A German Cow, in Isny, southern Germany
The Reichstag, meeting place of the German parliament. It went unused for 60 years and was refurbished with the inclusion of a large domed cupola for viewing the city
We left Sachsenhausen to find Berlin and its Reichstag, as well as Brandenburg Gate. To be honest, with no guide book and trying to see so much, we didn’t have a great knowledge of Berlin…... So with some fear, we drove aimlessly toward the city centre and hoped for the best.
As it turned out, we came across a large set of old towering gates, West of the city centre. We were able to park near them easily so we jumped out and wandered around, getting lots of photos under the assumption that this was the Brandenburg Gates………..um, wrong! They were impressive and whilst we still haven’t found a name for them, we do have lots of pictures……..
We continued on, at this stage unsure of what we had seen and what we hadn’t, and then found the Brandenburg Gates. So that cleared up our last little excursion – a little bit, anyway – and conveniently we discovered that the Gates sit very close to several other big attractions, including the Reichstag building. So park the car and lets get walking.
We wandered along the Spree River, next to Museum Island where 5 museums are beautifully encased in modern architectural wonders. We also walked around the Reichstag building and imagined a city divided by a giant wall, separating families and friends for over 30 years.
By now it was past peak hour traffic time so we thought we might head South of Berlin to stop for the night, getting us along the way for our next destination, Switzerland.
Before we knew it we had enjoyed a nice German meal in a road side diner and as the rain came down, I felt good enough to keep driving. Eventually we stopped and slept in the car (!!) and then side tracked in the morning to a little village near the Austrian border for some breakfast and a walk around.
I don’t think there could have been a more perfect way for us to spend our last few hours in Germany. By now we had entered into Germany 4 times yet had barely seen any of it’s daily life. So the small village of Isny provided at least a small snapshot of that for us. At the foot of the Alps and basically at the corner of Austria, Switzerland and Germany, Isny is a very old town with ancient walls, cobblestoned streets and a friendly café lifestyle.
As it turned out, we came across a large set of old towering gates, West of the city centre. We were able to park near them easily so we jumped out and wandered around, getting lots of photos under the assumption that this was the Brandenburg Gates………..um, wrong! They were impressive and whilst we still haven’t found a name for them, we do have lots of pictures……..
We continued on, at this stage unsure of what we had seen and what we hadn’t, and then found the Brandenburg Gates. So that cleared up our last little excursion – a little bit, anyway – and conveniently we discovered that the Gates sit very close to several other big attractions, including the Reichstag building. So park the car and lets get walking.
We wandered along the Spree River, next to Museum Island where 5 museums are beautifully encased in modern architectural wonders. We also walked around the Reichstag building and imagined a city divided by a giant wall, separating families and friends for over 30 years.
By now it was past peak hour traffic time so we thought we might head South of Berlin to stop for the night, getting us along the way for our next destination, Switzerland.
Before we knew it we had enjoyed a nice German meal in a road side diner and as the rain came down, I felt good enough to keep driving. Eventually we stopped and slept in the car (!!) and then side tracked in the morning to a little village near the Austrian border for some breakfast and a walk around.
I don’t think there could have been a more perfect way for us to spend our last few hours in Germany. By now we had entered into Germany 4 times yet had barely seen any of it’s daily life. So the small village of Isny provided at least a small snapshot of that for us. At the foot of the Alps and basically at the corner of Austria, Switzerland and Germany, Isny is a very old town with ancient walls, cobblestoned streets and a friendly café lifestyle.
Brandenburg Gate, looking East. The original city gates to Berlin, over 200 years old.
The wall behind is 700 years old, built to defend the town from feudal wars in the region
RSS Feed
