Poland in 12 Minutes

My brother and I went to Poland this morning. It's only 60 miles east of Berlin. The border town of Frankfurt an der Oder, which, despite a declining population and depressed economy, is way better than crappy Frankfurt am Main. We took a train at 10:00am and by 11:30, we were walking around in another country. Since Poland is now part of the EU, we didn't even get our passports stamped. Bummer.

Frankfurt an der Oder sits on the west side of the Oder River and Slubice is on the east bank. Before 1945, both sides were part of Germany (not owing to Hitler's little romp in 1939) but post war, the Oder River became the eastern border of Germany. Anyways, the Lonely Planet doesn't have much to say about either place except that you can buy cheap cigarettes and vodka.

It's Cold!

 

Oh yeah...it reached 0 Fahrenheit this past Wednesday.

Family Reunion

 

My parents and brother arrived from St. Petersburg (not the one in Florida, Emery) last week to spend time in Berlin. We covered the whole city - from the Karl Marx Allee to KaDeWe. It was fantastic to finally see family after 7 months in a foreign country. The hightlight of the trip was finding the perfect Matjes herring for my dad while my mom and Danielle stood by and rolled their eyes. Nothing like spending QT with the 'rents!

Christmas Fun (Part III)

 

Our friends' Nat and Maja arranged for us to see a Christmas concert at the oldest church in Berlin. The performance was Handel's "Messiah" with a full choir and orchestra. I was sitting so close to the cellist that he could have picked my nose with his bow. Fantastic! The concert was followed by a gathering of the neighborhood outside the church to sing Christmas carrols - many of them in English.

Christmas Fun (Part II)

 

The coolest Christmas Market constructed was the one put up in Alexanderplatz, the center of former East Berlin. The organizers brought in a spectacle of rides and amusements for adults and kids. It was the most crowded place I've been so far in Germany (rivaling the state fair in Dresden this past summer). We went at night and were able to collect a few great shots of the rides.

Christmas Fun (Part 1)

 

The most important part of Christmas in Germany is the Weihnachts Markt or Christmas Market. Many locals do their shopping at these temporary bazaars spread throughout the city. Most importantly, they are open Sundays, which make them a magnet for those suffering from the cabin fever caused by closed businesses during the rest of the year. Some had rides, others had high class goods, and all had tons of food. Pictured above are our friends in Berlin enjoying a wurst (German sausage) in a roll. The sausages are always way longer than the tiny bun and make for interesting eating. We took this picture that the Gedamenmarkt Market in Berlin which is the most "exclusive" since it charges a heft 1 Euro entrance fee (apparently to keep out unsavory characters). By the way, I had no permission from the people photographed above to use their image. I hope I don't get sued.

Back on the Wagon

Okay, I was yelled at by my two disgruntled fans for not posting for a while. It's been nearly a month since my last entry, so my apologies for holiday season laziness...