16 May
I had a non eventful trip via easyjet from Paris to Berlin, I arrived into the capital of Germany Berlin at a early 7:00am and I'm off into the city to deposit my pack and go exploring for the day before travelling south.
Berlin is a neat city - yeah yeah I know how can you comment when you have only been over night but - I arrived early and went walking! Some areas where I spent abit of time were the Brandenburg gate* Berlin wall outdoor museum, Alexanderplatz where a street artist was working and also has the Weltzeituhr (world time clock) and a outdoor exhibition Diversity Destroyed - Berlin 1933–1938
* for those of you needing a history lesson
The Brandenburg Gate is one of Berlin’s most important monuments – a landmark and symbol all in one with over two hundred years of history. A former symbol of the divided city, it drew visitors who used to climb an observation platform in order to get a glimpse of the world behind the Iron Curtain, on the other side of the barren “death-strip” which separated east from west Berlin, geographically and politically. It was here that on June 12, 1987, Ronald Regan gave his speech. When Germany was reunified following the fall of the Berlin in November 1989 the
Brandenburg Gate quickly reinvented itself into the New Berlin’s symbol of unity.
From Berlin I travelled two hours south to Leipzig to visit friends I had meet in New Zealand - I arrived into Leipzig popped off the train and noted a lot of people dressed similar to the matrix and in gothic clothing - I was beginning to wonder where I had arrived when Katrin found me and explained the weekend was the International Wave Gothic Festival. Very different....
Katrin, Gabe and Sophia (aged 2) welcome me into their house and make me feel so at home. On Saturday Katrin offers to be my tour guide and surprisingly after climbing off the tram I see someone looking at me and I start to think I know this lady and it turns out we know each other from our time spent at City College Dunedin. The world is far to small - just by coincidence they have come over from Prague and heard about the festival. They join us for the morning excursions learning about Bach, Napoleons failed battle and local history. Katrin has been a brilliant ambassador of the city and explains a lot about local history and even a little about the GDR times.
Katrin, Gabe, Sophia and I have also spent a day cycling to the local lakes which are ex coal mining pits that have filled with natural water over time and have been refurbished on the surrounds making a nice area to spend the day making sand castles, sun bathing (anything goes) and enjoying a day out. I have loved spending time here and have been so very spoilt. Sophia has taught me some new words and in return I taught her how to high five. I found the area to be fascinating with lots of growth and change occurring within the city and peoples.
Time to travel over to Dresden for my friend Mark and Dana's wedding - exciting!! We kiwis had a get together the night before the big event at a Australian restaurant catching up on old gossip of Timaru (as Mark's brother Dale and his partner lived in Timaru) and eating pineapple lumps. It was a great night followed by a fantastic day. I had the privilege of supporting Mark in the morning and traveling with the party to the ceremony at the Moritzburg Rathaus (Town Hall). For those of you unaware it is not tradition for the bride to be late but it is tradition that the groom picks his bride up from her house.
There was around 30 guests family, friends, 3 kiwis and a translator for those of us needing English. The reception was very cool and it was neat to observe the traditions such as cutting a log wood together as their first task in married life - it is also a demonstration to their friends and family of how they will work together. All the guests are also given a task to do over the year of the marriage though I'm not telling what it is I will let you know I am definitely going to have some fun with it!!! Although our kiwi contingency spoke very little German we had a fantastic time with the other members of the party. Such a special couple and a fantastic celebration.
Dresden has also been fantastic to spend some time in - with so much history and the rebuild (from the war) that is still occurring. The way they have rebuilt some of their historic monuments such as the local churches using computer technology to scan old salvaged blocks of stone and inserting them back into the buildings structures and how they are merging old and new. Brilliant and made even more so when Dana's close friends takes me under her wing for the day and gives me a tour and history lesson of the city.
