Berlin - Hop On Hop Off

Our last day in Berlin was spent on the Hop On Hop Off Tour. You pay about 20 Euros to take a bus around the city. You can get off an any of its stops to check out the area, and then you can get on another bus as one comes every 15 minutes. I didn't think I would really enjoy spending a day like that so we never did this on other holidays, but I have to say that I really enjoyed it and found myself wishing that we had more time. Because our flight was at 4PM, we only had time to ride the bus in the full circle. No hopping off for us!

 Checking out the map!

 Choosing our language!

 Enjoying the sights from the warm and cozy bus.... while also constantly using hand sanitizer because the lady behind me was darn near coughing up her lungs.

Berlin Wall

Checkpoint Charlie

Jewish Memorial

The Brandenburg Gate. I was sooooo irritated when I realized that I was on the wrong side of the bus for this, and the people across from me were certainly not concerned about keeping their windows from fogging more than a space just large enough for them to peer through while the rest of us saw the world pass by in a haze. P.S. Almost every other person on the bus used their sleeves to keep the entire window clear.

I'm back! Let's talk about... Berlin!

Back to blogging. I took some time off because I felt like blogging was becoming a chore instead of something I was enjoying. December was also very busy with my birthday and holidays, and in January my cousin and his girlfriend came for a visit. I was running around during the day or planning trips, and at night I just wanted to be with Steve. Anyway, HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope that this year will be a blessing to you all. I hope that you've gotten a good start, and if you haven't, well, it can only get better.

I'd like to start my first post of the year by going backwards. My last post was about my lovely birthday girls trip. After that, my husband and I went to Berlin ON my birthday. It was a FANTASTIC holiday. That Glühwein is really good! It's hot, spiced red wine. It was cold in Berlin so warm drinks were so nice. I've been wanting to go to the Christmas markets in Germany, so that's what we did for my birthday. We went to three different markets and enjoyed each one!

The first one was the Wilmersdorfer Strasse Christmas Market, a small market with mostly food and hot drinks. We had a really good bratwurst there. I have other pictures from this one, but I didn't want to overload you with multiple pictures of us eating and drinking Glühwein. :o)

Our second stop was the Christmas Market in Charlottenburg. It was really fun! I'm glad there was lots of Glühwein to help Steve maintain his chipper mood in the crowds! :o)

Oh the treats! Steve and I like those chocolate kisses (giant marshmallows covered in hard chocolate).

Glühwein and great company were to be found all around.

We had lunch the next day at a cute little pub. The food was terrific.

The next and final Christmas market was centered around the Kaiser-Wilhelm Memorial Church. It was really nice and probably my favorite one! It wasn't as busy as Charlottenburg and had many covered places to sit and enjoy food and drinks. It also had one of the best shops for German Christmas gifts.

The Kaiser-Wilhelm Memorial Church must have been so lovely before it was bombed. It's free to go inside. We always donate to places like this (they usually have donation boxes) because we feel like they are important historical sites that should be supported.

We did see some of the city. Our last day in Berlin was spent on the Hop On Hop Off bus. I'll post about that tomorrow. Cheers!