Hey Ho Let's Go

I woke up ten hours after going to bed feeling mostly better.  Not 100%, but well enough to get out and do something.  We had a backlog of things to do given the virtual shutdown of the city on Good Friday.  We decided to nix Winterfeldt market—I really wanted to go, but the idea of trudging through a big hot market in my condition did not appeal, and it would mean cutting something else.  We had promised the kids a trip to the planetarium, and we had loved our brief time in Prenzlauer Berg (where the planetarium was) so we headed there first.  Besides, the neighborhood was reported to house the best currywurst in town.  So off we went.

I am not drawn to Berlin as I am to some cities, but if I lived here, I think it would be in Prenzlauer Berg.  Beautiful old homes, tree-lined streets, lots of kids, cafés and interesting shops.  We stumbled on to a great farmer’s market at Kollwitz Platz, where we snacked on falafel, and fresh strawberry/orange/ginger juice.  We bought the fixings for our Easter meal—local ham, cheeses, and asparagus, and a loaf of bread that must weigh 5 pounds.  I also picked up a couple of jars of homemade jam—raspberry basil and orange rose hip—packaged in those beautiful Weck Glaeser jars.  Which inspired me to make perhaps the most impractical purchase of the trip—too many of these very jars to realistically bring home and make my own jam.  I have to say that Alec, to his credit, is always willing to figure out how to schlep a treasure home.  Never mind that the last batch of jam I made had the consistency of gummy bears; you had to slice and chew it rather than spoon and spread it.  But I actually think I was very stressed out and harried when I made that batch, and if I approach the project in a calm and cool frame of mind, things will turn out better.

We collected the kids from the playground and took the train two stops to go to Konnopke’s Imbiss—the home of the famed currywurst.  The line stretched forever, but our comrades-in-waiting assured us the wait would be no longer than 15 minutes.  Currywurst consists of a boiled, skinned sausage that is sliced and then topped with a sweet-ish ketchup-y sauce, and sprinkled with curry powder.  One generally orders fries with it also, and they come with ketchup, mayo or both.  We ordered two currywursts with fries, and a schnitzel for C.C. and Milo to share.  I have to say, it’s not my favorite street food.  The sausage is fine, but the sauce is too sweet for me, the curry not strong enough.  I’ll take the veggie doner kebab any day of the week.

It was mid-afternoon, we had a lot of packages (those jars are heavy) and I did not feel fully recovered.  So we caught a taxi and I dropped Alec and the kids at the planetarium while I went home to rest.  I unloaded, popped out to the Bio Market, a really great organic market, to replenish house supplies and pick up some Easter candy for the kids.

Then I re-assumed my position on the couch and took another long nap.  Alec and the kids got home after nine, having gone from the planetarium (which closed because the guy who runs the equipment was sick) to the Ramones museum where they caught a free concert. C.C. is glued to the TV watching Yogi Bear in her “Hey Ho Let’s Go” t-shirt as I write this.  The three marauders were pretty fired up when they came in.  I tucked the kids into bed with their new hot water bottles.  They have recently discovered the joys of sleeping with one and have been competing for mine.  Germany, of course, is the kind of place you can find quality kids’ hot water bottles, and these have lovely flannel covers on them.

Alec and I got some Korean takeout for dinner—not the best Korean food, but excellent seeing as it’s been nearly a year since we’ve had Korean food of any kind—and watched a movie.  We chomped enough of the snack the kids had left out for the Easter bunny to make it look as though he had visited, filled the baskets, and hit the sack.