Berlin: A commercial break . . .

Today looks and feels a lot colder than yesterday. I have more to blog on the sights I've seen so far and will be seeing today, but felt like having a commercial break this morning.

First of all, I want to say this to anyone who is interested in planning a trip to the fabulous city of Berlin in the near future. If at all possible, try to plan on a minimum of a week preferrably at least two. I was very spoiled in Amsterdam knowing I had two full weeks to explore and experience the city.

I hope to see as many of my must see sights by Thursday so I can leave Friday and Saturday as fun exploration days.  

I've had great inspiration and tips on Berlin from Shannon, Sandra and Maya and they have really helped me to focus one the "experience" part of my travel. I can get so caught up on the checklist aspect of travel that I can forget about the other special moments and experiences that are a part of the travel experience.  Thanks to all my blogging friends for reminding me of this. As a result I have really enjoyed my time in Amsterdam and Belgium and I'm enjoying my time here in Berlin.  

The other day while visiting the Eastside Gallery, I stumbled into this little "yard" looking place right before the gallery. The bright colors and wonderful murals caught my attention and I walked in. I saw a couple of guys and asked them what this place was and they went on to tell me about it. It is this very cool Youth African Art Market (YAAM). When they are open they have food and sell products and have music. It was so cool listening to them describe the place and I actually enjoyed talking with them. I only wished I was here when it was open.  I asked and they said it was okay for me to take photos which I did.

Blogging friend, Menehune once commented to me to "leave myself open".  Sometimes I can get so caught up in getting to my checklist that I can overlook the small pleasures and surprising discoveries that can be had when traveling. I'm glad I didn't pass this place by . . . 


And now for a Hottie break ...

And a (food) break . . . I don't eat pork but I enjoy seeing how they prepare these sausage dishes at the Christmas market.

Well, that's my stop and smell the roses commercial break.  Berlin is a wonderful city to experience so many things, history and great landmarks but it is also a fascinating and excellent place to just absorb and enjoy life.

Berlin: A 360 degree view and the Berlin Wall that once divided a city . . .

I wanted to catch up blogging before I really get behind. I have come to the conclusion that it is impossible to cover even a small bit of Berlin in one week. And what was I thinking when I was considering doing a day trip! I'll be lucky if I can get all my "must see's" in during my all too brief stay here. Well, enough of my whining. I consider myself lucky to even be here for a week considering this portion of my trip almost never happened.

First, I decided to take Shannon's advise and I went up the Berliner Fernsehturm for a nice 360 degree view of the City's layout. Thanks so much for your excellent advice Shannon. To the very tip of the tower is 368 meters, to the Observation deck (203 meters) and to the restaurant (207 meters). The fee is only 10.50 euros. During the winter season the tower is open 10:00 am to 10:00 pm.  There is also a revolving restaurant located above the observation deck.

And in only 40 seconds the lift brings us to the observation deck. The elevator is small but the ride is so smooth you barley notice it moving.

Here you have a fabulous 360 degree view of the City.  They also have these guides along the way just below the windows with photos numbering each landmark and a brief historical explanation.  Very cool and informative.

Then you can take photos through the large viewing windows.

After my introductory view of the city's layout which I really found helpful, I decided to head to the Eastside Gallery.

The Eastide Gallery is a 1.3 km stretch of the original Berlin Wall.  It is the longest remaining section still left in the City. On the west side the wall is pretty plain, except for some grafitti . . .

But on the East side of the wall is the Eastside Gallery where there are approximately 100 paintings by artists from all over the world.  This was one of those "wow" Travel moments for me.  There's so much history here and images race through my head. All the things I've read about before my trip, all the films that I've seen while growing up, I have to stand here and catch my breath awhile.  I bumped into a nice German couple from Frankfurt.  The wife was telling me that she was here in 1983 with a school group and this was the first time that she has returned.

I walked the entire length of the Gallery taking photos of each painting and then walked back to video tape some sections as well. I stood by it, I touched it and where there were breaks I looked through the gates and I still could not imagine what it was like.

