
We are finally in Rome, and ready to be settled into our flat. It has been a long week of traveling and hauling our luggage around Europe. London ended well. We were able to have a picnic in Hyde Park and made some interesting sandwiches for ourselves.
It was such a beautiful day and the lawn was covered with all types of people, it was like a circus with some guy juggling, another girl ribbon dancing and then us doing crazy gymnastics moves. Afterward we went to the British Museum to an exhibition about words in art. It was mostly calligraphic, Middle Eastern work and it was beautiful, so different from what we are used to in American art. From there we walked through Covent Garden and ended up in China town where Andrea used her skills, from this summer, to order us some good food. And for the first time we all rode on the London Eye, a large Ferris wheel over the river, where we saw the sun setting over the city. We were so glad to leave our hostel! Sharing two showers for an entire place and sleeping in a room that smells like boy was not entirely fun.
We arrived in Berlin with Andi waiting for us and the question of how we were going to fit all our luggage into his car. Somehow it worked.

Here we are enjoying a kebab, one of Andi's favorites. He said they are much better in Berlin than the gyro man in Ames. I agree.

We also discovered marzipan. And so we shared a corn shaped one, how appropriate. I think I am in love with Marzipan now.

It happened to be one out of two nights in the year, where Berlin opens the museums late and you pay one entry fee and go wherever, so this is what we did. We enjoyed an organ concert in a church, walked on top of a cathedral where we were rained on, and saw the giant gate from Babylon, at the Pergamon Museum, which was AMAZING! So much larger than I ever thought.

Our next days we saw the Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate, went to the Jewish museum and saw the new monument they built for the Jews. They built almost three thousand concrete blocks that are all slightly at an angle and you can walk between them. As you walk they get taller and it is almost like a maze. Each slab stands for around 2000 Jews who were killed. There is so much history and so much pain that is instilled in this city and in their lives. I think the Jewish monument is my favorite part of Berlin, just being able to interact with it and see the sun reflect off the blocks was a wonderful feeling.


Andi cooked us breakfast everyday, which was amazing! We had hard-boiled eggs, toast with cold meat and cheese and coffee. He also served us smoked fish on toast in the evening for dinner. It was raw and it tasted delicious. We had never had anything like it.
As our time ended in Berlin, I realized how much I love the German culture and feel at ease with it. It was a good experience trying to speak and relearn the language. But in every city that I encounter I always find things to love and wonder if this could be a city I may end up in, but right now there is so much world out there and so many different cultures I have hardly experienced anything. I am ready to continue my journey.
here is the view from Andi's flat,

and these are his rabbits that lived on the porch. Lady and Louis (we bought Andi a bunny calandar in honor of his little pets).

As we rode in the taxi to our flat this morning I was amazed by Rome. The culture is so different than anything I understand. As we drove up a long rode, I saw the most beautiful scene overlooking the city. In all the places I have been and all the scenes I have viewed, that brief glance I saw from the car made my heart stop, and I know I am ready to be grounded in this city for a while. This thought was reconfirmed as we were carrying our luggage up to our flat and I heard someone behind a door playing the piano. I know God is here, He is encouraging us in small little ways, we just need to keep our eyes peeled and encounter His overflowing love.
2 comments:
aww bunnnies! umm the picture of all you in that metal thing looks like some sort of tour photo or a photo for a brochure or something. i hope your having fun, it sounds like it! cool!
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