29th 30th 31st December 2025

Bergheim to Frankfurt to Seoul to Sydney 

Well as old Blue Eyes would say ‘and now the end is near..’.

Up for an early breakfast on another brisk morning with temperature hovering around 2. Enjoyed the ‘cash only’ cafe yesterday so replicated the walk and the order in my case. Jane couldn’t resist her last eggs and smoked salmon.

Packed up and lugged our cases to the station and caught an earlier train to our connection point at Manaheim. Thankfully we did because the originally scheduled train would have missed the Frankfurt train.

It was pretty fitting that our last memory of Bethheim and Getmany generally was another weird statue and a parking lot of bikes- thankfully none needing to be avoided.

Jumped on an 18 carriage train already full of travellers, but tthankfully had a booked seat. Luggage space was at a premium and some not very cooperative passengers insisted we didn’t stack our luggage on top of theirs, despite Frankfurt being the next stop.

Train stopped inside the airport but at other end of the terminal. The walk could only do us good.

Arriving earlier had its benefits as there was nobody at check in counter.

Went through the now obligatory body pat down for Jane in security before a bit of time in the lounge before heading on board for our 11 hour flight to Seoul.

Again the food and wine was excellent, as was the service and with the luxury of 7 hours sleep there was minimal need for the entertainment facilities.

Seoul airport was a dream, but the 6 hours in the lounge was a bit tiresome, no matter how much free food and alcohol was available.

The second leg to Sydney was just on 10 hours and it was an emulation of the first leg. 

Arrived at 800, but a 30 minute wait on tarmac because of gate unavailability delayed touching feet on home soil.

Customs was a breeze and we were soon home. Got a pleasant surprise when I had a walk over to Golf Club in a bid to fight the jet lag when told I won the Xmas raffle – a bottle of 2018 Grange Hetmitage.

That will be drunk quicker than the 1984 one I kept 47 years.

Celebration of my my birthday was circumspect as was NYE, probably because I fell asleep on the lounge at 830 only to be woken by the local fireworks.

So after 34 days we again have an album full of photos, a blog and some wonderful memories of an absolutely fantastic holiday. 

All that’s left to do is work on the next one.

28th December 2025

Bergheim

Woke on the last day to do any real sightseeing and greeted with a nice 2 degree day after frost left its mark overnight.

Headed out for breakfast in a cash only cafe who served both a tasty and decorative scrambled eggs on brioch. 

Lots of others out having Sunday breakfast and an early start to touring. Luckily we just beat the crowd for tickets on the cable car and then old funicular railway.

It went through three stations on the way to 1809 feet at the top of the hill.

We opted to jump off at the castle first and surprisingly it was a free tour. The external walls and facade generally are in good condition and a few of the internal rooms have been restored and repurposed as museums and exhibition halls.

The Pharmacy Museum was a hit with Jane given her Dad’s background. There was a raft of old equipment and some great literature about the evolution of pharmacy.

Deep in the bowels  of the castle was a wine cellar with 2 barrels 10 metres long and about 5 metres in diameter – there was plenty to go around for everybody.

There was an interesting offering at the bar which was hard to resist.

Up on the castle wall there was a breathtaking view all the way down past Manaheim with its coal fired power station belching out plenty of steam.

It was also a lovely view down into the old town and the river with its mix of old and new bridges.

The castle had been just to a range of musical favourites, with more to come.

Out of the castles it was another cable car ride which rose steeply up to the next station That silver strip of cable definitely had my attention after the Lisbon incident.

It was straight out of the new into the 5 carriage wooden funicular with operational equipment still looking like that used in the 1900’s. It chugged away at a snail’s pace to the top.

The top of the hill view was just as spectacular as from the castle, but it was decidedly chillier , that much so that the frost on the table provided an ideal cooler for our beers.

Top of the mountain provided lots of opportunities for walks and bike riding. Two guys in their 30’s seemed to be revisiting their childhood with remote controlled 4WD vehicles.

