30 August 2012
Day at Sea

We spend the day sailing north toward Norway so there is not much to report.  Have already sent out two bags of laundrey from the 12 days travelling to NJYC, Berlin, and Amsrterdam.  The ship offers an all-you-can-get-dirty-laundry-package for the entire 16 days of the cruise--so I am taking advantage of that.

Tour Director Ian is still with the Eurodam; I'll be sure to greet him personally since we have shared four cruises.  I know he remembers me beacuse I gave him some heavy negatives in my frist end-of-cruise review (which HAL takes very seriously)--too much attitude and general snideness about everything.  But he obviously took the criticism to heart and his performance on the last three cruises has been much better.  There will be a good deal of scenic cruising narration as we sail to New York, so his role is pretty important.

The seas are a little high as evening approaches so I decide to skip the dining room and have room service instead before settling in for the night.

I'm still blogging from my ipad.  I haven't tried to resurrect my laptop since it wouldn't work in Amsterdam.  It's a good thing I backed up everything on my external hard drive before leaving Tucson.
It may have gotten bumped one time too many as I travelled to get here.  But the ipad is also a good ice-breaker; everyone who has one feels the need to talk to others.

Tomorrow I shall report form our first port:  Stavanger, Norway

Somewhere on the North Sea
Thursday, 30 August 2012, 3:30 pm

Greetings from the North Sea as the Eurodam heads toward Stavanger, Norway.  The waters are remarkably smooth (even the Captain said so during his noon address today) and the weather is bright and balmy.  I had a good night's rest after first night's dinner on board and I am ready to start catching up on blog entries.  My own computer is on the fritz, so I'm not sure I'll be uploading more photos, but I will certainly send them all when I return home to Tucson.

Monday, 17 August 2012
Amsterdam

I arrive at the Hotel Mowenpick around 6pm and am treated to a spectacular view of the waterfront and Central Station from my 7th floor windows.  So rather than unpack and relax, I head back into town by the tram in front of the hotel for an evening stroll and dinner.

Although much of Amsterdam has not changed over the past 50 years, the city has become more crowded and dirty---this seems especially so after bering in the cleanliness and order of Berlin.  The waterfront along the River Ij has been redeveloped into a busy and trendy area, but there's not much here for tourists.  The streets and byways round the Damrak and Leidesplein offer wonderful opportunites for window shopping, even if one can't afford the prices.  Men's fashion here is way ahead of America and it's fun to see what will filter down to New York in a couple of months.

One of the things that hasn't changed here is the red-light district, which in spite of new buildings and general spiffiness, is still home to the bars and clubs of my younger days.

Tuesday, 29 August 2012
Amsterdam

A lovely day, in spite of the forecast for rain, to continue exploring the shops and streets of Amsterdam.  Although I was at first disappointed that de Bejinkoop, the city's main department store, no longer carries the socks I bought two years ago, I was able to find 12 pairs at a sport shoe store just a few blocks away
(it's not easy finding Puma in Tucson).

After a Turkish barbecue dinner its back to the hotel for repacking for the start of the cruise tomorrow.

So I'll save embarkation and sailing days for the next blog entry.

Monday, 27 August 2012

Amsterdam

Monday, 9 pm

I am looking out my 7th floor window on the River Ij as the lights of the city come on.  The Mowenpick Hotel is built directly over the Cruise Passenger Terminal and if I wake up early enough on Thursday I will be able to watch as the Eurodam docks below my window.

Amsterdam has finally been developing the riverfront behind Centraal Station--a new concert hall, hotels, office blocks, the new cruise terminal.  All this is just a 5-minute walk from the  station, or an even quicker ride on the tram that stops across the street (although I recommend a taxi if you have luggage).

The train ride from Berlin was uneventful.  I must have done something really bad in a previous life to end up sitting in front of two women whose shrill voices went non-stop the entire 6+ hour trip.  Even my noise-reducing headphones could not keep out the unintelligible gibberish.

So I will make this a short entry and give a fuller report on the vibes of Amsterdam tomorrow.

