Germany 2008: Berlin, part the first

Berlin was cool. I was really expecting to totally fall in love with it and want to marry it. A couple of things conspired to head that off at the pass, but I did fall in serious like with it.
Thing one was a nasty sinus infection. I get them every now and then thanks to [...]

Germany 2008: Dresden

Dresden looks a little, um, run down on the way in on the train. Is this because it was in the East Germany? I don’t know. Maybe that’s just Dresden.
The Hotel Mercure was über-swanky. Upscale modern accomodations are always welcome. The teenagers were in awe. We were merely pleased.
Snow. Cold. Rain.
Bus tour of the city [...]

Traveled.

I return, victorious, from my European conquest, whereupon I did indeed tour much of southern and eastern Germany (including the majestic formerly-walled city of Berlin) and managed to avoid doing any of the following to a teenager:

wring neck,
assault with a broken beer bottle, or
throw in front of (ubiquitous) speeding U Bahn Train.

I did:

call one (or [...]