On a borrowed bike I saw these varied sights in the former East German sector of Potsdam today

[Mira]

Starting with a flowerbed at the first castle I got to : Sanssouci
Am saving other photos for when I can pick them and organize them.



Moving on to a sight a tour guide next to me was excitedly telling her followers about:
Mandarin Ducks



Got a closeup of the male



This is a government office building as I understand it. Remember: I’m in Germany. I all but fell off the bike seeing this, they are saying that “Here we do not have a castle” in French:



Off I went to another castle just within about 5 minutes of concentrated biking from the first one, and I again hope to make you a thread about it. I learned that in it are rooms so exquisite that i’m hoping to get to see them tomorrow, on my last day here.



I told you this would be varied! Again I almost fell off the bike, overshot it, backtracked and asked questions.
This is a place where unwanted infants can be deposited anonymously, and they will be received and find their “raising”.
And here is a word about the child friendly “socialist” way the Germans are handling the integration of new life, they help care for it AFTER they are born: Young mothers have 18 months to be with a newborn. Enough money is provided, and the jobs are preserved. Plus there is time off for fathers so they can bond with the child.

[Solly Mack]

1. Mira? Do NOT fall off your bike. K?

Lovely & interesting. I look forward to more when you have the time upon return.

[angstlessk]

2. What beautiful and great photos

Looking forward to the 'full monty'

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. Wow, my dear Mira! Varied is the word and they are wonderful!

You are having the trip of any lifetime...how cool is that? And all these amazing photos!

Thank you!

[mnhtnbb]

4. Great shots!

We toured Sanssouci with Gavin when we were in Berlin visiting him in November 2013. No gorgeous flower beds at that time of year. But what a palace!

I remember that government building! It was under renovation when we were there. We walked to it from Sanssouci. And I was searching for a bathroom. Nothing open!

Is this it?

[Mira]

5. Yup - I believe it may be - Look

Things change as there are so many scaffolds and happenings. There are constant updates, repairs from the last war, and with the incessant and detailed government regulations it all comes back to life if at all possible.
The difference to me, in the former East Berlin, and with this huge castle especially, is that there is still so much left "the way it was" before the fall of the wall in 1989. A little bit like Cuba,
Which is why I try to gravitate to what has not yet been changed and cleaned. I have photos of large locked up areas that house figures from the tops of buildings that are in the process of being cleaned and have not been for 200 years.
In the Western part of the country that's not so easy to find.

[mnhtnbb]

6. Wow! Fun to see it with all the renovations done.

[Victor_c3]

15. speaking of "a little bit like cuba"

If I remember correctly, if you are in Berlin in the museum district area, one of the exteriors of one of the museums has been refurbished with an odd pink marble. The marble was acquired by the Soviets when East Germany was part of their union and the marble actually came from Cuba. Apparently it was cheaper and easier for them to use pink Cuban marble than try to match the original marble when they were doing their sloppy job of restoring some of those buildings.

[erronis]

7. I'm enjoying your travelogue and photos. But I wonder about Mandarin Duck with moo shu?

Would it be better than the Peking version?

Anyhoo, my daughter lived in Germany for several years and altho her husband was in the US military, the family received excellent care from the German health and welfare systems. Something about taking care of young families so the children can be healthy and grow well. Damn Germans (and most of the rest of the world), trying to make the US look bad.

[Sophia4]

10. We need that here!

And the kindergartens in Germany, Austria and France are in my opinion far better than here.

[calimary]

8. These are wonderful, Mira!

Wow - those Mandarin ducks!?! I’m into birds but that close-up is astonishing! I can’t quite figure out the plumage on the wing (?) that looks like light brown color block. Mysterious and fascinating!

Thanks for sharing these!

[Sophia4]

9. Thank you for posting. Wonderful pictures!

Sans Souci

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanssouci_Park

[lutherj]

11. "Ceci n'est pas un chateau"

A play on Magritte’s painting: Ceci n’est pas un pipe”. (This is not a pipe.)



Given that a castle is a traditional seat of power, I’d say that there is a bit of irony here.

[lutherj]

12. Awesome photos, by the way. I love the fifth one. Looks like Athena holding up

Art Nouveau lamps. Look forward to seeing more.

[Victor_c3]

13. Those crazy Germans and their socialist ideas!

Somebody should tell them that you can't have an efficient industrial and commercial sector while you take care of your workers and your environment! Oh wait, they are the second largest exporter of manufactured goods in the world, after China. So maybe I'm wrong on that...

I lived for about 4 years in Germany from 2003-2007 and I loved it. I spend a week in Berlin around the spring of 2002 and I visited several of the places you mentioned in Potsdam. It has been a long time since I was there, but in the former east-Berlin side do you still see the pock marks from bullets and the fighting of WWII? When I was there the skyline was filled with cranes and the city was heavily under construction, but I'm sure a lot of that is done by now. Oh, and in one of my "ugly American" moments I urinated on the base of that giant space needle thing late one night after I was drinking too much. Hey, I was 22 years old, a stupid kid, had to go to the bathroom really bad, and inebriated! (I think that's basically happened to Ozzy Osbourne when he urinated on the Alamo and got busted for it by the Texans). That's right up there with my proudest of moments, like when Marilyn Manson spit on me, or when I was an awkward 13-year-old boy and threw up on ride at the country fair sitting next to a girl I kind of had the hots for and spewed all over the people on the ground below us.

Interestingly enough, they refer to the first destruction of Berlin as the allied bombing of the city. The second destruction of the city is reffered to as the rebuilding of Berlin as a totally modern city and not rebuilding the classic structures that exist in most other Germany cities.

For what it's worth, if you get the chance, head to Southern Germany - towards Bavaria. Bavaria is kind of like the Texas of Germany and everyone kind of rolls their eyes at those Bavarians. You'll find most Germans actually dress up in the tradition dirndl and lederhosen for various festivals and special events. They have a lot of fun with it. I lived a little ways outside of Nuremburg and, without a doubt, that is my favorite European city. Its big enough to have everything you'd want from a big city, but it is small enough that you can really get to know it. It also has a very nice "Aldstadt" or "Old City" with the medieval walls and a real castle that was constructed I believe around the 1200s. Around Christmas time, it is known for having the best Christmas Market in Germany. It's a blast being in Nuremburg during that time of the year. Albrecht Durer (the artist that is credited with bringing the Renaissance to Germany) was from there. Also, in the 1400s, supposedly a battle between aliens happened there and there are some interesting descriptions of UFO's shooting each other with lasers from that time. Strange, but true!

Anyways, enjoy Germany! For what it's worth, the worst mexican food I ever had in my life was at a restaurant in Berlin. Germans really aren't very good at Mexican food. Also, most German Chinese food isn't that good either. It's been "Germanized" and the meat is almost like a breaded schnitzel and the use a lot of cabbage in it. You're better off sticking to the traditional German cuisine. Germans make really good German food!

[RKP5637]

14. Incredible pictures!!! Thanks for sharing!!!

[CrispyQ]

16. The lamp shot is my favorite, although I do love the male duck. :)

Would that the US had true family values instead of empty rhetoric.

[Callalily]

17. Your photos are great,

and I love your commentaries!