First Advent

Yesterday was the First Advent. We lit one candle, ate some ‘Stollen’ and drank Egg Nogg, according to tradition.

I don’t know how many people still celebrate Advent; there are four of them and after them comes Christmas. It is a Christian thing and should not be forgotten in this climate of being ‘Politically Correct’ and pleasing all the minorities. Perhaps now more than ever we have to make sure to keep ‘Christmas’ alive, before it gets swept away among all those changes that are happening to appease non-Christians.

I am not exactly a religious fanatic. I don’t belong to any church, even though I was born and raised in a Christian family. However, I still celebrate the Christian holidays like Christmas and Easter. They are important, even though they are used as reasons to sell all kinds of merchandise that have nothing to do with Christmas. One good thing, they still play Christmas songs on the radios. In fact, I hear them more now than in past years. That is a good thing.

Christmas is all about ‘Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Man’, and that is something we need right now. All these conflicts in the Middle East, the turmoil in the African countries and the terror that seems to paralyze travel and threaten many activities all over the globe need some positive thoughts and celebrations. You don’t need to be a Christian to believe in these values; you just need to be a human being who loves and accepts his/her fellow human instead of being consumed by hatred that is unfounded but fuelled by a wrong theology, one that is rigid and intolerant of others of different beliefs.

Peace on Earth

#Cecil the Lion—one more time

 Probably everyone who watches TV knows about ‘Cecil, the Lion’ killed by Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer. Many people got upset about it and demanded the head of this 'terrible Killer of Lions'. The whole frenzy was, of course, fuelled by the media and blown out of proportion.

Even I got on the ‘bandwagon’ on my blog condemning the ‘Lion killer’.

I’ve stated that I’m not a ‘Trophy Hunter’, which is not entirely correct. I’ve hunted and shot plenty of geese, ducks, game birds, and deer in my lifetime; mainly for the meat but also for the thrill of the hunt. I also admit that every time I shot a buck I was hoping for a monster-buck—a trophy, if you will. To say otherwise would make me a hypocrite.

However, there is more to hunting than just going out and shoot something. It is all about enjoying the outdoors. There is nothing better and soothing to the soul than walking down a bush trail early in the morning, inhaling the fresh, crisp air, and smelling the different scents of the forest, of hearing the birds twittering in the trees, and listening to the honking of a flock of geese flying south.

I’ve walked through the forest after sundown in the eerie light of a full moon and had goose bumps running down my spine when I heard the barking and howling of the coyotes in the distance and nearby.

What can compare with the thrill of having a chickadee land in front of me or sit on my boot while I’m sitting quietly in my deer-stand?  Or watching a flock of crows circling above me waiting for me to shoot a deer so they can clean up after I’m done dressing the animal?

But let’s get back to Cecil, the Lion. The public outcry over his killing has had negative repercussions. Major airlines refuse to transport big game now. Many big-game-hunters have cancelled their hunts. The unfortunate truth is that the wildlife conservancies across Africa depend on the revenue created by these hunts and the ban on trophy hunting may also spell the end of conservation in some of these countries.

So in the end, the very animals the animal-lovers and anti-hunters want to protect will be left without protection. Sounds strange but sadly it is fact.

Humans have hunted for food and sports since beginning of time. We are predators and omnivores, which means we eat vegetables and meat. Wild meat is healthier than meat from domestic animals, just like wild salmon are better than farm-raised salmon. There are no hormones, no antibiotics, and no unhealthy chemicals in the meat.

There are many economic benefits resulting from the sport of hunting and fishing, starting with the money generated just from the licenses sold. Anglers and hunters buy clothing, hunting and fishing gear, food, processing equipment and a score of other items. The list is long.

Then there are the outfitters that organize hunt and fishing trips, the hotels, the butchers and many others who benefit. Hunting and fishing create jobs and are good for everyone.

Most animals are a renewable resource, but the animals and their habitat need to be protected; the animals from overhunting and overfishing by regulations and the habitat needs to be protected from being destroyed. None of that would happen were it not for hunters and anglers. They provide the money needed for that to happen.

Unfortunately, in Canada we have the indigenous population and now the Métis who are allowed to hunt and fish anytime with hardly any limits. There is no control. And they don’t have to buy licenses, which means they do nothing for the animals and for the habitat. I don’t mean this as a racial slur, because those are the facts. We will never be able to completely control hunting and fishing unless everyone follows the regulations. But that is another subject—a delicate one at that.

