Bike ride

Today was a pretty adventurous day here in Berlin. Like I said yesterday, I went on a bike tour of the city. It was specifically themed--the Berlin Wall. It was a really, really fascinating trip. I got a chance to see several different parts of the wall, see where it first came down, a complete section of the wall that still stands, and lots of other different things throughout the city that I haven't gotten to see yet. It was a great new way to see Berlin.

Some of the things that we saw were things I expected--parts of the wall. These parts were generally covered in graffiti with glass shards on top. A lot of this graffiti was really fascinating, with phrases like "It's colder in Siberia" (it was even in English). But there were many things, though, that I'd never heard of before. People climbing through apartments to escape to West Berlin, soldiers running to West Berlin, etc, etc. Some of you may be familiar with this picture of Conrad Schumann. We stood at this spot where this happened:

I know I've belabored this point here, but this bike ride showed me how much Berlin and Germany has changed over the past 60-70 years. It is unbelievable to think how drastically one city can change and how it can do it so quickly. And to think that pieces of the wall are still around. Not even just that, though. Small things that one wouldn't think about--flag poles and street lamps--still stand where they stood to light the Wall. Our tour guide would show us pictures of segments of the wall, and then I'd look up to see the same building, the same view without the Wall. It was really something else.

On a little bit of a lighter note, this trip made me remember how fun riding a bike was. I see everybody on bikes, and to be honest, it annoyed me a little. Not that everyone was on a bike, but because people on bikes ring their little bike bells at me. We've already talked about this a little bit, but it really bugs me. It is completely different when I have a bell at my disposal. I never used it for its official purpose, but I rang that bell like it was my job. It was a lot of fun. Also, it was some great exercise. Never did I think, "Man, I can't do this anymore," but there were certainly times that I thought about how hard that particular segment was. When I go to the gym, I generally use the bike for a good amount of the time. It is a good way to work out the legs, and I always thought it was pretty easy. By riding a real bike, you get to change the scenery once in a while. You don't always have to stare at the people on the elliptical machines.

Unfortunately, my camera's battery was dead when the trip started. I think I left it on overnight. Oops. Sorry, friends. No bike pictures today.

Big weekend--the Bundesliga season begins, and I'll be heading to the Olympiastadion tomorrow to watch Hertha Berlin play! Woo! Pictures to follow. Have a great weekend, and I'll be back on Monday.

Deutsches Wort des Tages:

das Fahrrad -- bicycle