We had returned to Berlin, from our month away, on May 31. On 2 June our good friend John came to visit. John stayed with us for just under two weeks. It was good fun to have a visitor and to see some of the touristy and not so touristy sides of Berlin.
And John and Tom got themselves a 'roadie' for the walk home. One of a few of these type of 'roadies' during this trip.
So he told he to bugger off out of it so he could take his place by the window. Not sure how frosty the ride was after that!
John arrived by train from Warsaw on 2 June. I snuck up on him and nabbed him as soon as he got off the train.
We jumped on the bus to go back to our place.
Some highlights of our time together:
We took 'Bus 100' a normal bus that is popular with tourists as it goes through most of the major sights of Berlin. We got a good spot right at the front on the second level. It was hot!
We went to the huge Soviet war memorial at Treptower Park.
Visited the famous Berlin Tempelhof Airport - now a huge open air park and function space.
Visited the Reichstag for a walk around the cupola - which gives fantastic views over the cityscape of Berlin.
Of course the Reichstag is a nice building and so it is worth taking pause to admire its architecture and reflect on its history.
After the Reichstag we checked out the 'Memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe' and its underground museum.
We went out with friends Tom and Danika to one of their favourite hangouts - the restaurant 'Transit' in Friedrichshain.
And John and Tom got themselves a 'roadie' for the walk home. One of a few of these type of 'roadies' during this trip.
During the time John was with us, we celebrated my birthday, Tom's birthday, John's birthday and our wedding anniversary. It was a big week of celebrating and our main 'event' for this was a grill in the park on Tom's birthday.
Where John got to play with some young birds :)
And try not to embarrass himself at 'ring toss'. We all sucked at this game and so turned it into a drinking game to make it more interesting.
When visiting Berlin, one simply must indulge in the local snack of the city - currywurst. John gave this snack his thumbs up.
We visited Mauerpark one Sunday, Berlin's biggest flea market and home to a raucous outdoor Karaoke session.
Another day we caught the train to Spandau.
And then got the bus to Kladow, and the ferry over the Wannsee.
That was a big day, warm too, so some train napping occurred on the 40 minute ride back to Friedrichshain.
Much of what we did involved a bit of drinking. With the weather so beautiful during this time we spent most of the time outdoors and enjoyed the open biergartens. Conveniently there is one literally at the end of our street and we hit that one up a couple of times.
One evening John wanted to take us out for dinner as a thanks for hosting him. We went to the Hofbrauhaus in Mitte for a great dinner of Schweinhaxe, Eisbein and Beers!
The Hofbrauhaus is next to Alexanderplatz and that it always worth a look.
Alexanderplatz is often the transit point for the end of a night out and you often spot some weary bodies trying to make their way home. I personally wouldn't recommend taking a nap in any U-Bahn station, but hey, you should be okay in Alexanderplatz.
Speaking of U-Bahns, John got some exposure to the ticketing systems. First he got a week card and when that ran out he considered running the risk of not buying tickets as he hadn't been check at all during the previous week. We advised him against not buying tickets, so he started to get singles as needed.
Immediately after buying this single ticket there was a 'bust' on our train. We of course all had valid tickets, but watched as the inspectors mercilessly fined a mother with a new born the customary 40 Euros.
A new thing for all of us was to take a tour of a World War II bunker. This was quite interesting - a bit of an insight into how Berliners were forced to live during the heavy bombings of Berlin.
Nearby our apartment is Volkspark Friedrichshain. We had only been there once before, when it was under heavy snow cover. Now in this beautiful weather everything was green, people everywhere and it was a lovely walk. We stopped to admire an original feature of the park - the fairy tale fountain.
And took the time to give some John pointers on where and how to go and come home as he wanted to go exploring by himself for a bit.
We had such a great time together, but unfortunately the time flew by and soon it was time for him to leave. He left by train, to go to Hamburg. So we checked to see where his carriage was - right at the back.
And he lined up to get on board - noticing that some woman was sitting in his reserved seat.
So he told he to bugger off out of it so he could take his place by the window. Not sure how frosty the ride was after that!
So our time ended. We couldn't believe how quickly it went by.
It's a shame he doesn't like to have his picture taken though.
I could have documented his stay in photos if he had been more willing. :P
