Today it didn't feel much as a Monday, though there was some business to do, taxes! I still ow money from taxes, in the year 2010 when I lived in Canada I still payed my taxes just like everyone else, but I didn't even had to. I didn't live in Holland in 2010 so, paying taxes for Holland while I was overseas wasn't needed. Last Saturday I finally recieved a paper from the taxes office, the paper I waited for so long. I got a mail this year in February from taxes, they were telling me that I have the right on a sum of money from the year 2010 cause I lived overseas.
I had to go to the nearest taxes office and ask for a M-file, that file I had to fill in and post it. And so I did, though from Frebruary untill now I waited for that M-file, they were out of M-files and had to order it. Now I finally got it, I had to fill it in but with some questions on that file I had some difficulties. That's why I went to the taxes office this morning, see if they could help me fill it in. And they could. Finally it's all done now, ugh, taxes, always slow. The guy behind the desk helped me out and then told me that I will get a mail as soon the money is made over, wi'll see.
Ready, steady go! Day 3, trip to Berlin.
I feel great, it's such a good feeling to know that everything is taking care off. I only had to pack my bags, hop in the bus and enjoy! After a refreshed shower I planned this morning already my breakfast, scrumbled eggs? muesli? Or just bread with jam or cheese? It became bread with cheese and a glass of milk. Do I feel homesick? Nope, not at all. Or perhaps not yet, I think I will be when it's Friday and will be on my way home. But for now I feel good, excited what the next days will bring. I slept okay on this third night, though I was early awake, 6:30! When I went down for breakfast I saw Gerrit aswell, (he's the old funny man who sat next to me in the bus) I saw him last night aswell. He told me he rented a bicycle and explored the centre of Berlin, he had such a good time. Gerrit showed me the pictures on his camera, today he will be going again.
The sun shinned brightly today, it was warm and hot. I loved it! Today we did another tour in the bus, yesterday we went in the centre of Berlin, today we went just outside Berlin. With some of the activities during these five days you have to pay extra, it's not that much tough, it's worth it. I payed the whole sum, the whole trip, breakfast, dinner and the extra activities. Ofcource, cause I'm on a holiday and I want to enjoy the fullest, like I said I didn't had to pay that much extra. It was after 9:00 and I went downstairs for the tour, again we had the same guide as yesterday. He's a good guide and tells his stories interesting, again he told about World War 2, and the East and West of Berlin in the war time. The bus driver drove just outside the centre of Berlin and our guide started talking about what we all saw outside, There sure is a difference between West and East Berlin, East Berlin is full of foreigners, cheap shops, loads of graffiti. (oh my)
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| Motherland statue at Treptower Park. |
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| The Soviet War Memorial at Treptower park. |
We drove trough East Berlin towards Treptower Park, that park is a historical place during the war and even after the war. The Soviet War Memorial is located here, I have seen it before on TV and in magazines but in real? No way, wow! It's huge and incredible, our guide told us a few stories about how this Memorial arise. Many, many Russian soldiers were buried here. I wanted to walk around the whole park and explore more statues, but we didn't had time. From Treptower Park we drove further to another sightseeing, Tempelhof Park. The park isn't that big but across the park is an old airport, Berlin Tempelhof airport.
Tempelhof was designated as an airport by the Ministry of Transport on 8 October 1923. The old terminal was originally constructed in 1927. In anticipation of increasing air traffic, the Nazi government began a massive reconstruction in the mid-1930s.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Tempelhof_Airport
This visit was awesome aswell, but way to short again, but okay, we had a full program these five days. So, sometimes we had to keep moving on. Plus doing a tour with such a big bus isn't easy aswell, parking lots in the big city, you know. This airport was ofcource not in use anymore but it's still intact. Berlin wants to keep the historical buildings as monuments or just as a remembrance.Ofcource some of the monuments and buildings are not intact anymore, architectures and builders are trying to re-build those buildings, etc, etc. Berlin in my eyes looks like a city under constructions, cranes, and builders everywhere. It's a good thing though. From Tempelhof the bus drove to Bernauer strasse, I had no clue what to expect, almost every visit is a surprise. It seems on this street where the 'Wall' was located many East or West Berliners try to escape over the Wall shortly after the war in 1961, some with succes but most without succes.
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| Huge painting on the side of the houses in Bernauer strasse, formaliar picture, right? |
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| The Berlin Wall Monument at the Bernauer strasse. |
I could hear it when they speak, it's the dialect, lol. I stay friendly with everyone, some talk alotmusea area, not even far from the river Spree. It's aswell close to our hotel, we stopped here for lunch, within a hour back for a boat trip over 'The Spree.' It was fine with me. The Berliner Dom is by far the most gorgeous building I ever seen, I took several pictures. Oh this whole area was outstanding, I surely will be back. Berlin is a touristic city, but not as busy and overwhelming as London. Berlin is more spreaded out, aswell this city has alot of green and lots of parks and small rivers. The traffic is not much aswell, you could easily crossover, watch the green light though! I could (I think( easily spend a year here, should I move? It was warm and sunny while I flaunted over the streets, I decided to order a ice cream and a glass of juice.
I sat at a restaurant outside with next to me the Spree, life couldn't be better, but oh my the sun burned. I watched my clock, it was 1:30, I still had 30 minutes till the bus takes of again. Plenty of time I thought, but the waitress took long, after I ordered my bowl of ice and apple juice, I had to wait ofcource it. That took a while, but within fifteen minutes 'it' came, finally. I still had fifteen minutes to eat and drink plus paying the bill, brain freeze, brain freeze, lol. I wanted to pay my bill but the waitresses just walked by and by, I decided to go inside and pay there my bill. A waitress told me to go outside and wait for the other waitress, I told her that I haven't got much time, she alowed me then to pay the bill inside, sigh! Some Germans.... Right on time at the bus, we took of at 2:05 for the boat trip. I think it was at least thirty degrees on the boat, no covering just an open deck.
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| The Berliner Dom! |
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| Swans flaunting during our boat trip, was not that easy to take pictures from the boat, I sat right in the middle. |
I always like a complete meal, for example, rice with veggies and meat, or potatoes, veggies and meat. It will be rare when I don't have meat with my dinner. After dinner I went for a walk with Gerrit, poor Gerrit had a few blisters on his toes, so he went oh his bicycle, I walked next to him. A nice sunny afternoon, Gerrit wanted to take me to a place what I had to see, he insisted! It was a nice little square, it had a French look, a few little musea, a little square and a few terraces, very nice! Gerrit loves it!! It was nice to be here, the evening breeze cooled down my sun burn, that felt good. After an hour we went back to the hotel, it's been a long day, oh yes. Tomorrow will be our last day in Berlin, wow, how time flies. Friday at 8:30 we will take of to Holland, but I don't wanna go yet.
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