Sunday, 26 August 2012, 9 pm  

BERLIN

I am back again with today's blog entry, but if you haven't logged on recently you might want to check the previous entry as well, since that was delayed by wifi failure.

Another beautiful day of sunshine in Berlin.  After fumbling with the lobby computer for a while (Europeans use a different keyboard than Americans; “z” and “y” are transposed and you have to belong to a secret society to find the right key for “@”), I give up and head out for my last day in the city.  I am actually looking forward to a restful day on the train to Amsterdam tomorrow.

Berlin is actually a collection of small communities that have joined over the years to make up the larger city.  Each neighborhood has its own identity and cultural history and it would be nice to spend a few days in each, exploring local shops, restaurants, and back streets—but the 21^st century tourist must make the most of five days. 

Today I explore the area southwest of Alexanderplatz, the old Nicholasviertel.  Formerly in East Berlin, these old streets have been restored to their historic “look” and Sundays are obviously the time for locals to enjoy the festive atmosphere of cafes, street musicians, and shops.  The River Spree has been cleaned up and tourist boats make the rounds of canals and locks, with tourists thinking they might have dreamed themselves to Amsterdam. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My next stop is the Scheunenviertel, the old Jewish quarter north of the city center. In addition to the “New Synagogue” (opened in 1866), whose exterior has been lovingly restored (the interior was gutted after the War and has yet to be rebuilt), and the old DorotheenstädtishcerCemetery (home to Bertolt Brecht, Heinrich Mann, GWF Hegel, and Herbert Marcuse), the highlight of this part of town is Hackesche Hofe. This is a series of apartment blocks built around connecting courtyards that now contain restaurants and shops. The courtyards are decorated with glazed tiles in fabulous colors and designs that have been restored to their original 1906 luster. It’s a good place for lunch (grilled lamb salad with iced coffee for dessert).

 

 

But fun must end and it’s back to the hotel to pack and consolidate everything into two bags plus my computer so that I can maneuver it all onto the train tomorrow.  Since the web seems to be working really quickly tonight, I'll add some more pictures from the past several days.  Enjoy:

Philharmonic Hall

Mies van der Rohe's Modern Art Gallery

A Section of the Berlin Wall

 

Daniel Liebeskind's Jewish Museum

The Pride of East Berlin 

 

 





 

BERLIN SUNDAY 6:00 PM

There was no e-mail service at the hotel last night (Saturday), but wifi is back up again, so I am posting the entry that was supposed to go up yesterday (Saturday). 

But come back again soon, because I will be posting a new entry for today (Sunday) before I crawl under the duvet for the night.

Saturday, 25 August 2012
Berlin

The day begins with an especially early breakfast at the hotel so I can make my 8:45 admission time for visiting the Reichstag Dome, fortunately just a quick taxi ride away.  The external walls are all that remain after the Allied bombing and the subsequent fires that collapsed the dome.  British architect Norman Foster redesigned the inner legislative spaces of the building and added a spiraling glass dome that provides light for the building and panoramic views of the city for the tourist.  It’s best to disregard all the mumbo-jumbo about the symbolism of the building, the re-unification of the city, and the moving of the national capital from Bonn back to Berlin, and just enjoy the eye-popping experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From the Reichstag it’s a short hop on the S-Bahn to Europe’s newest (and largest) train station—Berlin HauptBahnhof--where I take the opportunity to find the right platform for Monday’s departure to Amsterdam.  Among all the technological advances at the station, no one thought of having “redcaps” to help get luggage from taxi to train.  I’ll let you know how I make it with my bags.

Another S-Bahn ride takes me back to Kurfustendamm just in time for lunch in the Roof Garden of KaDeWa, Germany’s largest department store and a rival for shopping honors to Harrod’s in London.  And just to make everyone’s mouth water, lunch is Sauerbraten, red cabbage, and roast potatoes—so large a portion I may skip dinner and so good I may go back tomorrow!



