A Stroll Around The Neigborhood

It was another kind of dreary day here.  Overcast and a bit chilly with occasional drizzle.  Still, not too bad a day to be out walking around a bit.  And it certainly didn't deter the locals.  When we went looking for a place to eat lunch we spotted this place where everyone seemed to prefer eating outdoors.

A Hearty Breed


Being of a somewhat less hardy breed, we decided to eat indoors and just watch the weather, not sit in it.

On The Inside Looking Out


This was a pretty big restaurant but not too many people were inside.  It was kind of fancy too so I suspect it does more of an evening business.

A Fancy Lady


I wasn't being fancy, though.  Just a beer for me, and a little light lunch.

A Beer And I Am Happy


The light lunch part didn't work out too well, though.  The waitress seemed surprised when I "only" ordered a bowl of spicy beef soup.  Like it was supposed to be some kind of a warm-up or something.  What it was was a large bowl of spicy beef chunks with just enough soup to cover them.  More than enough for a meal.

The Mysterious Chinese Woman opted for a vegetable lasgne, thinking it would be healthy.  What she got was a large portion of what looked to be a creamy cheese covered pasta.  She said she could only find one small piece of broccoli in it, but I guess that was enough to qualify it as a vegetable lasgne.  I don't know why there aren't more fat people here considering the size of the meals and all of the beer they put away.

After our lunch we took a stroll down to an island in the Spree River.  Quite a lively little area it was, too.

See The Spree


There were all kinds of food stands, bars and outdoor eating areas here.

More Hardy Souls


Once again I decided to pop inside.  This place had kind of a 60's diner atmosphere.

Where's The Fonz?


A Bear, A Beer, A Bar Man


Lots of bears in Berlin.  I think it was an integral part of the coat of arms of some ancient ruler.  One day I will look it up, but I am too lazy today.

The Mysterious Chinese Woman And Another Bear


We continued to walk around the area to see what we could see.  In keeping with the big eating theme was this stand selling very large bagels.

Would You Like That With A Pound Of Cream Cheese?


This stand was selling sausages and cheese and offered free tastes as well.

More Food


There were also stands that sold bottles of wine so you could get your sausage, cheese, bread and beverage than go find yourself a table by the river and have a little picnic.  It would be nice if New York set up some kind of an area like this.  Instead we have parks where you can't eat or drink, huge tourist traps like the South Street Seaport, or big expensive restaurants.  And that is better than a lot of the riverside which is either commercial or a highway.

We walked around a bit more and I, of course, had to have my picture taken with this lovely lass.

Pretty, But No Personality


After walking around all afternoon we decided to just have our dinner in one of the hotel restaurants.

Brandenburg


Brandenburg is a pretty fancy restaurant, but not at all stuffy.  Very friendly staff.  We had kind of given up on the idea of eating light.  After all, we are on vacation and can always diet when we got home.  The Mysterious Chinese Woman was going to just have the scallops appetizer.  The waitress said you only got two of them so we decided to split an order for an appetizer.

Just One


Two of them would, indeed, been enough for a meal.  I said it looked like the cook spit on them but this was kind of an artistic thing meant to, I guess, look like sea foam.

I had enough beer for the day so I ordered a bottle of German white wine to go with the meal.

Cheers


For dinner I ordered liver with potatoes, apple slices and onions.

Pile It High


The Mysterious Chinese Woman thought she would get off easy ordering baked cod, but even that came with a heavy cream sauce.

Might As Well Just Give Up Trying


The free breakfast at the hotel presents another challenge. It is like a brunch that you would get in Las Vegas. Okay, a little bit smaller, but not much.  And this morning they even had free Champagne. Or at least something sparkly.

Today we are going to try out the subway and visit the zoo.  The Mysterious Chinese Woman also wants to visit some big shopping center. I will post about that in a few days.  I lose my internet connection here pretty soon (17 Euros for 24 hours) and probably won't get hooked up again until we are on our boat.

Until then, be well and remember, it can't be the beer and food that makes you fat.