Tossed up whether to walk down, but decided to take the return journey and visit the Market area again. It was still abuzz, but with a few more people imbibing in the gluhwein.  On the way down passed a beautiful house which had been paint bombed.

Popped over the beautiful old bridge and decided to tackle the much vaunted ‘Philosophers Walk’ high up into the hills amongst the mansions on the other side of the river.

There was no philosophising on the way up , just plenty of huffing and puffing before reaching the top and discovering the Philosophets Garden. Amazingly the climate on the hill is such that some tropical flora survives- even palm trees.

At the top you basically looked straight across to the castle and down on the old town dotted with its church spires. A couple of rowers were enjoying a very peaceful time in the downstream current.

Enjoyed the down hill walk a little more than the uphill and walked along the riverside park. It seemed to be a favourite spot for people to sit and soak in the afternoon sun, with no chair staying vacant for more than a minute. There was plenty for kids to do including a sand pit the size of a football field.

Enjoyed an interesting cup of coffee, infused with a one Euro coin after the barista dropped it in when giving change. Did nothing to the flavour and gave me a bit more change to spend later in the day.

Continued along the river, passing the Beach Club which had a few late afternoon customers.

Had another couple of bridges to cross and frost to crunch before heading home, passing a bell tower with no church- go figure.

Dolled ourselves up and went hunting for a last typical German dinner which evolved into the best meal on tour- it was all Italian.

Meandered home a bit melancholly that the trip was nearing its end , but happy with an experience that will linger on in the memory for a long time.

Thought we would catch a late night view from the rooftop terrace, but track conditions were not suitable.

Tomorrow will be a day of hop on , hop off , wait – rinse and repeat as we make our way back to Frankfurt.

27th December 2025

Munich to Heidelberg

Up early and did a bit of a coffee hunt, albeit unsuccessful. If you wanted, fruit, a haircut or a strip joint you would be fine.

After a home made breakfast we did an expedition towards the suburbs. Close to us was mainly parks, universities and kids hospital., with a couple of weird statues.

When there was residences they were all 5-6 storey high rise post war design.

Got to train station and farewelled the kids who were off to airport for a flight to Edinburgh. We had a 3 hour train trip to Heidelberg.

Pretty packed train as it was taking a route via Stuttgart and finishing in Frankfurt. Glad we were not in cattle class they were stacked in like sardines with lots carrying skis  and snowboards as well as luggage.

Our seats were fine but one woman sat in 3 different seats and always seemed to schedule a pit stop when the guard passed through. The old buy cattle fly first class trick. 

It was a pretty scenic route with plenty of snow on the ground and lots of small rural villages, all with the obligatory spired church.

The town of Ulm was an exception it had a gothic Munster whose spire was the second highest in Europe. Sadly it was hidden by ‘close to transport, houses built right on the railway line so no photo just a memory.

We were up at 1500 feet so plenty of hilltops to house the occasional small castle.

As we neared Stuttgart the hills got steeper and higher and surprisingly covered in grape vines. Some had little train tracks to facilitate collection and movement of grapes.

Did a U-turn in Syuttgart and headed WSW to Heidelberg. No snow, but a chilly wind for our walk through what appeared to be a pretty modern town, albeit without any high rise. As we wend our way to our accommodation about a kilometre away it changed as we crossed the intersection into Betgheim, which is a triangular suburb where most of the best places to visit are found.

Pretty hip hotel again and our choices have been spot on for amenities and location – will be getting Jane  a job with Bookings.com if she keeps this up. 

No time to rest with only a day and a half to go,  so headed off for a walk towards the Neckar River, a major tributary of the Rhine. We were actually only a stones throw from Cologne and a short drive from one of Germany’s still operating Nuclear Powet plants.

Wandered through suburban backstreets which led to a kids park with an inappropriate Mr Bubbles sand pit. Tried a short cut but caught up in the grounds of the local rowing club which saw us ‘gate hopping’ to get back on track. 

