TravelStream™ news feed for member patngrace on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/patngrace en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:07:51 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/patngrace/1/1216241100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/patngrace/1/1216241100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/patngrace/1/1216241100/tpod.html Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:07:51 -0400 From Europe with Love

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Berlin, Germany

The day started as a shocker as sleep the night before was at a minimum. It was quite impressive that the whole hotel room fitted into a box and that the air conditioning was actually a built in sauna. Once we escaped we headed for the train station to start our walking tour.

From there the day looked up as we met our insane walking guide - though he was brilliant, passionate and knowledgeable. He walked us through the city of Berlin educating us on the sites and history of the large capital. From the great Berlin Wall (which was actually quite small) to the Jewish Memorial for the WWII tradgedy the tour was awesome. All in all we saw the first Jewish Temple, Check-Point Charlie, The Riechstag, Hitler's Bunker and much more.

After 5 hours of our 3.5 hour walking tour we decided to bail and go shopping! Guess who's idea that was. Anyway, KaDeWee is the place to be when shopping in Berlin. Instead of taking the metro we decided to walk it, these distances look very small on the maps. About an hour of being in the pouring rain got us into the general vicinity but we wouldn't have made it there except for a very kind German lady who directed us.
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Berlin, Germany

With the drenching behind us, and a decent nights sleep under our belt it was a good opportunity to rise early and take in the limited sights of Weimer. It was also a great opportunity for Grace to do some window shopping only - as none of the shops were open... yet. Weimer was a fantastic little town and we found many interesting shops and even a small market. Too soon it was time to make our way back to the hotel and head for Belin.

The drive was uneventful other then the fact that I decided I will never drive in foreign countries in the center of their cities ever again. With a large car, incompatible with their small roads, and stupid cyclists I was amazed to eventually make it to our hotel without any serious incidents.

After discovering that our rooms were tiny, we had no windows and our airconditioning didn't work it was time to pound the pavement. We traveled East on the train to one of their city centres which was the more delapedated parts of the city (being in East Berlin). This proved fruitless for shopping though did allow us to take in more of the culture of the city. We visited their main park which had several impressive statues including one of the Water God.

We finally decided that it was time to head back to our room (or lack there of). By looking at the map we decided we were close enough to walk - this proved to be the wrong decision - though we saw many more amazing things on our three hour return. One of the highlights was standing outside the Bently Motors Store infront of a Bugetti Veyron... nice.

Once back at the hotel we decided to take the walking tour of Berlin the following day.

Cheers,

Pat & Grace
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Munich, Germany

With Jimmy and Ben in the back seat of our Mercedes E Class we followed the Romantic Road back to the time of Kind Ludwig and the Neuschwanstein Castle. The mystic was enhanced by the mountain mist or rather we couldn't seen anything because it was pouring with rain! A 20 minute uphill hike took us to the base of the castle and then a 20 minute fight through the crowds got us in. We didn't encounter any dragons but something much more fierce... elderly Asian ladies armed with umbrellas and very little English. Protected only by our rubbish bag like ponchos we had no hope defending ourselves. Our 9 euro tour around the castle lasted about 30 minutes before being sent out through the servants staircase and back out into the rain - but not before passing through their authentic King Ludwig souvenir store. Only 17 of the planned 100 + rooms were completed but they did the job well. In the King's bed chamber alone a team of 14 wood carvers spent 4 years. The castle came complete with a fake cave, flowing water and a telephone. Definitely worth it for the 172 days of residence by the King.

Now dripping wet and with souvenirs in hand it was time to hit the road. With my new found confidence in foreign driving it was a perfect opportunity to "open it up" and see what the Merc had to offer. After hitting the highway and working out that a crossed-out number means the usual "speed limit" or lack there of was enforced I managed to get the E Class up to 200Km/Hr though it seemed to struggle from there... I blame it on the excessive luggage. The initial highway leg was just over 300Km and we achieved this in about 1.5 Hours... averaging about 150Km an hour - nice!

We are now staying in a small, very German, town called Weimar. Tomorrow morning we get to sleep in slightly but then it will be on to Berlin which is about 300Kms away - we should be able to make it in about 30mins :P

Hopefully there will be some photos to acompany this shortly and we will update again when we're not so exhusted.

Cheers,

Pat & Grace
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Munich, Germany

Today we saw 'that side' of Germany - Dachau Concentration Camp. It was the first in Germany but it's not a death camp as such. All death camps, such as Auschwitz, are outside of built up areas because they require a vast amount of space to dispose of their dead. Our fantastic guide, Robert, not only drew on his knowledge as a historian but gave insight into the emotions of the modern day German. For example the visitor center has been left half finished for 20 years because it may not be considered right to sell a bottle of water and make money out of such a place. However, visiting Dachau is meant to be a positive experience. It's not a camp but rather a memorial with the main theme from the survivors being 'never again'.

Following this we went into the city for a little Sunday shopping only to discover all Munich has to offer at this time of the week is a cross-dressing parade! Luckily St Michael's (an amazingly beautiful church) was just around the corner and open for confessions. With our recent insight into the degeneration of society we thought it was only fitting to light a candle and attempt some salvation. Upon "donating" for a "candle" I was in awe of the Catholic church's ability to turn a profit - candles are no longer made of wax but are re-usable plastic look-a-likes with a wick.

From there is was back to our hotel via the train and then onto the local Beer Garden for dinner. While our actual waitress did not speak English - one of the chefs knew enough to save us from ordering cold entrees for our dinner. Again, in the spirit of travel and discovery, Grace and I went for the very German Cardon Blue - with a icy cold, extremely small (200mL) beer.

Tomorrow it's an early start and a two hour drive to Nufgkjsdkusb Castle (I have no idea how to spell it - but it does start with an 'N').

Cheers,

Pat & Grace
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Changi, Singapore

I phoned Grace this morning (3am) to confirm that she had arrived in Singapore without a hitch. The phone was answered in a whisper - Grace wasn't staying in the Ambassador Transit Hotel but rather sleeping on a massage bed closed off by a curtain, as all the official rooms had been booked. The good news - the Travel-Sim worked a treat.

Later this morning I received an e-mail from Grace telling me that I did not need to stress upon my departure - the Singapore Airport has free wireless Internet - EVERYWHERE! I also received the relieving news that everyone spoke English and the signs were easy to read and follow. So with this news and a few simple instructions "go straight from your plane to your transit hotel, check in and chill" I'm sure to be stress-free and completely relaxed come my turn on Friday.
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