Some of the paintings were very interesting . . .

Some spoke of peace . . . And how lucky for blogging friend and fellow Slow Traveler, Maya, who told me that she was here in Berlin during the time when the wall came down. What an amazing experience that must have been.  Thanks so much for sharing your experience Maya.

And some are quite famous . . .

It's against the law to deface these paintings and yet people still do it which is a shame. 

It was an incredible experience to actually see the former Berlin Wall in person. This will be an experience that I will never forget.

More to come . . .

Berlin: Live from Berlin Germany . . .

Whoo hoo! I'm in Berlin, former East Berlin to be exact. I'm in a District called Mitte and my beautiful Apartment (well, it's actually a Studio Apartment) is wonderful. It overlooks a park and has a view of the very tall TV Tower which I hope to go up today.

It is 1,000 times colder here than Amsterdam and last night I had to buy a hat which I never ever wear but that's how cold it is.

I arrived safe and sound in Berlin's main train station and let me say that if you didn't know it or saw the trains here and there within the structure you might have guessed that you were in some kind of shopping mall. It's a very modern and beautiful train station.

I took a taxi to the apartment and was met by Stefan who was soooo nice. After showing me the ins and outs of the apartment he took a lot of extra time to point how how to get to certain attractions. Very nice.

It was getting too dark to go up the tower today for a view but Stefan told me that there is a nice Christmas Market at Alexander Platz so that was the plan.

I studied the map a little then dashed out the door. The U Stop was not too far from my apartment, maybe a block and a half. The fee which a girl helped me to purchase was 1.30 euros and AlexanderPlatz was the second stop away. I probably could walk it in warmer weather. :)

I arrive and it is pretty cool. I can see the Tower much better and it is a huge place.  Here are a few images of my first night in Berlin.

The world clock . . .

View of Alexanderplatz  Christmas Market (open from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm daily until Dec. 26, 2010) . . .

The potatoes looked yummy (I'm going to have to try them). . .

Wish I could sample these . . .

It was a fun time.  I had some coffee at one of the cafe/bars they built for the market, bought my hat and checked out all the stands.  I think this could be my favorite hang out in Berlin . . . .

So after freezing my you know what off, I decided to get back to the apartment.  I easily found the entrance to the U Station again but while waiting this really nice guy told me that due to rail maintenance (which I learn they sometimes do on weekends), the U will not take me back to the stop that I'm familiar with.   I will have to take the Metro for the rest of the way to my stop.  That was very nice of him to alert me as I couldn't understand the German announcement and he knew it and took the extra time to seek me out and tell me.

Ok, back to my story.  Panic sets in as I usually navigate based on memory and landmarks and if I don't return to the exact U stop this may be interesting.  He then told me to get on the train then follow all the rest of the people to the M stop and get off on the next stop.  He said don't worry because they were all in the same boat.

I have to mention this. I people here in Berlin are so nice and friendly.  But I remember on my last trip to Munich how nice the people are which is another reason I wanted to return to Germany.

So I follow his directions. I just missed the next M-1 bus along with another handful of people. It was only about 10 minutes before the next one came which gave me time to buy some water at this little food store.

I get on the M line and exit at the next stop.  I look around and nothing looks familiar and I'm in that I have no clue where I am state. Not panicking . . . I make my best guess in the direction to follow and just go.  Well, I'm still in that I have no clue state and there aren't very many people around. Finally I see this guy eating a sandwhich and I get bold and stop him to ask for help.  He was very nice and waited for me to pull up the address of my apartment on my i-Touch. He immediately recognized the street (since when I was pronoucning it, he couldn't).  He told me it is the next street over. I then recognized the park. I was so thankful. The guy was very helpful and I might add nice looking too . . .