It was not the first rowing club we encountered. Several more were interspersed with motor boat clubs and a bundle of docking stations.

Back on the riverside we passed a huge barge and then a lone rower as we worked our way closer to the centre of town.

Like many European rivers it was criss crossed with bridges and also  looked down upon by forested hills, beautiful houses and the imposing Heidelberg castle.

We reached the town centre which was abuzz with people. The main plaza was a sea of faces with many taking advantage of the Boxing Day sale bargains ( if only Xmas decorations were 50% off ) or enjoying a drink or three.

Unsurprisingly just off main plaza there was another Xmas Market selling mainly food and gluhwein. It was after sunset which got the digestive juices flowing  and Jane couldn’t resist the freshly smoked salmon and me the sausage, both washed down with a gluhwein.

Decided to chance our arm with the main plaza and walked almost 1 kilometre to the end dodging crowds, dogs, buskers and trinket sellers.  Couple of shops tweaked our interest and tickled the cash card. That included a guy selling a yummy desert with no name but copious calories.

Managed to find our way back to the hotel, polish off the last dregs of the gin bottle, watch Sunderland play Leeds and ready ourselves for the last day in Europe doing touristy things before starting the journey home on Monday.

Friday 26th December 2025

Munich

No more snow, but a chilly breeze welcomed us to a feels like-5 day when we ventured out on another PH in Munich. Crowds still around, but sadly markets have all but disappeared and only a few restaurants, cafes and beer houses open.

it’s a shame the Cheese Shop was closed as its window offering was very appealing .

We wandered down to the main plaza and popped into a couple of beautiful churches and pondered on why so many old buildings are being restored- perhaps the influx of  refugees has given a surprising lift in available workers.

Arrived at the Town Hall spot on 1100 for the musical clock to perform its 12 minutes of entertainment with its  characters parading below the clock face to a couple of unknown pieces of music.  There must have been a couple of hundred people watching.

Headed down some wide boulevards to pass the residential palace and offices of the Chancellor of Bavaria. The later was an amazing mix of architecture with new wings built around the restored remains of the original building. The palace was typical of the symmetrical buildings over here and had grounds as big as 6 football fields.

Speaking of grounds we ventured to the still snow covered English Gardens which were rambling parklands with the river meandering through at a steady flow.

Much to our surprise there was a ‘stand up wave’ created by some mechanical infrastructure which was being ridden by 4 wet suited surfers. It was interesting to watch them surf, fall off and wash down to the shallows to pop out and start the process again. They attracted a pretty good crowd who seemed to shiver in sympathy.

Walked through the suburbs where even more old buildings were being refurbished before ending up at our lunch spot from yesterday the Hopbrauhaus. 

With so few eating options we could not resist the temptation to experience the hospitality again. The place seemed even more packed than yesterday and the band was pumping out songs and getting the place heaving.

We found a seat, almost in the kitchen, and worked our way through another chunk of the menu- both food and beer.

Couldn’t resist a visit to the Souvenir Shop to pick up some goodies before continuing on our odyssey through the Old Town. 

Not sure if it was thirst or a call of nature had us stop later in the afternoon to sip Aperol and coffee inside a warm igloo type shelter. There was an explosive start to the session when Jake’s glass shattered in his hand leaving him stunned and looking like an advertisement for an incontinence product.

Thankfully no injuries and a free replacement drink from a very apologetic host.

Sunset was soon upon us and we headed back home to dry down and warm up on our last day in Munich. Dinner was a pick through a bundle of nibbles whilst watching the only English speaking channel on TV which was great if you liked biathlon and cyclocross.

Tomorrow we split in two with kids heading to Scotland and Jane and I to Heidelberg for a couple of days before heading home to catch the last day of 2025 in Australia. These 4.5 weeks have sure flown and we have packed in an amazing amount of travels, with fantastic experiences in that time.

Thursday 25th December 2025

Xmas in Munich

Apologies for lack of photos – problem with upload I am trying to resolve.

