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Some notes from Northern Europe

Brisketexan

By Brisketexan
in Food and Travel

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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Just started a family trip to Berlin, then Norway and Denmark.
 
For us, Berlin is as much a visit to a familiar city and friends as it is a tourist visit. My daughter thinks of it as her second home, and we’ll be meeting up with my son and his host family, as well as my daughter’s old host family (who she genuinely sees as family, and they her) this afternoon. We’ll be seeing some things we haven’t seen, and some that we have.
 
But today, we woke up early (our first morning, so our bio clocks are still adjusting). We are staying in Mitte. We got up and greeted the day with coffee and pastries - breakfast for three for 6.75 euros. Then, we walked around the hood in the Saturday morning quiet. We all love just being in a city. Not just the landmarks, but just being in the place itself. And on our wander, we stumbled across a treasure.
 
A story of Berlin, 1945, in three photos. Since I was a kid, I’ve loved visiting cemeteries. They tell the story of the people, which necessarily includes a narrative of place; we are where we live, and die. We came across an open gate, leading into a green courtyard, mulberry trees dripping with ripe fruit. The Dorotheenstadt and Friedrichswerder Parishes Cemetery. My daughter came across a crypt, still bearing the pockmarks of shrapnel and bullets from the Battle of Berlin. Stone provided good cover for a German soldier. Or a Soviet soldier. In the din of battle, who’s to tell the difference? A mass grave of civilians who did not survive the battle, including entire families. The city - their city - fell around them. And along the back wall, the grave of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a martyr of conscience, killed by the regime in its waning days...resisting till the end, in the name of love and the Gospel. The dead still speak, if we listen. And we definitely need to listen.
 
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It was a beautiful and cool place. It’s also the final resting place of Hegel and Bertol Brecht.
 
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Now we’re back at our hotel for a moment, waiting on my son and his family to arrive. It’s their first trip to Berlin (they are native German, but lifelong westerners). After lunch, they want to head to the Brandenburg Tor. And why not? It’s damned cool, and I won’t mind seeing it again.
 
Oh, I also should have taken pics of dinner last night. Sweet lord. The tastes of German summer - cucumber soup, sautéed chanterelles in tomato cream sauce, fresh bread, schnitzel, kaesespatzle (the best I’ve ever had) and a cold house Pilsner from the 20s-era pub down the street. I didn’t take pics. We just ate and enjoyed.

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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Shit Brisket, I thought your son was in junior high.  Do you have another one or am I just getting old?

We’re aging, dude. He’s 16 now. And his German really got pretty strong on this trip. He’s contemplating college here. I’d be down with it - we love this city.
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Napoleon

Napoleon 8700

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22 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:


We’re aging, dude. He’s 16 now. And his German really got pretty strong on this trip. He’s contemplating college here. I’d be down with it - we love this city.


The city is nice, but the price for college in Germany (for people who can speak German) is even nicer.


PS- I hope that Parents' Weekend isn't in mid-January.

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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Dinner tonight - his host family loves flammkuchen, so that’s what we got (dark pub, shitty light).

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Mine had black pudding and caramelized onions. The other had bacon and goat cheese and other stuff.

The boy got some really good kaesespatzle.

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And kaisershmarn for dessert.

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Tomorrow, Potsdam with the wife’s ex.

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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And we did the boat ride around Potsdam, and went into town, but didn’t just hit the usual places. Spent some time in the old Dutch quarter - built to echo the Netherlands 200 years ago when they imported Dutch workers.

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Found one of the buildings that still hasn’t been fully restored (Potsdam was in the east, so remained shitty). You can still see the pockmarks from bullets/shrapnel from the war.

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She was upset. He was comforting her. Just seemed worth an image.

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And yeah...we got some strawberries. They’re so goddamned good. Seriously, they make every American strawberry I’ve ever had taste like sour sadness.

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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In case our official family position was not clear: FUCK WALLS.

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All images from the East Side gallery. Also...if you think Austin construction is booming, we’re pikers compared to the crane activity in Berlin (primarily the old east side). I thought the juxtaposition was interesting here:

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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I’m sure brisket had a good reason for peeing off that bridge !

Dude...when in Berlin...or something like that.

 

Went to the German History museum. Typical Germanic European stuff...lord so and so and emperor such and such stuff...till you get to the horrifying modern era. Germany really had themselves a swell century from the late 1800s till the wall fell.

 

Also...this dude (architect of the peace of Westphalia) made me chuckle.

 

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The nazi stuff...not so much. Won’t go too CR here...but the museum has the introspective view of a people who gave into their worst nature. And that perspective is fucking chilling.

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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My account must be screwed up. Not one pic of your donor, currywurst or food/beverage at Pratergarten is showing up.

Nope, didn’t go this time. Got our biergarten fix yesterday. Today we spent with my daughter’s exchange sisters. Did the museum. Got some doner (no pics,the girls are all in em). Did some shopping (damned chocolate and trinkets). Had sushi for dinner (it’s what they all wanted), had some drinks and laughs. Went to some hip and trendy ice cream joint near Rosenthaler Platz.

Some street scenes:

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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Sounds like an awesome trip.  Is your son over there for a Summer exchange program or something else.  Spaetzle  and a cold beer is the definition of comfort food.

The boy did his exchange this summer. We met him at the end. And, as a cool bonus, his host family came up from Koblenz with him, and we spent a great day together.

 

We had a kaesespatzle our first night at a tiny pub that was as glorious as it gets.

 

This is my daughter’s third summer in a row to spend time in Berlin. She has friends here, takes off and spends time with them, and truly treats it like a second home. Today, we just just spent some time hitting some of her favorite neighborhood shops and such. It’s a great city, and I can absolutely see one or both kids living here at some point.

 

Still...it’s been uncharacteristically warm here. Mid 80s today, getting up to nearly 100 tomorrow. Hell, I got a bit of a sunburn on my face yesterday. Grateful to be headed for the Norwegian coast.

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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Went to Runde today. Hiked to the f’n top to see puffins. That was, umm, not a short hike. But, saw all kinds of cool critters: skuas, sea eagles, and yep, the puffins were coming in. My daughter was so happy she teared up a bit. To be honest, they were pretty damned cool.

 

My legs hurt so much I teared up a bit.

 

On the way back, we had a Norwegian road trip dinner: Norwegian hot dogs, Norwegian strawberries, paprika chips, and sliced brunost.

 

Pics to follow.

 

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105337

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He beginning of our hike - a pretty old mill stream.

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At the top of the damned mountain that is Runde. Yes, we’re in a cloud.

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Hiking across the peat at the top.

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The prize: sit on the edge of the cliff and watch all the seabirds come in.

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Puffins! Seriously, she loved these.

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