Rainy Days in Berlin

Sat 16 April (Shanteya's Mum's Birthday!!!). The last few days have been fairly cruisy, consisting of van searching, website creating, cosy card games and relaxing indoors, as its been rainy weather and Shanteya has slowly been recovering from her sickness (although now she's loosing her voice, which is great for busking... Jo on the other hand has been practicing singing in his sleep, so he's ready to roll...).

Yesterday we woke up early, as our body clocks are still finding their feet, and begun the day with a yoga class lead by Angelika (Nadia's mum). "Oh yes!", it was soo goood to move our bodies and stretch our muscles that had become extremely stiff and sore from the couple of days spent sitting on a plane!

One of Shanteya's favorite memories from her last visit to Berlin was swimming in the lakes and riding bikes through the enchanting woodlands that encircle them. Seeing as the rain clouds were predicted to hold onto their full bellies for a couple of hours longer, Nadia and Boelie offered to take us. We shared travel tales and memories as we trailed along the waters edge observing some new and familiar birds, including ducks, pigeons and woodpeckers. They told us that in the winter time the lake freezes over and sometimes its thick enough for people to skate on. Now that would be fun! We're sure to see our fair share of ice towards the end of the trip but for now we'd appreciate some sunshine. Interesting Fact 1: Berlin is built on swampy land, thus leading to the many lakes around the city and the need to pump water (through pipes seen around the city) from the foundations of new construction sites to prevent groundwater flooding. In Slavic (Slavs populated the area before the Germans) 'berl' actually means swamp and '-in' translates to city or town.

Photos From Top To Bottom: Ducks playing in the lake; Izzy the bunny; Boelie, Shanteya and Nadia at the lake