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This morning we got up early and ate breakfast so that we could be on the bus back into the downtown of Berlin. We met our tour guide there this morning at 9 AM. We drove around the city, flashing photos through the bus windows, for about 2 and a half hours. We saw such monuments as the Reichstag, the Brandenburger Tor, the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche, and many, many more. I think that to really even scratch the surface of Berlin, you need about 3 full days… so we just got to see some of the biggest “Sehenswürdigkeiten” and then it was time for us to eat lunch. We ate lunch at the foot of the Fernsehturm… feeding the birds who have been so well trained to beg for food. And then Hans, our bus driver, checked out the line for us and about 10 of us went up into the ball of the Fernsehturm and had a look across Berlin! It was beautiful!
I am noticing as I am reading back to what I have written that the German speaking is getting to my typing… I’m sounding a bit off… sorry about that!
After our time in the Fernsehturm, we went to Alexanderplatz… the city center of the former East Berlin… the place where everyone would go to shop, eat and just meet and be with one another. We got to see the world clock (the picture above) and then do a bit of shopping at Alexa (the biggest shopping mall in all of Germany). Then off to the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche. We took some photos there. The kids were really impressed both with the old church (that has been left how it was after being bombed in WWII) as well as the new buildings with the beautiful blue windows.
Shortly after, many of us went to the famous Berliner Zoo, home of Knut, the polar bear. It really was beautiful and we didn’t even get close to seeing all of the animals… but we were sure to see Knut and the lions and the hippos! You’ll have to see the beautiful pictures your kids took at the Zoo. It was awesome.
Shortly thereafter, we walked about half a mile down the Kurfürstendamm to the Hard Rock Cafe in Berlin. We had a good time and now are back at the hostel!
Hopefully another update to come soon… it all depends on the internet availability!
Tomorrow we are off to Dresden!
Right away when we landed, we got going (of course). We went on our way to see the Museum at Checkpoint Charlie. Checkpoint Charlie is the checkpoint that Americans would go through to move between East and West Berlin. Today there is a museum there that chronicles the stories of those people who tried to make it over, under, or around the wall. It is really an interesting museum and we had a chance to look around for quite a while and learn about many of the attempts as well as some of the failures.
Shortly after our time at Checkpoint Charlie, many of the students had their very first German ice cream… and agreed that it is definitely something special… I can’t say that I blame them (since I am probably the one who talked them into trying it in the first place… with all of the drooling that I do about it in class). I am proud and I think that everyone else can be proud of these kids. They are respectful (of course), wonderful (of course) and actually using their German!! We’ve had a number of students ordering and speaking in German. It is fantastic!
After Checkpoint Charlie, we made our way to the youth hostel. The youth hostel we are staying at is the youth hostel am Wannsee. It is truly a beautiful and peaceful place. After supper, many of the students were so tired that they hit the sack right away and, as soon as their heads hit the pillows, they fell fast asleep.
I am wishing I had a way to upload my photos, but as of yet there is no luck. Hope all is well back home!
Well, after two plane rides (one approximately five hours to Iceland and then another just over 3 hours to Berlin) we finally made it! The plane rides were a little tough… and a few people weren’t feeling 100% afterward… but we made it. Now our biggest toil is just getting over any jet lag. We left around 7 and arrived in Berlin around 2. We met our (first) busdriver, Hans, at the airport. Then we spent the time to get some cash and went about our way!
