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My last day in Berlin. I thought I'd come down to Starbucks and catch up on my blogs. Up until today, I have been not carrying anything around. I wear a plane tee shirt which helps me blend in. Today though, I took my backpack and immediately got hit up by Gypsies and other predators. I'm sure I've been cursed or something now.
I found a store with old Photographs of Berlin and Germany. Not real real old, only like from the early 50s. I saw one and fell in love with it. But it's $300. Is that too much?
See, there are other activities in Berlin that a perfectly legal here but not in the US. You would think that a single healthy middle aged male would be obliged to partake in activities. As they say, "when in Rome..." Call me what ever you want but I keep thinking of the things I could buy that would be something that could come back with me and be a part of my life for the rest of my life. For $300 I can bring a piece of Berlin back with me and put on my wall and talk about the things I saw and the people I met. Or I can get a 30min E-Ticket ride that is not for general conversations....
I think I'll get the picture.
So I got the picture... and found the Post-Office and after four tips through the line found out (after everything was stamped labeled etc etc...) that they don't take credit cards! I was so lucky I had just enough Euros to pay for it.
Take care all, next stop Amsterdam
Kel
Well let me just start off by saying Berlin and I didn't get along at first. We had a bit of a bumpy road.
WARNING: Strong Adult Language to follow!
It's FUCKING HOT!!!!
OMG! It is so frigin hot here. I checked into my room and it's like Africa Hot. I look for the air conditioning... HA! NOT! I have a room that faces West. I have a window I could open but no air comes in. I am literally sweating in my room standing still. The second fan I got worked. But there are no plugs around the bed. So I had to plug it in by the main door and stretch it out to the bed. For some reason the bathroom is higher than the regular floor. My toes found that out in the middle of the night. Ouch!
Laundry. You would think it would be easy to ask where a laundry-mat is right? No. The girl was mystified at the request and tried looking for one on the Internet. After about 15min I asked, "Where does everyone smoke Crack?" She looked horrified! I said I bet where everyone smokes crack is a laundry mat because no one who smokes it can own a washer and dryer. She didn't think that was funny.... I did.
I found one the next day, next to an adult book store!
I ended my day with clean clothes and a nice walk around Berlin.
Kel
I apologize for the absence in my blog entries. I've been good about posting pics everyday but haven't sat down to write about my journey. I will start with Lisbon again. Specifically, two wonderful people I met there. Meguel and Jacqueline. I enjoyed hanging out with them and talking about many things. Although she is British, she has dual citizenship with Portugal. She can speak both languages easily. They both were examples of the wonderment and beauty of the Portugal people and the life there. I am in Berlin now and the contrast is amazing. To be fair though, Berlin is a multicultural city. No one knows the future or what will happen. I'm not say that I can read the future and can predict things. No. While spending time with both of these people I was reminded of something. The way they communicated with each other. The way they communicated with others when one was not around reminded me of something. Something that I lost. When I was with both of them I was reminded of my own marriage and Carol. There are no guarantees in the world so all I can do is wish they get to live together a long time.
Thank you, thank you for your generosity and your friendship.
Kel
I
am totally OSD when it comes to getting to airports early. I have know idea why but I must arrive early. It seems I over did it when I flew to Lisbon from London. Because I was flying on an airline I have never flown on I was a bit nervous about how it would all work. I ended up at Gatwick 6 hours early...oops. So I got to know Gatwick quite well. The flight was just like Southwest used to be. Everyone line up and like cattle, rush the gate! I was lucky and got a window seat. They charge for everything, I mean everything. No free drinks or coffee.When we arrived I couldn't stop smiling. Finally a a country I haven't been to before. I was so excited. Like a dumbass I burned up all my battery power playing Texas Hold'm. When I got here the name and address of the hotel was on my computer. So I had to guess at the name. I told the person I asked that it started with the letter B. That seem to not be enough.... So as luck would have it I ended up at a hotel starting with the letter B two blocks from another hotel starting with the letter B that was the right one! My room is great. I have a hard line internet access but it still cost $20 a day. A friend in England told me to stop complaining about how much everything is and just get over it. That is so hard to do though. I just sent my clothes to laundry and the cost to do my shirts is half of what the cost of the shirt itself is... ahhhh....
Speaking of my friend in London, I am happy to say that my tan has helped me blend in quite well here. I don't stand out from the crowd as I did in England. I don't think that will be the same when I travel to Berlin on Monday. But I'm working very hard at staying inside during the day and going out only at night.
The city is beautiful. The language is easy to read but impossible to understand. A lady told me her name and it sounded like she said fart in it somewhere and I was "not" going to repeat it!
Sorry for the short post. It is Sunday now and I'm going back to be with some friends I've meet here. Not many pictures here, again sorry. I'll do better in Germany.
Kel
I know, I know. I just got here!But I wanted to make sure I had a room and a flight to Berlin. Figure I'll go from one end to the other. I'm leaving here on the 2nd and stay three nights in Berlin. Then off to Amsterdam I guess or a few places in Germany.I can't wait till tomorrow. A ton of stuff to see and do here. Kel
I just landed and got my room in Lisbon. This place is frigin Great! The room is great! I'm so hungry though, got to go eat. Pics to follow tomorrow.KelReminder: To see photos, follow link "Pictures" on the left. No, the "other" left (right).
...connected to the Internet? That is the frigin Question!
I'm staying one more day here in London. My Internet is about to expire and I'm thinking I should just let it go and wait till Lisbon to see how I get access and how much it will cost there. So for now, You'll have to look through what I've posted so far for pictures. When I get access again, I'm sure I'll have a ton more to put up.
I also wanted to say thank you to Heidi and Isabelle for having coffee with me the other night. They are fellow Couchsurfers and took the time to meet with me and have coffee. We talked a about a lot of things and agreed on everything but how well my tan looks.
Ok, I'm off to start my day. Take care everyone.
Kel