He smiled, I smiled and then we parted ways like two ships or U trains passing in the night. Him continuing on eating his delicious sandwhich and I happily and thankfully walking through the park back to my warm and cozy apartment . . . Will I ever see this good samaritan and hotty ever again. Probably not,  but his wonderful smile and kindness is etched in my travel memories forever . . .

So as you can gather from my first post, I think I'm beginning to fall in love with Berlin already and I can't wait for day 2....

Amsterdam: Thank you so much for the fabulous two weeks . . .

This morning I decided to just sleep in and have a nice liesurely morning before I go out and enjoy my last full day here in Amsterdam. Yikes, how did the time go by so fast.

I decided to write my final post first thing in the morning as I'll probably be busy tonight packing for my early morning departure to Berlin and my long 6 hour train ride.

It's difficult to capture and articulate my impressions of this city and of the country of Holland. Like its signature flower, the Tulip, this country has many different colors with lots of flavor and life.  With each trip that I take I seem to gain a new foundation and perspective in life and Holland did not disappoint in this respect.  And as a fellow blogging friend (Sandra) once said in a comment, traveling changes us. 

There has been so many highlights here. The most poignant moment for me was being able to visit the Anne Frank House. To be in her room and read and hear her words. Why did a child and why did people have to die and hide for their lives just because of who they were, their personal beliefs and their choice of faith. It makes no sense to me and we are all very fortunate that this brave young girl wrote down her thoughts in her diary and that it was saved and made public by her father to be shared with the world.

There was this quote on the wall of the museum that said, "In order for us to move forward, we have to remember the past." I actually have a similar statement on my blog because I do believe it that philosophy. Our history as beautiful and/or as cruel as they may be must be a reminder to us that hate, no matter what level or form they come in cannot be tolerated.  We don't all have to be alike but we have to respect our differences and disagreements. I am so thankful that I was able to visit the Anne Frank's house on this trip and I will remember my experience there forever.

There were many memorable moments indeed.  I have to say thank you again to all of my blogging friends and founder of Slow Travel, Pauline Kenny, for all that I have experienced. It's not like a thought up all of these things that I've done or places I've visited. I was inspired and learned from some very experienced travelers.  And to take the time to read my blog and send me more tips on the fly, you all are the best. 

Amsterdam was just fabulous and staying in an apartment near "my" beautiful canal has been a great experience. It's been my home for the past two weeks, well minus my two nights in equally beautiful Beligum. 

I loved visiting "all" the wonderful and unique museums, I loved the fantastic dutch pancakes and Indonesian cuisine, I loved waking up each morning and seeing "my" beautiful canal.  I loved looking at the dutch architecture and the windmills in Zaanse Schans, I loved visiting the other cities and towns nearby, I enjoyed meeting the lovely people here in Amsterdam, heck I even loved watching those speeding bicyclists.  I guess what I'm trying to say is I loved my time here in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

And so, I leave you with an early evening view of one of the beautiful canals near my apartment.

Bye for now and I'll check in live from Berlin tomorrow . . . .

Amsterdam: The finer things I found here . . .

Amsterdam for a very small compact city has so many attractions to enjoy and one of the things that clearly ranks right up there with the artistry of Van Gogh, the charming and beautiful canals, the firm architectural structures and the vibrant life style . . .  are the very good looking men of Amsterdam.

Fellow Slow Travelers, Shannon and Maya, commented on one of my posts about how very gorgeous and handsome the men are here in Amsterdam and after being here for 2 weeks I would have to agree with them 100%. So for all you single girls who happen to read my blog, you simply must plan a trip to Amsterdam soon. I just thought of this theme post only recently after reading Shannon's and Maya's comments, so didn't have much time to build up my collection. But I think you can get a little idea. :)

\

Amsterdam: It's cold here and colder still ....

Today is a gorgeous day in Amsterdam. Clear skies and sunny but cold.  No snow yet....while coming back from our tour we happen to pass by the famous Ice Bar and so today I thought I'd go check it out and also the flea market close by.

