Yesterday I left you with a bit of a teaser. I wrote that Daniel had arranged a very special experience for us. I had mentioned to Gwen at Exeter Travel (GWEN@EXETERINTERNATIONAL.COM or DIRECT LINE 813-251-8509) that I work with firefighters and would be interested in visiting a fire station if possible. Isn’t this how travel plans work? You tell your agent what you want to do. They make a wonderful plan for you months in advance. Then halfway through your trip, you ask them if you can do something else. Well, Gwen and Daniel hit a home run with this one. When Daniel discussed the plans for today he mentioned that there was a fire station in one of the areas we would be visiting and we can try to see if they would be open to talking to us.
As we approached the fire station on Oderberger Strasse we saw a fire engine leaving the area which did not bode well for our visit. There was a makeshift barricade in front of the station door. No problem for Daniel; he just lifted one end and told us to come in and replaced the barricade (this is definitely my kind of guy). Daniel rang the buzzer and talked to an individual. Soon my new best friend forever, Michael, was at the door. Michael showed us around and, with Daniel interpreting, he explained about their work (over 90% of calls are medical), their station (the oldest in all of Germany), their equipment (there were 2 trucks in the station and one was out on a call), and their fitness program (sounding very similar to what we do in our office for a variety of fire departments). Michael had me try on a turn-out jacket (see below).
Michael (the firefighter, not the politician) insisted I get in the driver’s seat of one of the trucks. He joined me and all of a sudden he started to speak English to me. He pointed out a variety of items on the dashboard including a telephone. I asked if I could call my son in California and he gave me a tilted head look and then I quickly told him that I had been kidding, I really just wanted to call my daughter in California or my daughter in Spain (I don’t think my new BFF thought that was too funny). We ended the visit when Michael brought me a shirt from the office. I told him I would wear it with pride.
Some people like to see museums. Some like to see natural wonders. I think those sights are great but I most enjoy interacting with people. On a vacation, nothing can be better than making a connection with a local. And yesterday I made a connection and it felt very good.
Later last night, we had a great dinner at Lutter & Wegner am Gendarmenmarkt (Charlottenstraße 56, 10117 Berlin). Google and Apple Maps have been great at helping me navigate throughout this trip but I had a little difficulty finding the restaurant. I thought the person who made the reservation for us had written Lufter instead of Lutter so neither app was much help. So keep that in mind if you want to find someplace it is best to know what you are looking for. For my foodies please look below.
That was all yesterday. Today we got some awful news. Daniel, the Wunderführer (Google says that means miracle guide but using “führer” in my blog makes me nervous) tested positive for Covid. That was horrible news for him and us. But he put us in the trustworthy hands of Jörg. With the help of Marcus, our driver, Jörg took us to Potsdam where we toured the town (lovely place) and visited the Cecilienhof Palace where Truman, Churchill, and Stalin met in July-August 1945 to discuss what should be done with Germany at the end of the war. We also toured the palace of Frederick the Great. After that, we went to a more sobering place, the site of the Wannsee Conference, which is more commonly known as the meeting to decide “The Final Solution of the Jewish Problem”, (i.e. extermination of all the Jews in Europe). It was very upsetting to think of these animals having this meeting and even more depressing when we learned that after the war some of them either served limited prison time or none at all.
When I feel sad, it must be time to eat. We are off. See you
Bis morgen (Until tomorrow)
Robert Reiss Travel Blog and Other Ramblings 