Berlin, Germany

We got up relatively early this morning and headed into town. We left Sarsha on the outskirts and caught a bus into the centre. We got off at the city zoo and from there is was about a 5km walk to the Berlin wall. Along the way we passed all the famous monuments, the Siegessäule, the Brandenburg Gate and then check point charlie. It was interesting reading all the information at checkpoint charlie. There is still the original us checkpoint in the middle of the road. This area was the only allied crossing and at the peek of the fighting it was the soviets pointing their tanks at the allied forces and vice versa. It is scary to think the wall only came down in 1989...I was 7 but don’t remember anything. What is even scarier is that 3 people were killed in 1989 for trying to escape across the border...so the hatred and killing continued up to the very end.
After wandering through the city...getting a little lost trying to follow the path of the old wall, we finally found the 1.3 kms that is left of the wall. Known as the the East Side Gallery, in 1990 artists were invited to come and paint a section of the wall to celebrate the wall coming down. We visited at a good time as the government have injected funds into doing up the site so all the artists that did the original works in 1990 have come back and repainted and fixed up their original works.
After a big day of walking we caught the train back to the centre, jumped on a bus and hit the road again bound for somewhere between Berlin and Amsterdam.

Dresden, Germany

So now we had the fun job of trying to replace the spare tyre...in Germany. We got to Dresden and went to a couple of places but no good. Turns out that we need a truck tyre and that not many places have it. When we got the spare tyre in Italy last time this happened we were obviously extremely lucky. We headed to a shopping centre trying to find free Wifi, eventually relying on the internet in a computer superstore to get us through. Jake got the numbers of 10-15 different tyre places. We headed to the campsite, getting there around 6ish. Working hours being as they are we would have to wait till the following day to start calling.

Jake called around in the morning but really had no luck. We went to a tyre place that the campsite receptionist had recommended. Jake did well to communicate to the mechanics and even drew them a picture. They were kind enough to drive to a place that had the tyre, collect it and then bring it back. By lunchtime we had a new tyre and ready to hit the road. We thanked the German mechanics repeatedly and then it was off to Berlin.

2 hours on the road and no blown tyres we arrived in Berlin. There are only a few campsites in Berlin as it is a capital city. I think we must have picked the worst...it wasn’t too bad but just very below the standard you would expect in Germany, especially considering the amount they charged.
It was set on a lake so when went for an explore around the area. We then headed to the campsite restaurant for beers and more Schnitzel. Again we were all quite exhausted from another stressful day. Hopefully the following day in Germany’s capital would help us get past the frustration of today. Oh and if your wondering what Dresden is like....the industrial area is lovely!

Czech Republic Freeway - Another Flat Tyre...

All going well left Prague early bound for Dresden. About 45 minutes out of Prague, Jake behind the wheel, we hear and enormous “Bang” from the front right hand side of the van. Everyone’s intial reaction is that the engine has just fallen out of the van and is scattered across a Czech freeway. After stopping on the side of the road and inspecting the damage it turns out to be just a blown tyre. This time having the correct wrench we were able to undo the lug nuts and change the tyre. Not that the pit crew and Ferrari need to worry, but i think 10 minutes to change the tyre on a 3.5 tonne van on the side of a freeway is a pretty good effort.