We couldn’t quite manage a White Xmas after yesterday’s snow falls had melted a bit, but there was enough around to remind us that it was an unfamiliar setting in which to celebrate.

The fat man in the red suit did manage to leave a couple of presents to share around as we celebrated a fair way from most of the family. A couple of What’s App calls allowed us to touch base before a light breakfast knowing lunch would test the belt buckle.

We donned our special Xmas jumpers and headed out for a bit more sightseeing in pretty cold conditions – with feel like temperature about -8.

Despite being Xmas Day the stall holders were beavering away in the last throes of dismantling. There was a surprisingly large crowd,mainly tourists if the accents were a clue.

With less stalls around we were able to see a lot more buildings and the usual collection of weird statues. The two outside the Fish Museum were the mythical rub me for good luck versions, whilst another really showed how cold it was with icicles forming on a part of it.

My Tottenham Hotspur’s beanie had elicited a few comments from both Poms and locals and it was ironic that the mannequin in the FC Munich Fan Shop was Harry Kane, the player the Germans pinched from Spurs.

The Town Hall and several other prominent civic buildings and churches were great pieces of architecture

Stopped for a coffee before more wandering and then ending up at our lunch spot, the Hofbrauhaus. It’s one of the most noted beer houses in Munich
and was apparently one of Hitlers favourites.

It’s a 3 storey place with the bottom floor full of benches and forwalk up diners. Today it was one of the few places open and absolutely packed. Litre steins of beer and pork knuckle plates seemed to be the order of the day, all enjoyed to the music of the 5 piece band.

Thankfully we had booked in advance meaning a seat on the first floor in a much quieter environment.

We even had 2 apprentice beer servers.

Whilst it was a change of scenery the choice of lunch wasn’t much different with steins and pork all round. Being Xmas we just had to have a strudel for dessert.

It was definitely a waddle home late in the afternoon after battling our way back through the ever increasing throng of people as we tried to take a different route.

Wouldn’t be Xmas without a little snooze before continuing the festivities devouring what seems to be a never ending supply of Scandinavian chocolate. Plus a tad of gin to wash it down.

Wednesday 24th December 2025

Nuremberg to Munich

No need for alarms when the little tacker comes a knocking at 630.

Headed down through an almost deserted main market square, with not a scooter or bike to dodge, to grab breakfast before heading off to the train station to head off for Munich where chilly temperatures were  predicted.

Our train was delayed 45 minutes. 

Fortunately, under the German railway system if you have a ticket, even with booked seats, you can catch a different train if you are prepared to play seat lotto.

No use standing around on a cold platform so we jumped aboard the Munich Express and had no problems.

The hour and a bit trip had us passing through beautiful countryside, much of it with a liberal coating of snow which whet our appetite for a possible white Xmas.

It didn’t take long to get excited as the snow started as soon as we jumped off the train and itaccompanied us all the way to our hotel. 

Been blessed with hotel location and quality to date and this was no disappointment with a two bedroom apartment each with en-suite and washing machine and a spacious sitting area.

Being Xmas Eve the shops and most bars and restaurants closed at 200pm, so a bit of grocery shopping was followed by a walk to the market area and main plaza. Like Nuremburg there was no high rise,  but a raft of new buildings and beautifully restored ones that survived the ravages of war.

If you liked a church or building spire Mu inch is the place to come.

Thankfully we have enjoyed the market environment everywhere else, as after we passed the ice skating rink and passed under the main gate into the square the stall holders were in the throes of dismantling the stalls. And leaving a few advertising boards around.

Only the roasted chestnut sellers tried to eke out a final Euro.

Not deterred by the lack of shops or a dribble of snow we checked out the sites before finding somewhere for a late lunch/ early dinner. It was a bit like a treasure hunt but along with 30 other Indians we enjoyed a nice mix of Indian fare in an underground 24 hour store.

