Berlin 2015 Friday 26th June
The Rutlish Berlin Trip 2015 got off to a fabulous start today. On the agenda was a four-hour walking tour in slightly rainy conditions. That didn't dampen spirits though and a great day was had by all.
"Today has been a lot of fun but very tiring" Hussein
"The guy is a legend" George about our tour guide Roy
Berlin 2015 Saturday 27th June
Today started with a tour of a bunker and a visit to The Story of Berlin museum. The boys followed this up with lunch, shopping and outdoor swimming. It was momentous day for Ms Moody as she managed to navigate the group to and from The Story of Berlin for the first time in 4 years without getting lost! Tonight we're off to a street party to listen to some live music and possibly squeeze in a chocolate pancake.
Berlin 2015 Sunday 28th June
Today has been a day of great escapes, baked goods, deck chairs and secret surveillance. We started off the day at the Checkpoint Charlie Museum after which the boys took advantage of a quick break to eat their own body weight in German baked goodness. We then had lunch and caught some rays in the deck chairs at Alexanderplatz before heading to the former Stasi prison - Hohenschoenhausen. After dinner we're off to the park and the rumour is PC Crouch is going to introduce the boys to the game of Danish long ball.
Berlin 2015 Monday 29th June
After a couple of games of Danish long ball and an international football match yesterday evening, today started with a trip to the DDR Museum followed by a break for lunch and shopping. In the afternoon we had a tour around the Stasi Museum followed by more shopping. The Berlin retailers are now reporting a shortage in trainers and headphones.
After dinner tonight we're off to the park again. One might think all the fresh air and exercise would wear the boys out but, based on current evidence, one would be wrong!
Berlin 2015 Tuesday 30th June
The final day of the trip started with a boat trip along the Spree followed by lunch and yet more shopping and then an afternoon of outdoor swimming. The sun is shinning and I think it's safe to say the boys have had an amazing time in the wunderschöne Stadt Berlin.
Berlin 2014 - the picture gallery
Friday 27th June 2014 - Day 1
Successful first day enjoyed by all taking in the sights of Berlin on a three-hour walking tour. I think the best summary of the day would be tired but happy. Here are some pictures from the tour today:
I learned a lot about the Berlin Wall and how it was defended. Rory
A three-hour walk through history. Gerard
Berlin is cleaner, brighter and quieter than we expected. Luke G and Soner
Very exciting. Walked a lot. Very tired. Ragib
Saturday 28th June
An action-packed day 2 started at The Story of Berlin including a bunker tour. This was followed by lunch and shopping on Kurfürstendamm before going to the Tiergarten park to play football. Dinner tonight was at the Hard Rock Café and we just made it back to the hostel in time to watch the extra time of the Berlin match. As I'm sure you can tell, life is hard for the boys in Berlin. Here are few snapshots from today:
The temperature in the bunker would have been 30 degrees with 90 percent humidity. Those conditions would have been unbearable. Theo
I don't think I could have survived 2 weeks in the bunker under those conditions. Thomas
The toilets in Germany are the cleanest ever. And that can only be a good thing. Mufazzal
It just sounds like a lot of noise to me. PC Crouch on the soundtrack in the Hard Rock Café
Miss can't navigate but we had fun anyway. Luke G
Miss, are you getting us lost for the third time today? Saul
I have many talents but navigating isn't one of them. Ms Moody
Sunday 29th June
Another busy day in der Hauptstadt for the Rutlish boys. We started the day at Checkpoint Charlie before moving to Alexanderplatz for lunch. The afternoon was spent at Hohenschoenhausen Memorial Centre (former Stasi prison) where we were privileged to be guided through the prison by former political prisoner Gerd Zimmermann. He was absolutely fantastic and had a massive impact on the boys. We enjoyed a traditional German dinner at Alter Fritz before heading back to watch the next two World Cup matches at the hostel. Here are some highlights from today's adventure:
Quotes of the day...
Checkpoint Charlie:
Despite the desperation I don't know if I would've been brave enough to try to escape. Brandon
Of all the ways to escape we've seen, I think I would have chosen the flying machine. Dominic
Hohenschoenhausen:
He was incredibly brave to share his story. Shadi (about Gerd Zimmermann)
That is the most impressive story I have ever heard. This visit has had a real impact. Luke G
The tour was amazing. Rory
And finally:
Me and Shadi are going to get I love Berlin tattoos on our arms. Mufazzal
Ms Moody should've gone to Specsavers. Luke T
Monday 30th June
Day 4 of our trip to Berlin and Ms Moody has discovered that the boys far surpass her when it comes to shopping stamina. These boys can shop. And shop. And shop. In between the shopping we managed to squeeze in an interactive visit to the DDR museum and a tour around the former Stasi HQ. Another successful day in der Hauptstadt. Just need Deutschland to win the match tonight to round the day of nicely.
The DDR museum was really interactive and interesting. It was good fun. Uthman and Nathan
Now I know what the Stasi actually did. Before I knew they were bad but I didn't know why. Calum
We have had lots of freedom on this trip which has been really good. Calm
We really enjoyed driving the car today at the DDR museum. Gerard and Tony
The tour guide at the Stasi HQ told us lots of information about what it was like to live in East Germany. It was very informative. Uthman
Berlin 2013
Take a look at the picture gallery:
Friday 27th June - Day 1
Arrived safely and we can confirm that the weather is no better here than it is in the UK. Not that we let the showers dampen our spirits as we embarked on a three-hour walking tour taking in the sights of Museum Island, Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag and the Holocaust Memorial. The rain also didn't stop Gerard from rocking the waterproof gangster look!
"I am surprised how modern things look, I was expecting it be more old fashioned." Gerard
"Today was fun, great and the tour was very informative" Sam
"We enjoyed looking at the old buildings and hearing about the history behind them" Tony and Ravi
Saturday 28th June - Day 2
Today started with a visit to the Story of Berlin and a tour of a nuclear bunker, followed by some shopping time on Kurfürstendamm and then on to view an original stretch of the Berlin Wall. The day has been interspersed with frequent showers and numerous sausage and pretzel breaks.
"I really enjoyed the visit to the museum and the bunker - I could have done the tour twice. The escape tunnels under the wall were also really interesting" Alex F
"The bunker was really big and quite scary. We're glad we don't have to stay there" Michael and Archie
"It was cool to find out that 3,600 people could survive 2 weeks living in an underground bunker" Theo
Sunday 29th June - Day 3
Another busy day for the boys in Berlin. We started at Checkpoint Charlie followed by lunch at Alexanderplatz and an impromptu game of football where in the case of ball vs. tram, the tram won. After lunch we visited the Hohenschönhausen Memorial - the former Stasi prison. The boys are still eating their own body weight daily in cake but they all assure us they don't eat like this at home...
"It was really interesting but a little sad and depressing" Benny (former Stasi prison)
" I can't believe somebody escaped in a surfboard" Sam W (Checkpoint Charlie museum)
"I love Currywurst" Alexander P
Monday 30th June - Day 4
Today we set out to the DDR museum. After learning all about the peculiarities of life in East Germany in this interactive museum, we set out to the Stasi HQ. We emerged into the sunshine, and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon shopping and soaking up the rays!
"It was fun to learn about life in the DDR, the museum was really interactive but Benny's driving was mad" Arvin
Tuesday 1st July - Day 5
The 5th and final day sees us visit the Sachsenhausen concentration camp followed by a visit to the Berlin Olympic Dtadium. In the Rutlish race, Kyle was the first passed the finish line.
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