"I'm reading my passport and getting emotional"

My trip to Berlin was absolutely unreal. I had no idea there was THAT much history all in one city. It was so interesting to walk through a city that has been torn apart by war so many times. Most of the buildings had been burned down before and reconstructed. Sometimes they would repair the buildings and use the same statues from the previous building. The statues would be charred and blackened. Ps I can't figure out this whole blog thing so the pictures are in the opposite order of what I wanted them but they take so bloody long to upload that I don't want to do it again. So I will try to tell you about my day in reverse.

We finished our day at this building. I cannot remember the name of it but our tour guide told us that it is noted as one of the buildings with the worst architecture. Apparently there is far too much going on.

This was an amazingly beautiful memorial. It is a sculpture of a woman holding her dying son who is a soldier from WWI, I believe. The women who is the artist of this sculpture lost her son and her husbands in the various wars that plagued Germany. What was truly beautiful about this memorial was that directly above this statue was a circular hole in the ceiling. On this day the sunlight poured down like a spot light. On some days, when it is raining, our tour guide told us that it looks at though the woman is crying.

This is one of the few remaining standing pieces of the Berlin wall. It was surrounded by a fence so you couldn't get too close or touch it. There were actually two Berlin Walls. The first time they put it up all it was was a barbed wire fence intended to keep the people from fleeing Communist Berlin. They constructed this fence in the middle of the night so no one would know. The people of West Berlin woke up one morning and were trapped in their own city. However that did not last for too long as people would just jump the fence. Two fences were erected, and inner and an outer. There was a narrow space between the two walls that was filled with land mines, dogs and snipers. Setting foot between the two walls was instant death.

This was the holocaust memorial. It was a HUGE field of concrete blocks of different sizes. The ground was uneven and some of the blocks would lean. There were no signs there to mark that it was the holocaust memorial. It was that way because the designer of the memorial wanted people to walk by and ask questions. What was it there for? Why was it the way it was? In a strange way it was very powerful.

After we walked through the holocaust memorial we went to an even eerier place. We walked in between some apartment buildings and into a parking lot with some trees and grass. He stopped us there and said that this was one of the MOST important places in all of Berlin and perhaps Europe. We were standing where Adolf Hitler killed himself. There were no signs. There was no stone marking it. Under where we were standing was Hitlers underground bunker. As he could hear Berlin falling he and his mistress took cyanide pills and a gun shot to the head. This is a debated point of history because no one exactly knows how he died. That is why some tabloids will tell you he was spotted in Cancun. Forget the fact that he is about 120 years old by now...

We saw the Brandenburg Gate and the government building where Adolf Hitler was elected into power. That was the only day that he ever set foot in that building. We also stood in the square where the Nazi book burning took place. There is a memorial that is actually underground. You walk by a glass window in the ground and can see empty bookshelves symbolizing what happened.

There was so much to see in Berlin and I really wished that I could have seen more. It was so interesting to hear of all the history that has taken place in one city. I don't understand how people can live there and not be touched by the tons of memorials and other important buildings that serve to remind us of our past.

We also visited a concentration camp just outside of Berlin. This was one of the first camps and was a model for all of the rest. It was Sachsenhausen. This was a work camp and not a death camp but even still somewhere between fifty and one hundred thousand people were murdered at this site. It was chilling to stand in a square where hundreds of people were beaten to death. To see where they were forced to run over rocks and difficult terrain with 20 kg backpacks on until the died from exhaustion. We saw the Jewish barracks and the prison where "special" people were kept. Legend has it that Joseph Stalin's son was imprisoned there. The Soviets captured a German field marshal and the Germans called Stalin to try and strike a deal. Stalin's reply was, I would never trade a Lieutenant for a field marshal. Joseph Stalin's son died at Sachsnehausen by throwing himself on an electric fence. But nothing was more horrific that seeing the gas chamber. Seeing the "doctors office" that prisoners would be sent to before they were shot to see if they had any gold teeth. The most shocking was to stand in front of the actual furnaces that were used to burn twenty to fifty people a day. There were so many horrible stories that I don't believe I will ever forget. Mental snapshots of Sachsenhausen that will never fade from my memory. It was a truly horrifying place. For the first time during the entire weekend, my group of over 100 rowdy, obnoxious college kids were absolutely silent.

Rest in peace my plastic little Ikea cutting board.

So cooking has proven to be more difficult than I thought. First of all my kitchen is not very big. And by not very big I mean that I have NO counter space. I have two burners next to my sink and the table which I am assuming is where I am suppose to eat. So this morning I was cooking some scrambled eggs for breakfast because I was trying to find something to put ketchup on. Gross to some I know, but the ketchup here is like nothing I have ever had before. It is ten times better then Heinz. Its like ketchup, BBQ sauce and steak sauce all rolled into one. Anyway back to my point, I was cooking the eggs as well as boiling water for tea. Because I have a lack of cupboard space as well, I store my plastic cutting boards behind the burners.......it is safe to say I won't be using my back burner anymore.

Another interesting thing in Copenhagen is the fact that not very many people have cars in comparison to what I am used to. Cars are taxed very heavily here making them 3 times as expensive as in the states. So because of that when you see cars, they are mostly expensive cars. You will see taxi's that are mercedes and millions of BMWs. They want to push for public transportation and bikes. But the bikes are crazy. For a city so big on pedestrians they are not very well protected. I saw an older man get hit by a bike because he was walking across the road and happened to be in the bike lane at the same time a bike. I myself have several times been dinged at because I was inadvertently standing in the bike lane instead of the sidewalk. Also cars don't stop for you. I have almost been hit by various BMWs, a Mercedes taxi as well as city bus and yes, even the construction tractor/crane thingy near my residence hall. They just honk avidly and hope you start to run.