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This and That:

Ÿ Bringing my iPad was a really good idea.  At home I downloaded a series of guides and maps that I am able to use anywhere, even without wifi access.  And I was able to download from my computer back at the hotel the document that enabled me to enter the Reichstag (no printer needed; just wave the iPad page and I’m in).

Ÿ In spite of all my years of travelling I always forget that things may look perfectly clear and neat on a map but are often surrounded by the complexities of the real world of crowds and construction.

Ÿ The helpful “clicking” at stoplights to warn pedestrians when to cross the street is really loud and annoying.

Ÿ While the heart of the former East Berlin has been beautifully restored, the former symbols of Western consumerism in the Kurfustendamm have been allowed to go to seed a bit—reminds me of the area around Piccadilly in London.

Ÿ Two things hard to find on the streets of Berlin:  a bottle of Pepsi (as opposed to Coke) and an unattractive male.

That’s all for today.

 

 

 

BERLIN

Just a brief message this morning, since the computer in the hotel room is on the fritz I am using the machine in the hotel lobby, which of course doesn't have the beautifully composed and illustrated entry that is on my own computer's memory and my own memory isn' good enough to recreate it here.

So I am off for the day and hopefully will be posting again later.

And Happy Birthdaz to Anita!

Berlin

I am happy to report that I have secured an e-mail reservation for visiting the Reichstag Dome tomorrow morning at 8:45—so I won’t be out dancing much tonight (not that I had even planned on it).  In my younger (and prettier) days I spent many long nights enjoying Berlin’s intense gay scene.  But now that I don’t do that anymore, I can watch the neon lights and still get to bed at an early hour.

Rain clouds cover the city this morning, so my plan for the day is more museums and shopping. After breakfast I’m off to explore the new construction at Potsdamer Platz, which was the commercial center of Berlin between the wars, but was wiped out by allied bombing and Soviet shelling as WWII was coming to its end (the area had the misfortune to be very close to the primary buildings of the Nazi government and war machine). During my first visit to Berlin in 1986, the Wall ran through the center of the square—even cutting off underground transit lines—and the surrounding streets were literally no-man’s-land. On my last visit in 1994 the square was just beginning to become alive again.

Today Potsdamer Platz displays the works of the world’s best-know architects. The Sony Center (Helmut Jahn) with its swirling red and blue interior, resembles the Civic Center in Chicago; the Beisheim Center (David Chipperfield and others) is a miniature Rockefeller Center; the Arkaden is a three-level glass-enclosed shopping center; and the Daimler Quartier’s series of nineteen office and apartment buildings is topped off by an orange and green condominium by Renzo Piano. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nearby is the Kulturforum, West Berlin’s response to East Berlin’s Museum Island.  Among its many cultural organizations (think of an architecturally-eclectic Lincoln Center) are two amazing painting collections:  the Gemäldegalerie, one of Europe’s finest gatherings of Great Masters from the 13^th-18^th centuries, highlighted by rooms full of Rembrandts, Bruegels and Caravaggios; and the Neue Nationalgalerie, a beautifully austere metal and glass building designed by Mies van der Rohe, offering a chronologically-arranged selection of 20^th-century art.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The “Topography of Terror,” built on the site of former SS headquarters, provides a detailed history of Nazi genocide, as well as retaining a block-long section of the Berlin Wall.  In 1994, if memory serves, this was a small outdoor exhibit.  Since then, it has become a full-fledged museum and library that establishes the atmospheric gloom of the period.  Just a few blocks away, the former “Checkpoint Charlie,” has become a kitschy tourist photo op, and the “House at Checkpoint Charlie Museum” is so cluttered and disorganized that it fails to have much impact. 

The “Jewish Museum in Berlin,” designed by Daniel Libeskind, is, on the other hand, intentionally disorienting.  The metal-clad structure beautifully evokes the complicated history of Jewish Berlin.  Even though the museum uses all the tricks of contemporary interactive design, for me it contains so much material that its intentional disorientation soon becomes tiresome rather than instructive.  Libeskind’s much smaller “Jewish Museum” in Copenhagen is much more successful.  But maybe it’s just one too many museums for one day, so I’ll call it quits for now.

