The Train/Die Bahn
We wake up at 4am in the morning and head for the Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof. The train departs at 5:15am for a 4-hour ride to Berlin. Let us tell you – the German trains are a great way to go with comfortable seats and even a small dining car if you're hungry.
East/Ost Berlin & the Berlin Wall
After arriving in Berlin, we head straight for an S-Bahn train ride to the former communist East Berlin. Our itinerary includes: Topography of Terror (gallery of the Nazi terror), Checkpoint Charlie (the Cold War gateway between West & East Berlin), Alexanderplatz and Brandenburg Gate for our sightseeing tour of the former East Germany.
A story from the Cold War...
It was November 1987 at the height of the Cold War, and still 2 years before the wall would fall. According to the WWII Potsdam Agreement, the Allies – US, Britain and France – have access to East Berlin while in turn, the Soviets have access to West Berlin. So, we decide to drive 3 cars with co-workers and friends for a 4-day outing over the Thanksgiving holiday. At Checkpoint Alpha, the drivers – myself among them – step out and give the Russian guard our paperwork.
He then sends us to a small building to get our orders stamped. The process is to report back to the guard to verify the stamp (this is all taking somewhere around 30 minutes). Somehow, I forgot this last step and started walking to my car instead. 
With the Russian guard screaming at me, I turn and freeze in my steps – he's got a loaded rifle pointing directly at me and I have no idea what's pissing him off. For what seemed like an eternity, I stand there until another American figures things out and tells me,
"Come here now! He needs to verify your orders." With that information, my life was spared and we were able to proceed on. Once I get in my car, my buddy says, "Are you okay?" I mention that I'm fine, but indicate that I would need to change my underwear once we get to the hotel.German Parliament/Deutsche Reichstag
Locke and I get to the hotel and crash for the afternoon – I think our jetlag finally caught up. Around 9pm, we head back out to the
Deutsche Reichstag and get in just prior to closing. The new atrium is an incredible architectural feat – with glass and mirrors and a double-helix ramp to access the top. Truly one of the few highly successful blending of old and new architecture into a single building. The long lines even at night indicates that the public agrees with this sentiment.Brandenburg Gate/Tor
A united Germany's icon where "East meets West"...
-- Al
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