Gabriel's 10 days trip to Prague, Dresden and Berlin - A report
Dec 8th, 2007, 11:39 PM
#21
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Glad you enjoyed my photos, Gertie.
There were many tourists in Dresden this summer, both in groups and on their own. Dresden's being discovered more and more every year. I spent two days there this summer, but I think I could have easily spent one or two more if I had the time.
There were many tourists in Dresden this summer, both in groups and on their own. Dresden's being discovered more and more every year. I spent two days there this summer, but I think I could have easily spent one or two more if I had the time.
Dec 9th, 2007, 11:39 PM
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Here I am with another instalment. Photos taken in Berlin will come later.
We reached Berlin just after 9pm, had a look around the huge station and took the S-Bahn. We changed at Westkreuz and went one more stop to Halensee.
We walked a few minutes on Kurfurstendamm, then turned right on a nice side street, where our accommodation was. Welcoming us there was a playful black cat with white spots, Mautzy.
He didn’t leave our room until we were ready to sleep, then placing himself in front of the door, asking us to open it for him.
The first thing we did in the morning was to call Mautzy and we had some fun and cuddly moments with him.
We went out and walked for a while on Kurfurstendamm, trying to get a pulse of the city. The weather was nice and the boulevard was beautiful with its leafy trees and abundance of shops and cafes.
We stopped somewhere for a coffee to take in more of the city’s atmosphere. We liked it. It was hardly 9 o’clock and the cafes were lively with people having their breakfast, reading newspapers, chatting or simply relaxing.
We enjoyed every morning we spent in Berlin, and every morning we went to a different café on Kurfurstendamm, for a good and enjoyable start of the day.
After our coffee and cake we went to the New National Gallery, where there was a French Impressionists Exhibition from New York’s Metropolitan Museum. The queue was long, of course, but it went smoothly and quite fast.
We bought our timed tickets, scheduled for a few hours later, and in the meanwhile we went to visit the Gemaldegalerie, not far from there.
We let ourselves be enthralled by great European painting. The Italian, Dutch and German Old Masters gave us a real treat and we were impressed by what we saw.
The collection of 17th century Dutch painting was a highlight for us.
In the meantime the queue was on for our time segment at Berlin’s “Most Beautiful French” exhibition, as I read somewhere.
This was a feast for our eyes, heart and soul. It was a crème de la crème of impressionist art. Eyes wide open, mouths probably gaped in awe, we walked in silence, not able to utter a word in front of those masterpieces, but whispering to each other when we couldn’t help making a comment.
We finished our art indulgence at about 5.30 and it was time for our city stroll. We went to Potsdamer Platz, wondered at the modern buildings, saw a few remains of the Berlin Wall, noticed and took a picture of the “Die Welt” balloon high above the city, then continued our walking.
At the crossing lights we noticed the little green and red men and took their picture, of course. We stopped at the Holocaust Memorial, thought provoking with its huge grey blocks.
After a short walk we were in front of the majestic Brandenburg Gate and took a few photos. The Reichstag Building was beckoning us, so we went there. We were not really planning to climb to the top, but since the queue was rather short, we waited patiently.
In about half an hour we were taking the elevator up to the viewing platform at the glass dome. We walked around it, enjoyed beautiful views over Berlin from there, took a few pictures, saw the “Die Welt” balloon again and recognized a few of Berlin’s landmarks.
We returned to the Brandenburg Gate, saw the famous Adlon Hotel and because it was getting late, we decided to go for a walk on Unter den Linden another day.
Now we were hungry and we remembered we had spotted a nice Italian restaurant somewhere around Potsdamer Platz and we hurried there, pizzas and pastas dancing in our eyes.
It was late when we reached home. Berlin is quite a spread out city, distances between the places that we went to are big and it had an impact on our initial general planning of the trip.
However, after our first day we had a good impression, the city succeeded to pass on to us its modern, youthful vibes. After a long day of visits and walking we were tired, and we didn’t really care what time we would get up next morning...
We reached Berlin just after 9pm, had a look around the huge station and took the S-Bahn. We changed at Westkreuz and went one more stop to Halensee.
We walked a few minutes on Kurfurstendamm, then turned right on a nice side street, where our accommodation was. Welcoming us there was a playful black cat with white spots, Mautzy.
He didn’t leave our room until we were ready to sleep, then placing himself in front of the door, asking us to open it for him.
The first thing we did in the morning was to call Mautzy and we had some fun and cuddly moments with him.
We went out and walked for a while on Kurfurstendamm, trying to get a pulse of the city. The weather was nice and the boulevard was beautiful with its leafy trees and abundance of shops and cafes.
We stopped somewhere for a coffee to take in more of the city’s atmosphere. We liked it. It was hardly 9 o’clock and the cafes were lively with people having their breakfast, reading newspapers, chatting or simply relaxing.
We enjoyed every morning we spent in Berlin, and every morning we went to a different café on Kurfurstendamm, for a good and enjoyable start of the day.
After our coffee and cake we went to the New National Gallery, where there was a French Impressionists Exhibition from New York’s Metropolitan Museum. The queue was long, of course, but it went smoothly and quite fast.
We bought our timed tickets, scheduled for a few hours later, and in the meanwhile we went to visit the Gemaldegalerie, not far from there.
We let ourselves be enthralled by great European painting. The Italian, Dutch and German Old Masters gave us a real treat and we were impressed by what we saw.
The collection of 17th century Dutch painting was a highlight for us.
In the meantime the queue was on for our time segment at Berlin’s “Most Beautiful French” exhibition, as I read somewhere.
