Berlin - Dresden - Munich

Hi,

Very doable arriving at FRA in the morning and by late afternoon between 17 and 1800 arrive in Berlin Hbf. I did that last April. without even pushing it.

If you're deeply into the World War 1 and 2 "stuff" (you didn't specify which), I suggest a number of historical places in Berlin and elsewhere on the war history. The DHM (Ger Hist Museum) on Unter den Linden is a must, very well done, scholarly, professional. It's one of the museums in Europe where the 88 mm gun can be seen. Take a day trip out to Frankfurt an der Oder train station, take the S-Bahn to Seelow to see the Gedenkstätte (Memorial) and Museum for the battle of Seelow Heights. If you read German well enough, the museum is enlightening, the same with museum in Berlin-Karlshorst, which is on the S-Bahn 3 route. The museum is housed in the same building where the Germans surrendered to the Soviets a day after they had done to the Allies in Reims, shows the war on the Eastern Front.

What about military and war cemeteries? German and British in the Gross-Berlin area. There is a major one about a half hr walk from Berlin Hbf....the Invalidenfriedhof, one the oldest Prussian-German military cemeteries in Berlin.

king,

A few thoughts and comments regarding your questions.....

• Berlin - I really like Pension Peters and would highly recommend it. It's in the former "western" sector and close to the Bahnhof Zoo and Savignyplatz rail stations. There are some nice restaurants in the area. For some interesting walking tours, have a look at the website for Original Berlin Walks. I've taken a couple of tours with them, and I thought their guides were outstanding. For WW-II history in that area, the Museum has a reasonably good display of military history. You could also take a day trip to Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp, which is about an hour out of Berlin in Oranienburg. If you make that trip with Berlin Walks, you'll get a greater understanding of the history and of the previous camp that was located there prior to the construction of Sachsenhausen.
• Dresden - one of most convenient hotels is the InterCity Hotel Dresden, which is right across from the rail station and a Tram stop. It's a modern and comfortable hotel (great breakfast buffet) and also within easy walking distance to a large outdoor shopping area, with shops, restaurants, etc. One of the sights in that area that I really enjoyed was the Bundeswehr Museum which has a unique design by Daniel Libeskind. The Frauenkirche is well worth seeing and the area surrounding that is vibrant, with musicians and lots of activity.
• Munich - for hotels you could have a look at Hotel Royal (close to the main Hbf) or Hotel Uhland (in a quiet residential area, about a 15 minute walk from the station). There's LOTS to see in Munich! In addition to walking tours (have a look at Radius Tours), visit the fantastic Deutsches Museum (16 kM of exhibits), the Museum of Transport or the Air Museum, stop for a few pints in the famous Hofbrauhaus, tour Marienplatz and see the Glockenspiel, take a day trip to Dachau Concentration Camp, to Ludwig's castles in Füssen, to Berchtesgaden (see the Eagle's Nest or Dokumentation Centre and Bunkers, take a Salt Mine tour) or spend a day in Salzburg.
• Prague - I really liked the Green Garland Pension. The rooms were modern but somewhat basic (no TV but free Wi-Fi), and an easy walk to the Charles Bridge and other sights. In addition to the Castle and other sights there, if you're interested in WW-II history you could take a walking tour covering the Heydrich story, and visit the small museum in the basement of the St. Cyril & Methodius Church (look up "Operation Anthropod" for details).

I don't have any comments on Budapest and Istanbul, but I'm sure the others will have lots of information. "Greece" is a rather broad subject, so it would help to have more information on which areas you'd like to visit there and which sights you're interested in seeing. You may find it helpful to have a look at the excellent Greece Travel website.

You'll also be able to get a lot of good information by having a look at the guidebooks for each of the places you'll be visiting.

Greece is pretty planned out, we are meeting some friends in Greece and they have it planned out. Seems like Greece is more of a relax/party type of environment.

As for Germany I just want to make sure I get a even balance of history, castles, and fun. Looks liek there is a lot to do, better get on some hardcore researching.

Do you guys suggest Dresden as a must place to visit or should I swap it for something else?

I think that Dresden is at least as interesting and worthwhile as any other German city you could substitute and it has the advantage of being close to Berlin. As far as a direct train route goes, Munich is the slight "detour" on this plan. If you would be just as happy to travel Berlin-Dresden-Prague-Vienna-Budapest, travel time would be a little faster. I hope you are flying to Greece and to Istanbul.

Yah def flying from Budapest to Greece. As far as Munich goes, I actually thought of going from Dresden to Prague and back to Munich, as the train is cheaper from Munich to Budapest rather than Prague to Budapest.

My favorite memory is from Potsdam in 1994. I’d left the S-Bahn station in search of Sanssouci Palace. On the way, I noticed a group of old buildings that were still war-damaged and went into the courtyard where a family was crossing perpendicular to me. The small boy (about 5 years old) left his parents and ran to me and began talking - as his parents kept walking. I couldn’t understand him and he finally turned and went back to the parents, who had their backs to me by then and hadn’t called him back. It’s always amazed me that they trusted him and me, a complete stranger. That wouldn’t happen in this country! Interesting that I can’t recall any details of the buildings but can still see that little boy. That was the day I learned that Germans have a much different level of trust than Americans have.

Another favorite memory isn't of Berlin but from Bangkok in 1964. I’d just come out of a theater where an Elvis movie was shown with Thai subtitles. Before the movie, a picture of the King and Queen was projected on the screen when everyone stood as the national anthem was played. The memory though is of a middle-aged Thai man who approached me as I was walking and asked me if he could buy me a beer. Being a small-town guy, I still knew the dangers of strangers - especially in strange places. I declined politely but he stayed with me and asked me not to insult him. There was an outdoor café nearby so I agreed to go there with him. He explained that, when he had studied in the U.S., people had shown him hospitality and he wanted to return the favor to Americans in his home. Literally. He took me to his home where he introduced me to his family and we had another beer and visited before he summoned a taxi and paid the fare back to my hotel! He was a professor of agriculture at Chulalongkorn University and is still my epitome of graciousness and gratefulness after more than 50 years.