Anyway off to Berlin tomorrow morning. I am sure I will have some photos and stories Sunday night.

25 Kroner Closer to Buns of Steel

Today we decided to go back to Christianshavn and climb the Church Tower of Our Savior's Church. It is one of the oldest churches in Denmark, if not one of the oldest in Europe. As with everything here you have to pay for admission but it was well worth the money.

Disclaimer: Mom, you will probably get nauseous from just looking at the pictures. This was definitely not an activity you would have enjoyed.

The entire way up was of course stairs. In the beginning they were indoors and you walked through the old bell tour and in some very strange areas as you were ducking below and climbing over exposed beams. The stairs were very narrow and sometimes it was more like climbing a ladder. Then you reached the outdoor section where you literally walked all the way to the tippy top of the tower. You can see from the first picture there is a platform near the top of the tower and then stairs spiraling up to the top. I probably could have reached out and touched the gold thing on the top if I wasn't so afraid of falling.

This was the start of our decent. Not exactly the "safest" thing. Let's just say I practically bathed in hand sanitizer after the number of hand rails that I clutched onto for dear life.

This was the view from the highest stair. There was not platform or anything at the very top. The stairs got narrower and narrower until they just stopped. You could barely stand up straight because DIRECTLY above your head was the big gold disc at the top of the tower. It was a beautiful view but I even have to say I felt a little uneasy and shaky at the top.

It was absolutely spectacular view. You could see in all directions all over Copenhagen. It was by far the best view in town.

And this is a obviously a picture from the base of the tower looking up. I swear it is higher than it looks.

Volume Control Issues

On Sunday we took the Canal Tour of Copenhagen, SO worth it! It is absolutely amazing how much history is in this city. And a building is not old unless it has been around for at least 200 years. The first canal we started in was called Nyhaven. This is a very touristy area of Copenhagen. Very expensive restaurants line the harbor which was originally dug by prisoners. It is a fun area to walk around and if you see a post card of Copenhagen and there are ships in the picture there is a good chance in is in Nyhaven.

We toured many of the canals. They were so picturesque, lined with sailboats and having beautiful buildings just behind them. Apparently, every year Bill Gates takes a vacation to Copenhagen and stays on one of the canals in his yacht. That sounds like the life.

This is probably the coolest house boat I have ever seen. There are MANY house boats on the canals. And by looking in the windows the appear pretty extravagant.

The story the tour guide told us about this boat is that the ship accidentally fired a missile into a civilian area while it was docked. Luckily no one was hurt. But it was kind of embarrassing for Denmark.
Because Denmark is so old many of the buildings have been restored and used for new purposes. This building used to but used for the building of ships and submarines. It was covered so that no one could see that they were rebuilding their fleet that had been taken by the British I believe. So that is why there is a canal through this building that is now used for residential purposes. I can't even imagine the rent on that one!

There is a reason you have never heard of Rainbow peanuts chocoloco

One day we took an afternoon to explore downtown Copenhagen. We saw the marble church. It is absolutely massive and is beautiful on the inside with an incredible ceiling. It is so crazy because you will be walking down the street with cars flying by and then all of the sudden you will come across a massive and beautiful historical building like that. We also saw the Queens palace and Nyhaven which is the extremely touristy area filled with restaurants right on the canal. We also made a stop at the royal gardens and Rosenborg Castle.

Church dome. This picture does not do it justice.

Inside the Church. I appreciated it because it was very cool and comfortable in there....maybe new hang out?

Rosenborg Castle. I am looking into purchasing the real estate.

The past couple of days have been filled with Copenhagen tourist activities. We took a walk one night that turned into a hike...but luckily we met a very nice man and woman from Egypt and Afghanistan who were kind enough to show us where the metro stop was. Another night we got ice cream (everyone eats ice cream here constantly and its always really weird flavors) at the Ice Queen and found a new park. Many people run there and at a certain point you run past the elephant exhibit at the zoo next door.

A very awkward statue/fountain so of course we needed a photo in front of it. Unfortunately you can't really tell what it is. Probably to your benefit.

The weather here is MUCH warmer than I was anticipating. It is around the low 80s but EXTREMELY humid. And as I am finding out, apparently Europe is not big on air conditioning. Going into the metro is like entering a sauna full of strangers and most of whom smell like a middle school locker room. Fun stuff. I definitely packed the wrong things. So we headed to the mall to see if we could find some fun new pieces to add to our wardrobe and maybe blend in a bit more. Danish style is quite interesting. Most of the stores carried many of the same brands and even some even had the exact same merchandise. Also, a trendy thing is see through dresses. But everyone wears sun dresses and flats. Designer brands are not a big thing here and most people don't wear denim. Anyway, I will have to keep looking for some clothes that are perhaps a bit more me....

Last night we went folk dancing. I wish you could have seen the utter lack of any skill or coordination present in the room. It was fun and extremely entertaining but as everything that is indoors it was very hot and unfortunately very humid and very stinky. We then went to a night club where I was carded. Yes being carded in the United States can SOMETIMES be a compliment but not here. not when the drinking age is 15. I know I may look young but come on! But today we had the ultimate lazy Friday. We slept in, I am so glad that I have regained that talent here, and spent the day at the beach. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. It was PACKED! People everywhere! I did not take very many pictures because I thought it would be awkward to take pictures of strangers on the beach. And I didn't know where to point the camera to avoid topless old ladies or man spedos. I will work on a decent photo next time. and there will be a next time because it was GLORIOUS!

I don't mean to sound paranoid but

I think that the pigeons in this city are out to get me. After I woke up to one trying to get into my window I was a little freaked out. The second offense was attacking me later that day while running in the park. And these birds are huge! Like nothing I have seen! Let's just say they slightly resemble flying cats. YUCK.