exploring, biking about. this, too, is Berlin :)

NOTE:This summer's blog will be much less the Berlin you see on postcards, and more pictures from across the city, real Berliners out and about.
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So one of our priorities was to get bikes. Michael's friend Philipp lent me a women's bike and we got a second one for 70Euro from this really nice Turkish man who has a shop around the corner. He also recommended that we get another, thicker bike lock. We already had one, but he said "Small work, they can cut through anything." Bikes really get stolen here, and I guess if you lock up two bikes together it's more worth it for the theives to cut through the cable. When we told him we're from the US he asked us if bikes don't get stolen there. NOT like here, we also laughed because not so many people bike. It's not like Germany where EVERYONE bikes. He said "the more poverty, the more theft." true....

Biking around today. Below: on the Spree

biking towards Treptower Park

below: Görlitzer Park, more central, pretty dirty, TONS of people, maybe the most diverse park with everyone from Turkish immigrants, families grilling, American tourists, a few African drug dealers, Berliner hippies, artsy people, college students, teenagers, women in headscarves, old man circles, kids on playgrounds, people biking through, roller blading, suntanning...COLORFUL! :)

in Kreuzberg along the canal...some NICE apartments!

below: another apartment building along the canal

café where we had lunch. the two girls sitting next to us were French, everyone else speaking German. Did hear English for the first time today though in this area. Tourists come more starting in June though.

below: lunch. Michael got Maultaschen, which are filled dough pockets, with a vegetarian mixture inside, spinach served on the side. Creamy, buttery, delicious. I got breakfast "Amsterdam", which is two German rolls served with different kinds of cheese, marmelade, nutella, fruit, a hard-boiled egg

mmm...Milchkaffee...

but I shouldn't let the sun fool you. It's been pretty chilly!

below: you can see the café where we had lunch along the water I look forward to your comments/questions if you have any!