Well it was a quick four hour flight from Athens to Berlin – dodging the ash (the volcano erupted again and ash was heading our way then changed direction closing Spanish airspace. I beats catching an overnight ferry and trains from Athens to Berlin which would take at least 24 hours in travel time.
We went on an interesting three hour walking tour that covered the main things to see in central Berlin but we won’t bore with the details…
These pictures are of Reichstag (German Parliament House). The Reichstag dome is the large glass dome at the very top of the building. The dome has a 360-degree view of the surrounding Berlin cityscape. The main hall of the parliament below can also be seen from the cupola, and natural light from above radiates down to the parliament floor. A large sun shield tracks the movement of the sun electronically and blocks direct sunlight which might bedazzle those below.
The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe with 2711 blocks and museum underneath which had accounts and diaries of what people went through – it was awful and confronting. It is difficult to grasp that concentration camps and the Berlin wall existed such a short time ago We will visit Dachau concentration camp when we go to Munich as our Berlin walk guide suggested that one.
Finally Ampelmann– no summary of Berlin would be complete without it. There was an Ampelmann shop that sold everything Ampelmann. Stuff like bottle openers, lollies, magnets, corkscrews, key rings, thongs, stationary and T-shirts.