Sights and Sounds of Berlin

During my stay in Berin, I was hosted by Rahel and Sara Rilling, daughters of Helmuth and Martina and wonderful, vibrant, talented women in their own right:

Rahel: http://www.rahelrilling.com

Sara: http://www.sara-maria-rilling.de/projekte.html

They live in the Marienstrasse 26, a quiet street located in the Mitte (center) of Berlin, located in the former East German portion of the city. Sara and her husband Karsten just moved into the same building as Rahel (husband David and son Joseph) so the two families are more or less under one roof. David has two siblings, who live down the same street in number 17, which I found wonderful and remarkable that all of these siblings live in such close proximity to one another.

In the evenings, I was with one Rilling daughter or the other for dinner and wonderful conversation over a bottle of wine. I slept two nights at Rahel's and three nights at Sara's. Unfortunately, I have few pictures from these evenings or the apartments. Suffice it to say, "Es war bei allen sehr gemuetlich" (It was very cozy with everyone), as seen in the somewhat fuzzy picture taken on Sara's terrace.

Sara left late Thursday evening on a bus/band tour of three cities leaving me to finish the bottle of wine with her husband Karsten. I had dinner with Karsten on Friday along the Spree River and on Saturday afternoon, he took me on a walking tour of the former East Berlin (pictures below) which I found exhilerating. It is truly an amazing city with so much history and culture -- a destination for millions of visitors every year.

Sunday, I had brunch with Katherine Evans, the daughter of our close friends Steve and Suzanne Evans from Buffalo, New York. She is currently living in Berlin studyling dance, philosophy and dance theory -- an extremely bright, engaging and talented young woman! I loved connecting with her and hearing about her life as a student and current citizen of Berlin. Afterwards I returned to Sara's apartment and had lunch with Karsten and his daughter Toni before traveling four hours by train to Detmold where I am staying with friend and colleague Anne Kohler.

The following pictures are from my time with the Rilling daughters, Karsten and Katherine. Enjoy!

In Sara and Karsten's new apartment with the family!

Looking across the river at the many restaurants and contemplating - Where shall we eat?

At a French Bistro -- a light dinner of French tartar, red wine, bread, cheese and salad!

A happy Karsten before dinner -- Guten Appetit!

A sporty old Citroen parked along the street -- I dedicate this picture to Paul Lohman!

And this picture is dedicated to my husband, Patrick, the Germanist!

Looking across at the television tower and Island of Museums (Museum Insel).

The Bode Museum, formerly known as the Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum houses art from the Byzantine through the Baroque. Completed in 1904, it was renovated between 1998 and 2006: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bode_Museum

Saturday in Berlin offers tourists an opportunity to visit the flea market. Bierstein anyone?

The Kunstreich is the private home of Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel.

The Altes Museum houses the antique collection of the Berlin State Museums, designed by architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel in the neo-classical style and built between 1823 and 1830.

The Hackescher Markt (Hacke's Market) was named after the mayor Friedrich Graf von Hacke and is located in the Mitte -- full of interesting art and specialty shops.

Kathy eagerly awaits a look in the many shops!

Kathy posing with friends along the River Spree -- bronze statues 'three girls and a boy'.

The Berlin Cathedral: www.berlinerdom.de/?lang=en

A Christian demonstration against abortion across from the Cathedral.

Unter den Linden - the famous boulevard that leads from the site of the City Palace to the Brandenburger Tor.

The Neue Wache -- a Memorial to the victims of war and tyranny. Dating from 1816 and designed by Schinkel as a guardhouse for the troops of Prussia, it has been used as a war memorial since 1931.