This was a feast for our eyes, heart and soul. It was a crème de la crème of impressionist art. Eyes wide open, mouths probably gaped in awe, we walked in silence, not able to utter a word in front of those masterpieces, but whispering to each other when we couldn’t help making a comment.
We finished our art indulgence at about 5.30 and it was time for our city stroll. We went to Potsdamer Platz, wondered at the modern buildings, saw a few remains of the Berlin Wall, noticed and took a picture of the “Die Welt” balloon high above the city, then continued our walking.
At the crossing lights we noticed the little green and red men and took their picture, of course. We stopped at the Holocaust Memorial, thought provoking with its huge grey blocks.
After a short walk we were in front of the majestic Brandenburg Gate and took a few photos. The Reichstag Building was beckoning us, so we went there. We were not really planning to climb to the top, but since the queue was rather short, we waited patiently.
In about half an hour we were taking the elevator up to the viewing platform at the glass dome. We walked around it, enjoyed beautiful views over Berlin from there, took a few pictures, saw the “Die Welt” balloon again and recognized a few of Berlin’s landmarks.
We returned to the Brandenburg Gate, saw the famous Adlon Hotel and because it was getting late, we decided to go for a walk on Unter den Linden another day.
Now we were hungry and we remembered we had spotted a nice Italian restaurant somewhere around Potsdamer Platz and we hurried there, pizzas and pastas dancing in our eyes.
It was late when we reached home. Berlin is quite a spread out city, distances between the places that we went to are big and it had an impact on our initial general planning of the trip.
However, after our first day we had a good impression, the city succeeded to pass on to us its modern, youthful vibes. After a long day of visits and walking we were tired, and we didn’t really care what time we would get up next morning...
Dec 10th, 2007, 03:34 AM
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Hi Gabriel. Glad you are enjoying sunny Perth, and your German trip so far. I am impressed again by how much you and DW really appreciate everything you see and do. Sorry you had poor weather, but I love your reference to DW's happy, smiling face when she acquired a warm jacket !
I think that here we mostly associate Dresden with the WWII firestorm so most of us aren't aware of it as a nice place to visit.
I think that here we mostly associate Dresden with the WWII firestorm so most of us aren't aware of it as a nice place to visit.
Dec 10th, 2007, 04:22 AM
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Hi Caroline!
Thank you for your nice words!
I've known for a long while that Dresden is one of the most interesting cities in the eastern part of Germany. I knew people who had visited it during the communist era and they had rave reviews about what they'd seen there. It stayed on my mind since then.
This year was my turn, finally.
Thank you for your nice words!
I've known for a long while that Dresden is one of the most interesting cities in the eastern part of Germany. I knew people who had visited it during the communist era and they had rave reviews about what they'd seen there. It stayed on my mind since then.
This year was my turn, finally.
Dec 11th, 2007, 12:05 AM
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Until I'm ready with more, here's a link to photos taken during our first day in Berlin:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWJX
As we spent most of the day in museums and we only walked through the city in the evening, there aren't many pictures this time.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWJX
As we spent most of the day in museums and we only walked through the city in the evening, there aren't many pictures this time.
Dec 15th, 2007, 10:41 AM
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This is a link to photos taken during our second day in Berlin:
share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=1AaNGzly4ZsWJk
The sun rays were making their way through leafy branches and the gap between the curtains in our room. We opened the door to call Mautzy for a proper morning wake up with cat cuddling and play.
We were soon doing our morning walk on Kurfurstendamm, looking for another place to have our energizing, spirit lifting and good mood setting morning coffee. Enjoyed our people watch and set out to Museum Island.
We got off the S-Bahn at Friedrichstrasse and walked along the Spree. A few cruise boats passed by. This was a Thursday and the museums were open till late evening, at 10pm. We had plenty of time.
Our first visit was at the Pergamon. We somehow managed to get in quickly, probably due to the 3-day ticket that we had. Pergamon Museum was huge and reminded me of British Museum.
We turned on our audio guides and looked around in awe. What an impact on us having to see the Pergamon Altar soon after we entered the museum!
We were looking at all those wonders, marveling at what people were able to build, to create so many thousands of years before, while nowadays you need so much effort, engineering and drawings to build something, with so much technology available. And that blue colour of the Ishtar Gate!
After losing ourselves for a few hours inside Pergamon, we came out for a break. We sat down on the grass in the park in front of the Old Museum, along with lots of other people, just sitting, relaxing and admiring the beautiful Berlin Cathedral.
We first visited the Old Museum, to continue in the same note from Pergamon. After we went through the Classical Antiquities, with Greek, Etruscan and Roman art, we reached the Egyptian Museum.
We just couldn’t wait much longer to see Nefertiti. Then there she was, appearing unexpectedly in front of us, even though we thought we were prepared for this encounter. She was beautiful indeed, as the audio guide said.
We made several rounds, looking at her from all angles. Yes, it was Nefertiti! We had been waiting to see her for so many years. Seeing her image on so many pendants, cameos, books, and where not, made us become obsessed with her.
Now we’re fine, as we finally saw her and found our inner peace.
We were out of the Old Museum, and captivated by its magnificence we hurried to Berlin Cathedral.
We had plenty to admire there, all of it is a superb work of art. We were amazed by its architecture, the richly decorated interior, the organ. We climbed to the top and had beautiful views over Berlin.
At the end of our visit we went down in the crypt to see all those Hohenzollern Royal Family tombs. We were impressed by those of Frederick I and Sophie Charlotte.
