Wife and I just got back from a 2 week trip to Germany, the primary reason to spend a week at the Bayreuth Festival, a separate four part report filed elsewhere here. We flew to Duesseldorf from Chicago via Dublin. In hindsight we could have flown open jaw to Berlin, but I seem to recall that I could only get a free overnight in Dublin on the return by doing a round trip to DUS. Anyway, we booked an ICE from the airport to Berlin with a Sparpreis ticket of just 58 euro with seat reservations by booking the day they went on sale. I left a 3 hour window from scheduled landing, but since we arrived 20 minutes early, that was unnecessary. I know it is risky to buy nonrefundable train tickets on day of arrival, but as the normal price with a seat reservation was 231 euro, I figured it was worth the gamble. The monorail to the station still needs a VRR short trip ticket for 1.60 pp which we bought from the vending machine on the platform.
Trip to Berlin was smooth. We changed to the S-Bahn at Spandau to get us to Savigny Platz, just a couple of blocks from our hotel at Pension Peters. Our host, Uwe, checked us in and gave us his advice for transportation and local restaurants. He gives this to all the guests visiting Berlin for their first time. The area around Savigny Platz is loaded with outdoor cafes. There is a small grocery store right around the corner, and the bus to the Zoo Bahnhof is just outside the door to the left.
We took the 100 bus from Zoo Bahnhof to Alexander Platz to get a view of the city, then the U-bahn to Bernauer Strasse to tour the old wall sites. There is a nice park with info sites and exhibits all the way to the Nordbahnhof where there are still some sections remaining. S-Bahn back to Brandenburger Tor to walk and gawk and back to the hotel for dinner.
Next day we had reservations for the English tour of the Reichstag. Be warned. Get there at least 30 minutes before. We rode the 100 bus, and because so many tourists were boarding along the way who had to buy tickets from the driver that it like seemed forever. At the Reichstag, there was a mob and it was unclear which line we were supposed to get in. When we finally found the right line, they said “You are too late!!” After some chatter on the radio, they said OK, go in they’re waiting for you. We met up with the group and 5 minutes later (at the appointed time) our guide greeted us and the tour began.
Much of it was regarding the history and architecture of the building, especially the graffiti left by Soviet soldiers, which was left exposed and preserved for its historical significance. The rest was about the differences in the electoral and governmental systems of Germany, France, UK and the US. At one point, he asked someone if they could read the name on an office, and they looked closely, “Bundeskanzler Angela Merkel”. “Go ahead and knock and see if she’s in.” She wasn’t. It is just a temporary office when she needs to be present for a Bundestag session. The guide had a nice dry sense of humor. He mentioned that Chancellor Merkel was probably favoring land lines these days for her phone calls. I asked why and he said. “Must be because she can’t get enough bars on her handy inside the building.” We finished with a walk up in the glass dome with a free headset describing the sights of Berlin as you walk up the spiral ramp. There is a very nice restaurant with outdoor seating on the roof for lunch or just a Berliner beer.
We then took the 100 bus to the museum island and toured the Pargamon Museum. The Pergamon Alter is closed now for restoration, but the rest of the exhibits were quite interesting. Took a short boat ride on the Spree with another Berliner beer. Finally stopped at the Victory Column to look at the bronze panels on the outside. Back to the hotel for dinner then off to Eisenach and Bayreuth the next day.