Bike rides and the Pergamon museum

I've been doing a lot of walking, sightseeing, and eating of Falafels in Berlin. It's hard to get lost here as there is a subway or tram within 10 minutes or less of anywhere in the center of the city. Plus, there is food everywhere; like I said, I've been eating a lot of REALLY GOOD falafels as they are vegetarian and cheap! A falafel sandwich costs between 2 and 3 Euros, or about $3-4. Food is really cheap and very good quality here, even fast food.

Monday I took a bike tour which was a lot of fun, and our guide was pretty knowledgeable about Berlin history. We rode around for about 4 hours, stopping at the Reichstag, the Holocaust Memorial, Museum Island, and of course checkpoint charlie. She regaled us with tales of escape over, under, and through the wall from East to West Berlin, as well as describing the reconstruction effort after each war. The weather was beautiful and warm, and I managed to get a little sunburned (but not badly).




I'm now staying at the home of Fabienne and Khorben, who've been in Berlin for 2 years. Fabienne is French-American from California and has been out of the states for 4 years (2 in Paris, 2 in Berlin); Khorben is also French. They are great company and know the city well, in addition to knowing a lot about computer hardware/software hacking and sock knitting!

Tuesday it rained, so I headed off to the museums. I first toured the DDR museum, which is an interactive walk through life in East Berlin during the communist era. The curators did a good job of showing typical life of an average East Berliner from birth to middle age. I next visited the Pergamon museum, which has a ton of classical Roman, greek, and islamic sculputures and structures. It was absolutely amazing, with huge reconstructions / restorations of buildings inside the museum.



Berlin is really a beautiful city, with rich history. It's been in near constant turmoil in the 1900's, but is now bustling with hipsters, travelers, food and culture from all over the world. In essence, a big melting pot.