BERLIN

Well, before leaving Strasbourg. I was able to see a lot of the town just by walking around. I took a boat tour, a little boring, but interesting. There are a lot of cute shops but I'm not much of a shopper, so I just looked in the windows. I went to church. My first time in a Catholic mass, not in english. Now I know what Grandpa feels like, I couldn't understand a thing! But at least I went, right? I probably could have stayed there longer! It was so relaxing and peaceful. But on to Germany I went.

I was hoping to go to Munich, but with expensive ticket prices and being unable to find a hostel for the right dates, I ended up in Berlin. My 7 hour train ride was aweful. Somehow they overbooked it or something. They weren't able to give me a seat assignment. I had to sit on the floor, in the doorway, for the entire 7 hours. And it wasn't a direct train ride. We stopped every 45 minutes or so. Ugh. Not that great. Then, of course, I got lost in the train station once getting to Berlin. I tried to ask for help 5 different times, but no one seemed to understand English, at least of those I was asking. Finally I figured it out on my own and made my way to my next stop to find my hostel. I had bad directions. Got lost again. Wandered around for another hour. Finally asked a cab driver for directions. They were good. And I made it in one piece. Berlin is a much different atmosphere than the other places I've been. All of it's buildings are modern, I'm sure due to WWII, and it feels more like a city. I wandered through the city today. Took a tour. Saw some pretty historic sights. It was interesting. But now it's raining. Not as much to do in the rain. Tomorrow I'm going to a suburb where there is a cool Palace. Everyone here is very nice and friendly. I went out for beers last night with some of the people in my hostel. It was relaxing. Thursday morning I'll head for Vienna. I was hoping to go to Salzburg (especially to do a Sound of Music Tour!!) but unfortunately, my plans have changed. Which is A-OK with me!! Vienna will be wonderful. I love the mountains and can't wait to see them! I hope everything is great back home!