Leaving Berlin

I wrote this bit offline on my iPod when I was at the airport leaving Berlin - on November 9th, the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall - on my way to Greece...How interesting it was, as it hit me, hearing that a flight for Moscow is now open for boarding!! That is something I have never heard before.

What ensued was a feeling, a desire, to just go somewhere, like that, or anywhere without a plan. To go to an airport, see what flights are available, and just hop on, and take it from there. The small matter of the cost of the ticket did not occur to me in that moment... Heh... But that's a new level of comfort in travel that is new to me. And, the freedom, just to think like this !!

Ok, I managed to make a connection, weak as it is, to the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall - which is happening today as I leave. Freedom and freedom.

The other twist I've taken today is to celebrate the anniversary by being one of the ones who leaves Berlin today with a freedom of movement that not all had 20 years ago.

Maybe there is someone on this flight from East Berlin.... Now, that's freedom!

If you missed why I was leaving Berlin on such a momentous day, click here. UPDATE: To clarify, I did manage to stay for the U2 concert though - click here for details ;-)

Settling in on Rhodes

So, Rhodes is lovely. Not that I have seen a lot of it yet. I have been busy settling into my place and little 'hood, and grabbing doses of sun when it shines.

Yesterday I went for a walk and found a stretch of rocky beach about a block from home.... Rocky beach indeed, tho some cool rocks! Took this one "home" but that does not mean it will necessarily "come home" with me. I am having enough challenges managing luggage weight limits without adding rocks into the mix!
This is evidence of a good soaking of the Mediterranean sea, quite unintentional...
This is the spot I was exploring when I got "waved"...
... and on a completely different note, these are the elements of my coffee adventure...
So, day 1 here went out to get a coffee, found nothing open right near by (except a place that had a Nescafe coin-op thing!), so figured there was no time like the present to get brewing at home. While I was at the grocery store, I realized that I had not looked in the kitchen to see what kind of brewing device there was, so I was in the dark in more ways than one when I got to the store. Not that knowledge of the red thingy (above) would have helped me. It was definitely all Greek to me as I was buying coffee and cream.... The coffee I selected because it was a relatively small package and seemed to be the most popular one, so it must be good, right? All I could do was squeeze it to tell it was ground, and that was that.... The cream situation confounded me. Initially made a selection from the coffee section (as most cream in Europe is unrefrigerated), but found real milk and cream in the dairy case later. Great. Now, picking one out. I studied them quite a bit before picking this one out. It wasn't until I took this picture that I noticed it must be for whipping cream! Ha! At least it wasn't buttermilk or something....

I had never used one of these coffee pots before, but I was surprised at how well I figured it out. The biggest challenge was figuring out what went in where.... and what portions to use. Oh, and I dumped out the water initially, and replaced it with bottled water, filled the thingee with coffee and off we go to the stove! I must have gotten something right because it tasted awesome! Had a second cup. And today awoke looking forward to my own coffee. I hope it tastes just as good when the whipping cream runs out and I scale the richness back a bit...

Other initial observations:

• One of the only downsides here is the strong sulfur smell of the water... I'm using bottled water to brush my teeth, as the sulfur smell had me gagging... eeek!... Not too bad for a shower though. Anyways, has me needing to remember to buy enough water for cooking and such
• You cannot flush any paper here, at all.... leads to much managing of plastic bags....
• And no recycling! boo! (a little surprising, as this seemed to be quite sophisticated in Athens)
  
• It's raining pretty frequently, but never for really long, and it burns off quickly.
• The mosquitos here are EVIL!
• No wifi, no land-fi, no fi at all has me struggling to adapt a bit... but I'm managing with an awesome internet cafe half a block away (it was cool lighting, lots of new computers, a full bar and food!)
• Not nearly as much culture shock as I'd thought: lots of English speakers and a very modern grocery store have me easing in nicely

That's it for now, more soon.....

Hanging out with Persephone

I am in Greece!! Rhodes, actually. I spent last night in Athens (nice to have a preview of where I am spending December) and I flew to Rhodes this morning.

So I named this blog post "Hanging out with Persephone"... Above is the sculpture, Hades and Persephone, which I have seen in the Borghese Gallery in Rome, it's truly amazing.... But the reason for naming this blog post after her is two-fold:

• The first is a book I started reading today, Dinner with Persephone, by Patricia Storace. It's travel writing from Greece, from a woman who spent a year in Athens. It's an easy read and I have learned more about Greek culture from the first chapter than all the Greek travel books I've read to date. Highly recommended.
• The second is a cat whom I have named Persephone, who came and sat on the wall of my private terrace this afternoon. I took some pics, will post at a later time. I was reading the book, chatting with the cat, figured she needed a name... bingo!

