Our readers include some very avid travelers. They’ve circled the world this year, exploring everything from icy Antarctica to England’s Highclere Castle — although you may know it better as “Downton Abbey.”
This week, we’re hearing from Walnut Creek friends whose trip to Germany included some especially memorable sights. Read on for details, then find more travel inspiration at www.mercurynews.com/tag/wish-you-were-here/.
Wish You Were Here
Walnut Creek residents Gail Murray and Nan Siegel’s visit to Potsdam, Germany, in May included a visit to the Bridge of Spies. (Courtesy Gail Murray)
GERMANY: Walnut Creek residents Gail Murray and Nan Siegel traveled to Germany and Belgium in May. A highlight, they say, was the day spent with German locals in Potsdam, where they visited the Glienicke Bridge — known as the Bridge of Spies — which connects Potsdam with Berlin. It was the site, Gail says, “where Russian and Western spies were exchanged during the Cold War. The scene is memorialized in Tom Hanks’ movie ‘Bridge of Spies,’ a true story of the rescue of American pilot Francis Gary Powers, (whose) U2 spy plane was downed in 1962 in the Soviet Union.
“We also visited the site of the 1945 Potsdam Conference, where President Harry Truman, General Joseph Stalin and Prime Minister Winston Churchill drew the new boundaries of Europe after Hitler lost World War II.”
TRAVEL TIPS: “Don’t miss the spectacular glass dome on top of the Reichstag, Berlin’s parliament building. Listening to a free audio guide, you can circle the dome to the top to see a 360-degree view of Berlin. Buy a Berlin Welcome Card before you go for unlimited rides on public transit trains, buses and subways without having to worry about figuring out fares.” Admission to the dome is free, but you’ll need reservations; www.bundestag.de/en/visittheBundestag.
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