Prague, Czech Republic

Jo here... Today we explored the beautiful city of Prague. We all weren’t quite use to the cooler weather but we put on our cardigans and jumpers and headed into town. After a bus and tram we were onto the river Vltava in Prague. We decided to head up to the palace. Along the way Ads as usual was in need of a WC. After walking around for 15 minutes he came back to the group still with a full bladder but found the Senate’s Gardens. It was a lovely hide away from the busy streets of Prague. We stopped for lunch near the fish pond and watched the koi fish jump out of the water and move amongst the reeds. Then we came up to a hedge maze and found families of peacocks. There was even an albino peacock and then a huge cage of owls. Ohh and Ads finally found the toilet! We headed up to the palace which was a big hike up the hill and finally got to the top. The guards were out the front in perfect stance. We walked through to the church which had some of the most amazing stained glass panes I have ever seen. They were so vibrant and detailed. After a walk around the grounds we headed back down and we couldn’t go past the 27 Krowns for a beer so we stopped to have a break from site-seeing. From there we headed down to the Charles bridge. We had a walk through the old town and saw the amazing clock at the town hall. It was getting on to dinner time so we were looking around at restaurants looking for tradition Czech food. We ended up heading back to the pub that sold the 27 Krowns and indulged in duck, stuffed capsicum and pork knuckle. The food was rich but good. We needed to walk off our dinner so we went back to Charles bridge as it was getting dark. We walked up to the top of one of the towers’ so that the boys could take some awesome night shots. To finish our time off in Prague ice cream was on the menu and some more night shots before heading back to the campsite for a well earned sleep.

Prague, Czech Republic

We arrived at the Prague campsite at around 10pm after an interesting drive through the city....damn trams and footpaths. When we arrived everything was closed which left us wondering what to do. Fortunately we were able to call the owner and he told us to pick a spot and see him in the morning. We got set up quick and jumped straight into bed as we were all pretty exhausted from a long day of walking and driving.

Regensburg, Germany

Regensburg was a bit of a surprise. We had read about it in the lonely planet and it sounded cool but we really did not expect to find what we did. We parked on the river and walked into town. The old bridge that crossed the river Naab was very picturesque especially with the 2 spires of the Basilica in the background. We walked around the town for a while, enjoyed the awesome stained glass windows from inside the Basilica and then ate some very tasty German sausage. Belly’s full we hit the road for the Czech Republic and Prague.

Nittendorf, Germany

After Dachau we headed a little way out of Munich, (we decided to skip Munich as Jo and I did it last year and Aims and Jake are planning to come back for Oktoberfest later this year). We picked a place out of our camping book that was on the way to Prague. Regensburg was the large town that we wanted to see but the closest campsite was in a small riverside town called Nittendorf. We arrived at around 8pm, got settled and then headed to the beer garden to sample the local food and drink. After a schnitzel (love schnitzel!!) and a few giant beers we hit the hay.

Dachau, Germany

None of us really knew what to expect when visiting one of the WWII concentration camps. Amy especially was not keen at all but knew that it was something she should do.
We had all heard stories about people going to these places and breaking down at what they saw, or the haunting feelings they experienced walking the grounds.
Needless to say it was a very somber, and uneasy place to walk around. We watched a 30 minute documentary which showed the camp in the 1940’s in full swing. It showed how the people were tricked into thinking that these camps were for there safety and protection to start with and then became a place for slave labour, and death for so many innocent people. It showed some pretty horrific images of demoralization and death, all of which make you realise how lucky we are to live in a different time.
We wandered the grounds, quietly, trying to imagine how 40000 people were squeezed into a camp built for 6000. We walked down the hallway of the bunker where prisoners were kept and tortured, some of which would spend more than 6 months at a time in complete darkness. We saw the hanging posts behind the bunker where the guards would tie a persons hand together and then hang them from a large hook, dangling there for hours at a time. We saw the living quarters (rebuilt in the 60’s as the originals were to rotten and filthy to keep standing), 3 tier bunk beds, no more than 6 foot long and 3 foot wide. At the end of the war there upto 500 people living in a room built for 50, everyone sleeping on these bunk beds, no one was aloud to sleep on the floor.
Originally there was 30 rows of living quarters all of which were torn down in the 60’s because of the filth and disease from the way they were used in the war. Now only 1 row remains that is the rebuilt buildings.