Our museums treat of this long day ended with a visit to the Old National Gallery, just behind the Old Museum. It was already around 6pm and we felt tired, but when we saw the treasures inside we forgot about it and our senses were stirred.
Ready to be admired by us was a collection of 19th century paintings and sculptures, including masterpieces by French Impressionists, Monet, Cézanne, Renoir, Manet, Degas, and sculptures by Auguste Rodin.
Our long museum day finished here and we decided to go for a walk on Unter den Linden, which was nearby. We passed by the Humboldt University, State Opera and the State Library. Not long before Brandenburg Gate we turned left on Friedrichstrasse to go to Checkpoint Charlie.
It was captivating to see the setup of how the checkpoint once was and read the stories there. We could easily relate to them, being born and brought up behind the Iron Curtain ourselves.
It was late in the evening when we decided to call it a day. However, we stopped at Hard Rock Café, not far from our accommodation. A colourful Trabby (the East German car make, Trabant) was parked inside the restaurant, in a small area behind the souvenir shop.
We had a relaxing beer and took two pictures.
Then my camera somehow decided to go on its own, and didn’t obey the commands anymore. The shutter blocked itself on clicking, so I shut down my camera and put it away.
We were terrified at the prospect of not having a camera for the remainder of our holiday. We decided that next day we would go to buy another camera, just as a temporary replacement.
Even though we were tired after a long day, we couldn’t fall asleep easily because of the frustration of not having our camera anymore. Not to mention the thought of having to spend precious holiday time to look for another one, when we didn’t have the money to at least buy a very good camera. Bummer!
What more, even though we don’t really like to visit department stores on our travels, whether it is Harrods or KaDeWe, we had to this time. We decided that next morning we would go to KaDeWe to buy a cheaper digital camera, as a temporary replacement.
share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=1AaNGzly4ZsWJk
The sun rays were making their way through leafy branches and the gap between the curtains in our room. We opened the door to call Mautzy for a proper morning wake up with cat cuddling and play.
We were soon doing our morning walk on Kurfurstendamm, looking for another place to have our energizing, spirit lifting and good mood setting morning coffee. Enjoyed our people watch and set out to Museum Island.
We got off the S-Bahn at Friedrichstrasse and walked along the Spree. A few cruise boats passed by. This was a Thursday and the museums were open till late evening, at 10pm. We had plenty of time.
Our first visit was at the Pergamon. We somehow managed to get in quickly, probably due to the 3-day ticket that we had. Pergamon Museum was huge and reminded me of British Museum.
We turned on our audio guides and looked around in awe. What an impact on us having to see the Pergamon Altar soon after we entered the museum!
We were looking at all those wonders, marveling at what people were able to build, to create so many thousands of years before, while nowadays you need so much effort, engineering and drawings to build something, with so much technology available. And that blue colour of the Ishtar Gate!
After losing ourselves for a few hours inside Pergamon, we came out for a break. We sat down on the grass in the park in front of the Old Museum, along with lots of other people, just sitting, relaxing and admiring the beautiful Berlin Cathedral.
We first visited the Old Museum, to continue in the same note from Pergamon. After we went through the Classical Antiquities, with Greek, Etruscan and Roman art, we reached the Egyptian Museum.
We just couldn’t wait much longer to see Nefertiti. Then there she was, appearing unexpectedly in front of us, even though we thought we were prepared for this encounter. She was beautiful indeed, as the audio guide said.
We made several rounds, looking at her from all angles. Yes, it was Nefertiti! We had been waiting to see her for so many years. Seeing her image on so many pendants, cameos, books, and where not, made us become obsessed with her.
Now we’re fine, as we finally saw her and found our inner peace.
We were out of the Old Museum, and captivated by its magnificence we hurried to Berlin Cathedral.
We had plenty to admire there, all of it is a superb work of art. We were amazed by its architecture, the richly decorated interior, the organ. We climbed to the top and had beautiful views over Berlin.
At the end of our visit we went down in the crypt to see all those Hohenzollern Royal Family tombs. We were impressed by those of Frederick I and Sophie Charlotte.
Our museums treat of this long day ended with a visit to the Old National Gallery, just behind the Old Museum. It was already around 6pm and we felt tired, but when we saw the treasures inside we forgot about it and our senses were stirred.
Ready to be admired by us was a collection of 19th century paintings and sculptures, including masterpieces by French Impressionists, Monet, Cézanne, Renoir, Manet, Degas, and sculptures by Auguste Rodin.
Our long museum day finished here and we decided to go for a walk on Unter den Linden, which was nearby. We passed by the Humboldt University, State Opera and the State Library. Not long before Brandenburg Gate we turned left on Friedrichstrasse to go to Checkpoint Charlie.
It was captivating to see the setup of how the checkpoint once was and read the stories there. We could easily relate to them, being born and brought up behind the Iron Curtain ourselves.
It was late in the evening when we decided to call it a day. However, we stopped at Hard Rock Café, not far from our accommodation. A colourful Trabby (the East German car make, Trabant) was parked inside the restaurant, in a small area behind the souvenir shop.
We had a relaxing beer and took two pictures.
Then my camera somehow decided to go on its own, and didn’t obey the commands anymore. The shutter blocked itself on clicking, so I shut down my camera and put it away.
We were terrified at the prospect of not having a camera for the remainder of our holiday. We decided that next day we would go to buy another camera, just as a temporary replacement.
Even though we were tired after a long day, we couldn’t fall asleep easily because of the frustration of not having our camera anymore. Not to mention the thought of having to spend precious holiday time to look for another one, when we didn’t have the money to at least buy a very good camera. Bummer!
