Berlin, 22-24 April 2005.

Schnitzel und bier!!

After a nights drinking, we had to find the kebab shop.

The Reichstag

Brandenberg gates

The British embassy in Berlin.
The road outside was sealed off. Does this mean our recent actions since 2001 have made us as big a target as the US now?

Die* Mauer - The wall

Seeing the wall, and the museum is quite depressing. It brings to you the stupidity of humans. The idea that you can build a wall down the middle of a city, breaking up families, friends, colleagues for 30 years is quite beyond me. That you can see from your flat in Communist East Germany at your former neighbours in Capitalist West Germany.
(* True to Germanic form, I have had a steady flow of emails from German speakers telling me that it is Die Mauer, not Das Mauer as I had it. In the interests of preserving their sanity, it is now changed, and they can all prepare to lose to England in the World Cup Finals on their home soil. (Seriously, thanks))

Looking out of our hostel window early one morning, we saw some exercises in the square.

Where the wall was

It's now a car park. Front wheels in East, back wheels in West.

1000s of people lost their lives trying to get from one side to the other.

Frank jumping over the Berlin Wall. "Eastside! Westside!".

I don't know what Staatsicherheit means (state security?) - let's hope it's not offensive to anyone!

You are entering the American sector. Vous entrez dans le secteur Americain. Sie betreten den Amerikanischen sektor.

Inside Checkpoint Charlie museum

Frank thought it might be a good idea to get stamps put in his passport to show that he'd been to Checkpoint Charlie - until I pointed out that you're not supposed to deface your passport.