The Sanders Family Travels Abroad for a Year

Good to have you along for our year long adventures in Ireland and other countries. We are working, playing, and schooling amongst our neighbors in Carna, Ireland.

Please use control + to enlarge the blog, the photos look much better this way. As of March 2011, google has improved the presentation of the blog, the photos show much better now.

Carna is along the west coast on Ireland, a little over an hour's drive from Gallway. It is a pretty rural area, and it is rugged and beautiful, physically and culturally.

We will keep you updated with our life, as we settle into a coastal home and integrate into the community. Greg is working in a Family Practice clinic, mentored by Gerard Hooke, whom Greg worked with a few years ago, for many years, in Arlington, Washington state. Gerard and his wife Amanda have settled into this area a few years ago, and are beloved by the community. The clinic was started by Michael Casey, who worked here solo for many years. He now has 3 clinics in Galway county, where he shares his time.

Our 3 children are in the local schools,where the classes are taught in the Irish language, with some English as well. We are exploring Ireland, on weekend drives. Also, periodically we are hopping over to the mainland Europe, for longer adventures.



Saturday, March 5, 2011

Berlin


Berlin Dom, a church

Berlin Wall

Summer, Berlin Wall
Gendarmenmarkt Square
Rembrandt painting

Brandenburg Gate

Checkpoint Charlie
Train to Berlin




Paris at Potsdamer Platz

Sony Center






Alien

Berlin Wall display, Pottsdamer

Paris, Summer and Stephen

German Church



French Church









Music House







Berlin Wall, about 1 mile long section

Kids, old East German side

Stephen, Summer and Paris, Berlin Wall














Berlin Dom







Olympian statue






Brandenburg Gate






Kennedy Museum, at Brandenburg Gate


Emergency Contraception Ad!









Rembrandt and other Masters




Stephen, out of gas




Holocaust Memorial


Palace


Victory Column




German Chocolate Store


Checkpoint Charlie, entering old East Germany


Towards old West Germany


It appears Google has finally improved some technical aspects of their blog site. My high resolution photos are presenting way better, and I can add captions to each photo.

We left rural Ireland for our third great adventure to mainland Europe. The kids were happy to get away from school for a week, and explore new lands and shop and eat good food. The sights and museums were a must as well. We flew to Berlin, spent 3 days, then went via train to Brussels, Belgium for 2 days, then again via train to Amsterdam, Holland for 3 days.

This blog entry will cover our trip to Berlin. The following 2 blogs will cover Brussels and Amsterdam.

We arrived to a light snowfall. We took the efficient subway from the airport to downtown, arriving in the Mitte district, formerly part of East Berlin. You wouldn't know it was as there has been so much transformation since the wall came down, just 20 years ago. Germany is the economic engine of Europe. Justine had found a neat 2 room apartment (definitely the way to go-100 euros per night) just a block from an old Gendarmenmarkt square surrounded by a beautiful French church (1701), as well as an old German church (1708), and the Concert House. I got some good night exposures of these structures that survived the WWII bombings. The kids posed on the steps too.

The first day, we took off for Potsdamer Platz, looking for a cinema, as the Berlin Film Festival was winding down. The times were off, so we toured and shopped instead. The Platz was Europe's busiest plaza during the roaring twenties. It was wiped out during WWII, and left as an open space next to the Berlin Wall. With reunification, it was developed into a super modern square, with the help of some famous architects.

The next morning, we took off on the bus tour, the highlight was the Berlin Wall. I think our kids got the message of what a symbol this was for freedom and tyranny. We walked along a mile long preserved section, that has colorful artistic expressions, from artists around the world, invited to paint each section. Interestingly, the East German side of the wall is baron.We also enjoyed Checkpoint Charlie, where the kids posed. They saw photos of visits by JFK, and Ronald Regan.

We went by the Jewish Holocaust memorial, which is a moving tribute, with seventeen hundred pillars that you can walk amongst. The recorded narrative was rather matter of fact, in the stoic German style. I would have appreciated a little more sympathetic expression of the horrors of the Third Reich.We also saw the Brandenburg Gate, built in 1795. The Quadriga statue on top of this gate was taken by Napoleon to France as a prize, later returned. It is the second Quadriga we have seen, the first was on the Arc De Triumph.

We got off the bus at Kurfurstendamm, where there was a wonderful Italian restaurant. I had some incredible salmon pizza, and the rest of the family were impressed with their food as well. I sampled the German draft beers where ever I could, which were a change from the dark Guinness that Ireland prefers. Justine enjoyed the sauerkraut. The kids enjoyed some regional shopping. Summer is collecting sew on patches of each country, and Stephen is collecting key chains.

That night, I sauntered out to Museum Island, for some more night photography. The highlight was the Berlin Cathedral (Berliner Dom) which was pretty impressive at night. I was not able to go inside. Interestingly, the Germans don't clean their statues as much as the French do, with mixed results. I don't know if it was because these were in the old East Berlin, but it is an observation.

We all went to the Gemaldegalerie museum, and saw a good Rembrandt collection, including Man in a Golden Helment, which, according to Wikipedia, is no longer considered his work. Some other Masters representeted there as well.

Berlin is a city with lots of sights, history and action where I would definitely recommend a visit. It is remarkable how much has changed in just twenty years, when it was a city divided.

We then hopped on the high speed train, to Brussels.  One of the observations I have from these travels is how far behind we are in the USA in adopting mass transit. We really are left in the dust. All major European cities have great subway systems. I have mentioned how my European car gets 65 mpg. The high speed trains are omnipresent, and popular. I am starting to see why the Oracle of Omaha bought a big railroad company in the US. There is impressive energy conservation everywhere in Europe. The only bummer is you can't get a glass of water with a meal, you have to buy it! It is called distilled water, or "water with gas."


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