What more, even though we don’t really like to visit department stores on our travels, whether it is Harrods or KaDeWe, we had to this time. We decided that next morning we would go to KaDeWe to buy a cheaper digital camera, as a temporary replacement.
Dec 16th, 2007, 12:36 AM
#28
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This is a link to photos taken during our third day in Berlin:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWJ1
Gloomy after our camera deserted us in the middle of the holiday, we went to the big department store. KaDeWe was not far on a bus route from our accommodation. We had already passed by it in our first day, on our way to the New York’s Metropolitan exhibition.
We went straight to the electronics section, asked the guy there if they could repair our camera, he said it would take about a week or more, so we bought a cheap Canon Powershot A460.
At the time we were happy we could get a Canon so cheap (139 euros), but we didn’t have the time to actually check its specifications, not to mention read some reviews to find out about its performance.
We were happy we had a camera to take our pictures during the holiday.
We went to Museum Berggruen, where we saw an outstanding collection of paintings and sculptures, mostly by Picasso and Paul Klee. However, Cezanne, Matisse, Braque and others were also present in the collection.
It was a good visit, we were glad that we included that museum in our itinerary.
Opposite from Museum Berggruen, just across the street, is Charlottenburg Palace. This is the largest residence of the Hohenzollern Royal Family in Berlin.
We delighted our senses walking through magnificent apartments, rooms and saloons, and admiring splendid baroque and rococo decorations, furniture and art collections.
The palace has a baroque garden, so when we finished our tour we had a pleasant walk there.
From Charlottenburg we went for an almost random walk through the city streets, ending our day in Prater beer garden.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWJ1
Gloomy after our camera deserted us in the middle of the holiday, we went to the big department store. KaDeWe was not far on a bus route from our accommodation. We had already passed by it in our first day, on our way to the New York’s Metropolitan exhibition.
We went straight to the electronics section, asked the guy there if they could repair our camera, he said it would take about a week or more, so we bought a cheap Canon Powershot A460.
At the time we were happy we could get a Canon so cheap (139 euros), but we didn’t have the time to actually check its specifications, not to mention read some reviews to find out about its performance.
We were happy we had a camera to take our pictures during the holiday.
We went to Museum Berggruen, where we saw an outstanding collection of paintings and sculptures, mostly by Picasso and Paul Klee. However, Cezanne, Matisse, Braque and others were also present in the collection.
It was a good visit, we were glad that we included that museum in our itinerary.
Opposite from Museum Berggruen, just across the street, is Charlottenburg Palace. This is the largest residence of the Hohenzollern Royal Family in Berlin.
We delighted our senses walking through magnificent apartments, rooms and saloons, and admiring splendid baroque and rococo decorations, furniture and art collections.
The palace has a baroque garden, so when we finished our tour we had a pleasant walk there.
From Charlottenburg we went for an almost random walk through the city streets, ending our day in Prater beer garden.
Dec 16th, 2007, 03:05 AM
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On our fourth day in Berlin we had scheduled a one day trip to Schwerin, where we had a beautiful castle and an art museum to visit.
Here’s the link to photos taken during this day trip:
share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=1AaNGzly4ZsWKK
As it was a Saturday, we bought ourselves a Happy Weekend Ticket for about 30 euros, good for up to 5 persons traveling together.
We boarded our direct train to Schwerin, among many other holiday makers, and arrived after about 2 hours. It was a pleasant day, a few clouds were roaming the sky.
We liked the city’s old feel, strolled the historical streets and admired the architecture from another era. In the main square I met Peter Mannchen, the old goblin and household spirit, keeper and watchman of the Schwerin Castle.
After some more walking we were stunned by superb views of the castle coming between the buildings at the far end of a street. This was like no ordinary castle.
Set on an island on Schwerin Lake, with its superb golden towers and turrets, this was a fairytale castle. Once inside, we were treated with a wealth of paintings, porcelain and jewellery.
Schwerin Castle is one of the most important castles on the Oranier Route, House of Orange. Among the rooms and saloons that we liked best were the Throne Hall, The Blue Room, the Picture Gallery and the Porcelain Exhibition.
Delighted by what we saw inside, we went out to walk through the gardens. We were joyous at the views we had over the lake, the flower arrangements that were everywhere, and to top it all, the superb work of art that was the Orangery, down a flight of stairs in horse shoe shape.
With reluctance we left the castle and went to Schwerin Museum nearby. This museum surprised us with an impressive collection of 16th and 17th century Dutch and Flemish paintings, including Rubens, Rembrandt, Jacob Jordaens and Frans Hals.
Its art collection extends beyond this however, covering the periods until the 20th century, including German, English and French artists.
We took on the streets again and driven by hunger we found a nice cozy restaurant, tucked in between two old houses on a narrow street. We had a very good meal there, indeed.
We liked Schwerin with its castle, museum, narrow streets and old houses.
Our train to Berlin left at 18.15 and at about 20.30 we arrived.
Here’s the link to photos taken during this day trip:
share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=1AaNGzly4ZsWKK
As it was a Saturday, we bought ourselves a Happy Weekend Ticket for about 30 euros, good for up to 5 persons traveling together.
We boarded our direct train to Schwerin, among many other holiday makers, and arrived after about 2 hours. It was a pleasant day, a few clouds were roaming the sky.
We liked the city’s old feel, strolled the historical streets and admired the architecture from another era. In the main square I met Peter Mannchen, the old goblin and household spirit, keeper and watchman of the Schwerin Castle.
