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It was an early start as we wound down from Rostock to Berlin through masses of barley, wheat and sourgum crops which were so neat it belied that we were on the east German side of Berlin. Monica our guide went into depth describing life under the soviet controlled state as against the west German side. Where family and friends were coerced to spy on each other for minor breaches of loyalty. Where if you displayed a western t shirt eg beatles it could mean years in jail KGB was minor compared to local police. It sounded far worse than we imagined. The difference since reunification of Germany is immense. Everyone has worked and paid taxes to bring the country back together after years of soviet neglect and mismanagement.
We viewed the Brandenburg gate, many examples of the wall some 4m high dividing the city after the war. We viewed the holocaust memorial and even saw where hitler hid in his final hours before extermination. Checkpoint Charlie was a highlight for us and it is well displayed for tourists.
Berlin today is modern thriving city with both old and new centers. The shops were closed but seriously good quality.
In all we drove 4/500km and had a good look at northern Germany.
No one seems too worried by euro defaults as Germany relies on 60% export income from euro neighbors so it can afford to prop them up for many years and slowly change the way they think?
We enjoyed our day down in Berlin but were happy to get back on board and enjoy our luxury surroundings be they blemished with colds and flu.
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