GUTEN TAG TO BERLIN

The DeGooyers in Berlin

We spent two days in Berlin... because the first day, Katia got sick and wasn't able to join us.  (She rode back to Oma's house in a taxi - and slept all day.)  I'm glad we got to go to Berlin with the Findiesens because they taught me so much!!!!  If you can go to places like Berlin, with so much history, with people who LIVED history, it makes it all much more meaningful.
Christian's aunt moved to West Germany JUST before the wall was built.  And his uncle and his West German wife paid a LOT of money to Russia in order to have him join her.  Christian and his family had to stay under Soviet rule.  They did NOT like it.  And Christian remembers when the wall came down.  It was very emotional.
On our way to Berlin, we stopped at an amazing castle.  It was gorgeous!

The castle was amazing inside (but we weren't allowed to take photos inside).

And the grounds are covered in vineyards.

First in Berlin we saw Checkpoint Charlie.  It is interesting that this was the only place to cross through the wall by Americans...  But I'm glad we got to see it.  The famous sign was still there: "You are leaving the American sector..."

So grateful for Astra and Christian taking time to show us around.

I thought it was funny that Kentucky was represented right above the famous placard.

Then we went to see a bit of the wall that is remaining.  The interesting thing about it is that the wall was built upon a gestapo prison.  The Findiesens said it is a "terror upon a terror" or a "horror upon a horror."  It really was.  It is sickening to believe that one moment Hitler was killing people in the jail and the next moment the Russians were separating Germany and oppressing the East side.  It was moving.

We also saw the Jewish memorial.  It is impressive in it's magnitude.  It is lonely.  It is depressing.  It is oppressive and stressful.  When we came back to Berlin, we went to the museum also.  It was really sad.  The stories that were told (only a handful) were terrible.  We need to always remember the past so we that we don't repeat the genocide and terror.

We ate at a fun German restaurant with the Findiesens.  Scott LOVES German food.  When we came back to Berlin with Katia we ate at a Latvia Restaurant because Astra recommended it.  It was DELICIOUS!  (Astra is from Latvia.)

I loved seeing the American embassy.

Other sights in Berlin:

There was a huge park in the middle of the city...

Our second day in Berlin was also Kotten Kandy's 18th birthday!  Astra, Christian, Ingrid and Dieter spoiled her rotten!  She definitely felt loved!  (We celebrated before going to Europe...)  She is loved!  I'm so grateful we go to spend this special trip with our baby girl!  She is an amazing, spiritual and intelligent girl!  I'm blessed to be her mother.

Astra and Christian got her a beautiful journal for her writing.

Oma and Opa got her flowers.

She is loved by everyone!