Across Straße des 17. Juni (17th of June Street) from where we were in Tiergarten, just before i reached the Soviet War Memorial, there was this:
You tell ’em Organg! I wonder which rules though, and upon which people..?
Then we came upon a more somber display, honoring the 2,000 Soviet soldiers that died at the Battle of Berlin. [Wikipedia claims it was 80,000 soldiers but even the page it references says 2,000…] This monument was hastily assembled right after the end of WWII in what would become part of West Berlin, very near where the wall went up. That division separated the honored countrymen and those who wished to remember them, an awkward situation by any measure and stirring on several levels of imagination.
[I ought to note here that i do not understand the full gravity of these pivotal moments in history, as i am yet ignorant of many aspects. …Grossly uninformed is another way of putting it. What i can do here is present the knowledge i have gathered, the interest in it being sparked by visiting the places themselves. Learning is fun but new knowledge may be wielded poorly if not treated with care.
I have heard of these events, of the many individuals and groups of people involved, but something of the heart was missing from the textbooks i grew up with. I can only hope that in my ignorance i am still conveying sufficient respect where it is due. I beseech your understanding if my explanations lack a complete understanding of the sensitive materials covered here. For this and for reading these pages, you have my thanks ~Trash Panda]
The informational plaque next to the memorial.
The Soviet War Memorial from across the street.
Close-up, with Scarlett on the steps.
The central plaque.
Tanks to both sides stand sentry.
It looked like Ronald McDonald at a glance, but nay, it is the likeness of Mr. Reagan and his challenge to Mr. Gorbachev
After this, we had to scramble back to the East side and find our way home. We left the historical and returned to a pedestrian existence of food, computers, and hanging out at what is for now our home. Since we were still learning the U-Bahn system at the time and desperately needed nourishment, we called a cab.
Once we returned to Rosenthalerplatz, we tried out the Döner Kebap restaurant across from our apartment. I hear tell that these things are a part of Berlin’s culture, that you can’t visit here and not eat a couple. Even without knowing that, there are döner stands and restaurants scattered all over the city, so it is more of a challenge to avoid them. I have yet to find a neighborhood that does not have at least a few places to go for one. Rather than explain them in detail, here is a description from WiseGEEK!
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So, by now we have been grocery shopping a few times. The last trip, Scarlett took on solo. She went to the Real mart at Gesundbrunnen Center and returned with tales of an “American food” section. I had to know what the culinary conception of us is, through German eyes. For lack of a direct quote, i am sure i thought something like “I must go to this place. I will make up a reason to get groceries if i have to!” So i did. And i must say, we are known to crave some curious things, by my standards. Behold!
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- Baked beans, Cholula, French’s yellow mustard, and nex to that, note the PB with the American flag.
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- Hot sauce, cheese sauce, chocolate sauce, BBQ sauce <-(I have seen this labeled "American sauce, by the way)... So many sauces.
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- Taco makings! Sweet Baby Ray’s! Pop Tarts! …Baking soda & Crisco?.. Is this what we are known for? This is fun!
Then there are the familiar looking foods, the understandable without much cultural context, packages with funny names or words on them, and other things which i want to try, but not so bad that i will spend Euros to sample their (potential) delights:
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- Breakfast cereals at the health food store, one of many Bio-Markts. Museli is great- there is crunchy and not so crunchy, knusper and bircher, respectively. Usu. there is some kind of fruit &/or nuts involved. I put hot water on it and prep like oatmeal i make @ home with yoghurt and PB. It satisfies my breakfasty needs.
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- I enjoyed the name “Krunchy Pur.” It reminds me of cat noises.
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- Familiar! …But not. “Honey Bsss pops,” oh boy! And “Mmmh… TRESOR.” That sounds in my head like uncomfortable grunt and an archaic curse word.
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- A wall of Corny is like a smile waiting to be worn! There is Corny free too, which could be the culinary equivalent of a well-made joke!
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- Why did i take this picture? Oh yeah, because you can buy milk in plastic bags (bottom shelf)! Also worth mention- see those yoghurt containers on the top shelf? These will not make the trip home intact unless you treat them like a newborn [small animal of some kind].
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- Yogurt in jars, and of many varieties that are unfamiliar to me: Stracciatella (choco-flakes), rhubarb-vanilla, hazelnut, bircher museli (the soft kind), and “Fantasie,” among those.
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- Snack food is snack food, wherever you go… Here, they don’t go for peanut butter, but there are many chip-like snacks that are made with peanuts (Erdnuss).
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- Have tried many a Crunchip. Some are pretty good! Haven’t had Thai sweet chili yet, but for the love of all things tasty, avoid “roasted spare rib” flavor. Finally, the taste and smell of cat food in a chip… 😛
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- Didn’t know there was a cola flavor of Mamba. Come to think, i see a lot of cola flavoured candy here…
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- Sound effects in languages other than my own usually delight. I’m not sure what it means to “brizzel,” so i may have to try these. Maybe they froth like Zotts or Pop Rocks… Heh. “Give ’em the ol’ plopp ‘n’ brizzel. That’ll show ’em!”
Gigantic portions of booze. See next image for size reference.
My hand for reference doesn’t seem to help equate what i was seeing… That is 4.5 litres of concentrated headache! …Not sure if the upside down label is significant or a mistake.
This seems rather German to me in a way. I was told to expect the ubiquity of beer here in Deutschland. This vending machine at the grocery check out would seem to support that statement.
…And then we took our spoils, fought past the glitzy mall, and returned to Rosenthaler Platz~.
Now, here are some flyers and advertisements to amuse you! They worked for me, anyway.
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- “Holy crap, that’s awesome!” i thought to myself, as i plucked it from the sidewalk’s debris. I can tell they really want people to attend, on account of the free food and firewater they’re offering.
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- Aw, yeah. That sounds like a happening time. Liberated this one from the sidewalk as well, though they are all over town currently..
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- Backside of the Soul Explosion flyer. How can you go wrong with DJ King Dynamite??
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- Comedy sketches of self deprecation! If ya can’t make fun of yourself…
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- Another account of weird kissing in an ad. The other one, back at the hotel, was with a pillow between the folks. Do they have shopping-passion?
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- Genders- assign a new role today!!
A 15-year-old’s poem, posted on the wall at the U-Bahn station. I can only understand parts so i am not going to translate this right now… Oh, dang it. Should be in bed, just noticed it’s 3 AM. Oops.
The ABC’s of Berlin, also on the wall at the U-Bahn station! Again, i should be asleep, but i’m almost done!..
To complete this post and send myself off to the dream realm, i leave you with night shots of the Panopticon.
The neighboring apartment complex casts a violet wedge across our neighbors’ boxes, meeting the bare minimum of what my camera needs to see.
Well, okay… So i was being poetic. When i look the other way, i see this. One time, a white cat locked eyes with me from that reddened window. Wide eyed sentry, watching me all along the march. Haven’t seen kitty since. Strangely, since then, there has been a white ceramic cat that sits in the same spot… WHAT DOES IT MEAN?!?
From the last picture, turn to the right and look straight ahead to see the brilliant motion sensor light and the mostly lit rooms of our apartment on the Erdgeschloss (ground floor).
That’s quite enough! Wellness upon you, and may your dreams be as fantastic as i’m hoping mine will be!
“Oh, boy, sleep! That’s where I’m a viking!” – Ralph Wiggum