The Heat is On.

Yep, say hello to temps of 100+. It's making me lazy which is why I'm so late updating my blog. Ha! Maybe it's because school is out and I have a teenager to entertain and there goes my life for the next few months. Ha Ha! Maybe I'm just lazy, period. BINGO!!

But I have been combing the capital for more entertaining shots for you. Like this one:
I think it's funnier if I just don't say anything else about it.



So, yes, summer. Many people will go home to their countries of origin for most of it. It is also the time when some people leave for good. Personally, I've never been the type to leave my husband alone in the hot boring desert for that length of time and he hasn't ever been the type to agree to it. We've come to appreciate the lighter flow of traffic, the relative ease of booking tables at favorite restaurants, the additional parking spaces at the malls and grocery stores. I envy those people who have somewhere to escape to for an entire summer, especially if that place happens to be in the south of France, but this is our only home and it is where I am most comfortable for now. I've come to realize that I don't so much enjoy traveling to foreign countries as I like living in them.


That said, we have our previously mentioned, highly anticipated, excursion to Switzerland in July, and I have just returned from a quick trip to Berlin.

A friend of ours had to go to there for work and asked if I would like to tag along. Or I asked and she said sure. It was only two days and I'm here to tell you that Berlin is a big city but we did manage to see a bit of it and have some fun as well.
That's me, livin la vida loca in Berlin.



The first day we just walked around for hours without seeing too much and developing massive blisters on our feet; but we did finally figure out the Unterbahn (metro). Later, we joined her colleagues for a very nice dinner and there was a Las Vegas revue at the hotel.

Day 2, we were all up early for a day of touring and sightseeing with a local guide who may or may not have been a minion of the Devil sent to earth just to torture us for nine hours in a minivan. I have never known anyone to talk so continuously for so long in a language not his native tongue. He certainly knew his history. At the end of our allotted time with him (he wouldn't let us go before) we didn't even let him take us back to the hotel; we leaped out of the van at the train station and made a dash for the nearest bar.Taken while we were still enjoying ourselves.


Having paid our dues (and I suppose we must have learned something) we finally received our reward: we hopped a train into downtown Berlin and actually got to wander around and enjoy some of it. We had a fantastic dinner at a Turkish restaurant and did a tiny bit of souvenir shopping. Back at the hotel, we had one last drink at a biergarten on the river and called it a night.It's the wall. That wall.


Was it worth it? Oh yes! Berlin is a fascinating city and the parts that most captured my interest had to do with the post WWII era. Plus they have these giant painted "Buddy Bears" all over and most importantly, there were numerous photo opportunities for my Menehune.
The Brandenburg Gate.

Checkpoint Charlie (look closely).


There he is promoting detente!



That said, there's no place like home. I'm quite happy to be back with cats, friends and family, and writing to you.

love,
Jaimie