After some more walking we were stunned by superb views of the castle coming between the buildings at the far end of a street. This was like no ordinary castle.
Set on an island on Schwerin Lake, with its superb golden towers and turrets, this was a fairytale castle. Once inside, we were treated with a wealth of paintings, porcelain and jewellery.
Schwerin Castle is one of the most important castles on the Oranier Route, House of Orange. Among the rooms and saloons that we liked best were the Throne Hall, The Blue Room, the Picture Gallery and the Porcelain Exhibition.
Delighted by what we saw inside, we went out to walk through the gardens. We were joyous at the views we had over the lake, the flower arrangements that were everywhere, and to top it all, the superb work of art that was the Orangery, down a flight of stairs in horse shoe shape.
With reluctance we left the castle and went to Schwerin Museum nearby. This museum surprised us with an impressive collection of 16th and 17th century Dutch and Flemish paintings, including Rubens, Rembrandt, Jacob Jordaens and Frans Hals.
Its art collection extends beyond this however, covering the periods until the 20th century, including German, English and French artists.
We took on the streets again and driven by hunger we found a nice cozy restaurant, tucked in between two old houses on a narrow street. We had a very good meal there, indeed.
We liked Schwerin with its castle, museum, narrow streets and old houses.
Our train to Berlin left at 18.15 and at about 20.30 we arrived.
Dec 17th, 2007, 06:14 AM
#30
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After many years of searching, I have finally found the movie Run Lola Run. To my pleasant surprise it was filmed in Berlin and guess what! I recognized a street and some buildings that I passed by and even took pictures of them during this summer's holiday.
The same buildings and U-Bahn stop appear in my photos, i.e. Franzosische Strasse U-Bahn stop, and a reddish building on the right side on Friedrichstrasse, where that U-Bahn stop is.
On our way to Checkpoint Charlie, after walking on Unter den Linden, we went on that street! In an earlier posting here, I put a link with photos taken on our second day in Berlin (photos no. 58 and 61 in the album).
The same buildings and U-Bahn stop appear in my photos, i.e. Franzosische Strasse U-Bahn stop, and a reddish building on the right side on Friedrichstrasse, where that U-Bahn stop is.
On our way to Checkpoint Charlie, after walking on Unter den Linden, we went on that street! In an earlier posting here, I put a link with photos taken on our second day in Berlin (photos no. 58 and 61 in the album).
Dec 17th, 2007, 07:10 AM
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Our last morning in Berlin. We packed our bags and went on Kurfurstendamm to a café, before taking the S-bahn to Potsdam. We liked Berlin, despite the fact that the city seemed very wide, so spread out that we needed a lot of time to reach anywhere, no matter where.
The city had a youthful and vibrant atmosphere, we liked it, and we thought that we would have needed a couple of days more to give Berlin its fair share. We finished our morning coffee and we left.
In Potsdam we bought our tickets for our return trip to Dresden and Prague, left our luggage in the lockers, then took the bus to Sanssouci Palace.
This is a link to photos taken there:
share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=1AaNGzly4ZsWKb
We bought an all day ticket and chose our preferred time for the tour of the palace. Until then we visited the Palace Kitchen, the Historic Mill and the New Chambers.
When the time was up, we returned to the palace for our guided tour. We put on the slippers and began gliding on the floor. We were amazed at every step during this tour.
The Marble Hall was impressive with its marble columns and superb domed gilded ceiling. More splendour was awaiting us in the richly decorated King’s Apartments, the Music Room with and the Library their lovely Rococo interior.
We liked the Picture Gallery, where we could admire paintings by Rubens, van Dyck, Caravaggio and others. The gardens had been beckoning us from the moment we set foot on the palace grounds, and now we were ready for them.
Beautiful parterres, the fountain was springing its water jet high up and we had beautiful misty views of the palace through the water jet. It was a hot day, the sun was striking straight down at us and we sought the shade of the trees all the time.
Strolling through the park and gardens, we reached the Chinese House, then the Roman Baths, where we stopped a little longer to enjoy the gardens.
Then we arrived at Charlottenhof Palace, where we found some more gardens and sat down in a kiosk to cool off in the middle of beautiful and colourful flower patterns. We didn’t take the tour as one had started quite some time before, and the next one was due later.
We were worried that we may not have enough time for the New Palace, so we continued our walk. On one side of the palace were a few benches under some trees, providing much needed shade. We hurried to take advantage of the situation.
Gone were the cold days in Dresden, now we had to take shelter from the sun. The time of our tour came and we were treated again with splendid Rococo decorations inside the New Palace.
After the tour we returned to Potsdam station. We had time to eat something before our train left a few minutes before 7 o’clock. We were on our way back to Dresden...
The city had a youthful and vibrant atmosphere, we liked it, and we thought that we would have needed a couple of days more to give Berlin its fair share. We finished our morning coffee and we left.
In Potsdam we bought our tickets for our return trip to Dresden and Prague, left our luggage in the lockers, then took the bus to Sanssouci Palace.
This is a link to photos taken there:
share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=1AaNGzly4ZsWKb
We bought an all day ticket and chose our preferred time for the tour of the palace. Until then we visited the Palace Kitchen, the Historic Mill and the New Chambers.
When the time was up, we returned to the palace for our guided tour. We put on the slippers and began gliding on the floor. We were amazed at every step during this tour.
The Marble Hall was impressive with its marble columns and superb domed gilded ceiling. More splendour was awaiting us in the richly decorated King’s Apartments, the Music Room with and the Library their lovely Rococo interior.
