Berlin Day 2 - Sunday, June 10, 2007

We woke up around 10 am and headed out to meet Frances and Arun. They were running a bit late though, so we had to find food for ourselves. Knowing that we would be having curry-wurst and donne kebab later that day, we gave up and just had some donuts and munchkins from a Dunkin' Donuts! Frances and Arun met us at the Gedenk Church and we headed off, taking the 100 bus to the German Parliament. The Parliament is goregous, with a magnificent new dome placed atop a very old building. Visitors are allowed to go up through the dome throughout the day to get a 360 degree view of Berlin. The building is also located next to the river Spree and the various government buildings have some wild architecture. After the parliament, we went back to the Brandenburg Gate, visited the Holocaust memorial, and saw the remnants of the Berlin Wall.

By this time the four of us were all craving ice cream, so we set off in search of a restaurant that could satisfy our needs. We weren't disappointed! We then stopped in the Tiergarden for a long afternoon session of Doppel-Kopf.

After Arun thoroughly destroyed us in one round of Doko, we headed to "the most beautiful square in the world" according to Frances. We stopped in a chocolate shop that featured some very unique chocolate sculptures, and then stopped for an afternoon drink (and more Doko!). We finished our visit to the square with some cake from Frances' favorite cake shop.

We finished our day with a trip the Turkish quarter for donne kebab and curry wurst. We just missed a jazz street festival, but got the general gist of the whole thing.

Thanks to Frances and Arun for an amazing trip to Berlin!!!

Berlin Day 1 - Saturday, June 9, 2007

We left the flat at 10:30 on Saturday morning and wound up at our shuttle stop 20 minutes early, so we were able to catch the 11:07 Air Coach to the airport. We got through security in record time, so we stopped to shop a bit and then grabbed a bite to eat. Theresa had potatoes and peas, and Ray had a cajun chicken panini with a bowl of tomato soup, with potato chips on the side. Theresa had leftover potatoes and stored them in the potato chip bag, it worked quite well.

Our flight took us through Heathrow, where we had our first pleasant experience at that airport, getting through the lines quickly. Unfortunately, the flight to Berlin was dreadful with a smoker sitting quite near us and the worst turbulence we'd ever experienced. It got all better as soon as we landed and were greeted at the airport by Arun and Frances! They took us to our hotel and then out to Thai for dinner. The Thai place was amazing, with the most intricate flower-shaped vegetables we'd ever seen. We're trying to stay optimistic and say that they shape the vegetables individually for each plate, but if they do, they need to re-evaluate proper use of their time! Afterwards, Frances and Arun took us on a gorgeous walk around Berlin at night, along the river Spree.

More Fun with Jane & Greg - Sunday, May 27, 2007

We slept in until nearly noon, and found that Jane and Greg were still asleep! We didn't get out until around 1 pm and we headed to a cafe for some lunch. The cafe was a little brisk with a cafeteria-like line for getting food and very small tables. Theresa got Irish soda bread with a cream of vegetable soup, and it was good. We shared a 'Big Breakfast' consisting of beans, an egg, mushrooms, and several different types of sausage and bacon. It was a little underwhelming. Luckily, Ray also got a donut.

Afterwards, the four of us headed to the shops. Greg had enjoyed hurling so much the day before, he wanted to find a hurling jersey. We found one, but Greg couldn't bring himself to buy it since it would basically make him look like a walking billboard with all the sponsors on it. Then we headed to a pub to actually watch a hurling match. Jane astutely noted that it was the fastest-paced game she had ever seen (it is the fastest ball-and-stick game in the world!). Ray treated Greg and Jane to pints of Guinees.

We then headed off to the cinema to see Pirates of the Carribean: At World's End. The movie was very confusing, and to make matters worse, we sat next to a group of rowdy Irish children that wouldn't shut up. I later found out that it's pretty typical for Irish parents to unleash their kids into the wild for the weekends so that they can wreak havoc. Generally, no one does anything about it, but Ray's co-worker experienced the exact same thing at another cinema, and someone threw a kid against the wall and poured coca-cola on him. That's pretty cool!

After the movie, we headed home and stopped by Lido's for some fish and chips to go. We ate back at the flat while watching the Padres game via mlb.tv. Jane and Ray also slipped out to call home and let the parents know the good news about the engagement. The parents were very happy.

Be Irish for a Day - Saturday, May 26, 2007

We woke up early and met up with Shane and some other folks and headed off in a van for the Irish countryside so that we could "Be Irish for a Day"! The trip was superb. We first stopped at Trim castle for some quick site-seeing (apparently, scenes from Braveheart were filmed here). Then we headed to Causy farm, where we were greeted by the incredibly friendly farm family. Our first activity was making Irish Soda Bread. Then we learned all about hurling and even got to play a few 1:1 matches against each other. We also learned to make rope out of straw and had a jump-rope competition. The highlight of the day was trying to herd sheep. Afterwards, we sat down to a hearty Irish lunch, eating our soda bread with cheese, meats and salads, followed by the most delicious scones we'd ever had.

We moved on to learning how to play Irish drums, and how to do an Irish jig. And finally we had a tractor ride to the bogs to see where they dig up turf for fuel. We were also treated to the true Irish experience when it started pouring rain.

After we returned from the event, we treated Jane and Greg to Pearl. We shared the foie gras appetizer (again!), still searching for a foie gras that could compare to the one we had in Venice. Ray had the fillet (yes, yes, again), and it's still the best steak he's had. Theresa had the black sole.

Jane & Greg Visit - Friday, May 25, 2007

After a month of planning, Greg surprised Jane with a visit to Dublin. A quick afternoon of jet-lagged napping, and they went for a hike in Howth.

After their return, they revealed that Greg had proposed! Very happy, the four of us went to eat at Ely's Wine Bar (again). We shared the foie gras appetizer (again); it wasn't as good as last time. Ray finally tried bangers and mash, and Theresa had monk fish.