And so it begins!

Well Berlin started out with a bang. And by bang, I mean BIG BANG. Mostly because I lost my passport before even stepping into my first european hotel... surprised? Not really. I had opened my purse to pay the taxi man, did, and then moved to the trunk to help him unload. Before the nice man pulled away, he saw my wallet on the backseat and handed it to me. Not thinking that anything else could have possibly fallen out, I stepped into the hotel, checked in, and realized, as he drove far far away that my passport was not with me, and I did not know his name. Another fun fact, Germany has FIVE taxi services, all with the same looking car. So I spent the next day traveling from the US embassy to the US consolate in order to get an emergency passport, which I did, and five minutes after cancelling the old, and long gone one, I received a call that my passport had been returned to the embassy. I wish the story ended there, but alas, my struggles continued. I spent my final day in Berlin arguing with a man at the US embassy. Apparently, the embassy accidentally mailed passport to another city in Germany. I wish I were kidding. The idiot who I spoke to, who I am so proud represented the United States of America, the greatest country in the world, was a hick, who continuously popped his front dentures out while arguing with me. Eventually, after an hour of insisting that this was unacceptable and that I would not leave without him doing something, besides removing his teeth of course, he agreed to have my passport mailed to Florence.
Nothing short of colorful, right? On the plus side, I knew the metro system of Berlin like the back of my hand. I had been everywhere and anywhere wandering around trying to become a legal traveler. I really got to see every part of the city. Long story that was (not so) short, Berlin was great. An easy transition from the United States to Europe. Berlin has been rebuilt after WWII, so it seems more like an industrial city in the US, than a city, like Florence, with so much old architecture and feeling. We toured a concentration camp and 2 Jewish museums, which truly was an experience I will never forget. I am glad I went because I understand the importance of grasping the severity of  pre/postWWII, but the feelings of these places were truly disturbing.

We also took a day trip to Dresden, Germany, which was truly beautiful. It was raining and I was attired perfectly in jean shorts and rainbow sandals. It has become a running joke between the staff members and myself that they have to “approve” my outfits with them before I step out of the building since I can’t seem to dress myself. The staff and I have become reaaaal close, since due to the passport fiasco, we spent about 6 hours a day together.