Anti-hunters don’t seem to see the whole picture. All they see are the cute animal babies. Fifty years ago we didn’t see many Canada geese out in the field, pretty much none in Winnipeg; now they are on the verge of becoming a nuisance and they are breeding at an alarming rate. They are almost a menace on the streets and on the parking lots. Farmers hate them because they destroy their crops.

Yet people are upset when Manitoba Conversation, a government agency, removed a thousand eggs from nests to halt the increase of the goose population in certain areas of the city.

One ignorant person went as far as calling the President of the Manitoba Wildlife Federation (a private organisation of hunters and anglers) on his cell-phone and accused him of being a ‘murderer’ who should be treated like the abortionist Dr. Morgentaler. Whatever that caller meant by that.

 Something like that is ignorance and stupidity in its purest form. People should get their facts straight before they make accusations and assumptions. MWF had nothing at all to do with the culling of the goose eggs.

I have to admit, the killing of Cecil, the Lion isn’t quite as simple as it seems at first. There is much more involved here and I am not quite as eager now to condemn Trophy-hunting. I still don’t condone it. I don’t believe in hunting and shooting magnificent animals like Elephants, Rhinos, Giraffes, big cats and other rare animals, some of them on the endangered list, but that is my opinion. I won't dictate what others do.

By the way, I didn’t get my deer this year, but we had a good time anyway. The weather was nice and we even got a little snow the last day. The fact that we spent hours trying to get out of the mud we got stuck in because of the warm weather didn’t dampen our spirits; maybe just a little (^_^) . There is always next year and something to look forward to.

Enjoy the rest of the Black Friday weekend and Cyber Monday. Hope you’ll find some bargains.

The #Christmas Spirit—is it still alive?

It is that time of year again. Christmas is near and the Schools are putting on their concerts. They used to be called #‘Christmas Concerts’, now they are called ‘Winter Concerts’ and some other name that has nothing to do with Christmas. Why? Because, as my granddaughter explained to me ‘not everyone believes in Christmas.’

Okay, that may be so. There have always been people who don’t believe in and don’t celebrate Christmas. That has never stopped everyone else from celebrating Christmas. And the Schools did their best to put on nice Christmas shows.

Now it seems, in the name of political correctness this has come to an end. We must not offend anyone, so the minorities are dictating to the majority of Canadians. Christmas concerts are now Winter Concerts.

We went to one a couple of days ago. We didn’t have a choice because our grandson goes to that particular School and we wouldn’t miss it, for his sake. He sings in the choir. Sadly, there was nothing there that reminded me of Christmas. I didn’t care for the songs they sang and I didn’t care for the music. Even though the students did a great job and put all of their efforts into it, it left me cold.

The music was dark, not uplifting at all. One student played some electronic piece he, apparently, composed himself. I’m sure he put a lot of work into it, but, as far as I am concerned, it was awful. I have no idea what the message was supposed to be. The music was monotonous and got louder and louder. At one point I had to close one of my ears with one finger, because I couldn’t stand the noise any longer, even though I have trouble with my hearing. I didn’t want to lose the hearing I have left. My chest vibrated and I was ready to get up and go outside. There seemed to be no end to that song. It reminded me of that commercial with the kids singing in the car: The song that never ends.

Then they sang an African song with drums and whatever. Now I’m asking this: What has that got to do with a Winter Concert? There wasn’t one Christmas Song and that made me sad. Wasn’t it Christmas that spawned these concerts in the first place years ago? I miss those beautiful Christmas carols and the little plays the students put on. There was happiness there and fun.

I’m looking forward to going to a real Christmas Concert put on by the School our youngest granddaughter goes to. It is a private school and therefore not controlled by the public School board. It will be a refreshing change and a pleasant and enjoyable experience. It was last year.

There are forces out there who want to mold our Free Western World to their way of living. They are attacking our basic way of life by removing all our old values, and our politicians do nothing to stop that, just to get their votes. They are worried about offending the minorities and try hard not to step on any toes, while we are being trampled into the ground by giant boots.

Let’s keep the Christmas Spirit alive and celebrate Christmas the way we’ve done for so long.