From Dresden I did a day trip out to the Bastie - Elbe Sandstone Mountains in Saxon Switzerland National Park (don't get confused its 45 minutes south of Dresen by train) to spend a day walking and enjoying nature. The Bastei has been a tourist attraction for over 200 years with the first bridge built in 1824 and a replacement one of sandstone was built in 1851 which is still in use today. Was very cool although I did find it a little disconcerting to have been walking for 30 minutes and stumbling across a busker in the middle of the woods.
From Dresden I have travelled over to the UK and have spent some time in Liverpool - checking out the history of the Beatles cruising at the Cavern club and attending the 70 years transatlantic battle bank holiday festival before travelling up to the Lakes district for some fell walking and nature spots. Beautiful area I based my self in Ambleside and popped into Hemmingworths cottage, drunk quite a few coffees with a couple of Australians and have enjoyed many walks though the country side in the rain. I have had a neat couple of days staying with my great aunt who I met for the first time and have been utterly spoilt with a trip through the peaks district, visiting my great great grandfathers home and seeing where my grandmother and great aunt spent their summers as children - This has been very special.
From Aunties in Stoke on Trent I popped down to Cardiff for a over nighter and disappointingly missed a bus connection to meet up with my aunties mother in-law who lives in Nelson but this did allow me to go to the doctors in Pontypriff as I was quite unwell.
London has been fantastic catching up with a friend from NZ who took me out to have a snakebite and catch the origan game New South Wales vs Queensland with her flatmates. Attending a polo match at Hurlington Park was pretty cool with Sydney vs India and England vs Russia the weather was pretty good allowing us to catch a little sun! checking out the major attractions, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abby, London Tower etc. Cool city a lot of people and I did meet a lot of Australians and Kiwis. A friend from NZ has meet me in London and we travel down to Dorset to visit some dairy farms which has me most intrigued as the largest is 1000 cows milking 3 times daily. We have been lent a car so have popped up to Bath for a day which is brilliant - the city is beautiful all sandstone buildings a lot of roman culture! We had a lovely couple of hours visiting the Roman baths and enjoyed the history and displays that were set up so I'm looking forward to trying out a Turkish Batch when I visit Turkey in July/August
I have travelled back into the European continent by train into Belgium and Holland where its a lot warmer hitting 30 degrees some days and will update in a couple of weeks.
Hope that you are all well I’m a little envious of the snow on the ski fields so I hope that anyone that is up on the slopes has fantastic powder time!!!!
I had a non eventful trip via easyjet from Paris to Berlin, I arrived into the capital of Germany Berlin at a early 7:00am and I'm off into the city to deposit my pack and go exploring for the day before travelling south.
Berlin is a neat city - yeah yeah I know how can you comment when you have only been over night but - I arrived early and went walking! Some areas where I spent abit of time were the Brandenburg gate* Berlin wall outdoor museum, Alexanderplatz where a street artist was working and also has the Weltzeituhr (world time clock) and a outdoor exhibition Diversity Destroyed - Berlin 1933–1938
* for those of you needing a history lesson
Brandenburg Gate quickly reinvented itself into the New Berlin’s symbol of unity.
From Berlin I travelled two hours south to Leipzig to visit friends I had meet in New Zealand - I arrived into Leipzig popped off the train and noted a lot of people dressed similar to the matrix and in gothic clothing - I was beginning to wonder where I had arrived when Katrin found me and explained the weekend was the International Wave Gothic Festival. Very different....
Katrin, Gabe and Sophia (aged 2) welcome me into their house and make me feel so at home. On Saturday Katrin offers to be my tour guide and surprisingly after climbing off the tram I see someone looking at me and I start to think I know this lady and it turns out we know each other from our time spent at City College Dunedin. The world is far to small - just by coincidence they have come over from Prague and heard about the festival. They join us for the morning excursions learning about Bach, Napoleons failed battle and local history. Katrin has been a brilliant ambassador of the city and explains a lot about local history and even a little about the GDR times.Katrin, Gabe, Sophia and I have also spent a day cycling to the local lakes which are ex coal mining pits that have filled with natural water over time and have been refurbished on the surrounds making a nice area to spend the day making sand castles, sun bathing (anything goes) and enjoying a day out. I have loved spending time here and have been so very spoilt. Sophia has taught me some new words and in return I taught her how to high five. I found the area to be fascinating with lots of growth and change occurring within the city and peoples.