This motivates me to brush up on my Greek gods and goddesses.... More soon...

Other than that, I am well. Much less culture shocking coming to Greece than I anticipated. I probably had more culture shock in Rome. More once I've been here awhile.... Oh, on that note, I am in Greece for the rest of this calendar year. I leave January 1 for Barcelona...

U2 in Berlin: experience my experience - part 2

I was lucky enough to attend U2's historic free concert at Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on November 5th. Click here to view my first post, which contained videos. Now I will post some pics.... just a few from the hundreds I took!

Here I am drinking glühwein (spiked with rum!), waiting for the concert to begin...
Arriving early provided a special treat, getting a preview of the light show as they did the final technical checks:

The Brandenburg Gate being used as a computer screen... look, see the drop down menu that the tech must be mousing over? heh.

This was the perimeter security wall, limiting the audience to 10,000 attendees. There was a lot of controversy about this wall (the irony of building a wall to celebrate a wall coming down), with criticism of MTV (who sponsored the event) as protecting their investment. Click here and here for more.

Folks outside Starbucks without tickets trying to get a glimpse. I didn't feel smug to be inside (though very glad!), just felt a bit sorry for them. Oh, well.... off to get some more Glühwein...

This TV crew was from Spain, had a nice time chatting with them after they'd finished this spot. Two of them live in Berlin, and the other had come up just for the anniversary week. They were unanimous about the fact that Germany was cold!! lol. And, no, they did not ask to interview me. (Also look at the office building behind... funny how they are all working late this evening, lol...)

The perspective from portapottieland....

I took a few random shots of spectators while waiting for the concert to begin, and I thought this guy personified what I thought Berliners would look like before I got here.

It started to rain a bit, prompting this guy to use this brightly coloured bag as a hat. I am sure the beer consumed so far that evening had nothing to do with this seemingly rational decision ;-)

Saw this guy a few times, wrapped up in his flag from a country I have yet to take the time to identify...

OK, here we are, the concert has begun!!!! This was from the first song, "One Love" and this is what the lighting changed to later in the piece. Awesome!!!

Here's the set list:

• One (I always thought it was One Love?)
• Magnificent
• Sunday Bloody Sunday (including special guest Jay-Z who I'd honestly never heard of before, apparently I was the only one!)
• Beautiful Day
• Vertigo
• Moment of Surrender

I would like someone who knows about photography and composition to tell me why I love this picture so much? There is just something about it...

More clapping.... BTW, someone asked me how close to the front I was, well, you can see I am quite a ways back, probably half way... When I arrived I actually could have stood practically in the front row (about 3 people back), but that would have required standing in one spot for 3 hours... naw, not my style...This kid had the best seat in the house, on the shoulders of the tallest dad in the crowd! She definitely had a good time. Oh, I discovered the Germans are a tall lot, I wasn't towering above people as much as I was used to...

One of the rocker guys by me... loved the spirit and energy of the crowd, everyone was so happy!!! This was a hard core U2 crowd, all knew the songs and were singing along...

My new friends that I was closest to during the final lead up to the band, and all during it. The couple (on the left) and the girl on her own were all in Berlin for the evening, living in smaller communities about an hour away. The couple drove in and the girl took the train. They found a Canadian's perspective on the whole experience rather interesting!

After the concert.... Once again, I'm looking for a photographer to tell me why I like the composition of this random pic....

... and this one... I think it has something to do with the clarity of a single part of the picture and the blurriness of everything else... But if I could learn what it was, then maybe I could learn to take this kind of shot intentionally - and better! - than them just appearing every 100 pics or so in my e-stack!

All in all, it was an amazing evening and a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

In closing, a shout out and hello to all those folks back home in Vancouver who I understand were rooting for me to get a ticket, crushed for me when I didn't, and excited for me when I finallly did! Hope you enjoyed this glimpse into what it was like...

U2 in Berlin: experience my experience

The U2 concert at Brandenburg Gate in Berlin was amazing.... and, yes, I was really there!!!

Here first are some videos (pics will follow separately)... The first four are by yours truly (way back in the crowd).... aand the last ones are from the pros (with the band visible)...