A bottle of wine and a movie

Just finished bottling my second batch of red wine. I did one yesterday. Those two batches have been ‘aging’ in their carboys since May of this year. In the summer I usually don’t have any time to make wine. I leave that for the winter activities.

I got 26 bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon and 27 bottles of Pino Nero, which is Pino Noir from a different company. I bought these two from Costco when they had their sale last winter.

This last weekend we watched two movies. Actually, we started watching ‘Spy’, a comedy with Melissa McCarthy. She’s Molly in the TV show Mike and Molly.

Maybe it’s just us, but we didn’t think the movie was funny. We got to the scene with the penis (Anyone who has watched the movie knows what I’m talking about) and that’s where we decided to stop wasting our time. The acting was just so overdone and mindless. Melissa McCarthy may be a famous actress now, but I only saw ‘Molly’ when I watched the movie. She acts the same way in every role. We saw her in the movie 'Heat'. Same acting. Just 'Molly'. I guess that is the way she is.

Perhaps we have lost our innocent sense of humor over the years. When I was a teenager I just loved the Jerry Lewis movies. I remember killing myself laughing. Years later, I took our boys to a Jerry Lewis movie. They didn’t think it was funny and even I thought it was stupid. So it goes. Times and tastes change.

Then we watched ‘Jurassic World’. I enjoyed it, my wife not so much, but I’m not as critical as she is. I have to admit, there wasn’t very much new stuff in the movie compared to the first one ‘Jurassic Park’, which was really exciting and scary. Possibly, because we saw it on the big screen in a theatre where the sound effects where better. Can’t forget the scene with the Rex running behind the jeep and the side mirror: Objects are closer than they appear. That was just classic. And the thumping sounds because of the ‘Surround Sound’ in the theatre. It felt as if you were there. Wonderful.  I love my dinosaurs, so I thought ‘Jurassic World’ was okay. It might have been more exciting to watch it on a huge screen, though, maybe in 3D even.

The second movie we watched was ‘The man from U.N.C.L.E.’ At first we thought it was stupid and so overdone until we realized it was a comedy. After that it was pleasurable to watch and we thought it was good clean fun. Enjoyed it.

As far as TV shows go, we were sorry to see the season finale of ‘The Blacklist’. It ended with a cliff-hanger. Now I can’t wait until the next season starts. I actually hate cliff-hangers like that. Blacklist was a great show with likable characters.

Not many good comedies out there. Too bad. We still watch ‘The Big Bang Theory’ and ‘Modern Family’. Also ‘Last man standing’. They are still funny and we enjoy them. ‘Mike and Molly’ hasn’t returned yet. We probably will continue to watch it. Most of those other comedies are just so dumb. We’re looking for another good comedy. They’re just not out there. Over the years, there were so many good, funny and intelligent comedies playing, but many got cancelled and didn’t make it. We could never understand why they were cancelled and other, really idiotic shows, kept on playing; are still playing. What does that say about the IQ and taste of the majority of TV watchers?

I guess, I’d better go for supper and sample a glass of my newly bottled Pino Noir. Maybe even two.

Cheers.

#Tim Horton's

Today was shopping day. We went for lunch to Tim Horton's. Not because I'm a Horton's fan, I don't drink coffee, but because it is convenient and we don't wast much time having lunch. I usually have a soup without the bun. I don't care for the bun they give you with the soup. Today I had cream of broccoli. Sometimes I have the new and improved chicken soup (didn't care much for the old version) and if they have it I order the cream of cauliflower. The soups are okay but nothing to write home about. If the cream of potato soup is available, I may order that just for variety, but most of the time it is too thick. Actually, I am getting tired of Tim Horton's soups. There isn't much variety and I've been eating too many of them over the years. Maybe I'll switch over to a donut and ice tea. Or maybe we'll go to A & W for a change. We do go there sometimes, also, but only if we have coupons. Otherwise the hamburgers are too expansive for my taste.

Why am I writing this? Nobody really cares what I eat and where I eat. Anyway, my question is this: Why do they have people at the counter who can't speak proper English? I had no idea what the girl was saying. Okay, my hearing is not the best, but even my wife couldn't understand her. I sort of guessed what the girl said and I ended up with my soup as ordered. I just say 'no' or 'yes' and hope it is the correct answer.