The Ice Bar  in Amsterdam is quite a unique experience. They serve you these delicious passion fruit vodka shots in this glass made of ice and then you put on these coats and gloves and go in to this bar where it is 10 degrees below zero.  Pretty cool or should I say cold. :)

I also visited the Flea Market that Marta mentioned in her wonderful Window Shopping in Amsterdam blog post.  I had to do a double take on the gas masks .

And now I want to find that Pancake Bakery restaurant...

Today is just gorgeous . . . .



Amsterdam: Spending Thanksgiving in Haarlem, Netherlands . . .

Happy Belated Thanksgiving everyone! Today, I would typically get together with family, eat turkey and pie and watch football games (maybe go for a run in the morning), but here I am in Holland and spending this traditional American Holiday in a lovely small town called Haarlem. Thank you Marta for recommending this town. It was a quick 20 minute train ride from Amsterdam so it was not a very long trip which I liked.

Let me first say that I'm getting pretty good at using the trams here. I buy this trip card for a set number of hours and then when you go on and exit the tram you have to swipe it on that "Red" button area.  It took me a little while to get the layout but now I know where my stops are and what lines to catch.

I'm also getting better at reading the train schedules. I was able to get on the right train and back without asking for directions. I'm so proud of myself.

Haarlem is such a cool town. Marta was right, it is very small. As soon as you exit the train station you just have to walk up the street directly in front and in 10 minutes you're at Grote Market Square.

Here I was able to visit the amazing St Bravo Church which has this really large organ.  While there a person was playing one of the smaller organs live. At first I thought it was just a CD and then looked up and saw the organist. That was pretty cool.

Next I decided to visit the Frans Hals Museum to see some of his works along with other dutch artists.  I really loved some of the still life paintings here and can see why he is so famous.  In fact, Van Gogh, once said that Frans Hals had such mastery that he was the only artist he knew that could create 27 shades of "black" which is pretty amazing.  And walking to the museum gave me a chance to see the small alley ways of the town which was fun to explore. And since I was not on a group tour I didn't have to make any sprints or mad dashes back to the train station and I could actually take as much time as I needed and/or wanted to. I love being a Slow Traveler!

And so coming here to visit this lovely dutch town of Haarlem was a very wonderful way to spend my 2010 Thanksgiving Holiday.  Thank you Marta for the recommendation. I enjoyed my time here a lot.

Amsterdam: Rotterdam, Aalsmeer, Delft, Den Haag ...

After my fun group tour to see the windmills on Tuesday, I decided to take a second group tour called the "Grand Tour of Holland" with the same company.  By the way they are located on the main street in front of the train station (close to the sex museum).

First on the agenda was to stop by a small town called Aalsmeer to visit Flora Holland and the Flower Auction.  Although we missed the morning auction we were able to see the after effects and it was very cool.  Flowers are bought during the auction and then moved to a distribution area where they are then shipped to places all over the world. There were these driving carts zipping here and there and flowers loaded and transported and it was buzzing with activity.

Next we do a drive through in the City of Rotterdam. It is the second largest city in Holland, next to Amsterdam and is nicknamed Holland's little Manhattan because of the highrises.  We drive through the city where you can see these very creative and modern architecture. There were these really interesting cubic houses.  We have a brief stop near the Erasmus bridge for a brief photo opp.  It was built in 1996 and is called De Zwaan (the Swan) by the locals because of its shape.

Next we visit the city of Delft with a brief stop in a Delftware factory.  There are many imitations of this very lovely product but only the real ones are authenticated with certificates and a signature at the bottom.  It was pretty cool watching the painters at work and seeing how each piece is made.

And the final products are just stunning . . . (I bought a couple of small pieces, which I do allow myself at least one splurge souvenir on each trip).

Next we drive into the City Center of Delft where we get about an hour for lunch.  I remember Marta mentioning Delft as another good day trip town to visit and so I was glad that this tour included it because Marta is right.  Delft is a lovely town with a beautiful center square. 

