Nana in the House! And We're Out!

We're happy to welcome our guest for the week ... Nana! (Otherwise known as my Mom.)

We picked her up on Thursday morning and have been showing her some sights -- though we've been slowed by two days of rain.

Dave and I have been taking full advantage of having some babysitting ... so last night we went to Potsdamer Platz for a movie -- in English at the CiniStar! (Don't see "The Good Guys" unless you're in a foreign country with few choices.) We also ate at an Australian restaurant in the Sony Center there. Hamburger in our choice of beef, chicken or kangaroo! (Eh?)

Today, we peeled out after nap for some shopping along Freidrick Strasse. It was drizzling rain but that didn't stop us from finding some cute souvenirs and Hello Kitty PJs for Leah. Also, I bought a controversial sweater that no one likes but me. (Whatever.) For dinner, we stopped at a Tai place called Cha Cha, with a waiter we'll be talking about for months to come. In short, he was so timid, I thought he might faint while taking our order.

It's been nice to sit in a restaurant and not anticipating the next 2-year-old tantrum. Thanks, Mom!

The Park of Palaces in Potsdam

Palace Sanssouci - it's yellow!

Today we jumped into the car and headed about 45 minutes south to Potsdam. Our destination was Park Sanssouci -- and the bunch of palaces located there.

It was incredibly easy drive down. And once on the freeway we could have been anywhere! For a minute, we could imagine we were on 78 heading west to PA. The city of Potsdam, which is quite historic in its own right, looked charming on the drive through. We even spotted a farmer's market. I could imagine spending a long weekend here someday.

So Park Sanssouci is named after Schloss Sanssouci -- a summer palace built by Frederick the Great in the early part of the 1700s. It was built on vineyard and is at the top of a hill, with great views around the manicured park. It's only one story high, but it's long and ornately decorated. And yellow!

The girls enjoying the view of Sanssouci

The grounds of the park are wonderful. There long avenues of wooded park, and then there's a well-tended garden or statue to remind you you're in a very royal place. Leah found a stick, and was making rainbows, Ss and circles in the gravel paths that connected all the buildings. Alice just ran, and ran, and ran.

The Orangerie

The second palace we walked to was the Orangerie. It was built to house all the guests who would come visit in the summer and party, including Fredrick's sister who was married to Tsar Nicholas I. The palace had a very tropical feel with palm trees and lighter brick. It also had two greenhouse wings, to winter those palm trees and other tropical plants.

It was also on a hillside with a maze of fountains and statues. In fact, the entire park was full of fountains at every turn. Had I known that, I would have packed a towel and a change of clothes for Alice -- as she was mesmerized and near-falling in several times. Even her barbie was in danger of going for a swim.

Neues Palais

The final palace we looked it (and we missed a few, to give you an idea of how BIG this park is) was the Neues Palais. It was my favorite. Pink brick, columns and a green dome. Very Baroque and feminine! More than 200 rooms, according to the guide book. I'll take it!

It was chilly today, with an even cooler breeze. I think it's definitely fall!

Potsdamer Platz - Eh

They can't all be winners.

I figured out the subway (it's on the honor system, no kidding?!) and made it to Potsdamer Platz with the kids and the World's Heaviest Stroller in tow.

The Platz has an interesting history, as it was a happening square -- similar to Times Square -- in the 1920s and 30s. But it was bisected by The Wall and abandon as a "no man's land" until 1990s, when Berlin invested heavily in the area -- along with companies like Sony. The result is, eh ... just a busy intersection with some shops, a mall and restaurants. And there's a small corner dedicated to The Wall, which didn't thrill me. Maybe I missed something, but it didn't strike me as anything extra special.

The kids ate more ice cream, so they were satisfied with the outing.

Meanwhile, I've been investigating weekend day trips. The city of Potsdam was recommended to me, as it has at least two amazing palaces to check out and it's just outside the city. Hamburg is also on our list, though we were discouraged to hear it's not that great -- but as an excuse to get the Mercedes on the autobahn? It might be worth it. Vroom vroom!