Berlin

Berlin

The capital of Germany, but it has not always been so. When I was at school, the capital of Germany was Bonn. That had to do with WWII, which Hitler, a German chancellor started and lost after several years. Berlin was shared amoung four countries, though it could not be the capital. Even Germany was devided. in 1989 Germany became one again and soon afterwards Berlin became the capital as well.

My first time I have been in Berlin was 1970, when I had finished college. I think it was my first time on a plane. It was the best way to go to the part of Berlin, which belonged to the Bundesrepublik Deutschland. I was staying at a hostel, where I met two young pharmacy students (girls) and made company with them. More about that later.

Since that I have been off and on in Berlin, even not very often, but the last few years. Especially when I was active with the Pirate Party of Hamburg. This time I will meet a girlfriend I know from Malta. I did host her.

25th October 2015

My bus left at 10:40 from Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe, therefore we had to leave my friends home around 9am. That also means, that my friend was following me to the bus stop and helped me with my luggage. At our destination we did not find the 10:40 bus to Berlin on the timetable, though we asked another woman if she has a clou about it. She was going to Berlin very often and told us, where the timetable is and also, that there will be a bus at that time to my next destination. We had a chat and she told us, that she has been living on Malta for some years ago. That was really funny!

In Berlin I did not find the waiting room at the bus terminal, though I was going to the street, where I could see the sign for the underground. I was able to send a message to my friend, who is living in this town, that I am waiting for her at the corner, where the “europcar” is situated (even I spelled wrong and wrote Europark). After a while she came and found me there together with another friend of her, who was from Graz, Austria and visiting her. My friend told me, that I should have got to the waiting room and I told her, that I could not find it from the platform my bus was arriving. Anyway it went all well, but there was a little problem with the underground. I have got an underground sightseeing 😉 because a bomb threat on the route.

At my friends home, she pampered us with a cheese cake with apple on the top and tea. We had a good chat before all three of us went to a music coffee shop named Prachtwerk, which is situated in Neukölln in Berlin. There were world life music. It was a for my unknown sound. I ordered home made lavender limonade, but it was to sweet. From this place we went home for a night meal before we were going to sleep.

26th October 2015

We took it calm that morning and had a big breakfast, but there was no yoghurt, no cereals. It is so different what people like to eat and I happily coupe with it. During our breakfast we already had a good chat – no sour faces here!

Around 11am we went by underground – this day we could take the straight route – to the “Monkey bar”. It is situated close to the “Gedächtniskirche” and on a roof top. We took a lot of photographs from the terrace and also some from the toilet, because there is one with an open view over the Zoo. Her friend has her suitcase with her, because she had to go to the airport Tegel for her flight home directly afterwards.

My friend and me continued to the “Berlin-Brandenburger Akademie der Wirtschaft” – a kind of university for an event about “Berlin Zukunftsstadt” (Berlin, the city of the future). I left quickly again, because one should know a lot of the politics of Berlin if one should understand all that it was about. Instead I explored the surroundings, bought a Ritter Sport chocolate (my favorite chocolate with all the different flavors) and went back to the academy again in time to see the prize-giving ceremony for the best photograps about “Berlin – City of the Future”.

My friend and me continued together to the Humbold Box for a talk about the new city palace. We also visited the exhibition by our own. Futhermore we took a look on Berlin by night from the terrace on the roof top of this building.

My friend was planing a lot for this day, trying to show me the best of her city. Though we went to the ARD (a TV sender) and listened to a public panel discussion about a new book, called “Lohnklau” (theft of salary). We ended this day by visiting an Irish Pub called Rickenbecker’s with a weekly Monday Nights Pro Jam Session). There were different artist playing together – different groups after each other. It was very interesting. There were also some very good singers participating. My friend met here also other friends. We were four around a table, very close to the stage and I did not need my hearing aids ;-).

We had to leave before midnight because there are no more public transport later than midnight.

27th October 2015

We went to bed around 1am, but had a nightmeal before it.

My larm clock was for 5:30am because I had to go further early that morning and it was a quite long trip by underground to the bus terminal Zoo. My friend served me breakfast and followed me to the underground station. I was at the bus terminal in good time (departing time was 8am) and I found the waiting room. As soon as the bus was arriving at the platform I went there and tried to get a good seat. Good for me is a window seat! The bus was leaving around 10 minutes before the official time, because all booked passengers were in. Unfortunately the bus had no WiFi, but it should have had.

Follow me to Wuppertal and Wetter an der Ruhr please, where I will met my second cousin and my girlfriend, I know from college.