We liked the Picture Gallery, where we could admire paintings by Rubens, van Dyck, Caravaggio and others. The gardens had been beckoning us from the moment we set foot on the palace grounds, and now we were ready for them.
Beautiful parterres, the fountain was springing its water jet high up and we had beautiful misty views of the palace through the water jet. It was a hot day, the sun was striking straight down at us and we sought the shade of the trees all the time.
Strolling through the park and gardens, we reached the Chinese House, then the Roman Baths, where we stopped a little longer to enjoy the gardens.
Then we arrived at Charlottenhof Palace, where we found some more gardens and sat down in a kiosk to cool off in the middle of beautiful and colourful flower patterns. We didn’t take the tour as one had started quite some time before, and the next one was due later.
We were worried that we may not have enough time for the New Palace, so we continued our walk. On one side of the palace were a few benches under some trees, providing much needed shade. We hurried to take advantage of the situation.
Gone were the cold days in Dresden, now we had to take shelter from the sun. The time of our tour came and we were treated again with splendid Rococo decorations inside the New Palace.
After the tour we returned to Potsdam station. We had time to eat something before our train left a few minutes before 7 o’clock. We were on our way back to Dresden...
Dec 17th, 2007, 12:17 PM
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I personally do not like Berlin very much. (There's a rivalry between Saxons and Prussians that goes back centuries and has been fed well through the recent years as well.) But I liked your descriptions of Berlin and I am VERY glad you made trips to Schwerin and Potsdam - both among my favourites in Germany. Especially Schwerin is often overlooked. Thus still quite non-touristy and even more enjoyable.
Thanks for a thorough trip report. And still waiting for more ;-)
Ingo
Thanks for a thorough trip report. And still waiting for more ;-)
Ingo
Dec 17th, 2007, 06:19 PM
#35
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Thank you for your nice words! Glad you're enjoying my report.
Oh Ingo, you're right about the rivalry. Nowadays it has transferred to the football matches and I think it's good to be kept to sports.
Gertie, Schwerin is quite an easy and quick day trip from Berlin. There is a regional train taking you there directly in about 2 hours.
As I mentioned in my report, you can use the lander tickets or the Happy Weekend Tickets.
Go for it, it's an easy and pleasant day out from Berlin!
Oh Ingo, you're right about the rivalry. Nowadays it has transferred to the football matches and I think it's good to be kept to sports.
Gertie, Schwerin is quite an easy and quick day trip from Berlin. There is a regional train taking you there directly in about 2 hours.
As I mentioned in my report, you can use the lander tickets or the Happy Weekend Tickets.
Go for it, it's an easy and pleasant day out from Berlin!
Dec 18th, 2007, 08:54 AM
#36
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We reached Dresden just before 9 o’clock and went straight to our accommodation, the same one in Neustadt area. Now we somehow knew our whereabouts. We prepared ourselves for an early morning start.
When we were planning our holiday we checked the availability of tickets to the Historic Green Vault, and they were sold for almost 8 months in advance. Our only chance to get two tickets of the 25% kept for the day, was to be there early in the morning, and we banked on that.
We woke up at 7 o’clock, walked on a few streets in Neustadt part of Dresden, and we spotted some nice architecture, early morning photos. We were glad the weather was nice, the sky was clear, giving signs of a sunny day ahead.
We crossed the river on Augustus Bridge, passed by the cathedral, admired the Semper Opera and there we were, at the Royal Palace. It was 8 o’clock sharp and the queue to the Historic Green Vault was of about 50 persons.
We were lucky and in with a good chance, we thought. We made a rough calculation, considering that they restrict the number of visitors to 100 per hour, and realized that we were going to get our tickets.
My wife and I did turns in the queue, and I walked around and took some photos. By the time the doors opened, after two hours, the line of people was at the gate, probably 200 or more. If the people so far behind were hopeful, how much more we should have been!
At 10 o’clock the doors opened and we were in. After a few minutes our turn came to buy the tickets and we even picked our time of visit! We were happy.
We first saw the New Green Vault. I mean, we knew that the Historic Green Vault was supposed to be the most splendid museum in Europe, but this was only the New Green Vault and we were already amazed.
What we saw there was a fascinating collection of works of art in gold, silver, enamel, gems, ivory, crystals, mother-of-pearl and ostrich eggs. We were waiting impatiently for our turn to visit the Historic Green Vault, and finally we were in.
It was a splendour. Not only the objects of art, but also the rooms with their decorations... We didn’t know where to look first, we couldn’t focus on one object at a time, we couldn’t follow the audio guide, as another and another object was drawing our attention: amber, ivory, silver, gilt silver, mirrors, gems, coats of arms, jewels, bronzes...
All of them were on a background of richly embellished and mirrored walls and on ornamental tables. And then came the Jewel Room with the jewel sets of Augustus the Strong, such an impact against the walls in red with blue.
I think this was the highlight of our tour of the Historic Green Vault. I’d say WOW!
After coming out of these vaults, we felt the need to recover. Therefore, we sat down for a coffee and cake in the café by the entrance. We were happy.
Before we left the palace, we climbed up Hausmann Tower. There were renovation works in the inner court of the palace, but we could still see its beauty as it was coming out through the scaffolding, or on the partially finished walls.
We reached the top of the tower and we had some of the best views of a city in a long while. Hausmannturm offered us a stunning panorama of Dresden. We could also take a closer look at the row of statues on the cathedral’s roof.
Then the red roofs of the Royal Palace, Frauenkirche behind them, Semper Opera down at one side, the Elbe with Marienbrucke... Superb views on a sunny day.
