Our plan is to get to Treptower Park to see the Soviet War Memorial built just after the conclusion of WWII. Quite a historic period obviously and Thom (a real history buff) reminded me that 80,000 Soviet troops lost their lives in their offensive into Berlin. It was the Nazis last major fight and they did not go down easy. For many of the Soviet fallen soldiers this is where they remain. It is a gigantic area full of trees, paths, lawns, walking trails, lots of Russian tourists showing up in buses and is free. Another historical fact is the Russians and Allies divided up their spoils thus creating East Berlin and East Germany.
Not sure the significance?
Soviet sculptures and memorials are very dramatic.
Check out how big this is.
Do you know why they put lids on many German beer steins and this goes back quite a long time? The answer is the wasps that buzz around continuously and in the end will want to take a bath in your beer!
We are back on the subway train and get a little lost, but re-orient and find our way to Freidrichstrasse station. We are on our way to the famous Tiergarten park in downtown Berlin.
This dramatic sculpture outside of the station is to remember the Jewish children sent to their deaths while the German children were going to school. See the two kids in the back. The railroad ties of course. This railway station is where they sent the Jews to the concentration camps.
Our goal is more Soviet War Memorial sights in the Tiergarten. Huge park that hundreds of years ago was the private hunting reserve for the King. Check out this Soviet war memorial and of course, this was part of East Germany before the Berlin wall fell.
The Soviets like their memorials very large and dramatic.
A real Soviet tank from the battle to take over Berlin.
Next short stop just outside the park is Schloss Bellevue which is the residence of the current German President. Of course, the Chancellor of Germany actually runs the show. Thom didn't know exactly what the President does.
We met Thom's girlfriend Suse for lunch at the Pauliner Berlin restaurant close to where Thom works. A nice lunch and I got to meet Suse. The wasps attacked us during the lunch and we went inside to finish our lunch and seek refuge.
Thom and Suse
Bayrische Wurstparade - basically a bunch of German sausages with sauerkraut and mustard.
Back to Thom's apartment around 2:30 pm. Then out to a local small park on a main street to play table tennis (ping pong) outside. Apparently, there are a lot of parks with permanent ping pong tables which is thought to be due to the Chinese influence when East Germany was Communist. The ping pong table is made of cement and has a metal net. Weird to be playing in the sun and slight wind at times. It was fun! The last thing Thom and I did together before he left Vancouver four years ago to head to Berlin was play table tennis.
GERMAN etiquette: When you are at a cashier and paying for something, you never hand over your money directly to the person. There is a plastic tray and you place your cash and change on that. When you receive your change it is placed on the plastic tray. Do not deviate.... ;-)
Tipping in Berlin: You always round up the bill. If the service was good then you add on 10%. If the service was excellent you can make it 15%. At least, that is what our Berlin friends said....
This is a very cosmopolitan city. Full of different ethnic groups. For instance, Berlin has 300,000 Turks in the city making it the largest population of Turks outside of Turkey.
Thom organizes a taxi to pick me up for the short drive to Berlin Hauptbahnhof (main train station). Taxi around 5:10 pm and we arrive about 10 Euro later. I am early for my 18:16 departure so I pick up some water, a German sandwich for my dinner on the train and a couple of English language newspapers. Found a seat to wait. The train is running late. When it pulls up I am in a crush of people trying to get on the second class car. Made the mistake of leaving my reading glasses on my neck strap. Found it difficult to get my luggage bag into the overhead rack. Dropped it and I think at that time lost my glasses. Freaked out and retraced my steps with no luck. About 5 minutes later a girl sitting behind me found my glasses! Phew! Sitting in a seat and 15 minutes into the trip, a fellow approaches and said I was in his seat. I had no idea you can reserve a seat in second class. Oh well. Moved to a window seat with a table. Train is full on a Friday night trip to the northern city of Hamburg. It is about an hour and 40 minutes ride.
We enter Hamburg Hbf around 20:20. Another huge and busy train station. I follow the arrows for a while to locate U3 subway platform. I ask a fellow if this will take me to Hoheluftbrücke station? Yes, go down the stairs and to your left. Train pulls up in about 5 minutes. I have some directions on how to find the apartment on Gartnerstrasse. Problem is not sure which way to turn when I leave the station hauling my luggage? Turn left and hope for the best. The cross streets are not marked on the street. I stop to ask a young lady and then a cyclist and the next major intersection is indeed Gartnerstrasse. The walk is around 15 minutes from the U3 station. I find the apartment, press the proper button and the door opens. I carry my stuff up three flights of stairs and am greeted by the warm smile of Janke. I have successfully made it!
Airbnb is a very cheap alternative to hotels as you can stay with the locals. We have a good chat and I love my bedroom. The wifi is very fast as well. Beautiful hardwood floors and it seems relatively quiet. I update the travel blog and it is now close to 11 pm. FaceTime Lana to catch up and ensure she knows I am safe in Hamburg. Never been to Hamburg and looking forward to seeing the sights in the second largest city in Deutschland.
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