Preserve your memories, they're all that's left of you

So, Berlin: Day 1
There was some sort of street fair going on, so getting on and off the bus at the hostel was weird. I ended up just getting on an U-Bahn that just happened to go to the zoo, which is exactly where I wanted to go! I spent a good 15 minutes watching the elephants, and then about 10 watching the gorillas. It was raining, and I sort of got trapped in the primate house. I sat in there for probably an hour reading my book and watching the orangutans jump around. I was kinda bummed for a bit, because I came to Berlin without a coat/raincoat/umbrella/socks, but I got over it soon enough. My Toms are in bad shape, but I don't think it's anything a good wash couldn't fix! The sun came out, and it was perfect for walking around the zoo. I saw all the animals! Even the hippo! Ok, I didn't see the Kangaroos. I think they were sleeping or they escaped. I'm not sure.

After the zoo, I took a bus to the Guggenheim. I love the Guggenheim in New York, so naturally, I thought the Guggenheim in Germany would be equally exciting. Not so. They had an exhibit going on that was called "Once Upon a Time," and it was little videos made about different fairy tales. One was a woman walking on the moon, and another was of some Asians dancing around a factory with fairy wings on. I didn't stay long.
Next stop was the Memorial for Murder European Jews. A mouthful, and really put a damper on my mood. I actually did not know there was a museum under the monument. I looked all over for the monument, and finally found it. I walked all through it and around it, and it is really cool on it's own. As I was leaving, I noticed stairs going down under it to the museum. It was a really cool thing to see. It's so interesting to see the way the Holocaust is portrayed in Germany.
On the way back to my hostel, I stumbled upon some kind of Japan/Germany peace thing. I'm not sure what it was really, since they spoke in German and Japanese, and I don't know what the relationship between the two countries is like, but it was neat to watch.

Berlin: Day 2
I wanted to look at some of the Berlin castles, so I looked a few up online, wrote down the address' and took the bus into town. I did stop at the bakery on the way to the bus stop and picked up a berliner and a danish thing. I like the bakeries in Germany a lot. When I got into town, I found the two "palaces" I wanted to look at, and it turns out they had been turned into restaurants and businesses. So I couldn't look around in them. I think the people here wanted to move forward very badly at one point, and forget about the past. They didn't see the Berlin wall, or palaces as something they would one day see as their history, so they tore things down, or turned them into other things. I took a few pictures of the outsides of the buildings, but nothing really special.
Next, I went to the German history museum. This took me just about as long as the zoo the day before. There is a lot to German history. It's weird to start at the beginning of time, and it actually be big things from history. U.S. history would take many an hour or two to go through, but this was about thousands of years of history. Everything from the Celts migrating to the area, to kings, penny farthings, zeppelins, and Adolf History. It went all the way into 1994. So much has taken place in this country. I am a little jealous of their rich history.
After the museum, I hopped on the U-Bahn and headed to Mauer Park to see the Berlin Wall. I had no idea what to expect. I was thinking there would be this throng of tourists taking pictures and remembering, but I was so wrong. I walked up this huge hill, and came up on a huge wall covered by layers and layers of graffetti. People were sitting on benches, just hanging out and drinking beer. No one seemed to notice this giant piece of history right behind them. I tried to be inconspicuous and take some pictures, and then I got out of there.
I headed back to my hostel to find the street fair going on in full force. I dropped some things off, and headed out to have a crepe. I did, and it was delicious. I walked around for a bit, and then went back for an early night. I was just tired and ready to be back in Friedrichshafen.


Made it back home safely! I did not enjoy the ridiculous train ride... Was so glad to be in my own bed, even if the mattress is hard as a rock :)

So,  I have been trying real hard to post my pictures, but it's not working. I'm going to go ahead and post this without them, and then put them up in another post later. Nighty night!