How exciting when the band launched into the opening song, "One Love":



A bit of Sunday Bloody Sunday:


Beautiful Day clip with references to "this Beautiful City of Berlin":


Bono talks about Brandenburg Gate in this one:



The following videos were taken by U2gigs.com - all of which have amazing high def quality - and you can actually see Bono and the band!:

*** Their videos are wider than my blog template... to see the un-cut-off version, right click the play button and select Watch on YouTube"

Beautiful Day


U2 performing Sunday Bloody Sunday - with Jay Z (with a little "stand up for your rights" energy)


Last song: Moment of Surrender

For pictures, see part 2 of this post - click here.

Irony near the old Iron Curtain

OK, time for a little laugh, at my expense... If you read my blog post yesterday about Twetches (click here), then this is the inside story about why I was laughing at myself so hard...

So.... I am here in Berlin, coincidentally here very close to the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.... aka the Iron Curtain when referred to in it's broader context... hence, the theme for this post on a little irony on my trip...

BTW, the pic above is one I took myself, of a preservered segment pf the wall - to see where I took it, look for the red box near the item marked 3 on this map

So.... here's how it goes:

• I originally planned to be in Berlin October 1-31
• I have other accomodation booked in Rhodes, Greece starting November 1 for a month
• Not long after I plan my trip, I learn that anniversary of the day the wall fell was happening a week after I left on November 9th, oh well
• Then I learn that this is a special year, marking 20 years since the wall fell!, oh well well, live and learn
• While I am IN Berlin, I keep reading about the fall of the wall, the 20th anniversary, and what will be happening to celebrate, darn, if only I was here
• I toy briefly on modifying my stay, but discard it as a whim
• My friend Kelly visits for 10 days and we frequently laugh at the fact that I won't be here for the anniversary
• Then I hear that U2 is playing a special free concert for the people of Berlin - at the Brandenburg Gate - on November 5th!
• I think this is so cool.... I begin to ponder if it is worth changing my travel plans
• I get it in my head somehow that this concert is being held the night the wall fell (it fell during the wee hours), before the 20th anniversary the next day
• 2 days before I am supposed to leave, I decide, what the hell, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, I'll do it! (and I have a whole month in Rhodes, not a huge place, 3 weeks is fine!)
• I decide to leave on November 9th, giving me time for the concert on Nov 5, the anniversary on Nov 6 and a few days afterwards to take in any extended exhibitions
• I change my travel plans (extending my time in my flat here, telling the Rhodes folks I'll be late [though I still have paid for the days not used, it's a flat for the month], changing my flights) and chalk up the cost to the 'once in a lifetime opportunity' ledger (as if I had one)
• With me so far? Read on...

The irony comes in here:
IRONY #1

• I hear via a friend in Vancouver that the U2 tickets have gone "on sale" (yes, even though they are free, there are limited amount available), geeze, how did I miss that? I jump online and.... oh, they are "sold out"! IRONY #1 - NO U2 TIX
• I think, oh well, I'll just go see if I can get a tix at the entrance, if not, I'll stand a block away and listen (see the note at the end of a previous post here about the rather poignant relevance of this and the famous 1987 concert incident)...
• IRONY #1 - NO U2 TIX!

IRONY #2

• At least I am here for the fall of the wall anniversary...
• I begin to read about some of the celebration plans for the anniversary when something doesn't feel right... a main one doesn't until the 9th? WTF? another one runs Nov 7-9? WTF?
• Then it hits me... I check the dates, and, yes, did you catch it? The anniversary is on November 9 (they day I am leaving!), not November 6
• What happened? a dyslexic moment? I made up the U2 night before story? the full moon? I was really blonde at birth? LOL
• IRONY #2 - Despite the extra cost, I still won't be here for the anniversary!

Irony #3

• It starts to snow in Berlin today... geez, I should have planned my trip to be somewhere warmer at this point.... oh, wait! I did that! I even have a furnished, paid-for flat waiting for me in Greece!
• IRONY #3 - Berlin cold, Greece warm, where is Roberta? and why?

So, here I am in Berlin, as the snow falls, with no tickets to tomorrow's U2 concert and I fly out on the day the wall fell. Nice work Roberta!
In case you are wondering, I did consider changing the tix again, but realized it was really the concert that motivated me, and to duplicate those costs was really more than I wanted to do...

But, ah, the irony....

NOV. 5 UPDATE: the snow has stopped, the sun is shining and I just scored a FREE ticket to the U2 concert!!!!! All is right with the world!