We were now ready to see more of the city and do an old town walk. We visited the cathedral, then passed by the Procession of Princes on that long wall and we were at the Frauenkirche. We went inside and admired its splendid interior.
Took a few pictures from the square, wandered about admiring the architecture, said farewell to Martin Luther and went towards the river. We passed by the Academy of Arts and walked along the Elbe.
On Augustus Bridge was a long line of demonstrators, going towards the old town. I asked someone what it was about and said that it was a protest against a decision by UNESCO not to build another bridge over the Elbe, in order to preserve Dresden’s heritage.
However, the city’s inhabitants wanted another bridge to ease the traffic. While walking on Bruhlsche Terrace, we noticed under a bridge, a nice crowded street full with restaurants: Muenzgasse. We were thirsty and decided to go there and quench our thirst.
We hardly found two seats at a table somewhere and sat down to enjoy some German beer. Colourful balloons were being launched from the other bank of Elbe, and we watched them going high up above us.
The time was getting late, however, so we began our walk back to our accommodation, taking in the last views of this beautiful old town. We crossed Augustus Bridge, passed by the big golden statue, walked around the Market Hall, and there we were on Antonstrasse.
At a street corner we noticed an interesting work of art: on a small table were a cup of coffee, a small notebook, a big pile of CDs and a hat on top of the stack.
This was our two days visit to beautiful Dresden, and we felt that we would have needed another day or two to get a better feel of it.
I’m still not ready with the photos taken in Dresden. However, I’ll post them soon.
Next, going to Prague for our final leg of the trip.
When we were planning our holiday we checked the availability of tickets to the Historic Green Vault, and they were sold for almost 8 months in advance. Our only chance to get two tickets of the 25% kept for the day, was to be there early in the morning, and we banked on that.
We woke up at 7 o’clock, walked on a few streets in Neustadt part of Dresden, and we spotted some nice architecture, early morning photos. We were glad the weather was nice, the sky was clear, giving signs of a sunny day ahead.
We crossed the river on Augustus Bridge, passed by the cathedral, admired the Semper Opera and there we were, at the Royal Palace. It was 8 o’clock sharp and the queue to the Historic Green Vault was of about 50 persons.
We were lucky and in with a good chance, we thought. We made a rough calculation, considering that they restrict the number of visitors to 100 per hour, and realized that we were going to get our tickets.
My wife and I did turns in the queue, and I walked around and took some photos. By the time the doors opened, after two hours, the line of people was at the gate, probably 200 or more. If the people so far behind were hopeful, how much more we should have been!
At 10 o’clock the doors opened and we were in. After a few minutes our turn came to buy the tickets and we even picked our time of visit! We were happy.
We first saw the New Green Vault. I mean, we knew that the Historic Green Vault was supposed to be the most splendid museum in Europe, but this was only the New Green Vault and we were already amazed.
What we saw there was a fascinating collection of works of art in gold, silver, enamel, gems, ivory, crystals, mother-of-pearl and ostrich eggs. We were waiting impatiently for our turn to visit the Historic Green Vault, and finally we were in.
It was a splendour. Not only the objects of art, but also the rooms with their decorations... We didn’t know where to look first, we couldn’t focus on one object at a time, we couldn’t follow the audio guide, as another and another object was drawing our attention: amber, ivory, silver, gilt silver, mirrors, gems, coats of arms, jewels, bronzes...
All of them were on a background of richly embellished and mirrored walls and on ornamental tables. And then came the Jewel Room with the jewel sets of Augustus the Strong, such an impact against the walls in red with blue.
I think this was the highlight of our tour of the Historic Green Vault. I’d say WOW!
After coming out of these vaults, we felt the need to recover. Therefore, we sat down for a coffee and cake in the café by the entrance. We were happy.
Before we left the palace, we climbed up Hausmann Tower. There were renovation works in the inner court of the palace, but we could still see its beauty as it was coming out through the scaffolding, or on the partially finished walls.
We reached the top of the tower and we had some of the best views of a city in a long while. Hausmannturm offered us a stunning panorama of Dresden. We could also take a closer look at the row of statues on the cathedral’s roof.
Then the red roofs of the Royal Palace, Frauenkirche behind them, Semper Opera down at one side, the Elbe with Marienbrucke... Superb views on a sunny day.
We were now ready to see more of the city and do an old town walk. We visited the cathedral, then passed by the Procession of Princes on that long wall and we were at the Frauenkirche. We went inside and admired its splendid interior.
Took a few pictures from the square, wandered about admiring the architecture, said farewell to Martin Luther and went towards the river. We passed by the Academy of Arts and walked along the Elbe.
On Augustus Bridge was a long line of demonstrators, going towards the old town. I asked someone what it was about and said that it was a protest against a decision by UNESCO not to build another bridge over the Elbe, in order to preserve Dresden’s heritage.
However, the city’s inhabitants wanted another bridge to ease the traffic. While walking on Bruhlsche Terrace, we noticed under a bridge, a nice crowded street full with restaurants: Muenzgasse. We were thirsty and decided to go there and quench our thirst.
We hardly found two seats at a table somewhere and sat down to enjoy some German beer. Colourful balloons were being launched from the other bank of Elbe, and we watched them going high up above us.
The time was getting late, however, so we began our walk back to our accommodation, taking in the last views of this beautiful old town. We crossed Augustus Bridge, passed by the big golden statue, walked around the Market Hall, and there we were on Antonstrasse.
