Won't you take me to...

...Funkytown! Won't you take me to...Funkytown!!!

Whenever I hear this song, I immediately think of Berlin. I went over for a work conference but got some time to explore it yesterday. Berlin to me is a hub for hippies and bohemian artists. Many people there seemed to reject societal norms like bathing and using deodorant and marched to the beat of their own drum.

There was a smoking bar (some establishments still allow smoking but only for over 18s)in the area where our hotel was located (with the prostitutes). As soon as you entered, you were transported back in time to the 1960s when the Berlin Wall was constructed. Candles on round old tables, surrounded by fading black and white photographs and mirrors all around the dark, smoky rooms.

And while I sat there dying of second hand smoke with friends discussing political and social issues - I suddenly felt like an arty activist trying to save the world and rejecting the powers that be. And for an instant, I felt like starting a revolution, that's of course until I couldn't stop coughing my lungs out...

Like I said before, it's got an edgy feel to it and perhaps this is to do with its troubled past. And as I explored the city, it was always at the back of my mind that this is where many events occurred which affected the world's history in general. Imagine if the Germans had won WWII...we'd probably be speaking German right now! A bit crazy when you think about it...

Oh and the food is an islander's paradise - meat and fat galore. Not to mention the supersweet desserts they serve in BIG portions! Cheap too.

Overall, I really liked Berlin and would definitely visit it again... and you should too! :)

And here are a few quirky and funky photos I thought I'd share.

Classic example of a supersweet dessert: Apple struddel with MELTED vanilla ice cream
Good for the soul, but no good for the heart!

Umm this isn't clear enough (sorry) but this is in the Eastern part of Germany
where the they retained the little guy with the hat on their traffic lights.
A little but very visible reminder of Berlin's dynamic history.

Many times, photos don't do reality any justice and this is one of them.
I'm sharing it so you can see a glimpse of how stunning this is -
the sun setting behind buildings overlooking the Holocaust memorial -
with two trees in sight -
one down to its bare trunk and the other decked in leaves.
How's that for symbolism?
(ia faafekai Frida Kohla)

There's so many things wrong with this picture that I couldn't help taking it!
It's found in every toilet stall of the cheap as hotel I was in
I mean - what's with the chilli signs? The smiling suspiciously asian looking dudes?
And seriously - who balances on toilet seats???

Look closely. Who do you see? If you thought like me and saw the face
of the idiotic American president we had to put up with for 8 years
on a baby then you got it right. It was used for a newspaper ad...


Who's face is worse than Dubya's face on a baby?
Pope Benedict XVI.
Enough said.