So much in just one city

The past couple weeks have been filled with lots of walking, going in little shops, eating and enjoying Germany with more family.  I've gone to stores and places in the city that I probably wouldn't have thought twice about going to if Lydia and Gretchen weren't here.  I tried straight up Syrian food yesterday which was very interesting.  The only foods I really recognized were the falafel and hummus.  I got a platter of a variety of foods which included a yogurty type curry, couscous, some cilantro/herby salad, and a bunch of other delicacies that I'd never tasted before in my life.  It wasn't my typical German lunch of bread and meat by far.  It was very different but I enjoyed trying it because I'd never had food from Damascus before, so it was really cool.

Tuesday, Lydia, Gretchen and I went on a historic tour of all the major Berlin sites.  It included the famous Berlin boulevard, Unter den Linden, the Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag, parts of the Wall, where Hitler's bunker was (which, oddly enough is now just a parking lot with a sign that shows how it was laid out,) the Holocaust memorial and many others.  It was really interesting to hear about what Berlin started out as, a fishing village.  It then grew and grew into what is now the busy city it is today. It was amazing to hear about all the history that happened in this city alone.  You read about World War II in history books and hear lectures about it in class, but to actually visit where some of the major events happened is pretty awesome.  I mean, I saw Checkpoint Charlie, the place where the standoff of American and Soviet tanks nearly turned the Cold War into a hot one.  I walked over where the Wall used to be, something that millions of people literally would've killed to be able to do.  I've seen and learned about so many places and I learn something new pretty much every day.  And the thing is, this is just ONE CITY.  There's thousands of cities all over the world bursting with history that I have yet to learn about or see.  Only being here for about 2 months now has already sparked an interest to travel more.  I hope I can do that this year and throughout the rest of my life.  

But on a different note, I start my German classes on September 3rd, I believe.  I was going to do the night classes a few nights a week but a spot in the day ones opened up so now I'm going to go Montag bis Freitag (Monday through Friday.  See, I'm already learning some Deutsch! :)) and from 8:30am to 1:00pm.  It'll be a great fit being that I can get up with Talya and the kids and get into a normal routine. I'm excited and nervous, because Talya said that the day classes are more intense than the night ones.  But I have nothing but time to learn right now, so I figure I might as well learn all I can.

I would appreciate a continuance of prayer for a good church in a good location, a small group, friends for me, and anything else you might want to talk to the Man upstairs about. :)

Oh, buddy I'm tired.  I have a bar of Milka chocolate with caramel in the freezer so I think I'll enjoy some of that before I dream of cute European boys and doner kebaps. :)