Berlin, Berlin, Berlin

Yes, I realize it has been well over one week since my last entry.  Never fear -- it's not that I haven't been doing some amazingly interesting things. (Actually, I'm quite boring, come to think of it, so what might be exciting to me, may be rather yawn-worthy to the rest of the world.)  I've just been quite busy.  Keep in mind that even though I have been doing my best to cram in all the sightseeing I can over the weekends, my weekdays are dedicated to the second graders I am currently teaching.  My week nights are spent preparing for the next day, working on all the junk my university is making me do (sheer busywork, I tell you), and checking in on high schoolers, making sure they are getting their homework done.  Now, I have been busier in the past, doing work that is much less rewarding.  Still, I haven't been finding a whole lot of time for blogging.  Throw in a yucky virus I've been fighting the past week and you can figure out the rest.

BUT -- what have I been doing on my weekends, in spite of everything else?  Well, I'll tell you.

Two Saturdays ago, I took advantage of the free tour of Berlin (see my previous post about Munich).  I had already seen most of the sites before, but this also gave me a chance to briefly check out the amazingly underwhelming Checkpoint Charlie:

That's right -- people come from all around just to buy overpriced souvenirs and take pictures with fake U.S. soldiers.

Early into the evening, I took the train to the town of Teltow as I had been invited to dinner at the home of the person I am student teaching for.  It was understood that I was to call from a payphone when I reached the train station.  As luck would have it (at least my sort of luck, anyway), the only payphone was broken.  I thus set out to find a working telephone.  In broken German, I asked to use the telephone at a grocery store and a very, very smoky bar.  Both places said "nein", and not so very nicely either.  Thankfully, the third place I tried was a Burger King where I was promptly taken to the back office (through the food prep area) and given somebody's cell phone to use.  Burger King is now my favorite fast food place.  To commemorate my experiences, I snapped a photo:

If you're ever stranded in Teltow, Germany without a phone and with a very limited understanding of German, they will help you here.

 The person I am student teaching for is from Scotland and her husband is from Germany.  They have three kids -- two boys who are in first and second grade, and a three-year-old girl.  I know I've mentioned this before, but multilingual European children are the cutest.  After dinner, they (the children, not their parents) performed traditional Scottish dances for me, with a little bit of Bollywood mixed in.  Very entertaining.   I paid them in Kinder Eggs (which I am now addicted to).

The next day I visited Berlin's Jewish Museum.  I don't have anything too major to report from there besides this awesome Friends yamulke:

I feel like I understand the Jewish people of Berlin so much better now.

 Oh, that's right.  I also stopped by the cemetery where the Brothers Grimm are buried.  I'm not exactly sure what I was expecting, but I was sort of disappointed by the utter simplicity:

Note to self: Research the other two people buried with them.

There was a very pretty sculpture next to their grave site.  I like to think it is somehow related to them, therefore my visit wasn't entirely a bust:

I mean, depending on how you look at it, it could be a couple of fairytale princesses.

 

That brings us to this past weekend, which is when the Christmas Markets (or Weihnachtsmärkten) opened.  Here's the thing.  Germans know how to celebrate Christmas.  These things are set up all over town.  There are food stands, rides, things to buy, etc., etc., etc.  It's basically like the Minnesota State Fair on every other street, but in the winter with lots of lights and Christmas music (and no questionable shirtless people). 

Pretty lights!

They have Coca Cola in Germany too, you see.

There are a lot of sausage stands in Germany.  I tend to stay away from them.

I tend to stay closer to candy stands like this one.

The Christmas Market by the Schloss Charlottenburg (which I also toured) was particularly nice.

Do you know why Germans brave the cold weather to attend all these markets?  One word -- Glühwein, which literally means "glow wine", referring to the glow it brings to your cheek after drinking it.  Basically, it's just mulled wine. You can also ask for your Glühwein with an extra shot of rum or amaretto.  I have yet to try it with amaretto, but it is especially delicious with rum.  At a Swedish Christmas market I also attended, Glögg was served.  This is mulled wine as well, but is served with chopped almonds and raisins actually inside the drink.  I enjoyed that too.

 Next weekend marks my final in Berlin (the weekend after that being Paris).  I am thinking that more Glühwein and Christmas Markets will be involved.