Berlin

Due to an early morning flight (6:30 am Friday morning to be exact) Linnea and I had to get to the Skavsta Airport the night before in order to catch the flight. Since we would be arriving at 8:30 in the morning we wanted to be well rested. Instead of trying to sleeping in the sketchy airport we decided it would be best to stay in the airport hotel. We reserved a "quick sleep" room and were a little startled to see this (and only this) when we opened our door.

Bunk beds and a Desk.

 Our "quick sleep" room consisted of a bunk bed and a desk. The communal (and co-ed) bathroom was located across the hall. Although Linnea and I were a little shocked to see this, we did not mind. We were only going to be spending a few hours sleeping there and really, all we need is a bed to accomplish that. Until we were ready to hit the sack, we sat by the fireplace in the lobby eating "godis."

The next morning everything went smooth. The only little travel glitch was that once in Berlin, Linnea and I got on the bus to David and Annette's apartment going in the opposite direction so what should have been a 5 min ride ended up being an hour and 5 mins. But hey, we got to see some more of Berlin; it was the scenic route.

After arriving and enjoying a much needed breakfast of German bread, butter, cheese and jam as well as a large cup of coffee we set out to see the city. 

So much green space!

 

 

On our walk we stopped by a lovely farmers market and then stat down to lunch at Habibi, a delicious falafel, hummus, and shawarma place in their neighborhood. 

 We then hopped on our bikes and began to explore the city by bike. David and Annette are so knowledgeable and had so much information to share about everything we passed. It was one of the best tours I've been on! 

Brandenburg Gate

 Then we visited a Holocaust Memorial that is right smack in the middle of the city and a way to say "we must not forget." This was a beautifully created memorial that really allowed for interpretation but perhaps it is too open. There were quite a few people who I felt were disrespecting the memorial by running around, jumping and playing on he structure.

 More to come in the next post...