AAAAARRGH! (That's me screaming by the way) This week has been a rather difficult one, and I am so glad it is over, although it means my mock week is only 2 days away! *eek* Anyway, on to the post!
As you may remember, I went to Berlin last week, and it was a really amazing 4 days! We visited a lot of different museums, memorials and sights! I got a chance to practise my German, before I had to do my coursework speaking piece. We visited different memorials dedicated to different events in world war 2, like the Kinder Transport statue and the Jewish Holocaust Memorial. Also, museums, like the East Berlin Museum (which was very cool!).
But we also saw some iconic locations, like:
Potsdamer Platz
(I had a picture of the other side of the sign but it was way too blurry to put in)
The Brandenburg Gate
The remnants of the Berlin Wall
The TV Tower (which we went to the top of, 203m high, and it was absolutely AMAZING! I really love being able to see for miles and the views were amazing!)
By far, my favourite visit was to the Olympic Stadium! It was so huge but so amazingly made! The original stadium was built in 1934-1936 for the 1936 Olympics, but it was remodelled in 2006 for the World Cup. They added a partial roof to the original structure and improved facilities so they could accommodate more visitors but also make it safe at the same time.
We went to see the swimming arena, which was open aired! I can't imagine how cold it must have been to compete in it (as it was frozen over while we were there!) but as it turns out, the pool is actually heated during the summer months and it can be used by the public! However, the stands are slightly dangerous now so they can't be used. I've never seen an open aired Olympic swimming pool before, so I thought it was pretty cool!
There are also warm up rooms and changing rooms below to stadium itself. Only the athletes are allowed onto the tracks in the warm up room but there is also space for the press to set up their equipment or hold a press conference. Our guide told us how it is still used frequently, as children take part in an athletics club there and practise sprinting and hurdles.
The changing rooms themselves weren't all that exciting to me, as they just had benches, a whiteboard and the areas for each person to keep their stuff, but, through the next door was a huge hot tub! They use it after training or football matches, to massage their muscles. There was also a funny story about how one team took soap into it and the bubbles ended up reaching the ceiling and getting into the vents; they now have a sign, banning the use of soap!
The stadium is going to be the venue for the final of the FA Cup! So, when it's on TV, I can look at it and say, I've been there! I've stood in the changing rooms and seen the giant hot tub!
The only drawback of the week was that my feet were so painful after the 2nd day! We averaged out at walking about 10 miles in a day but had to wake up at 6am every morning too, so that we could have breakfast and be out at 7:45! I'm not even up that early on a school day! We had such jam-packed days that we didn't get back to where we were staying until 10:30pm! It was so fun that there was barely time to miss my family! (That sounds bad, but it was the case!)
(I'm sorry to the person in this last picture, I have no idea who you are but I hope it's ok for you to be in it!)
I had such an amazing time, and if you enjoy city breaks then I definitely recommend Berlin as a great city to visit! There is plenty of history to learn but also plenty of different things to do; like bowling or visiting the TV tower!
(The flights were also one of the best parts for me too! I really love flying and planes in general!)
I've got to that point in the post where I need to add a quick explanation at the end. Next weekend, the 21st and 22nd of March and the 18th and 19th (I think) of April I will be doing my Duke of Edinburgh Award expeditions. It may mean that I wont be able to post on the Saturday but I will try super hard to get a post done so that I can either post it on the Friday or the Monday after. I'll add some more details about it in next weeks post but until then, have a lovely weekend!
Until next time
Grace
X
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