On the tour there was another girl from Los Angeles so I had lunch with her at this pancake house restaurant which is supposedly the building that was next to where the famous dutch artist Vermeer was born.   I like his paintings so that was pretty cool.

This is a pancake with Ham (ordered by my tour mate) . . .

Here's my little pancakes swimming in sugar (I had to dust a lot of it off as it was a tad too much. It was still very good) . . .

After our lunch break in Delft, we head over to Den Haag which is the captiol of Holland. Here we drive through several of the embassies and see some of the houses where the embassadors live. Pretty nice places they live in. Holland has an interesting government.  They have the Queen and also a Parliament.  We have a brief photo opp in front of the Peace Palace before we drive to our final distination to visit the Madurodam park.  Here's a photo of the Peace Palace. 

And here's a couple of photos that I took in the theme park, Madurodam. This was such a cool place. Thanks to another fellow Slow Traveler, Maria, who shared her experience visiting Madurodam years ago with her family. 

I purposely left a couple of my tour mates in these photos so you can get a sense of the scale of these miniatures.  Kind of reminded me of Disneyland.  The pieces have such detail, there are moving canal boats, there are sound effects to go with some of the scenes like the football stadium cheers and some of the buildings have lights along with the canals.  There are even moving people on the streets.  Very cool. We arrived there a few minutes before it started to rain and with just enough day light to see the park.  Still I had to move quickly to take my photos miniature Holland before the rain started.  Good thing I didn't have too much ground to cover . . .  :)

After our one hour stop here we head back to Amsterdam. Today, is the coldest that it has been during my stay and it looks like my scarf and mittens will be a staple from this point forward . . .

Thank you to my fellow Slow Travelers, Marta and Maria, for your tips and for sharing your experiences in the City of Delft and Den Haag visiting Madurodam. It's pretty much why I really wanted to take this second tour and it was so worth it. I enjoyed seeing these additional dutch cities and towns a lot.

Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans, Volendam, Marken . . .

I have a bit of catching up on my blog. I've been a busy little Slow Traveler on the sightseeing fast lane. So here's an equally fast catch up post.

On Tuesday, I decided to take a tour with a local company called Lindbergh Excursions. I was feeling a bit lazy to figure out the bus schedules to visit Zaanse Schans on my own and I wanted to see the Dutch windmills.  The town of Zaanse Schans is a picturesque windmill village with green timbered houses.

The tour only allowed 55 minutes here and that included this brief wooden shoe demonstration.

Let's just say that I had to do a mad dash to the windmills so I could climb up one of them. For 3.50 euros I was able to see the inner workings of an actual windmill. This is the De Kat mill (aka Dye Mill) and it is used to produce dyestuff. I learned that this is actually the last wind powered dye mill in the world.

It was pretty cool climbing up close to the turning wooden blades and to see how wind energy is used to grind the wooden chips used to produce dye.

I had only 5 minutes left to return to the bus and as I was sprinting back I remembered why I became a Slow Traveler. :)

The tour also included a visit to a small farm house to see how cheese is made. It included a free sample of a variety of cheese with this delicious mustard to dip it in.

They also had a stable of some of the friendliest riding horses. I didn't realize that there is this forest on the outskirts of the city with great trails for horseback riding.

We then went to the town of Volendam where we had a lunch break. It is located near the ocean. The guide told us about a typical Dutch delicacy called herring. Raw fish. I opted for the little Dutch pancakes instead. Apparently in this town all the doors on the houses are different. As we walked through town sure enough no two doors looked the same. Kind of cool.

Lastly, we visited this small town called Marken. It used to be a fishing village but since due to the building of these canals, the lakes turned to fresh water and the only things that could be caught are eels. The town was practically shut down since it was November. We walked around a bit then hopped back on the bus returning to Amsterdam.

All in all for only 32 euros I thought it was a pretty good tour and I had fun. It took about 4 1/2 hours.  I really enjoyed seeing the windmills the most. And the cheese making demonstration was also interesting, not to mention delicious.