Berlin never reached the heights of other imperial capitals in the age of empires. Even today it compares poorly both with other capital cities in Europe and with other German cities like Munich, Frankfurt, Hamburg and Cologne. As a united country, Germany is young. It only became one country in 1871, after Bismarck's forces crushed Napoleon III's armies in the … [Read more...] about Berlin, the sexy city that’s full of quirks and contrasts
Archives for March 2019
Let’s take the scenic route
I ticked that off my list last summer, as my wife and I meandered back to Martinborough after spending a weekend in Napier. Months earlier I had taken a road map of New Zealand and had gone over it with a felt pen tracing out all the roads I had travelled. Of course, the major highways had been traversed, as well as almost all of what we used to call the provincial highways, … [Read more...] about Let’s take the scenic route
Experience trumps expectation
Experience, it is said, is a great teacher. Given these four experiences I could have coped with ignorance. My wife and I set out from Wellington to New York – a long-planned trip. That was the easy bit. Here are four expectations we made, make that I made, that were not met. One: If it’s OK internationally, it’s OK domestically. I bought a couple of little bottles of … [Read more...] about Experience trumps expectation