Sunday 15th October 2017.............to Berlin

We were up reasonably early, had a brief breakfast, completed packing and at 9.30 am we left for the airport for our flight to Berlin. We checked in quite quickly although the flight was fairly full. We had to say goodbye to Bill and Paivi, we have had such a great time in Finland despite the not-too-favorable weather and our lack of 'Northern Lights'. I am sure we will be back to catch the Aurora one day.

After the just under two hour flight, we landed at Tegel Airport in Berlin and took the long bus ride to the main terminal. Perhaps, Air Berlin's imminent bankruptcy relegates them to the outer fringes of the airport. The checked bags took quite some time to come through but afterwards were soon through the airport and decided to take a cab to our AirBnB. This was a lazy way to go but for 30 euro it was rather more comfortable than the us and subway. Our host Michael met us just after we arrived and showed us our Berlin 'digs' which is an apartment behind an art gallery on a quiet street.

There is a large bed/dining/kitchen area, a bathroom and a small terrace outside. It is very pleasant and comfortable with excellent amenities.

Our AirBnB is at Galerie which is at 7, Seydelstrasse, Berlin 10117. Seydelstrasse is just off the the wide Liepzigstrasse which leads to Potsdam Platz and is situated in the Mitte District. The area is also called Spittelmarkt and this name refers to the hosPITAL which stood on the site. It is a short walk to restaurants and shops and to the old concert hall and other sights and amenities. The building is just around the corner from the Titanic Hotel!!! It is situated in the old 'East' sector of the city and along the way along Leipzigstrasse to the Potsdam Platz, there is a marker in the sidewalk which marks the track of the old Berlin Wall

A marker in the sidewalk along the Leipzigstrasse, showing the route of the old Berlin Wall

After settling in for a few minutes we decided to go and explore and set off towards the Potsdam Platz along Leipzigstrasse which is about 1 km away. We passed a number of impressive buildings from the former era. At Potsdam Platz, we turned right onto Ebertstrasse which took us past the Holocaust Memorial which is a large area of stone blocks which form a sort of maze which you can walk through and contemplate. there are strict rules on behavior at the site. As it was a sunny Sunday, the area was very crowded with visitors and tour groups.

Views of the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin.

The memorial is adjacent to the back of the US Embassy which has a 'Buddy Bear' in the rear foyer.

Buddy Bear at the US Embassy

From here we walked the short distance to the Brandenburg Gate, the impressive entrance to the 'Unter den Linden' avenue. the area is very redolent of Paris where the Arc de Triomphe leads onto the Champs Elysee. Close to the entrance was a demonstration in support of immigrants where speakers made declarations of solidarity and there were lists of immigrants who had died trying to escape to Europe.

The famous Brandenburg Gate at the western end of the Unter den Linden

The demonstration by the Brandenburg Gate in support of migrants

The US Embassy right by the Brandenburg Gate

We walked on down Unter den Linden. Unfortunately, due to the construction of a new subway line underneath this wonderful broad avenue, the center of the avenue is interrupted with construction material and some parts are closed off. Nonetheless the wide grandeur of the street is evident. We stopped at a kiosk and had a bratwurst, it seemed like the thing to do on a bright autumn Sunday. 

After this we walked to the area of the Gendarmenmarkt where the old concert hall and two very large churches, one a French church and a grand plaza are located.

Some of the magnificent buildings in the Gendarmenmarkt area. The last one being the old concert hall, now replaced by a very modern building a short distance away.

 We walked back to our AirBnB and had a short rest before walking back to the Gendermenmarkt area to an old restaurant called Aigner where we had a very nice German meal with Schnitzel and, of course, sausage. This restaurant was an old-style wood-paneled place with many antiques including a wonderful old clock from the 1930's.

After dinner we strolled home to bed.