Doors open at 4:00, the concert starts at 6:30. Here are the other important details from my ticket (!): Veranstaltungsdauer: 20 Minuten (TV-Aufzeichung); Bitte nutzen sie zur Anreise den OPNV; Mitbringen von Getranken bis max. 0,5 l Gefassgross PRO PERSON im Tetra-Pak und PET erlaubt. Einbringen von Glas, Dosen, sperrignen Gegenstanden aller Art, Waffen, pyrotechnischen Artiklen, Video, Foto- und Tonaufzeichnungsgeraten ist untersagt

Twetches are cool

This is my first ever Twetch. But it is actually "illegal"....
If you are on Twitter, then you will love Twetches. If you aren't on Twitter, maybe Twetches will convince you to tune in.... Twetches is new to me, but was recently relaunched. They are cool. I decided to participate by doing my first Twetch, and figured I should be my first target! But I laughed when I went to upload it, as I broke rule #1 (you aren't supposed to Twetch your own Tweets, doh...)... so not sure if it will appear on the Twetches site or not... But here it is. Will now turn my attention to other's tweets to see what catches my doodle eye... If you join Twitter, please follow me (@citytravelbug) and be sure to follow @twetches too!

PS - oh, sweet heaven, they have included me on the Twetches site afterall, but not without some well deserved public shaming here, heh...

Would the real Checkpoint Charlie please stand up?

If you've been to Berlin and think you have visited Checkpoint Charlie, but have not ventured out of the city core, you probably saw the replica at the site where Checkpoint Charlie once stood. The "real" Checkpoint Charlie lives at the Allied Museum. In fact, there are two Charlies in residence here.

All that remains of the original hut erected at Checkpoint Charlie in 1961 is this facade, but it is preserved inside at the museum:
Outside the museum is the actual Checkpoint Charlie building that was removed, intact, from where it stood on the border between East and West Berlin in 1989 when the wall fell. Note: In the background of this picture, you can also see a train car; the Allies ran regular military trains during the occupation period and this is a car that has been preserved.

Silly Canadian girl getting her picture taken with Charlie....

The museum also has a real watchtower, complete with a working spotlight, and a slice of the Berlin Wall:

This watchtower once stood at Potsdamer Platz and Bernauer Strasse and inside there is a red phone from the day when the tower was in use. To quote from the adjacent plaque, "The Red Telephone connected the last supreme commander of the former Soviet Forces in Germany, Colonel General M. P. Burkakov with his superiors in Moscow." Spooky....

The pride of the museum is, without doubt, The Royal Air Force Hastings TG 503 aircraft that was flown as part of the Berlin Airlift during the Berlin Blockade of 1948-1949.

I actually got to tour the plane! While the museum is open daily, the aircraft tours only take place on specific days, so it took some organizing for me to get there on a Sunday! Here is my ticket which cost me a whole 1E (the museum was free)... cool the way they've done the tour tickets up, probably for appreciation by the kids, but I liked it too.

Up the stairs and just inside, looking out....

Sitting IN the plane, watching a movie about the Berlin Airlift. The film was only in German (you can learn all the history in English in the exhibitions) but a picture truly is worth a thousand words, and I still enjoyed it. Interesting to see it with a few children, important that they understand this history...

Waaaaay coool picture taken looking out the window, with the museum signage in the background....

Seeing this sign, and the spot where they hung their parachutes, made the visit very real. The airlift was not without its tragedies, including fatalities (39 on the British side, 31 on the American side, and at least 8 deaths on the German side).

The cockpit was quite something....

There were lots of other interesting exhibits, not the least of which was this jeep. There are 2 jeeps at the museum, both well preserved/restored... there's some interesting info about the acquisition of one of them.

Smile!!!!

This was a neat display, showing telephones, bus stop signs and postal boxes from the British, French and American occupying forces. They also had displays of uniforms from all three, if you are into that kind of thing...

Another remarkable exhibit is the authentic spy tunnel. During an 11-month period in 1954-1955 - in order to avoid being surprised again by actions such as the Berlin Blockade - the American and British intelligence services made clever use of a 450-metre long tunnel used for underground telephone cables used by the Soviet armed forces in the GDR (East Germany) buy tapping the lines. There was quite the broohaha when the tunnel came to light, thanks to a British double agent named George Blake who spilled the beans to the Soviets. This last remaining section of the tunnel was salvaged in 2005.

Lot and lots of other good exhibits. Couldn't resist taking a pic of this kid checking out a model of of an airport with a bunch of the planes.

