Off we went in a bright orange plane to chilly Berlin.
I like it there, people are polite, the city is clean and well set out,  transport is cheap and safe, and the beer and food is good.
And you don't get ripped off like you do in London.
We stayed at our old favourite Hotel Gates, just off Ku'damm and close to Zoo Station.
There's a great little Christmas market there at night, a good place to stop and have a Bratwurst and a Gluhwein (with a wee shot of rum as well for me..!!)
As usual Francie hit the shops in style and boy are there shops in Berlin!

We also went to the famous Berlin Zoo to see Knut the baby polar bear who was 1 last week.
He's more of a pale brown colour now, but came out to play and lovely he is too. In a year or so he will be able to kill a human with ease.

I'm not so sure I like zoos so much now. It was plain to see that many of the animals are depressed and showing compulsive repetitive actions, especially when caged. The big cats, chimps and elephants were especially sad to see; however I realise that they are very well cared for and hopefully can be used to educate children that their native habitats are in danger from developers and poaching.

My treat of the trip was a trip to nearby Steglitz, where there is an outdoor shop, Globetrotter DE.
The biggest, bestest one I have ever been in. It even had an indoor pool to try kayaks out. All the gear that I bought was cheaper than in UK ie 1Euro=1GBP.
Well recommended.

We had a minor hooey on the way home when we realised the Airport Express wasn't running all the way to Schonefeld, and we had to get a snail train back to the airport and only made checkin with 10 minutes to spare....

Happy Christmas to all our friends and a prosperous New Year.

Mike,  Francie and Freddy Dog