I realize everyone should get a chance at a job, but for heaven's sake: LEARN ENGLISH! before you apply for a job where you have to deal with the public. Work in the kitchen or in the backroom but not at the counter! I blame the management at Tim Horton's and all the other Fast Food Places. Why do they put people who don't speak the language in such positions?

This is not the first time I ran into that, and not only in Canada. When we were in Germany and checked into one of the hotels, the woman behind the counter spoke really bad German. I couldn't understand what she said. I feel embarrassed and like a fool when I have to say 'Pardon me' three times and still don't understand them. A customer should not be put into such a situation. People are offended by all kinds of things these days. I am offended by this.

I fear it is going to get worse when we get all those refugees. They need jobs but what can they do? Work in the fast-food business, I guess. You don't need too much education for those jobs EXCEPT TO SPEAK ENGLISH!

Have a nice weekend.

Winter has arrived

Well, the snow has fallen. We made it safely to our doctor and back again, and it was a bit nerve-racking. The highway was slippery, but we gave ourselves plenty of time and I drove like an old  man--o wait a minute, I am an old man, older man anyway. Not too old to drive, anyway. The doctor gave me a clean bill of health and told me I'm in good shape.

As usual, the expected number of cars and trucks in the ditch. Many of them slid in just before we got to the scene, because the drivers were still sitting in their vehicles. I'm writing about this every year, but it never changes. And I ask the same question: Will they ever learn.

Many trucks are 4x4s and many cars and trucks have those new winter tires on, which gives the drivers a false sense of security. You can still end up in the ditch or worse, have an accident. The secret is still this: DRIVE SLOWLY and according to driving conditions.

I'm happy to be home again. If weather conditions allow we'll go grocery shopping tomorrow, if not we'll stay home. There is no hurry. One thing you learn as you get older is that it never pays to be too much in a hurry.

Here are a few words of wisdom:

Go back to bed.
If you  must go take your time.
Don't hurry.
Take it easy.
Slow down.
You don't need to be the first one there.
Who needs the biggest worm?
There will be plenty left because the fast ones are all in the ditch.
Don't wave as you drive by because you may just join them in the ditch.
Keep your eyes on the road and don't look at the cute girls. You're too old, anyway.
Ignore your wife's helping advice. You are the one behind the wheel and in control.
If you're a woman ignore you husband's helping advice.

Good Luck.

Let is snow...let it snow...

It is 4:20 PM or if you are on Military time 16:20 as I write this. It is miserable outside with a temperature of 0.8 C and plenty of humidity. We have a couple of barometers in the house and both of them have plunged so far I haven’t seen it like that for quite some time. I think the last time I saw the needle so far down was when we had a bad storm in the summer. Something is brewing out there. One of the barometers is antique and adjusted for European conditions, but I don’t want to screw around with it, because it works quite well. The needle is hovering on: Storm.

The weather people forecasted our first major snowstorm of this winter starting tonight with the brunt coming tomorrow. Nice going, peoples. They may just be right this time, even though I trust my barometers much more. I have to go to the doctor for my yearly check-up and my flu shot. My shovel and snowbrush are already in the car and my snow blower is tuned up.

My wife and I slept quite soundly last night. Why is that such great news? Well, our new fridge finally came yesterday and we had the old one picked up and taken away. It broke down four weeks ago. Actually, it still worked, but the compressor sounded like a jet plane ready to lift off with a constant droning sound. It drove us nuts, but we needed it to keep our food cool.

The old fridge was about 15 years old. According to what the salesman told us it was ancient. Fridges these days, he told us, are supposed to last no longer than 10 years. What kind of BS is that? Another case of the manufacturers screwing the buying public! Nothing is built to last anymore. I remember when people used to retire their old fridge into the basement or take it to the cottage where it still worked for many years. When we had our cottage, we bought an old fridge to take out there. That thing was ancient. The only thing I replaced was the thermostat and the heating coil for the defrosting. The compressors never broke down. So why is that so common now?

No wonder the garbage dumps are filling up with used appliances if people have to replace them every ten years.

No wonder people can’t save money these days. They spent their money on gadgets, like large screen TVs, computers, Cellular phones and other electronic stuff. You buy it and it is already outdated as soon as you leave the store. That’s how fast we progress. It is tough to keep up with everything, especially when you are of the older generation.

