Thursday, 27 February.

Thursday, 27 February.

I made a turn to follow the river that wasn’t on my plan for the day, but it was worth it. I saw a few runners so it seems that’s the place for fitness. It’s a great view along the river and the paths are wide and flat. I took a slightly different route on the way back and found a bike shop. The one guy there didn’t speak much English, but I managed to get my back tire pumped up and I was on my way. “Bitte, danke, vieledank” and hand gestures really get things done.

I saw a couple homeless spots, but they weren’t dirty like in America. There were two beds with actual pads, sheets, and pillows which were made nicely. One bed even had a desk and a bunch of books on it. I took a picture and was on my way.

I pulled off my route again to check out a cool street and ended up in a park. Like in Tiergarten I saw a public ping-pong table. The concrete table had a metal “net” so the setup could handle any weather. I saw a group of people playing in Tiergarten yesterday which looked fun.

Riding in the street isn’t as stressful as I thought it may be. There are a lot of cars, but there are also a lot of bikes. I like following someone so I know when to stop at signals and intersections. Like here though, unless there’s a red light the riders keep going. The signals aren’t on the far side of the intersection like they are in America. At the first light, I looked around to find it because I saw the people and cars stopped, but no signal. It was above my head almost. There are a few spots where the bike lane has its own signal. I dig that. Bikes also have their own paths on the sidewalk designated by different paving stone patterns. It’s pretty sweet to be off the main road and still have bike specific lanes.

Checkpoint Charlie was just OK. The museum was 9.50 and was like reading a book. All the displays were really long lines of text. If I wanted to read about it all I would just buy a book (which I might do.) The cool parts of the museum were about how people escaped from the controlled zone. Hiding in luggage, modified gas tanks, welding machines, VW Beatles, makeshift sailboats.

Scott and Elisabeth took me out to Turkish food. I paid for the meal in appreciation for their hospitality. Scott told me of all the cool places to see, and Elisabeth has helped get me secure a train ticket and phone plan. I think she’s excited to show me around and have someone to brag about the city to. There is a lot more to see than can be done in three days, so I’d like to come back if Sam and Lauren are up for it.

I felt like dessert, so at 10:30 I went out to find some. I did, but was then stuck with a lovely sweet treat without milk. Thank you McDonalds for