Europe Summer Episode Thirteen

EPISODE THIRTEEN: Wherein I fell in love with bockwursts.

Arrived at Stansted around midnight. Bird told me that the airport will be filled with people like us spending the cold miserable night at the airport. We spotted a waiting lounge that was not crowded and rushed in to chop "beds". Our lovely "bed" is made of two rows of seats pull together. Anything is better than nothing. Night was cold and I protected my cold blistered feet by putting it in a ziplock bag.

Woke up after a few hours of tossing and turning. Ziplock was wet already. Ewww... At 6 am, we left London and flew to the holy land of sausages!!!









Berlin, Germany. This place is so different from London!!! It's so much more spacious and the pace is much slower here. I find it very interesting that there were no ticket gantries anywhere in Berlin. The red machine on the top left corner is the validating machine where you are suppose to insert your tickets and it will come out stamped with the date and time. A conductor will come around to check. If found guilty of not paying your fare, a heavy fine will be imposed.





Train took us from the Berlin Airport to Berlin Ostbahnhof ( East train station). Our hostel ( Pegasus ) is just a few metres away. Along the way, I suddenly struck me that the buildings in East Berlin look very much like the old HDB blocks in Singapore. Together with the tall lamppost and tree alongside, it really look like Kim Seng!!!





Notice the traffic light man? Introducing Ampelmännchen!!! Those cute fat man with a hat can only be found here in Berlin! They are conceptually similar to those used in other countries but bears special meaning to the East Germans.





Before unification, the Ampelmännchen was a character on an East German television program used in drivers' education. Following German unification, there were attempts to standardise all traffic signals to the West German forms, leading to calls to save the East German icon. It thus became a kind of mascot for the East Germans. Well done!!!

Our tummys were calling out to the German sausages once our bags found home. The kind reception lady recommended the best sausage store in Berlin---Konnopke's Imbiß! Konnopke is well hidden under the train in Prenzlauer Berg since 1930. It survived Communism intact and is still serving the finest sausages in town. Indeed, it is so famous its featured on a travel show recently. Wonderful life-changing sausages they serve!!! Must try if you go to Berlin!!!

After Konnopke, we waged our holy sausage war. Everytime we pass by a sausage store we will have to at least buy one to try. Best of all the wurst ( sausages in German)............. BOCKWURST!!! The thicker the harder the longer the better!!! Woohoo!!!

There is of course more than just sausages in Berlin. We followed the free walking tour again!!! I love these free tours, not because they are free, but more because they take you to the places you need to go in the shortest time and fill you in on stories and history to let you understand the place better. The guides are mostly students doing part time and their energy is commendable! Be sure to join these tours if you visit Berlin, or London or Munich or Paris or Amsterdam!!! I've joined them for all except Munich and can vouch for them!!!

More pictures coming up on Berlin in the next episode!