Berlin

It was a great weekend in Berlin!  The flight was only an hour and the sun was out!  This is me in front of the Reichstag!  On my tour of the city I learned lots of facts - 70% of the city was destroyed during WWII which translates into a city of many concrete and glass newer buildings and the remaining 30% of beautiful old buildings.  What I found most bizarre, was that no one speaks of Hitler, instead everything related to the Holocaust is referred to as "the war."

The famous Checkpoint Charlie

These two buildings are two of Berlins oldest and are located in the Genardarmemarkt which is where the Prussian Guard were stationed hundreds of years ago.

Most of The Wall has been destroyed, on purpose to help with the reunification of Germany.  I was really looking forward to taking home my own piece of it but I was out of luck.  What is left is located along the rivers edge and is considered an outdoor art exhibit since it has been completely covered with various artists creations.

This is an urban apartment building.  So much of the pictures I have taken are of the most beautiful buildings and places I have traveled so I wanted to include some more normal pictures to give an idea how the average person lives.  In cities, most people are in large apartment buildings, this being one of the nicer ones.  Berlin in general, was not as clean as other places I have been.  I saw many abandoned buildings, trash on the ground and lots and lots of grafitti. 

This is the Jewish Memorial in central Berlin.  Before the war 300,000 Jews were living in Berlin including Albert Einstein.  Now the Jewish population is estimated to be 14,000.

The Brandenburg Gate, formerly a boundry between East and West.  My hotel was located in the old eastern part of the city, as well as most of the buildings and monuments.

The oldest University in Berlin is Humboldt University!  Made me feel a little bit closer to home...

These are people on Segways getting ready for a city tour.

Museum

Berlin Cathedral

Stockholm Sweden

Stockholm is a beautiful city, very clean both architecturally and literally.  It is set on a series of islands which create lovely waterfronts all over the place.  The above picture is of the most expensive apartments in the city.  The tour guide told us they went for $14,000 per square meter, which I believe equates to $4,666 a square foot.

Since Stockholm has such great water ways, I took a boat tour to get situated.  Unfortunately, upon my late Friday night arrival I found out about my job loss back at home so most of my time here was spent in a daze - trying to enjoy the city but also trying to not lose my mind.

Stockholm is an incredibly old city, if I remember correctly it was founded in the early 1200's so there is a great old town.  This is also a town of many, many museums so I spent much of my time strolling the streets of the old town.  There were many tourists on the larger streets but it was very easy to take a side street and drift away into the maze of old buildings.

Church in Old Town Center

I have become completely obsessed with the doors of Europe...they are just so intricate and lovely.  Especially church doors..so many more photos of doors to come! 

This is the Grand Hotel, the reddish building

Parliment

Church tower in old town

Some of the most amazing experiences happen to me while wondering around on Sunday mornings...In Rome I stumbled upon the Popes Mass, and in Stockholm I ran into a military band parade at the Royal Palace.  The soldiers marched around and played music for about an hour.

I see why Sweden stays out of military conflicts, their soldiers are very pretty!  After spending my summers with our military, these guys look pretty wimping to me.  One thing I havent mentioned yet is the fact that usually in each country I travel to, the majority of people resemble each other quite a bit.  This was very true in Sweden, it felt like the land of Ken and Barbie, everyone tall and blonde.  Being an American, I didnt realize how we are ethnic "muts," now while I travel I end up spending lots of time on planes and in airports.  I like to guess where people are from based on their looks and language - super exciting I know!

The main square in Old Town, I was sitting on a bench after taking this picture when I heard the military band playing.

This is my hotel, The Berns.  It was the first somewhat "modern" hotel I have stayed in since I can remember.  Its marketed as a "rock and roll" hotel, apparently lots of musicians stay here when they are in town, however I didnt spot any but it was a great hotel.

I was so excited to see this familiar name on a Sunday morning stroll!  I was super hungry since most hotels charge a crazy amount for breakfast and I ended up eating at this cute little cafe.

I found these cute little wool angels in an adorable shop, wool products are really popular in Stockholm.  I plan on giving them to my little Sundberg angels Sam and Jo, much better present than the tacky ones that are sold everywhere!

Italy - Sardina and Rome

Sardinia!! Its a fairly large island to the west of Italy in the Mediterranian and word on the street is its where the richest of the rich go to vacation with their yahcts.  This was most evident when I landed at the Olbia airport and counted over 40 private planes.

The island itself is pretty rocky and dry, lots of cactus and not much vegetation or life.  Once you hit the rocky coastline the beaches and water are amazing and I could easily see why many come to vacation.

The hotel I stayed in was lovely and had great pools and was located next to all these wonderful beaches.  The water was perfectly warm and relaxing.  I just stayed at the hotel and walked around in the early am when it was still cool enough to do so comfortably.

The hotel pool overlooking the ocean

After my relaxing weekend in Sardinia, I followed it with another weekend trip to Rome in order to keep the Italian vibe going and it was a great idea!  I love Italy, the people, the language, the food, just about everything!  The weather in Rome was either downpouring rain or the swelttering heat, but I was still able to hit the cobblestoned roads and see the sights!

Trevi Fountain

Spanish steps

View of "the main" street for shopping from the Spanish Steps...this is where Gucci, Fendi, Chanel, and Louis Vuittion live.

For the weekend I used a hop on hop off bus tour which takes you to all the main attractions.  Unfortuantely my headphones didnt work so I didnt get the specifics but my explanation is that there is just lots of old stuff everywhere.  Im sure some buildings and churches are more important than others, but I just soaked it all in without the details.

One of the best by chance experiences was being at St. Peters Square during Sunday Mass.  They put up big screen televisions to broadcast what the Pope was saying and people were cheering just like at a concert.  It was a very special moment even for someone who is not religious.