe with me one day...Gosh I get so contemplative and emotional sometimes when I travel.

And so this is Christmas (War is Over) 

For weak and for strong

The rich and the poor ones

The road is so long

So happy Christmas

For black and for white

For yellow and red ones

Let's stop all the fight

A very merry Christmas

And a happy New Year

Let's hope it's a good one

Without any fear . . . .

(Lyrics by John Lennon)