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Between Moabiter Bruecke and Lessingbruecke a lot of new developments happened in recent years,

factory redevelopements and new office buildings.

A segment of the Wall has been put up here as a monument to freedom.

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Soon I got to the Hansabruecke.

I will end  my walks along the Spree through Berlin there.

The Hansabruecke was built in 1909-10, destroyed at the end of the war in 1945 by the Nazis to stop the Russians advancing, and was  rebuilt in 1952-53.

Just before the bridge is a school, the Menzel Oberschule, the old building and a new addition. Hart went to this high school and did his Abitur, the HSC there many years ago. 

Right next to the Hansabruecke, in Levetzowstrasse the old apartment block is still standing where we had our  first little flat when we got married.

Looking over to the other side of the river I could see the park bench where I so often sat many years ago. 

I had to walk across the bridge and down to the little park. 

 I had to sit on that bench again where I once sat with my baby daughter and baby son on my lap. 

And I watched the Spree flow by, then and now.

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  I could not say so easily good-bye to the Spree. 

My river walks may have come to an end, but how about doing one of these touristy things, going on a river boat tour. We did not manage to arrange such an outing with all the relatives as planned. So three days before leaving Berlin I went to Hauptbahnhof and just hopped on one of these  boats.

We went up and down the river, from Moltkebruecke to Muehlendammbruecke and back  again, even a little further than Moltkebruecke.

 For reason of continuity I will describe the tour in one go, from west to east. That is actually in the opposite direction I did my walks and  it is also not all the distance I had walked along the Spree.

So good that it was a sunny day.

Great to cruise along, seeing everything from the middle of the Spree and get running commentaries, in German and English, explaining main points of interest along the tour.

                                                                  

Haus der Kulturen der Welt.

This large apartment complex was especially built to house public servants when the government moved to Berlin. 

I had not noticed these when I walked along here before.

We went under many bridges.

One bridge special and different is the Kanzlersteg. This footbridge is for the sole use of the Chancellor and guests to cross over from the office, the Kanzleramt, to a private park

Next is the beautiful ornate Moltkebruecke 

Between Moltkebruecke and Gustav-Heienmann-Bruecke lies he new main railway station Hauptbahnhof. 

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 The next bridge is the Kronprinzenbruecke

            

then Jakob-Mierscheid-Steg, a double story pedestrian path,

     

                                                               and opposite the Reichstag 

   Friedrichstrasse  Stadtbahnbruecke 

     

Weidendammbruecke 

                                                                 

                                                    Ebertsbruecke

           

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      And more bridges. They say Berlin has more bridges than Venice.  

Monbijoubruecke  and Bode-Museum 

Stadtbahnbruecke

       Friedrichsbruecke    

       and Dom

Liebknechtbruecke

     Rathausbruecke and Schlossplatz

         

                                                                     Muehlendammbruecke

And when we got to the lock the boat turned back.

It was nice to have done this tour. I enjoyed the boat trip very much. 

I got to know the Spree from a very different viewpoint. 

Can’t wait till I come again and do some more walking in Berlin. 

AUFWIEDERSEHEN

I went to Hauptbahnhof to catch the train home and I saw this sign:

      "Erzähle deine Geschichte"

            

Well, this is 'meine Geschichte',

My Story Berlin 2013.

                   

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 And, maybe one day I dig out some old photos from the time when we lived in Berlin near the Spree.

In my postcard collection I have an old postcard of the Bode-Museum, the then Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum, from before World War 1 .  

Harbour Walks
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My Sydney Harbour project will continue for a long while to come, so much more to do.
I hope to get one fine day to the islands in the harbour, go on a special sight-seeing cruise and maybe walk along the north shore and eastern suburbs.