World Cup fever

Berlin is a truly amazing city that took me completely by surprise. I didn't know what to expect. All I knew about Berlin before I went was its recent tumultuous history and that the city is pretty spread out. But despite all of its history, Berlin is experiencing a rebirth and a new city is emerging that is hip and fun, with good transportation, great food, and plenty to see and do (the largest department store on the continent, KaDeWe, is here too!) To top it all off, Germany is host to the FIFA World Cup this year and the final will be played in Berlin on July 9th.

Actually, when we walked out of the Berlin airport, we were greeted with fireworks, honking horns and cheers. Well, it wasn't exactly for us, Germany had just won their first game of the cup!!

Two days weren't enough to see everything, and by the time we were getting to know the different neighborhoods, it was time to leave! We spent a lot of time in East Berlin. We saw the moving sites of Berlin's recent history, including Brandenburg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie, The Museum of the Wall, The Jewish Museum and the wall itself. There are only a few small sections of the wall left. The only way to tell where it was are by bricks specially laid in the ground that trace the path of where it once stood.

The longest section of the wall still standing is about a mile long and called the East Side Gallery, where artist from around the world are welcome to paint murals on it. It is said that the only reason it's still standing is because of a land ownership dispute and when that is settled it will most likely be torn down as well. I hope not. It's a very moving piece of history and should be preserved for future generations.

After all of that we were ready to have some fun. World Cup madness was all around us! It was opening weekend of the cup and there were tents with bands, food, and plenty to drink set up all over the city. Everywhere we turned, the air was filled with music and celebrations. There were also several places that had huge screens set up for people to watch the games. The biggest of these was in an area called "Fan Fest" and was located just behind Brandenburg Gate. It stretched for a couple miles and had several monster screens, carnival rides and plenty to eat and drink.

We watched the Trinidad & Tobago vs. Sweden game at Fan Fest and it was fantastic! Standing there, in a crowd of screaming fans eating bratwurst and drinking beer was perfect, you can't get much more German that that!

We had just about the perfect weekend, but there is always a glitch to keep it interesting. I suffer from seasonal allergies and my symptoms have popped up here and there during our travels, but nothing a little over-the-counter antihistamine can't manage. So far, in Geneva, it hasn't been too bad, but as spring goes on it seems to be getting a bit worse. But nothing has compared to the allergy attack I got in Berlin. I was sneezing uncontrollably, my nose was constantly running and my eyes were watering so much I could barely see. The pollen in the air was so thick it looked like snow flurries!!

Time to pull out the big guns. I finally broke down and took a prescription Allegra. Its great stuff and it even cured me when the Vacaville gardeners decided to mow the grass right when I was getting to work at 1:00. But here, in Berlin, my Allegra helped, but certainly did not cure my crazy symptoms. The pollen was the only part of the city I was happy to leave behind.

This trip was the last of a crazy eight weeks in a row that we've spent every weekend away from home. G is headed back to the US and I will soon be following him. I have a week or so in Geneva (most of which is now past), and soon it will be time for the house boat!!!

Thanks for reading about all of our travels and I'm so glad to say I'm finally caught up with the blog!!!! Woo Hoo :)


Us at The Berlin Wall


Looking from East to West through the wall


The sign at Checkpoint Charlie


The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (Gedachtniskirche). Its bombed out ruins stand as a memorial of the devastation of Berlin in WWII.


Looking up through the moving "Garden of Exiles" at the Jewish Museum


G has a new appreciation for art!


This huge screen is just behind Brandenburg Gate (see the bronze statue peaking out from the top?) at the FIFA World Cup Fan Fest!


Me with Goleo VI, the official mascot of the games!


See the guy behind Gary? These guys were all over Berlin, carrying their ENTIRE hotdog cart around them (umbrella included)! Those Germans are so efficient!


There is nothing wrong with the camera, that is the pollen in the air!