August 2020 - Part 1

MOT sorted for the van, we have decided to bring our return to Europe forward a little, just to be sure that we would not get stuck in UK. So after a saying our “Good bye”-s we headed back to Eurotunnel on the 5^th August. Our crossing was quick and uneventful. We drove straight to Belgium and stopped at Saint Sixtus Abbey for the night, which has a reputation, amongst other things, for its brewery. (They produce Trappist beer.)

It was too late by the time we arrived to visit the Abbey, so we just strolled around it and picked wild blackberries instead. As it turned out, my Crocks were not the ideal footwear for this. I have collected a big tub of blackberries, and my Crocks collected hundreds of thorns – I spent the reminder of the evening with picking them out of the bottom of Crocks with a tweezer. Oh, this girl knows how to have fun….

Anyway, we were heading to Berlin to see Daniel, so although we have stopped at various places on the way, we actually had a few long days of driving.

One of our stops was at Bruhl palace, one of the first examples of Rococo creations in Germany, built in the early 18^th century. The main entrance hall was magnificent, made out of pretend marble (i.e. painted and polished to look like marble) which, apparently is more valuable than the real stuff! Interestingly, once upon a time the owner of the castle would often dine in the huge dining room, in front of an audience. Indeed, the dining room sports a viewing gallery on the first floor level. Big Brother Get In!

Without any doubt much money and effort has been invested here, and I loved the quirky ceiling decorations, and the tapestries. On the other hand, some of the rooms I found less appealing, such as the room tiled from top to bottom with blue and white tiles (not the bathroom), or the one painted in bright, unusual colour combinations.

We also thought that the formal garden could do with a bit of imagination and TLC.

Funniest thing was the guide, though. She told us the rules of the visit and gave us a printed description of the rooms and then followed us around. That was it. End of communications, lol.

HenneSee Lake was pretty, and the couple of hours we spent there was a welcome break from driving in the heat. Funny thigs is that although the place seemed super popular, there is actually no comfortable beach; the banks are quite steep and uneven. You have a job to find a spot to stretch out on. And no commerce of any kind. It’s a “bring your own coffee” kind of a place. We liked it.

In Paderborn we visited the cathedral and the little church behind it. The park was lovely, with stepping stones set in the little river and families making the best of the cool water in a very hot day.  

We walked along the wall at Hotensleben that separated East and West Germany until the end of 1989. This is the largest preserved stretch of the former border and it was interesting and sad to see how the structure became more and more complex over time in order to make it impossible to cross. Still, many people perished trying.

We made it to Berlin by the 12th of August. It was great to see Daniel again after nearly a year! As usual when we meet up, I gave him a long over-due haircut (I don’t think he has ever been to a hairdresser, lol). Then we spent a few days doing not much. Mostly we just hang out together, went out for walks and drinks. It was lovely.

Then Harley became ill. We noticed blood dripping from his privates (no, not nice) at the weekend, so we were off to the vet first thing on Monday morning. Did you know that male dogs can get cystitis? Plus add an ear infection to the mix. Anyway, 10 days and 350 euros later all is better.

We said Good bye to Daniel a few days ago and we are off again, this time on our way to Austria.

 August 2020 - Part 1 MAP

 

Eurotunnel - back to Europe

Saint Sixtus Abbey - this shrine is just outside the walls of the Abbey

Saint Sixtus Abbey - a number of these sculptures surranded the shrine

Bruhl palace

Bruhl palace

Bruhl palace - the main entrance hall/stair case with the fake marble

Bruhl palace - the dining room with the viewing galery

Bruhl palace

Bruhl palace

Bruhl palace - the formal gardens

 

 

 

HenneSee Lake

Paderborn

Paderborn

Paderborn - the back of the Cathedral

Paderborn - Cathedral

Paderborn - the church

Hotensleben - the wall that once divided East and West

Hotensleben - observation tower with a bunker underneath

Berlin - the canal in front of Daniel's appartment

Berlin - there is loads of graffity, this has been painted over so many times that the paint itself now forms a "wall"

Berlin - Cathedral

Berlin - long time no see

Berlin - TV tower, the tallest structure in Germany (368m high), it houses a rotating restaurant too.

Berlin - Oberbaum bridge, a symbol of Berlin's unity

Berlin - Tempelhof airport - nowdays it is used as a park

Berlin - we came across this on the way back from the vet. Festival at the Sri Mayurapathy Murugan Temple.