The closest port to Berlin is Warnemunde so that’s where the ship docked and we caught a train into Berlin.  The Berlin train takes 2 1/2 hours each way but I don’t know the actual distance.  The train was an extra line that was chartered by Viking so all 600 people on board the train were from the Viking ship.  The 600 people probably accounted for about 15 separate tours and each tour group occupied its own group of cars.  Organizing this effort so that there were no long lines or long waits anywhere is a real coordination marvel.  And the train left on time!

The scenery was beautiful along the route.  Fields and fields of mostly wheat appeared in various stages of growth and harvest.  We saw surprisingly little livestock.

And there were miles and miles of forests. Fairly tall, skinny pine trees growing (planted?) very close together, with no branches except on the very top.  I assume they were part of forestry efforts but I never saw any actual evidence of it anywhere.

Our tour for the day consisted of a coach tour, followed by a river cruise with lunch on board the boat.  Then the coach picked us up and after a little more sightseeing took us back to the train for the return trip.  We visited a few famous historical places like the Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie, but for the most part we just drove around downtown in very heavy traffic and looked at some of their modern buildings.  Our guide was  not wonderful.  I wish I had time to research what each of the buildings is but that would probably cut into my buffet visits too much.  So I think for the most part we’ll just have to enjoy them for their architecture and marvel at how modern this city has become.

We’ve seen several of these big bears around the city and each is decorated differently. You can even find smaller versions of them in the gift shops. But I’m not sure what their story is.

Here’s one section of what’s left of the Berlin Wall which divided East from West Berlin from 1961 to 1989.

Checkpoint Charlie was the checkpoint that people traveling between East and West Berlin had to cross through. These photos compare what it looked like in the 60’s to what it looks like today.

This looks like a ship under construction, right? Well it’s actually the headquarters for the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Angela Merkle’s political party.

Locals call this the President Carter Gateway because it looks like his smile.

The Goddess of Victory is a beautiful monument that can be seen for miles around. That lady is WAY up there!

City artwork.

Copenhagen has lots of canals like Venice. However, while Venice has 140 bridges, Copenhagen has over 500.

This new library is gorgeous! When you’re sailing by in just the right spot, you can see right through it. It must look amazing inside.

I think I like street lights almost as much as I like doors. Here are 2 more candidates for most unique streetlights.

When we cruised the Spree River on our luncheon boat trip, we discovered the banks were lined with office buildings, new apartments, and lots of green space like this one where people can come out, claim a chair and stretch out for the afternoon.

Several places around the city display these white crosses which commemorate the people who lost their lives trying to cross the Berlin Wall.

This old theater wagon was parked was on a bridge we crossed under on our river cruise.

This lady entertained us with her distinctive hurdy gurdy music as we passed by her on our way to catch our train back to the ship.