A Slice of Germany
In Berlin, Kendrick and I felt for the first time in a long time the vibe of a big city. Just looking at a couple of skyscrapers forced me to work some atrophied neck muscles! As Kendrick puts it, Denmark is like a suburb of Europe. For one thing, nothing in Copenhagen is more than five stories high. For another, the streets are awash in bicycles!
Berlin is an amazing city, and the short two days we spent there was just enough to see how much history and modernity are interwoven there. Of note, the remnants of the Berlin wall and the Brandenburg Gate really stopped me in my tracks.
Our main reason for going to Berlin this weekend was to meet up with Kendrick's friend Omer. Although there was a terrible two hours of not being able to find each other in Postdammer Platz (subways usually have more than one gate, Omer), we finally met up and had a really good time exploring the city together on friday, saturday, and sunday. Omer is well conversant in German and helped us through many situations (e.g. asking for directions, purchasing clothes, etc etc). We really are spoiled in Copenhagen where pretty much every Dane can speak English. At one point I had to drag Omer away from the DVD section of KaDeWe so that he could help Kendrick get his new pants hemmed properly and on time.
We also discovered the riches of the VAT tax refund system. Naturally, Kendrick and I went bananas with the cheaper prices in Berlin and purchased a new suit, digital camera, and shoes. All the tax refunds we gave to Omer totaled more than $100CAD! Needless to say, he treated us to a REALLY good italian restaurant that night.
Kendrick and I will definitely go back to Berlin, there's too much to see and do! Also, we want to try renting a car and taking a spin on the AutoBahn. Kristin, are you up for a ride??
Coming home Kendrick and I debated whether or not we would take the train or a taxi. The taxi usually costs about $50CAD whereas the train would cost about $10CAD for the two of us. Kendrick was for the former and I was for the latter, but we finally agreed that it was late and that a taxi would be a good idea. The taxi that we got was so lightning fast that we dubbed it the TGV (taxi a grande vitesse). Because of the high speed the price was actually almost half the regular price!
But enough of pecuniary matters, on to some important corrections. Nathalie has kindly pointed out that the national sport of Canada was revised in 1994:
http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/sc/legislation/n-16_e.cfm
And for those who don't know, the Toronto airport is named after the guy with the Peace Prize:
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1957/index.html
Time for bed, tomorrow I have to work off all those pastries I consumed this weekend!
Berlin is an amazing city, and the short two days we spent there was just enough to see how much history and modernity are interwoven there. Of note, the remnants of the Berlin wall and the Brandenburg Gate really stopped me in my tracks.
Our main reason for going to Berlin this weekend was to meet up with Kendrick's friend Omer. Although there was a terrible two hours of not being able to find each other in Postdammer Platz (subways usually have more than one gate, Omer), we finally met up and had a really good time exploring the city together on friday, saturday, and sunday. Omer is well conversant in German and helped us through many situations (e.g. asking for directions, purchasing clothes, etc etc). We really are spoiled in Copenhagen where pretty much every Dane can speak English. At one point I had to drag Omer away from the DVD section of KaDeWe so that he could help Kendrick get his new pants hemmed properly and on time.
We also discovered the riches of the VAT tax refund system. Naturally, Kendrick and I went bananas with the cheaper prices in Berlin and purchased a new suit, digital camera, and shoes. All the tax refunds we gave to Omer totaled more than $100CAD! Needless to say, he treated us to a REALLY good italian restaurant that night.
Kendrick and I will definitely go back to Berlin, there's too much to see and do! Also, we want to try renting a car and taking a spin on the AutoBahn. Kristin, are you up for a ride??
Coming home Kendrick and I debated whether or not we would take the train or a taxi. The taxi usually costs about $50CAD whereas the train would cost about $10CAD for the two of us. Kendrick was for the former and I was for the latter, but we finally agreed that it was late and that a taxi would be a good idea. The taxi that we got was so lightning fast that we dubbed it the TGV (taxi a grande vitesse). Because of the high speed the price was actually almost half the regular price!
But enough of pecuniary matters, on to some important corrections. Nathalie has kindly pointed out that the national sport of Canada was revised in 1994:
http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/sc/legislation/n-16_e.cfm
And for those who don't know, the Toronto airport is named after the guy with the Peace Prize:
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1957/index.html
Time for bed, tomorrow I have to work off all those pastries I consumed this weekend!
posted by Gina at 11:59 PM
2 Comments:
Well, you learn something new every day. Lester B. Pearson DID win the peace price.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lester_B._Pearson
Interestingly, he won it before he became Prime Minister; As External Affairs Minister he "saved the world" by ending the Suez Canal crisis.
A Canadian ended the Suez Canal crisis? How did I not know that!
not sure anyone will ever see the comments on such an old post.
kern, all i can say is which coast is california on?
gina, i'm definitely up for a spin on the autobahn.
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