Berlin: a list

Mom has the camera, so I can't post pictures from our weekend in Berlin. Instead I'll just hit the highlights. I'm also going to try to avoid talking about stuff that you can read in your own travel guide/history book.

1. Food. I have two things to say. First, I enjoy currywurst, but the stand that sells it in Jena is probably just as good. The second thing is that THEY HAVE MEXICAN FOOD IN BERLIN!! German food is good and all, but sometimes you just want a burrito. We actually ate at two places - the first was operated by a Mexican couple. I had the veggie tacos, 'cause I was craving the refried beans. The second was an American-style burrito place (like Willie's or Moe's). My cilantro lime chicken burrito was quite good. Normally, when I'm visiting a place as a tourist I feel bad ordering food I could easily get at home. But since I live here now, I'm not ashamed of getting a taco fix every now and then.
2. Potsdam. If you get a chance, take the train out to Potsdam and ride bikes around the Park Sanssouci. It's a lovely was to spend a day. However, you should take care not to let the key fall out of your pockets so that you have to spend a long time retracing your path and looking for it. It, um, happened to a friend of mine.
3. Ali. This is the name of the Egyptian guy who tried to pick me up outside the bar where Mom and I were having a well-deserved beer at the end of the day. Ali works as a painter/electrician and has lived alone for three years. He claims that living alone is not good. He also dislikes Berlin, because a person has to work very hard there. He was disappointed when I insisted on going home with Mom rather than staying at the bar with him. But he gave me his phone number and e-mail address just in case I come back to Berlin. Thanks, Ali.
4. Football. Although Mom and I are currently spending the evenings watching my new Firefly DVDs (Thanks Tracey!), sometimes we had the muted football game in the background. So, um, I didn't do very well this weekend, but neither did anyone else. I'm currently tied for 3rd place with Jenny and Carsten. Unfortunately for them, Jenny bet that the Netherlands would win over all, and Carsten bet that it would be Italy. So if Germany wins those two will be toast. Also, if anyone has advice for the semifinals, please let me know.

Yeah, so those were the highlights. I mean, we saw some other stuff, like Checkpoint Charlie, the Brandenburg Tor, and the big GDR TV tower - all of which were fun(ish - I guess the cold war wasn't really so much fun for Berlin). Mom leaves a week from today, so we're making a list of all the stuff she wants to do before then. Actually, I'm not sure that painting my apartment is something that she wants to do...but it's still on the agenda.