Bluejake

9:15am Woke rested after 7.5 hours of sleep.
10:15am Walked up to Tauentzien near Wittenbergplatz and caught City Circle tour bus. Took it up past embassies on south side of Tiergarten, the big park, and down past Kulturforum to Potsdamerplatz. It looked like Times Square but with more construction. All over Berlin many beautiful modern buildings including the museum at Kulturforum, by Mies Van Der Rohe, and the Judisches Museum, where we spent 3 hours. Much beautiful and moving spaces and exhibits at the museum, which was designed by Daniel Libeskind.
2pm-6pm Lunch at restaurant on Unter Den Linden near Staatsoper, then walked up to Brandenburg Gates. The gates were closed for construction- should look good in 5 years. Walked to Reichstag- very imposing- but it started to rain and we hopped back on the bus. Travelled up through Tiergarten to Siegessalle Statue in the middle of the park- very Wim Wenders. Then up into Charlottenburg and back down to Kurfurstendam, which the Germans seem to call Kurdam.
6pm Stopped at bookstore and then walked back back to hotel on Augsburgerstrasse.
8pm Cab to Four Seasons for drinks with Tom and Denise, friends of Karen's family.
8:45pm Dinner at Bocca de Bacco, an Italian restaurant on Friedrichstrasse, around the corner from the Four Seasons and next to the Gendarmenmarkt in the heart of East Berlin.
11:45pm Walked through Gendarmenmarkt looking for bars, but all were sort of dead. Cabbed back to Austerhof and checked email before going to sleep.

Travelogue