We somehow managed to escape the labyrinth of underground stores and popped out to be greeted by a windy and snowy Arctic blast. We got a liberal coverage of snow on the short sprint back to the hotel. That didn’t stop us capturing a few photos and tossing the odd snowball.

As usual 500pm meant darkness so we settled in for the night having a quite Xmas Eve tipple and some local snacks. 

Like a bunch of expectant kids we were off to bed early in anticipation of enjoying Xmas in a pretty groovy city.

Tuesday 23rd December 2025

Nuremburg

Today was all about the Xmas markets by day and night. It was amazing to see the difference in crowds between the time we got out for breakfast around 800 and when the market was at its height around 1230.

Headed down firstly with the intent to visit the Kids Market. In what is now true German style a weird statue stood at the turnoff. 

Again the entry was blocked by both barriers and police vehicles.

Santa waved us on in from on high and Jane managed to get in on the picture. 

It was a little wonderland with plenty of rides and kid friendly displays. All of the stalls had animated Xmas displays on top. Sully managed a ride on both the train and the merry-go-round, but Jane is yet to get her ride on the moving horse version. Of course there had to be another astronomical clock with puppet show.

The multi-national lane was fabulous with treats from countries all across Europe up for sale.

We wandered down along the riverside and over a couple of bridges completely disguised with stalls.

Met up with some buddies from Scotland and imbibed in the first of today’s gluhwein from some pretty flash ceramic mugs.

They afternoon passed pretty quickly and we were soon up at the castle watching an amazing light and image show on the facade of the Advent House.

Another riverside restaurant had a light show of its own.

A parting drink with the visitors and it was off for dinner in an Italian restaurant where it took a smarmy Italian to deliver our first Tourist ripoff. A large bottle of wine turned into a gigantic bottle of wine, pre- opened before arriving at the table, which cost €60. At that price we drank the lot.

Another early night walking back through streets still packed to the rafters on what might be the last night of markets given German’s celebrate more at home on Xmas Eve. 

We will be in Munich tomorrow and there might even be a drop of snow.

Monday 22nd December 2025

Nuremberg

After a takeaway breakfast we headed for the bus station to do another Hop On Hop Off circle of town.

Started with a journey around the walled old city with its huge towers and a dry moat.

The Old City still remains to be the Red Light District , despite a proliferation of Sex Shops with some interesting items for sale. Thankfully Jane’s new fur covered handcuffs should stop the scratch marks.

Pretty smart marketing by the local energy company, calling themselves NRG.

Our first stop on a day which probably focussed a little bit on the sad side of Nuremburg history was a visit to the Courts where War Trials were conducted.

Court 600 is now a place of reflection, a long way from the dark days when 20 Nasi’s went before the courts, with 11 sentenced to death, but 2 choosing to suicide before the event.

There is a remarkable museum with much stuff that is best just read, remembered and not photographed. Suffice to say the anti semetism that emanated from the Nazi Party beliefs had a catastrophic impact over time with some 5.5 killed.

When will we ever learn.

Walked to the next point the enormous cemetery which is still beautifully manicured  before jumping on the bus for some roving reporting on the castles history, including the obligatory myth about an escaping miscreant who hurdled the moat leaving hoofprint which are still visible today.

Headed up through the restored mansion precinct and the much purposed student lodgings which went from a Lepers Hospital to a wine storage site to today’s use. Sounds like the owner threw his arms in the air getting a reasonable tenant.

Back down passing the market whose entries are now protected by ram barriers in response to the Munich market issue.

an Asian couple found the market an interesting spot to take wedding photos, gluhwein in hand.

The kids jumped off and we headed to the Nazi Headquaryrts which in its heyday was a suburb in its own right.

The main area was under renovation but the small comprehensive display highlighted what a sinister and influential political party the Nazi’s were.

Whilst known for the wanton slaughter of Jews they handed out similar treatment to dissidents and prisoners of war. 

Sadly choosing Nuremburg has tainted the ihistotical mage of the town.

