"The greatest cultural extravaganza that one could imagine." ~ David Bowie

I am still getting my head around this wall that completely surrounded West Berlin, 
separating it from all of East Germany.

source

This interactive map helps you get an idea of where the inner wall, outer wall and no-man's land was located as it sliced Berlin into two sections.

'X' marks the spot in East Berlin,

where our tour along the River Spree began,

 providing a close encounter with buildings we would not have time to visit.

It also revealed the underbelly of a few of the 900+ bridges in Berlin.

That's more than Venice.

A few of those bridges surround...

Museum island…

covered in museums.

Some of those bridges guide trains throughout the city.

What we saw from above the day before,

became up close and personal...

like the Berliner Ensemble...

and the oldest church in Berlin, St. Nicholas.

There were a few bonuses of traveling up and down the River Spree;

   like the opportunity to enjoy the colors of autumn twice,

the chance to get the perfect angle on the amazing architecture
 amongst the new government quarter of Berlin,
and a split second to snap the perfect

from a moving boat not less.

At the end of our tour,
Ren Man and I were even more convinced of our need to return 
for more of Berlin's cultural extravaganza.

Happy Tuesday.