Yesterday was our last day in Berlin.  Our flight did not leave until 5:55pm, so we had all day to spend in the city.  The Adina Apartment Hotel Berlin Mitte is very accommodating.  We were able to leave our bags at the hotel while we visited Berlin’s TV Tower.  I have visited Stuttgart’s TV Tower twice so far.  I expected that Berlin’s tower would be similar.  Actually, it was a bit different in that the whole thing is enclosed indoors, whereas Stuttgart’s tower allows visitors to go outside.

Berlin’s TV Tower has a restaurant and a bar and, if you pay extra, you can reserve a table in the Sphere restaurant.  Naturally, it costs more to sit on the outside ring, next to a window.  We were going to do that, but the first available reservation was at 4:15pm and that was too late for us.

We took the tram to the tower, which allowed us to see more of Berlin’s inner city.  As we were passing the neighborhoods, it occurred to me how much we were going to miss on this trip.  Bill and I will have to try to go back and see more sometime, if we stay in Germany.  Berlin is a very impressive city.

A bike messenger stopped near us while we were waiting for the tram.  I liked his vehicle.

The many scenes of Berlin.

Part of the bar area.

The whole inside of the tower is like this.  You can’t venture outside.  But the weather was crappy anyway, so it was no big deal.

Time for a beer break.  They had local craft beers available, which made Bill happy.

After our pit stop at the bar, Parker and I went to the ladies room.  I was not surprised to find a line, as there had been a line when we first arrived.  This time, it was two women, one of whom was pregnant.  As we were waiting, I happened to notice that the first three of the five stalls were open.  I could tell by the white display on the lock.  If the door had been locked, it would have been red.

Just at the time I was about to point out the availability of the stalls to the chattering women, they noticed the first open stall.  They went to the first one, which had a changing table in it that apparently made it unavailable for normal use.  I went to the one next to it, but just as I was about to enter the stall, one of the women said, “Sorry!” and quickly jumped back in front of me, thwarting my attempt to pee.

I swear, I must be turning German, because my reaction was decidedly pissy… it was the kind of response I’ve gotten myself from Germans.  I then pointed out the other normal stall, which the other woman quickly took.

Parker said, “Aggressive!”

My response was, “No, it’s stupid!  Pay attention and fucking go!  Luckily, I don’t have to pee that badly.”

Even I was surprised by the sharp tone of my response, although I think those two women both kind of deserved it.  Both of them lit out of there pretty quickly.  I don’t even think they washed their hands.  Normally, I try not to be bitchy in these situations, but I was feeling exasperated and spoke too soon.  We left the tower and decided to have lunch across the street at the Block House, which is a chain steakhouse.  We’ve eaten there in Stuttgart and knew the food to be decent.

I had a cheeseburger.  This was ground beef sitting on a piece of baguette with some kind of tomato relish and covered with Edam cheese.  It was pretty good, although I really wanted a proper burger.  I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the stretchy cheese, though.

Bill’s mom had a small steak with a baked potato and bread.

And this was Bill’s lunch.  

Block House has a lot of American appeal.  It reminds me of American chain steakhouses.

A few more shots near the TV tower… and another Christmas market.

By the time we were finished with lunch, it was mid afternoon.  We took the tram back to the hotel, picked up our bags, and headed for the airport.  Our cab driver was very helpful and knew exactly where we should be when we told him we were flying Eurowings (which was Air Berlin last night).  We checked into the remarkably primitive looking terminal, breezed through security and hung out until it was time to fly out of Berlin.  While we were waiting, I took notice of the very sexy voice coming from the woman doing the announcements.  Apparently, I am not the only one who’s noticed that.

We enjoyed another uneventful flight back to Stuttgart and arrived home at about 8:00pm.  While we were gone, Bill’s custom made kilt finally arrived from Scotland.  Tonight, he will model it for us and I will take pictures.  Stay tuned for that!

As for Berlin, I will declare it a successful trip, despite the weather.  The blind booking flights worked out really well and we were very happy with our accommodations.  There’s a lot to see and do there and, when the weather isn’t horrible, you might just find some good food and shopping.  I think I liked Hamburg better because it’s prettier to me, but there’s no denying that Berlin has a fascinating history.  I feel like reading more about it now that I’ve seen it in person.