Willkommen in Charlottenburg

Hello my dear family and friends! I am writing you on from an absolutely beautiful afternoon in Berlin. When the weather cooperates and the sun comes out, this city absolutely vibrantly glows. The side walk cafes brim with happy patrons each relishing in the sunshine and each other's company. The flowers, so carefully tended on each porch and balcony, seem to become even more brilliantly colored. When the sun shines, Berlin, the city that never sleeps, truly comes to life. 

In the name of enjoying the sun and getting to know my new neighborhood, I have luxuriously spent the past two afternoons after work sitting at a side walk cafe, reading and savoring a wonderfully foamy latte macchiato. 

Sidewalk cafes and espresso are truly one of my favorite of Europe's many traditions. It embodies what I find to be one of the best characteristics of the continent. Germans, if not all Europeans, have an almost reverent respect for relaxation and deem that leisurely sipping a cappuccino and perusing a newspaper at midday on a weekday to be completely reasonable, if not vital.

While I am getting acquainted with Charlottenburg via its many beautiful cafes, I am also getting to know it in a more robust manner by running its streets. While out on one of my runs yesterday, I decided to try to find the royal summer palace, Schloss Charlottenburg, which I heard was somewhere nearby. I pointed myself in the general direction and took off running. After fifteen minutes of running this is what I came across...

While there is an entrance fee to the castle, the acres and acres of palace grounds are a city park open for everyone to enjoy. As I ran down gorgeous gardens paths, across bridges spanning happily bubbling brooks and across wonderfully wild heaths, I was hit with an overwhelming feeling of how truly lucky I am to here. I am getting paid to live in a place where I can go for my afternoon run through the magnificent gardens of a eighteenth century palace. Pretty darn cool, or as my German students would say, "Geil!"

Finally, I want to introduce you all to my new home at Friedbergstraße 12 in Berlin's Charlottenburg district. 

I moved into my new room this past weekend and have so far been really happy with my new surroundings. Here is the front door of my building:

You can see my balcony all the way up on the fifth floor. Since the apartment is a fifth floor walk-up, I'm hoping that the many, many stairs that I climb daily will help me keep the schnitzel and sausage from sticking around!

I am renting a room from a woman named Sylvia who lives with her daughter and had an extra room after her son went to college. Sylvia and her boyfriend, John, from New Zealand have been incredibly welcoming towards me, serving me dinner on several occasions and patiently helping me improve my German. Here is a picture of my bright, sunny room taken from the bed:

I am also lucky enough to have a balcony, although I don't know how long much longer I will be able to use it with Berlin's winter just around the corner. Here is the view down Friedbergstr. from the balcony:

Now I am going to say auf weidersehen as the sun is shining and Schloss Charlottenburg is calling my name. Time to strap on my running shoes and uncover the new hidden treasures waiting on Charlottenburg's streets. I promise to keep you posted on my findings. xoxo