23h00 August 4, 92
Wow, I'm surprised that I like Berlin so much. I am having a great time here. It's an incredible city with an amazing mixture of old and new. Very modern. And they have the best bike paths around the city so it is easy to get around. We even cycled to a bar. I thought that was cool.
August 11, 92
Well, today is my last day here. I really enjoyed it and found it very interesting. I'm anxious to get going as I don't have anything to do. I wish I could work here.
I stayed with Lynn the first couple nights. Christian and Lynn brought me out to all the nightlife. I liked the street past check point charley with all the old condemned buildings that people have taken over. One is converted into a modern art gallery and most have cafes in them.
Klaus, Beate's boyfriend, lives in the last one of these houses in West Berlin. In 1985 they moved into an abandoned building. He put in the water pipes so they have running water. They have electricity as well. There is so much protection there as well, it's like a fort. They have problems with skinheads and gangs attacking the place. At night they lower down a ladder so you can get in through the second story.
It is also a very politically active place, slightly left wing I guess. They have shifts for cooking and cleaning and everyone eats together. It is quite a variety of people, single mothers, handicapped, students, communists and other radicals.
I took a trip to Potsdam and enjoyed that very much. The gardens were really incredible. The pictures on the next page are from there.
So that was my trip through Europe. Not planned but worked out in the end. I learned a lot about the countries and myself. I now have a great desire to see and know more as well.
I have to thank all the generous people I met along the way and especially to my German friends who are truly exceptional people. And of course Daniel who got me addicted to the cycling.
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