We saw the crematorium, a new one had to be built during the war to cope with the amount of bodies that need disposing of. We also saw the gas chamber, that was built for mass executions but was never used at Dachau. It was made to look like a shower block. The word “Brausebad” (shower) written across the doorway to make the prisoners feel at ease. There were fake shower heads installed that released the gas. It was amazing to see how sneaky the Nazi’s were.
Behind the crematorium, next to the old firing range, with blood gutter, was a memorial stone with the words “Grave of many thousands unknown”.

Austria Drive-By

Jo again... In order for us to get close to Munich, Germany, we had to get through Austria first. Ads and I had been skiing in Austria in March of this year and we loved what we saw. To see it again in the summer was just as beautiful! It is such a green luscious place with huge mountains and pine trees and green fields all surrounding the highway. It does seem like the one place in the world that you see in movies (mainly ‘Sound of Music’) and it really looks like that! It was just so enjoyable to drive on the main highway for a few hours taking in the scenery. We stopped by one of the 100’s of McDonalds on the highway for some food (bad Westerners we are!) and the restaurant had some of the best views of the valley! It would have been nice to spend some time in Austria but unfortunately we don’t have the available time but at least we had a drive-by visit. Now on to Germany!

Venice, Italy

Jo here... After arriving back in Venice we headed to San Marco square to see how big the line was to the basilica. On the way we found a nice mask shop and bought some masks. On arrival to the basilica it was still too long to wait in the hot sun to get into the church so we again decided to give it a miss. We did though jump on the water bus to Murano island to see the glass works that are famously produced there. It was amazing and a a beautiful island. We had a look around at the shops and the show rooms and were lucky enough to see the last glass blowing demonstration for the day. The man created a glass horse with ease. It was incredible! It only took him a few minutes but I imagine he’s been doing the same thing for the past 10-15 years.
Once back on the main island we strolled back through the streets to catch the bus back to Sarsha so that we could get well on our way to Germany. We had picked a campsite on the boarder of Italy and Austria to stay but upon arrival at around midnight we were told they were full but somehow we think they didn’t want Sarsha chugging through the campsite waking everyone up. Fair enough we thought so we kept driving and Aims and Jake had spotted signs to an ‘auto-stop’. We were unsure as to exactly what it meant but we thought we would give it a try. Luckily it turned out to be a great stop-over. It was just off the motor-way and there were lots of motor homes set up there for the night. The place looked like a car park but was complete with hook-up electricity. It was perfect to catch a few hours sleep and best of all it was only €12.00!

Venice, Italy

It’s Jo here... I have always wanted to go to Venice every since I was a little girl. All of my family that visited Venice would bring me home a mask. We arrived to Venice at lunchtime an it was so sweltering hot but we were all determined to see as much as we could. Amy and I walked into sooooo many of the mask shops and were in absolute awe. They were amazing! I would have been happy to walk around all the little alley’s of Venice and look at all of their mask stores but unfortunately we didn’t have the time and the boys didn’t have the patience (but fair enough). So we combined looking at the mask stores and sight seeing. Walking through the streets of Venice is incredible. It is so easy to get lost as it is highly unlikely that you will walk through the same alley twice (unless they are near the Rialto or San Marco)! We first headed in the direction of the Rialto bridge and from there San Marco square. Along the way we saw all the gondolas’ in the canals. We had decided that we wouldn’t go for a ride as there were way too many tourists on too many gondolas’ and there was a traffic jam in the canals. Not a great way to spend €80.00.
Once we got into San Marco square I thought there were going to be a lot more pigeons then there were. I now understand why they are always there though. People feed them and let the pigeons walk all over them! It was disgusting! One kid lied down on the floor and had his dad put bread crumbs on his stomach and as you can imagine all the pigeons flocked on him! We were all disgraced as we think they are flying rats! Moving on from that we took in the beauty of the basilica of San Marco. It was quite impressive but we didn’t go in as the line was long and there was no shade so we quickly gave up on that idea.
We continued to stroll through the streets and shops until the early evening when we decided that it was too hot and we would go back to our campsite and come back early tomorrow to see a little more.