A long day for our Berlin adventure. Starting at 7 AM boarding a train in Warnemunde, Germany the port city where our ship is docked. The train trip is 2-1/2 hour at which time we meet our tour guide and board a bus. We are on the ‘easy’ tour – lots of hop on, hop off the bus to see sites as we drive around the city.

I was in Berlin with Steve in 2015 and we were able to spend 5 days in Berlin. As we are driving around the city, I’m glad we were here back then as now many buildings are under renovations and many more are being built. Even the Holocaust memorial site is in renovation.

Berlin is the capital of Germany and the largest city with 3.4 million people. It has clearly become a destination to live and vacation. Also, all school children in Germany make a trip to the capital as part of their history education. These young men look they are having a good time.

Our tour guide is excellent at providing the history of the city and is old enough to remember life in Berlin when the wall was still up. Many buildings were bombed in Berlin during WW2 and some survived. This makes the city architecture interesting and mixed up. Our guide provides background on the buildings as we pass by.

We stop at Reichstag building first. Yes, construction going on all around it. They are building a visitor center because of the volume of people wanting to visit.

The Nazi’s history is discussed as part of this particular building and then a stop at the site with portions of the Berlin Wall and the history of the SS in the buildings that surround this area.

There is also a museum where you can see what it was like for people behind the wall and in the western side.

A visit to Berlin for an American requires a stop at Checkpoint Charlie which is like a shrine turned into a tourist attraction. There is a picture of the last US Soldier that was in Berlin at Checkpoint Charlie. Also, the automobile made in Eastern Germany has a museum. The car is called the Trabi.

Next Lunch! Naturally, there is wurst, potatoes, bread, sauerkraut and beer or wine. Nice restaurant with cuckoo clocks on the wall, a touch of southern Germany.

Back on the bus to a cruise on the Spree River. We have found these to be a better perspective than from the bus for picture taking of buildings. Can you tell?!

And a stop at the Bradenburg Gate. Busy with tourists and young people.

On the bus through the gardens and to the shopping district as we head to a different train station to travel back to the ship.

Back on the train to our ship, we are served a snack. A pretzel bun stuffed with butter. How tasty – we want to sell them in the USA!