 

   

 

 

 

Berlin

I am ready to crawl into my down-quilted bed after a busy day in bustling Berlin—but first the daily report.

I begin the day with the hotel breakfast buffet, the typical European spread of everything from soup to nuts, including fresh-squeezed orange juice and wonderful coffee.  

Bus Route 200 takes me from the hotel door to the center of Unter den Linden (see yesterday’s blog).  As I walk east, away from the Brandenburg Gate and toward Alexanderplatz, I pass a series of Neoclassic buildings from the 19^th century, when Berlin was attempting to become the Rome of the North.  Everything is remarkably improved since unification, although much construction is still on-going.  The Gendarmenmarkt, a few blocks to the south, contains prime examples of the cultural past (the French Cathedral, the German Cathedral, and the old Concert Hall) and the consumer-friendly present (new offices and trendy shops, including a branch of Galleries Lafayette).  Since the German government no longer supports religious organizations, many churches and cathedrals have been converted to museums.  The old Cathedral’s central transept has been replaced with a remarkable wooden circular stairway leading to the top of the interior of the dome.

After re-energizing with lunch (spaghetti Carbonera at a sidewalk restaurant), I am ready to tackle “Museum Island,” Berlin’s collection of history and the arts. Given the German talent for organization, it’s not surprising—as well as very convenient—that a series of magnificent museums are gathered together on a small island in the River Spree that runs through the city.

The Pergamon Museum is the most famous, with reconstructed relics from the ancient world that were exhumed from the dust of Syria, Iraq, and other parts of the Middle East, including the Ishtar Gate from Babylon (6^th century BC), the Market Gate from Miletus (120 AD), and a palace from Assyria (9^th-13^th centuries BC).  Given the destruction going on right now in Aleppo, it’s probably a good thing that the Germans did all that plundering in the 19^th century—although there are many cultural arguments against that view.

Around the corner the Neues Museum contains an extraordinary collection of relics from ancient Egypt, Cyprus and other corners of the Mediterranean.  Besides the quality of the collection (the original Bust of Nefertiti—actually Nefertiri—for example), the arrangement of the displays and the
restoration of the original 19^th-century rooms make museum-trekking more than pleasurable.

But since even Pleasure and Beauty can’t overcome pain and fatigue, I head over to Alexanderplatz for the quick S-Bahn ride back to the hotel.

 

    Neues Wache (War Memorial)

    Gendarmenmarkt:  German Cathedral  

  

    River Spree

 

    Museum Island:  The Old Museum

    Museum Island: The New Museum Egyptian Collection

 

    Museum Island: The Pergamon Museum--Ishtar Gate

    Museum Island: The Pergamon Museum--Ishtar Gate

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

Berlin

I arrived at Berlin’s Tegel Airport this morning to lovely cool dry weather.  The Air Berlin flight was about 30 minutes early.

The seven-hour overnight flight passed very quickly.  Business Class was only half full (about 15 passengers) and the extra roomy seats that extended to almost full length made sleeping quite comfortable.  Cocktails and dinner were elegantly served on table clothes and fine china; too bad the food itself was only passable.  Continental breakfast was served shortly before landing.

Tegel Airport is slowly being phased out as the new Willy Brandt Airport nears completion (although the opening date keeps being pushed back every few months).  But the service was friendly and helpful and I was quickly carted off to a taxi for the short ride to the Berlin Palace Hotel.  If you are familiar with Berlin, the hotel is right next to the Europa Center in the heart of what used to be West Berlin.  Although the area is still hopping with shoppers and tourists, the Kurfurstendamm is no longer the real heart of the city now that what used to be East Berlin has been restored and rebuilt.  But everything a tourist could require is right at hand, including the famed Berlin Zoo, just across the street from the hotel entrance.  I was upgraded to the private “Club” floor when I checked in and had immediate access to the room.  I am surrounded by all the luxury I could wish for.

Since I had slept on the plane I was ready to hit the streets after a quick unpacking and shower.

