four cities, two weeks --- berlin, day 5

fifth day of the trip saw us catching our second flight out of our second airport. (we used both midway and o'hare in chicago. crazy go nuts university, amirite?)

but you're here for the ghost plane. here she is at the gate.

airberlin is, apparently, the new kid on the block at o'hare. they only started offering flights in chicago in jan of this year??? this was GREAT for us though as HAHAHA THE FLIGHT WAS NOT EVEN HALF FULL EVERYONE GOT THEIR OWN ROW PEOPLE WERE STRETCHED OUT SLEEPING ah, god it was THE BEST FLIGHT I HAVE EVER TAKEN

honestly though, even if i hadn't been on a ghost plane with extra spacious room i would highly recommend airberlin. inflight meals are average to very good! the entertainment system offers recent shows/films. (watched "the butler" (wished it had been indie and not hollywood), "behind the candelabra" (*so* *good*) and the first episode of "girls" (resounding meh)) flight crew was superb.

sorry to go on about it but it was a really amazing flight. but as fantastic as it was, i was still exhausted after we landed at tegal and then got the bus to hbf. BITTE NICHT STOREN I AM TAKING A NAP

about two and half hours later, i texted jens and we were OUT AND ABOUT IN FORMER EAST BERLIN HI HEY HELLO OLD SKOOL TRAFFIC GUYS

lunch was at vapiano which was a great idea! (my pasta was very nice, it's very reasonably priced) buuuut i was jet lagged to fuck and what little german i know was all phhhhbbtttt out of my head and i couldn't really hold things like, idk, A FORK because my hands were all swollen from plane dehydration. but these are my issues. TOTALLY go to vapiano.

BUT THEN HI HEY HELLO FRIEDRICH IT IS UNTER DEN LINDEN TIME

you know WHY we were having a spree-for-all in this part of mitte, right?

UH HUH THE LUSTGARTEN

ha, no. sorry. MUSEUMINSEL here is luther trying to be a part of things

first stop on the insel was PERGAMON MUSUEM FUCK YEAH THAT IS THE ISHTAR GATE FROM BABYLON

FUCK YEAH THOSE ARE THE LIONS

and did i walk down the processional way to the assyrian section of the museum YOU FUCKING KNOW I DID

god, this place. guess what's next to the ishtar gate. i will give you a few clues.

YEAH A BLOODY WHOLE ROMAN MARKET EDIFICE

and through the little door off to the side is...wait for it...THE PERGAMON ALTAR THAT BERGAMA WANTS BACK here have a wonky pano (it was legally obtained when germany excavated it, btdubs. all laws and regulations were followed. (the, um, altar. not my pano of it.))

gods v monsters, kittens.

i took two quadrillion pictures of this altar but, as noted earlier, jet lag. which means that i only have two photos that aren't blurry. sorry. it really is an insanely impressive altar THAT YOU CAN WALK ON but, um, don't sit on the side sections because you will get finger wagged. SORRY PERGAMON ALTAR GUARD :(

i will admit to you that the altar wore me out. STILL we took a side trip to the INCREDIBLE islamic art section. again, most of my photos were blurry (GRRRRR) but these two ghibli style cats came out ok.

SO DID THE MSHATTA FACADE THOUGH MY GOD LOOK AT HOW LOVELY

if you are a regular reader, you know the drill. too many beautiful things too quickly means that i need a break. and so i made jens and leff walk past A NANDO'S STEAKHOUSE???? and this giant

that i high fived (nice swollen hand, huh :/)

(jens' photo. original here.)

through a college campus, to some meh cafe under an s-bahn track where we had coffee. (i know it was meh because IT WAS FULL OF AMERICANS (sorry again, guys.))

all of that was before NEUES MUSEUM FOR AKHENATEN AND NEFERTITI SCREEEEEEMINNNNNGGGGGGG 

you know i love ancient egyptian art. you know i pretty much have a minor in it. YOU HAD TO KNOW THAT I WOULD BE SEEING THIS IN BERLIN

sadly, you cannot take photographs of the AMAZING INCREDIBLE nefertiti bust so this lovely princess will have to take her place in this post.

just know, you guys, that nefartiti is SO worth going to berlin for ALONE. it is just as gorgeous and luminous as you could possibly imagine. if i had not had the guys with me, i would probably have taken up residence in the gallery. you know how i am when an object resonates with me like this. you know i'm a sucker for beauty. (it's embarrassing. ;D)

ENOUGH ABOUT NEFARTITI neues museum also has these two creepy little dudes.

that and posing like a roman soldier brought me back to the real world. (you will never see that picture but HAHAH IT IS FUCKING HYSTERICAL)

BUT WAIT THERE IS MORE we were close to bebelplatz

so we decided to see micha ullman's "empty library". here is a terrible picture of a very moving monument.

BUT WAIT THERE IS MORE

BRANDENBURGER TOR BITCHES HI HEY HELLO QUADRIGA NAPOLEON DIDN'T GET TO KEEP YOU (also you are a replica made from the original mold 'cause you suffered a lot of war damage)

what to say about the tor of tors? ah. well, as an historical and architectural structure, i am about it. gonna' admit to finding it cool being there because i watched the wall come down on tv and had finally made it to the place in person. but...well????  it is really circus-y tourist-y here. photo ops with guys dressed in east german military outfits and bear costumes..........not really my thing.

BUT THE KARTOFFELKELLER IS!!!

jens suggested this place SUCH A GREAT IDEA YOU SHOULD GET SOME AMAZING POTATOES HERE also, that sign is hella cute.

THE BEER THE BEER THE BEEEEEEER

ok, remember how i liked the potato pancakes and applesauce i had in chicago, i guess the day before? yeah, ok, um, KARTOFFELPUFFER MIT APFELMUS IS SO MUCH BETTER

does anyone know the secret to making german apfelmus? 'cause it is just like eating an apple with a spoon. IT IS NOT SUGARY LIKE MOTTS OR WHATEVER SLURRY IT IS THAT WE EAT IN THE STATES I WANT APFELMUS EVERY DAY

TOMORROW ON RAKKA, LEFF AND JENS DO WAY TOO MUCH STUFF IN TOO SHORT OF A TIMESPAN (heh):  HAMBURGER BAHNHOF IS INCREDIBALLS (and makes me crave a hamburger), my feet become a MAJOR ISSUE D: , we are en alex WITH PIP LOLOLOL, dinner in THE ZOOOOOOOOOOO and then SOLANDER SHOW AT PRIVAT CLUB IN KREUZBERG CHECK BACK TOMORROW it will be exhausting.