Just a nice pic of one of the two buildings on site; the "Outpost" used to be a theatre, and they have done a clever job of repurposing the space without gutting it. Love the art deco feel.

Here's the Outpost at dusk with its neon lights on...

Finally, but actual first, was this statue I came upon on my way to the museum from the U-Bahn; it is actually part of the museum's collection. It is called "The Day The Wall Came Down". It's a very moving piece. The horses are life sized and seemed so real, and the torn and toppled wall pieces captured the moment. I wonder whether the horses symbolized the ones at Brandenburg Gate (which were imprisioned in the "no man's land" for 28 years); even if they don't, that's what it brought to mind for me.

Overall, a very good museum. It was maybe 20 minutes, 30 max, to get to the museum. Its doubtful you'll find crowds but you'll definitely find real "stuff". I spent 2-3 hours there. Depending on your level of interst in the history, you could spend less time (most do), or spend more time (I'm sure there are some, I still only absorbed about 1/2 of it). The website also has some good information, if you are patient, as the organization isn't the best, but the content is good.

I hope to return again this trip, as beginning on November 6, 2009 (the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall), the museum will commence a new special exhibit, "Wall Patrol: The Western Powers on the Berlin wall, 1961-1990" (runs until April 5, 2010).

Flowers, changing plans and rock concerts in Berlin

It is Saturday morning in Berlin. Well, it feels like Saturday morning... In reality it is Saturday afternoon and I am just thinking about what I am going to do today. So, a few pics...
These are the flowers on my windowsill, which continue to bloom, despite me being put in charge of their care for a month (the little mums didn't do so well).
I have no idea how I took this pic, was fooling with my camera's settings... I really should learn how to use this camera properly one day, who knows what I could be capable of? Don't hold your breath though... I was a good month and a half into my trip before I figured out what a digital zoom was...

My friend Kelly in the entrance to our building. Yes, those gorgeous gods greet me every time I come or go from this place.

This is the courtyard to at the back of our building . Hmmm.... as Kelly was here for such a nice long visit (10 days) I tend to think of this place as "ours" not "mine". Our place is through the doorway to the left....

... and waaaay up 86 stairs to the very top!! You see those 3 windows on the top level? That's home.

A street view of the building in the Kreuzberg neighborhood (info here and here). Yes, that's a little bar that is right downstairs (which, alas, I had not visited earlier in my trip, and ultimately won't, as I am now motivated to stay out of smoky places the last week or so...) ... ;-)

Today it is sunny and clear, but cold, with highs of 8C and lows of 0C. Brrrr.... A good excuse to laze around a bit, that, and the fact that I should have been running off to an airport this morning. Yet, here I am. So, with it so cold out, why is it that have I not travelled onto Greece today as I'd originally planned?

Well, a bit of a chance of a lifetime presented itself to me.... I'd been as bit disappointed that I was leaving just days before the 20th anniversary of when the Berlin Wall fell on November 6th. Then it was announced that U2 was going to do a free concert the night of November 5th (the Berlin Wall fell in the wee hours of that night) outside at Brandenburg Gate! Details here. 3 cheers for Bono!

That did it. I quickly checked that I could keep this flat for awhile longer -- lucky for me that I could -- and rearranged my cheap flights, and I will now be here until November 9th (I figure there could be some interesting things going on that weekend so no sense rushing).... I will still have the rest of November in Rhodes, which is relatively small, so I'll have plenty of time to rest up and restore my tan there.

How excited am I about my free U2 ticket you ask? Well, heh, they "sold" out in 3 hours when I didn't even know they had been released yet. S.H.I.T.... ;-) .... Let's just say the search is on for 1 kind soul with a spare ticket in Berlin. My fingers and toes are crossed, and maybe eventually my eyes too!!! Lol. Send good vibes my way... If all else fails, it's outside, so I'll find myself a little spot a block away or something and bop away anyways.

I absolutely KNOW that I will be able to hear it from a little ways away, as the Genesis concert of 1987 demonstrated when Phil Collins and the band turned some of the speakers from their outdoor concert in the west towards the east. Almost created an international incident! Read the full story here.

Maybe it is fitting somehow that I not get in, and that I stand somewhere in the old East Berlin to enjoy the music from afar.... Maybe this was the universe's plan, in which case, it will be most cool. And, just maybe, I'll do some more blog updating....

UPDATE & CLARIFICATION: In the end, I did manage to get a ticket to U2 on Nov 5th- it was awesome (click here for my pics & videos), but left on Nov 9th (thus missing the actual anniversary). I know, clear as mud....