With my “Berlin Pass” I have unlimited use of the city’s transport system:  subways, trains, buses, trams.  I begin at the historic heart of Berlin, the Brandenburg Gate, at the head of the beautifully restored Unter den Linden boulevard.  From there it is a short walk to the Reichstag, which unfortunately requires advance reservations for a tour of the new glass dome, so I will return on another day.  

After a typical Berlin lunch (Bratwurst with Potato Salad) in a leafy outdoor garden, I visit the nearby “Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.”  The monument entails a large square city block covered with 2711 massive concrete blocks; underground is a memorial to individuals and families slaughtered throughout Europe (diaries, oral histories, etc).  There was a great deal of controversy surrounding the building of the monument in 2003, since it was discovered that the company constructing the blocks was descended from the company that supplied Zirkon gas to the Nazi extermination camps. 

By mid afternoon I am ready to head back to the hotel for some rest (jet lag gets you no matter how well you sleep on the plane). 

More from Berlin tomorrow--including pictures.

 

 

 

Leaving New York City

American Airlines Admiral's Club
JFK Airport, New York City
2:05pm

I am sitting at a computer in the AA Admiral's Club watching planes landing and taking off at JFK (free admission to the Club is one of the perks of flying Business Class on Air Berlin).  My flight to Berlin is scheduled to leave on time at 5:30pm and I am checked in and ready to go.

Yesterday I flew on Delta from Tucson to Atlanta to New York (LGA).  Both flights took off and landed early, which was a good thing since I originally had only 35 minutes between flights in ATL.

Today is a lovely late summer New York day and I was able to enjoy some last minute shopping and banking in the Union Square area, where I had spent the night at my cousin Helen's. 

Tomorrow I will report from Berlin and have a lot more to talk about and describe.

Westbound Transatlantic Cruise, 29 August-15 September 2012

Join me on my 2012 Westbound Transatlantic Cruise from Amsterdam to New York.  The cruise begins on 29 August, but I will spending a week in Berlin and Amsterdam before Holland America's ms Eurodam sails on its 16 day voyage.

My last trip to Berlin was in 1993 so I am excited about seeing all the changes--both restorations and new construction.

Itinerary:

Monday August 20
6:25 am lv Tucson / Delta 319 

1:00 pm av Atlanta 

1:35 pm lv Atlanta / Delta 420 

3:58 pm av New York (LGA)

Tuesday August 21     
5:30 pm lv New York (JFK) / Air Berlin 7249

Wednesday August 22     
7:25 am av Berlin (TXL) / Hotel Berlin Palace (5 nights)

                                                                                                                             
Monday August 27   
10:37 am lv Berlin (HauptBahnhof) / IC 146
5:09 pm av Amsterdam / Hotel Mowenpick City Center (2 nights)

Wednesday August 29     
5 pm Holland American ms Eurodam leaves Amsterdam (16 nights) /stateroom 4028 

Thursday August 30          
at sea  

Friday August 31          
8 am-5pm Stavanger, Norway

Saturday September 1           
8 am-6pm Flam, Norway
Scenic cruising:  Sognefjord

Sunday September 2           
10 am-5pm Lerwick, Shetland Islands, Scotland
        
Monday September 3            
at sea

Tuesday September 4           
1 pm av Reykjavik, Iceland / overnight

Wednesday September 5           
5 pm lv Reykjavik

Thusday September 6           
at sea

Friday September 7           
at sea / Scenic cruising:  Prince Christian Sound

Saturday September 8         
8 am-1pm Nanortalik, Greenland

Scenic cruising:  Julianehabsfjord

Sunday September 9
at sea

Monday September 10
10 am-8pm St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada

Tuesday September 11          
 at sea

Wednesday September 12         
8 am-6pm Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Thursday September 13
at sea

Friday September 14        
7 am  av New York (Manhattan Cruise Terminal)

Saturday September 15
6:59 am lv New York (LGA)  / DL 1547 
9:25 am av Atlanta
10:50 am lv Atlanta / DL 1240 
11:45 am av Tucson