At a street corner we noticed an interesting work of art: on a small table were a cup of coffee, a small notebook, a big pile of CDs and a hat on top of the stack.
This was our two days visit to beautiful Dresden, and we felt that we would have needed another day or two to get a better feel of it.
I’m still not ready with the photos taken in Dresden. However, I’ll post them soon.
Next, going to Prague for our final leg of the trip.
Dec 20th, 2007, 04:30 PM
#37
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Here's the link to photos taken in Dresden:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWK5
I'll continue later with the last leg of my trip, two days in Prague.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWK5
I'll continue later with the last leg of my trip, two days in Prague.
Dec 21st, 2007, 07:37 AM
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Thank you for this great report and the wonderful pictures!
You have whetted my appetite further for Dresden, and Schwerin sounds so interesting too.
You and your wife are so enthusiastic and fun, so I'm sure you have settled into your new life with joy.
You have whetted my appetite further for Dresden, and Schwerin sounds so interesting too.
You and your wife are so enthusiastic and fun, so I'm sure you have settled into your new life with joy.
Jan 2nd, 2008, 05:23 AM
#39
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Thank you for your appreciation, Surie.
Indeed, we have gotten used to our new life here, the changes in the life style, habits, it's a NEW place for us after all, and we gradually feel more and more at home.
For the past 2 weeks we've been on a holiday around the south and south western part of Western Australia, so didn't have time to finish this report. We enjoyed great scenery, nature and wildlife, and had a good time, but about this, on the Ozzie forum probably.
Indeed, we have gotten used to our new life here, the changes in the life style, habits, it's a NEW place for us after all, and we gradually feel more and more at home.
For the past 2 weeks we've been on a holiday around the south and south western part of Western Australia, so didn't have time to finish this report. We enjoyed great scenery, nature and wildlife, and had a good time, but about this, on the Ozzie forum probably.
Jan 2nd, 2008, 05:41 AM
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Here’s a link to photos taken during our second day in Prague:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWLO
We arrived in Prague at about noon and checked in at our accommodation. We first went to the Franz Kafka Museum.
It was a good visit, and it made me search for his books even more.
Not far from there was Charles Bridge, so we went for the compulsory walk on it. We caught glimpses of it from the museum and we looked forward to getting there.
We walked on a beautiful old narrow walled street, then we were there at last. The crowds were huge, of course. No chance ever of taking a photo all by yourself.
However, we enjoyed the walk and liked the views of the castle on the hill, the boats on the river and the feeling of being there, on that bridge.
We turned right along the river and went to Naprstek Museum of Ethnology.
We enjoyed seeing its collections of Asian, African and American cultures.
It was around 6 o’clock and we decided to explore some of the old town streets. We stopped at a small restaurant (forgot its name, but what does it matter? – we were in Prague, the old town, in an old building with old walls, having a great old feel) on one of the streets to have our supper. One of the dishes we had was premiere for both of us, a pea soup, which was not bad at all.
Later we reached the Astronomical Clock and waited for the top of the hour to see the spectacle, along with a big crowd gathered there, cameras flashing all the while.
We returned to the bridge under the night lights and admired the castle all lit on the hill. The crowds were still there, as if they were a permanent feature of the bridge, very lively and beautiful indeed.
We went back on the same narrow walled street by Franz Kafka Museum, this time lit by a few centuries old wall lamps, however with electric light, giving it a nice period atmosphere.
It was around 10 pm when we took the metro back to our accommodation. We changed at the station to take the tram and noticed a few dubious characters around. However, they were minding their business, either drinking from a bottle, preparing to sleep on a bench, or just sitting and looking.
We didn’t feel in danger of anything, but we kept a fast pace to move away from that area.
We were looking forward to our next morning, our last day in Prague, to explore more of this beautiful city.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...1AaNGzly4ZsWLO
We arrived in Prague at about noon and checked in at our accommodation. We first went to the Franz Kafka Museum.
It was a good visit, and it made me search for his books even more.
Not far from there was Charles Bridge, so we went for the compulsory walk on it. We caught glimpses of it from the museum and we looked forward to getting there.
We walked on a beautiful old narrow walled street, then we were there at last. The crowds were huge, of course. No chance ever of taking a photo all by yourself.
However, we enjoyed the walk and liked the views of the castle on the hill, the boats on the river and the feeling of being there, on that bridge.
We turned right along the river and went to Naprstek Museum of Ethnology.
We enjoyed seeing its collections of Asian, African and American cultures.
It was around 6 o’clock and we decided to explore some of the old town streets. We stopped at a small restaurant (forgot its name, but what does it matter? – we were in Prague, the old town, in an old building with old walls, having a great old feel) on one of the streets to have our supper. One of the dishes we had was premiere for both of us, a pea soup, which was not bad at all.
Later we reached the Astronomical Clock and waited for the top of the hour to see the spectacle, along with a big crowd gathered there, cameras flashing all the while.
We returned to the bridge under the night lights and admired the castle all lit on the hill. The crowds were still there, as if they were a permanent feature of the bridge, very lively and beautiful indeed.
We went back on the same narrow walled street by Franz Kafka Museum, this time lit by a few centuries old wall lamps, however with electric light, giving it a nice period atmosphere.
It was around 10 pm when we took the metro back to our accommodation. We changed at the station to take the tram and noticed a few dubious characters around. However, they were minding their business, either drinking from a bottle, preparing to sleep on a bench, or just sitting and looking.
We didn’t feel in danger of anything, but we kept a fast pace to move away from that area.
We were looking forward to our next morning, our last day in Prague, to explore more of this beautiful city.
