Berlin

This was a cool war memorial with names written on the stones.

Before I go any further, Berlin was an amazing city. I kind of feel like it is the most unique city I have seen yet because there is such a unique combination of the old and historical and the new.







These walk/stop signs are very unique, and possibly only in Berlin? I don't know, I haven't been to many German cities yet. But in the mall there was a shop with these walk/stop signs on various articles, so I think it is a unique trait.

This is small portion of the remaining Berlin Wall, this was near Potsdamer platz.




Sorry, I wish I could tell you what these things were, but they were all these German names that I couldn't pronounce to save my life. I was staying with a family acquaintance in this city and at the end of each day they would ask me where I went. I had no idea how to say anything so I would just have to describe what it was near and such. So yeah.












This I actually know! It was called TV tower. That is all I know about it.









Above was the inside of this Awesome store. I never would have found it, but I had a personal guide. The chocolate is a German brand called "Ritter Sport". It is so good. Not quite as good as Swiss chocolate, but a close second. This chocolate has filling inside, of all different delicious flavors. Some I didn't think I would like but I loved them all! The classic flavors are: Yogurt, marzipan, corn flakes, hazelnuts, cookie, alp milk, chocolate mousse and some fruity flavor. The names were all in German so I don't quite remember. My favorites are yogurt and marzipan. There was also this station there where they would make a chocolate bar for you with whatever you wanted inside. Jellybeans, cereals, candies, fruits, nuts and much more.

Now for a more serious topic. The above picture is a picture of a memorial placed underground. This memorial is located in front of the university below. When Hitler came to power and burned piles of books it was done in front of universities such as this one. So in the location where books were burned they have empty bookshelves as a memorial to this event. This was just in a normal plaza, I never would have noticed this if someone hadn't pointed it out. Just one title was replaced with plexiglass and this was built underneath.










This is a very new area, so contrasted with the old. It was called potsdamer platz.
This is what a German neighborhood looks like. Simple, organized, clean, emphasis on simple. Very nice.
This last picture is just what my cabin looked like for my overnight train from Berlin to Munich. It was for 6 people! The beds were 21/2-3 feet wide, with like 2 feet between each one. Luckily my cabin only had one other woman in it, but others were full! I hope this weeks overnight train to Vienna goes well.

One last thing, I also saw the East Side Gallery. I unfortunately forgot my camera that day. It was really neat. Here is a site if you would like to see a video clip of the wall.

www.berlin-street-view.de/index.php?videoID=Aqp3J_Rpyiw&videoName=East%20Side%20Gallery%20-%20Berlin%20Wall

Here is the summary of the Gallery. It is the largest remaining portion of the Berlin Wall, it is 1.3 Km long. 100 artists from around the world came in 1990 painted on the east side of the remaining Berlin Wall. Recently in 2009 the artist were invited back to restore the paintings after erosion and vandalism occurred.