The fact they facilitated the War Trials which were a precursor to the International Court in The Hague which deals with atrocities of war goes a bit of the way.

Thankfully its current standing as the best Xmas Market in Europe helps give the city of 500,000 a much more pleasant reputation . To be honest the people have been tremendously welcoming.

After a prolonged wait for the bus we headed back to town to do more laps of the various markets, have a couple of room drinks, before heading to a 20 seat restaurant/bar for dinner.

As the client base changed during  the night we realised we had probably selected an LBGTQ venue.

A late night gluhwein and return to restaurant to pick up forgotten hats and gloves had us having a comparatively late night , hitting the sack at 900.

Sunday 21st December 2025

Berlin to Nuremburg

Up early and bundled into a cab by 730 to ensure we got to the main station on time to catch our train to Nuremberg.

We were catching up with Sophie, Jake snd Sully for the lead up and then final celebration of Xmas in Munich , which might not be white looking at the forecast.

Seems Jane and I used up our snow allocation in Scandinavia.

It was a seamless process to get onto the train and spend a 3 hour trip mostly surrounded by fog. When it wasn’t foggy the German countryside showed up in all its green glory.

Off the train and greeted by the Adeladians and it was off to drop the bags and start the journey in Nuremburg

Like every place visited the Xmas rush is on with streets swarming with visitors and locals. No more evident than right outside our hotel which abuts the market precinct.

Our first unusual event of the day was a parade of hundreds of people dressed in traditional uniforms, carrying banners and all wearing hats off different colours and of course carrying mugs of gluhwein.

We found out that it’s an annual event where members of various university sorority and fraternity groups march on the 4 Sundays before Xmas. Loved one of the guys in uniform including a sword and scabbard used the latter as a cup holder.

They certainly turned a few heads as did the weird statue whose essence couldn’t be captured with a single photo. Shame I haven’t worked out how to add a video.

For those that loved smoked salmon our next port of call was the cats pyjamas.

we popped back to the hotel to do a mini train trip around down which showed us the highlights and gave us an idea where to jump off the bus tomorrow.

This place has an amazing history, not all of it glamorous.

We had dinner in a packed restaurant with pork knuckle everybod’s fare.

A late night wander through the market with a hluhwein to finish of our day.

Saturday 20th December 2025

Berlin

Looking to make the most of our short stay in Berlin so  it was up early and a street cafe pastry and coffee breakfast. 

It was a bit of a sombre short walk at 800 in the morning with the impacts of drug, alcohol and mental illness all seeming  to manifest into homelessness. 

In a stretch of 300 metres we passed at least 6 poor souls, ironically outside a great glossy building that was one of the first reconstructed after the war, wandering about aimlessly with life in a backpack or a collection of shopping bags.

It seems that all that glitters is not gold with the complex repurposed in 2024 after the shopping centre went broke, along with Oscar Wilde business.

Worked out best way to see Berlin was the Hop On Hop Off bus and jumping off at the sites we had already marked as must do’s.

Drove down past the Jewish Memorial with its 2711 stones of rememberance  and then around to the old Soviet side of Brandenburg gate, both we would return to later in the day.

First drop off was Reichstad the Parliament building which is a great mix of the new and old. Like many points of interest a ticket is required, even though this one was free. A 20 minute wait secured us a 300pm entry permit.

A quick walk around the outside of the building with its 4 stone corners the only remnants after the war and a huge glass dome atop.

Back on foot we headed for the next pick up point to rejoin the bus. Interesting to see the number of Italian restaurants as you wander the streets.

On the bus we passed the area settled by the Hugonnets who established the first market gardens in the Moabit area. Another feature , if you could call it that, was the Moabit Gaol

 Visitor Centre which once held some of the worst 3rd Reich offenders after the war. Thankfully it’s now a place of reflection.

Just on animals, around the corner was the Zoo , which if blurb is correct,  has the biggest number of species cared for in the world. 

