Happy New Year!

Brian and I celebrated the beginning of 2010 in Berlin! What a cool city - it reminded us a lot of Chicago with its cool architecture. It also handled thousands of visitors like a champ, which we loved : )

First, let's set the mood - here's our hotel!

The walk to Brandenburg Gate was beautiful! For those who know me well, you know I was thinking - CHRISTMAS LIGHTS!!!!! And yes, we were bundled from head to toe - it snowed all night! P.S. - this picture was taken at, oh, 7 pm - we partied ALL night : )

You could spot the party from miles and miles away! Luckily we were only a few minutes walk from it all - the lights were spectacular!
Seriously, this city knew the drill - they were screening people and moving them into the party faster than anywhere I've ever experienced - D.C. has a lot to learn from Berlin. This shot was taken after we passed through security and were on our way to the concert. The building on the right is actually the U.S. Embassy in Germany.
We had so much fun! It snowed all night, which made the whole scene beautiful. The concert was impressive/hilarious/what?? Let's see, there was a group that sang Abba - not my favorite music, but it was hilarious to watch. There were three guys who looked like John Candy dressed in glitzy outfits who played all KINDS of music - from Country Roads (apparently a German favorite - see our Oktoberfest post as well) to a song about Amarillo, TX to Proud Mary - haha! Then there were the popular German hip-hop artists who were really energetic, and the crowd LOVED them! What a fun night! As we were leaving Brandenburg Gate, fireworks were being lit everywhere! It was SO loud! Here are some fun highlights from the night!

I think this image from the next day sums up New Year's Eve pretty well : )

The rest of the weekend in Berlin was just as impressive as New Years. The city has so much to offer! The Tiergarten is massive and stunning - especially when it is covered in snow!

The Jewish Memorial was also breathtaking. As you can see, from the outside it just looks like a lot of short, grey stones.
But as you begin to walk the rows, you begin to see that they are massive columns that make you feel small and lost. It was a very impressive memorial that helps you try to imagine what the persecuted people must have felt during that time.

Another cool sight was the Berlin Dom. We have found that cathedrals are very difficult to show in pictures. They are far too immense and ornate to convey how beautiful they really are. However, as you can tell, I keep trying so that you can get some idea of what they are like...

The picture below was taken from the top of the cathedral. The view from the top really showed me how huge this building was. For example, the picture shows a full size (if not oversized) pavilion-looking-thing (sorry, I don't know the architectural term). However, when you look at the cathedral in its entirety, this one piece of "decoration" appears to be so small and insignificant.

Another favorite from Berlin - the currywurst! Check out the line for this one currywurst stand.
We had our doubts in this ketchup-curry-hotdog concoction, but oh there was a reason for the crowds! YUM!! My eyes are saying...I do NOT want to share this food.
Our last night in Berlin was a blast! We went to an Irish pub and, well, I think this video shows how much fun we had : )



At the end of our vacation, we went to see Avatar in 3D! We don't have a good English theater in Frankfurt, so we were really excited to find a 3D showing in English in Berlin! Ray ban 3D glasses are so cool...

Happy New Year!!