Our service provider Shaw is updating their equipment again by going digital in our area. Now we need a digital box for one of our TVs. We have a PVR for our main TV. We use the second TV only seldom, maybe to watch the weather or some other quick program. We are already paying way too much for the TV service. Now we may be hit with more cost.

It was much simpler and cheaper when we had rabbit ears and got only a few channels—for free. The sad thing is, we still watch only the basic channels, but now we pay a fortune for that. Okay, we have the internet, but I still say it is too expensive. Unfortunately, we have no choice and they know it.

I went fishing for the last time on Monday but didn’t catch anything, so I hung up my fishing rods until next year. The long winter is on its way, starting tonight, and we will hibernate, having our adventures watching TV (might as well take advantage of the money we pay for that!), and I hopefully find time to write my stories. My next book won’t be published until around October next year. A long time to wait.

Our new Prime minister is still riding his wave of Euphoria, in Europe right now, and running around like a man after twenty cups of coffee, signing autographs, having pictures taken, like a movie star, but he’ll come down eventually when reality hits and he finds out that the money needed to fulfill all his election promises isn’t there. Even after those horrible attacks in France he’s still determined to bring 25,000 refugees into Canada. Now I heard most of them are single women with children. That is even worse new. It will mean more people on welfare, more child support to be paid, more schools and childcare places needed. And more risk of the children growing up in poverty and later becoming terrorists, because they are not happy in their new country. By the way—where are the husbands of these women? Just curious.

Sorry, couldn’t help become a little political, but this whole thing with the refugees is something I have a bad feeling about.

Until next time after the snow storm.

#Terror in Paris

It happened again in Paris. Another attack by radical Muslims against innocent people. So many dead and so many injured, many of them in serious condition and some may still die.

That's what religious fanatics do--commit murder in the name of their god. Such hypocrites! They pretend to be religious and pray all day long and then they go and kill people that have done them no wrong.

According to reports, at least one of the attackers came to France as a refugee in one of the boats. Two were French Nationals, born in France and living in Brussels. Their parents probably came to France looking for a better life and that's  how these guys thank the French people for the opportunity to live in a free country not controlled by a rigid religious system.

Our new government, the Liberals, and our new Prime minister Justin Trudeau want to bring 25,000 of those Muslim refugees into our country by year's end, spending millions of Canadian Taxpayer's dollars doing that and more millions to house and feed these people. They will be a drain on our health care system, our welfare and federal Pension funds. They will bring in their families and it won't be long until their number has tripled. More money needed and it will have to come out of the working Canadians' pockets.

I am not excited about the idea of bringing in all those people. Many other Canadians share my view and sentiment. Surely, there will be quite a few radicals and fanatics among them who may bring terror into our country. Perhaps not immediately, but some day in the future, once they are settled here. If not them then the next generation. Diversity seems like a good idea but it does not work. When cultures clash that is a recipe for disaster and conflict.

The newcomers will bring with them their culture and eventually when they reach a certain number they will try to change our country to their liking, changing it into the way of life they left behind. The evidence is there to see. Many of the immigrants from the Middle East and Africa refuse to change their way. They still wear their traditional garb, the women still cover their faces even though it is not necessary in this country. I am not trying to be a doom's-day preacher and I hope I am wrong about my prediction, but I'm worried about the future of my country.

My wish is that our new Prime minister changes his mind and takes it slow by bringing in only a few, better yet--to drop the whole plan. It would be in the best interest for the security of Canadian citizens. There are others who warn against that plan. You cannot process 25,000 people in such a short time to make sure they are all peaceful and honest in their desire to change their life for the better. Old habits die hard.

Anyway, those are my thoughts tonight. Paris may just be the beginning of a new wave of terror.

Peace to everyone--and I mean that.

#Sellin on the island Rügen by the Baltic Sea

The train that goes to the island of Rügen ends in Binz. The island Rügen is connected to the mainland by a sea-bridge. There is a roadway for cars on that bridge and tracks for the train. Once you are on the island everything looks the same as on the mainland. You don’t even know you are on an island. We arrived in Binz on schedule. The Hauptbahnhof in Binz is small. It has only three tracks. We left the building and stood outside—lost again. We knew we had to take a bus to get to Sellin, but we had no idea which one. So I went back in and found an information booth where I got the information and I also bought the ticket for the bus. A few minutes later we sat in the bus on the way to Sellin. The trip took 30 minutes.

