The weather was amazing today! It had been cold and rainy pretty much since I got here, so having sunny, 70 degree weather was definitely a welcomed change.
To enjoy such good weather, we went to the Schlachten See (literally, the "lake of slaughter"...don't ask me how it got that name...) which is located in a very rich part of berlin. The lake itself is fairly good sized, and has a trail around it that takes about an hour and a half to walk.
We got there early afternoon and walked around the lake. There were quite a few types of ducks there that we saw, as well as a pair of swans. After that, we grabbed a quick lunch at the cafe that was there. I got a pair of brats with potato salad - quite delicious.
We headed back to the apartment late afternoon. Nina and her mom wanted to go shopping for a dress, so we all headed back to the car and headed up to north east berlin, near the Brandenburger Tor and the Television Tower, to Oranienstrasse. They went to a dress store for about an hour while I wandered around that area.
I first walked over to the Museuminsel (which was right down the street) and went inside the Bode Museum (has architecture, art, sculptures etc from europe). Since it's thursday, entry to museums is free after 5 pm, hence I didn't have to buy a ticket.
The collections inside were really cool. There was a collection of coins and medallions from various countries over the years (including full sets of german "tollars", which were the precursors to the US "dollar"). Also they had a lot of religious artwork and sculptures.
After that, I headed back over to Oranienstrasse and checked out an area where a lot of artists live. Originally the building was some old structure (hundreds of years old I think), which was abandoned during one of the wars, and then occupied by students and artists back in the sixties. It's about 5 or 6 stories tall, and outside around the first floor a lot of the people living there have little areas set up where they sell their art (os well as a few outdoor bars where you can get a drink). Overall the place had a very eclectic and energetic feel, it's kinda hard to describe or really get though unless you see it.
After that, I met up with Nina and her mom again, and we headed home. On the way, we ended up getting behind a rather hilarious vehicle (Rice people - you'll appreciate this):
Yes, in Germany you can drink beer and ride a bike at the same time!
So we got home soon after that, and had a late dinner of spaghetti, and salad. We watched a bit of soccer coverage on tv (prepping for the world cup which starts in a bit over a week), and then headed to bed soon after.