Time to travel over to Dresden for my friend Mark and Dana's wedding - exciting!! We kiwis had a get together the night before the big event at a Australian restaurant catching up on old gossip of Timaru (as Mark's brother Dale and his partner lived in Timaru) and eating pineapple lumps. It was a great night followed by a fantastic day. I had the privilege of supporting Mark in the morning and traveling with the party to the ceremony at the Moritzburg Rathaus (Town Hall). For those of you unaware it is not tradition for the bride to be late but it is tradition that the groom picks his bride up from her house.
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| Rose Cathedral - Dresden |
Dresden has also been fantastic to spend some time in - with so much history and the rebuild (from the war) that is still occurring. The way they have rebuilt some of their historic monuments such as the local churches using computer technology to scan old salvaged blocks of stone and inserting them back into the buildings structures and how they are merging old and new. Brilliant and made even more so when Dana's close friends takes me under her wing for the day and gives me a tour and history lesson of the city.
From Dresden I did a day trip out to the Bastie - Elbe Sandstone Mountains in Saxon Switzerland National Park (don't get confused its 45 minutes south of Dresen by train) to spend a day walking and enjoying nature. The Bastei has been a tourist attraction for over 200 years with the first bridge built in 1824 and a replacement one of sandstone was built in 1851 which is still in use today. Was very cool although I did find it a little disconcerting to have been walking for 30 minutes and stumbling across a busker in the middle of the woods.
 |
| Saxony-Switzerland National Park |
From Dresden I have travelled over to the UK and have spent some time in Liverpool - checking out the history of the Beatles cruising at the Cavern club and attending the 70 years transatlantic battle bank holiday festival before travelling up to the Lakes district for some fell walking and nature spots. Beautiful area I based my self in Ambleside and popped into Hemmingworths cottage, drunk quite a few coffees with a couple of Australians and have enjoyed many walks though the country side in the rain. I have had a neat couple of days staying with my great aunt who I met for the first time and have been utterly spoilt with a trip through the peaks district, visiting my great great grandfathers home and seeing where my grandmother and great aunt spent their summers as children - This has been very special.From Aunties in Stoke on Trent I popped down to Cardiff for a over nighter and disappointingly missed a bus connection to meet up with my aunties mother in-law who lives in Nelson but this did allow me to go to the doctors in Pontypriff as I was quite unwell.
London has been fantastic catching up with a friend from NZ who took me out to have a snakebite and catch the origan game New South Wales vs Queensland with her flatmates. Attending a polo match at Hurlington Park was pretty cool with Sydney vs India and England vs Russia the weather was pretty good allowing us to catch a little sun! checking out the major attractions, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abby, London Tower etc. Cool city a lot of people and I did meet a lot of Australians and Kiwis. A friend from NZ has meet me in London and we travel down to Dorset to visit some dairy farms which has me most intrigued as the largest is 1000 cows milking 3 times daily. We have been lent a car so have popped up to Bath for a day which is brilliant - the city is beautiful all sandstone buildings a lot of roman culture! We had a lovely couple of hours visiting the Roman baths and enjoyed the history and displays that were set up so I'm looking forward to trying out a Turkish Batch when I visit Turkey in July/August
I have travelled back into the European continent by train into Belgium and Holland where its a lot warmer hitting 30 degrees some days and will update in a couple of weeks.
Hope that you are all well I’m a little envious of the snow on the ski fields so I hope that anyone that is up on the slopes has fantastic powder time!!!!
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| Liverpool - Beatles Tour |
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| Welsh Cakes in Cardiff |
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| Tower Bridge London |
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| Calf rearing - English Styles in Dorset |
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| sorry guys cant remember the name with out a map but its on the way to Bath from Dorchester |
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| Roman Baths in Bath, England |
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