The Reichstag -- the German Parliament

The Reichstag Dome

On our way to see the Reichstag

Reichstag

Inside the Reichstag Dome

Inside the Reichstag Dome

Inside the Reichstag Dome

Andre and Allan

Looking into the Bundestag chamber from the Reichstag Dome

Our reflections in the mirrors of the Reichstag Dome

The Reichstag at night

The Brandenburg Gate seen from the roof of the Reichstag

Allan and Andre at the Brandenburg Gate

The Christmas tree in Pariser Platz in front of the Brandenburg Gate

The top of the Brandenburg Gate

At Pariser Platz. Move your cursor over the picture for a better image.

The Unter den Linden near Pariser Platz and the Brandenburg Gate

The Berlin Hauptbahnhof (central station). Transit in Berlin is very fast and very efficient. Signs in the stations always tell you how long until the next train.

The Fernsehturm TV tower in the former East Berlin

An East German apartment block

U-Bahn station at Alexanderplatz

Ampelmännchen. The Ampelmännchen is a beloved symbol in Eastern Germany, enjoying the privileged status of being one of the sole features of communist East Germany to have survived the end of the Iron Curtain with his popularity unscathed."

Move the cursor over the photo to make it change from stop to go.

Fernsehturm and the Alexanderplatz Christmas market

Christmas Lego display

Aquarium in the lobby of the Radisson Hotel. There is an elevator that goes right up the middle of it.

A building lit up for Christmas on the Unter den Linden.

The Christmas Market in the Gendarmenmarkt

Our first mug of Glühwein in the Gendarmenmarkt

A chocolate Reichstag

Santa's old look

Santa's new look

The Berliner Dom (cathedral) on Museum Island

On the bridge at the end of Unter den Linden with the Berliner Dom in the background

Statue on the bridge

Weinachtsmarkt (Christmas market) next to the Opera

The Gendarmenmarkt

Since it could take years for a Trabant to be delivered from the time it was ordered, people who finally got one were very careful with it and usually became skillful in maintaining and repairing it. The lifespan of an average Trabant was 28 years. Used Trabants would often fetch a higher price than new ones, as the former were available immediately!

The Trabant was a steel monocoque design with roof, bootlid, bonnet, fenders and doors in Duroplast, a form of plastic containing resin strengthened by wool or cotton. This helped the GDR to avoid expensive steel imports, but in theory did not provide much crash protection, although in crash tests it has actually proven to be superior to some modern small hatchbacks.

.

Checkpoint Charlie, the former U.S. Army checkpoint at the entrance to the former Soviet sector of East Berlin.

Having some Glühwein at the Christmas market in Potsdammer Platz

Christmas Market at Potsdammer Platz

Sledding at Potsdammer Platz

Remnants of the Berlin Wall at Potsdammer Platz. The line of the wall is traced on the sidewalks in the stone and in cobblestones.

Standing on a section of the Berlin Wall at Potsdammer Platz--the outline of the what was the rest of the wall is etched in the sidewalk.

Nollendorfstaße, 17

The British author, Christopher Isherwood, lived in a guesthouse here between 1929 and 1933, becoming a regular fixture of Berlin's prewar gay subculture, leaving when the Nazis came to power. A plaque on the building (move the cursor over the picture to see the plaque) commemorates his time in Berlin.

The plaque reads " Here, between March 1929 and Jan./Feb. 1933, lived the English author CHRISTOPHER ISHERWOOD * 26.8.1904 + 5.1.1986 His novels "Farewell to Berlin" and "Mr. Norris Changes Trains" are based on his experiences during this period. Inspired by both these novels, the musical "Cabaret" was created."

At Cafe Berio

At the Christmas market at Schloß Charlottenburg

The Christmas Market at Schloß Charlottenburg

Schloß Charlottenburg

Schloß Charlottenburg

Allan, fresh off the flight from Toronto, in the Christmas Market in Frankfurt's historic old town.

Carousel in the Frankfurt Christmas Market

Frankfurt Christmas Market in the Römerberg ("Roman Mountain"), the historic heart of Frankfurt and home to its City Hall, which dates back to 1405. Flanked by half-timbered houses, this historic square used to be the place for Frankfurt's first trade fairs in the 13th century.

Allan in the old town square

Christmas tree in Römerberg.

Ian in at the Christmas Market. Move your mouse over the image for a shot of Allan.

Glühwein stall in the Christmas Market

The Römerberg lit up at night.

The Eurotower, a 40-storey skyscraper in the city centre of Frankfurt, which serves as the seat of the European Central Bank (ECB).

The Alte Oper (Old Opera) is a concert hall and former opera house. It was inaugurated in 1880, bombed in 1944, and rebuilt slowly in the 1970s, reopening only in 1981. The city's opera company operates now at a nearby modern building while the Alte Oper serves as home to the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. Important works have been premiered at the Alte Oper, including Carl Orff's Carmina Burana in 1937.

The Frankfurt skyline from the Old Opera House.

The Hauptwache plaza: on the left is the Hauptwache building, dating from 1730, which gives its name to the busy plaza. On the right is St Katharina Church. It is at Hauptwache that Frankfurt's most famous street Zeil begins.

A view from above of Hauptwache and the Frankfurt skyline.

A slightly different view of the Frankfurt skyline.

Allan at the entrance to the Mainz Christmas Market

The Mainz Christmas Market. Move your mouse over the image for a different shot.

Having some gluhwein in the Mainz Christmas Market. Move your mouse over the image for a shot of Allan.

Can't seem to drink enough of this stuff on a cold, damp December day.

Wandering the streets of Mainz

A town square in Mainz

Timbered buildings in Mainz

An old timbered house in Mainz

Checking out the Christmas shop window displays. Move your mouse over the image for a different shot.

The courtyard in St. Martin's Cathedral, Mainz. The foundation stone for the cathedral was laid in 975.

Taking a walk along the Rhine River in Mainz. Move your mouse over the image for a shot of Ian.

The square in front of the Mainz train station