Went past the Presidents residence , the Schloss Bellevue  Palace, which is situated adjacent to the rambling 3 square  kilometre Tiergarten Park – a remarkable forested park in its natural state which was redeveloped after being razed  in WW2 along with 70% of Berlin. 
it was just down the road from the gold topped avictory Column

Its no surprise to see  the Soviet side is all vanilla unit blocks and the west an aggregation of modern and restored buildings.

Interestingly during the war 40% of population fled despite significant investment in shelters.

Back in the modern side we passed the  Hotel Berlin  the first built after the war, and then another Embassy Row.

Staffemburg the guy who unsuccessfully tried to assassinate Hitler has a street named after him and a building, ironically the Ministry of Defence.

Next STOP was the intersection that was the crossroads for the divide between Soviets and the rest- it used to be controlled by an amazing lollipop light which is still there.

Then came the first glimpse of the remnants of The Wall built in 1961 to prevent people escaping from East to West. It was actually two walls about 8 inches thick divided by a death zone of 30 metres and it covered 155 kilometres. There is only about 1500 metres left. 

About 200 metres is standing outside the Museum of Terror and covered in information about that Cold War era. The other section is 1300 metres covered in murals including the famous Kiss between Brezhnev and Honecker celebrating the anniversary of German democracy.

The remainder of the wall is represented by a trail of stones along tne original path. If you didn’t want to walk it you could twje a balloon ride and get a birds eye view by balloon or borrow a Russian made Trabant (a fibreglass car produced by the Russia’s during coldest which was good at turning to the left).

Another  interesting point was it was demolished in 89 on 9th November a date now familiar with other historical events.

A visit to Berlin would be incomplete without going to Checkpoint Charlie where the great divide gave protected access across from East to West. 

It’s a pretty innocuous structure flanked

with pictures of a Soviet and US soldier on each side. It was site of the famous 63 tank standoff between US and Soviet’s. They called it a tank confrontation, pictures suggest US bought a tank and unsurprisingly the Soviets had a vehicles similar to a VW.

It was probably the most popular spot we visited.

Back on the bus passing the highest structure in town the TV spire, gold  topped Victory Column and a raft of Xmas Markets. The town is crisscrossed by pipes of different hues which are simply above the ground water pipes.

Headed back to the Reichstad passing a protest outside Brandenburg Gate. Lots of different causes were represented by about 60 participants who were slightly outnumbered by the 100 police.

Off the bus, security checked and we were off to visit the amazing dome above the parliament building.

What a structure –  with a double helix stairway taking people up and down the inside. It sits directly over the house with purple seats of parliamentarians clearly visible. 

It’s a tribute to clever  design concepts to maximise the use of natural elements. A huge monolith of mirrors provides light, a moveable shade reduces the impact of heat, a hole in the top allows the escape of hot air( much needed sitting above a bunch of politicians) and solar panels provide energy. 

it had another monumental moment when artist Christopher wrapped it in plastic.

On top of all of this it provides a great panorama of the city whose architecture is definitely a reflection of its turbulent history.

Back down we visited the Jewish Memorial which was an eerie experience with the strategically placed lighting. Another walk through the Brandenburg Gate and a wander along the Un Der Linden which was heaving with a weekend crowd.

Managed our daily dose of gluhwein before heading off to the Nivea shop to make ourselves beautiful. Of course there was another Xmas decoration expedition- as the advert says ‘ we are going to need a bigger tree’. 

Worked our way along river and over the bridge, with its community of homeless settling in for the night, before heading to dinner.

Managed to get one of the last seats next to a nice German couple who were celebrating a birthday. 

Decided to go for a smaller dinner by having a shared sausage plate. Wrong – doubt whether butcher would have much stock left after the offering put before us.

Beer was another experience,  with prices set by an internal ‘drinks stockmarket’. There was no drinks menu prices were driven by supply and demand. We adopted the simple ‘ most for least’ principle and enjoyed a couple of nice Pilsner.

No thought of dessert so that was it for Berlin before tomorrow’s train ride to Nuremberg.