In Sellin, we stayed at a hotel which had been recommended to me by my friend in Schwerin. He knew the owner. The place was called ‘Pension Petri’. They also had a restaurant ‘Fischgaststätte Petri’. We only ate there twice because it was expensive, but we had breakfast there, which was very good. They even served ‘North sea Caviar’ which tasted quite nice.

The owner, Herr Lutter, greeted as warmly and he gave us a couple of tourist cards which we could use for the local transport system. They were part of our package, which also included the breakfast. We used those cards all the time.

Sellin is not a large place; you can pretty much walk through the whole town. On our first excursion to the beach we discovered that you had to climb a steep hill to get to the ocean. We only walked it once; it was too exhausting. After that we took the tourist train to get there and to other places. We found it was always windy at the beach and the waves were high.

On the second day we walked through a park and discovered by accident a little restaurant hidden away among the hobby-gardens that are so popular in Germany. Those gardens are quite interesting. All have small cottages on them where people go on weekends or at any other time to relax and work in their gardens.

The restaurant was called ‘Inselfrieden’, which means ‘Island Peace’. We had supper there a few times because the food was wonderful and reasonably priced. The place was always busy, mainly with local people.

We walked along the ocean down a boardwalk that led partially through a forest. Before we realized it we had gone to the next little town. Everything is so close there.

We went on a bus tour along the coast and got off at Göhren, another nice little town. They have a boardwalk going into the ocean where the ships dock. We watched one ship trying to dock, but the waves were too high and they gave up. The Captain announced over the speakers: “Nobody is allowed on board. If anything happens all Hell will break loose.” The people who wanted to get on the ship had to go and get their money back, while the ones on the ship were taken to a larger port. I sure was glad I wasn’t on that ship. My stomach would not have taken that punishment.

There are many restaurants and shops in Sellin. We visited an ‘Amber Museum’, which was quite informative. I found out something that didn’t make me happy. A few years back I bought a nice piece of Amber with a scorpion inside in Cuba. Instead of millions of years old it is actually nothing but plastic. I paid 40 American Dollars for it and I was so proud to have brought the guy down from his original $200.00 he wanted.

A lot of fake amber is sold in places like Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Well, that teaches me a lesson never to buy anything there anymore. If I do then only from a reputable shop—and even then I’ll be leery. By the way, Amber is found in the Baltic Sea. Sometimes, after a storm, it washes up on shore and can be found among the rocks. Amber is lighter than seawater and floats and that’s how I know now that my precious Amber is plastic. When I put it into a container filled with saltwater instead of floating it sank to the bottom, no matter how much salt I added. It didn’t float. What a disappointment. Amber is quite expensive even by the Baltic Sea, but I did buy a small piece for which I paid two Euros per 100 grams.

There is a long boardwalk, called ‘Seebrücke’ going into the sea in Sellin with a diving bell at the end of it. You can take it to get below surface to watch sea life. When we were there, they didn’t dive, because the waves were too high. As mentioned, they have a ‘Seebrücke’ also in Göhren where the ships dock, but it isn’t as large as the one in Sellin.

The 'Seebrücke' in Sellin

The island Rügen is a holiday destination for the Germans. We saw many tourists there, many older couples at this time of year. In the summer, it is probably next to impossible to get a hotel on the island and prices are high. There are many beautiful beaches where you can rent beach chairs, also expensive to rent. We watched the odd person taking a plunge in the Baltic Sea, but at this time of year the water is cold. The island is also known for its ‘nude’ beaches. We saw one nude woman in Göhren going into the water. My wife wouldn’t let me take a picture☺

The island Rügen is a beautiful place and still pristine. We didn’t see any foreigners, except possibly tourists from another country. Not to sound racist or discriminatory, but I cannot ignore what I observe and what is a fact.  Everything was so clean there. We weren't aware of any beggars or street people. Nobody bothered us with begging. It was a peaceful place where one could relax without worrying. It reminded me what Germany used to be like when I grew up there. It is sad to see how things have changed and I'm afraid it won't be long until the island Rügen will also be touched by the influx of refugees flooding Europe.

We spent a week in Sellin then it was time to go home. We took the bus back to Binz and boarded our train to Berlin. We were lucky to get a whole compartment to ourselves again and we had no trouble storing our large suitcases. Traveling by train wasn't so scary anymore.

Next stop: Berlin