Day 19 London to Stuttgart to Berlin

By the time we showered and packed everything into our bags this morning it was pretty much time to leave. We weren't hungry yet so decided to go to the airport and eat there. Cam worked out how to walk to Leicester Square station so we wouldn't have to change trains.

It was a long journey to Heathrow terminal 2, almost an hour, so we were pleased to be in plenty of time. I topped up one of our Oyster cards for the trains, so I can give it to Nick to help him when he comes to London sometime.  By the time we checked in and said goodbye to our bag we were hungry, so went to one of the many food places for a hot wrap & drink.  There were quite a few shops to tempt me and I was certainly tempted by a few things...but not really enough time. Found a bookshop and bought travel guides for Berlin, Prague & Nice -we've found it better having something on paper to read rather than on our screens as easier to refer back to.  I also went into the airport branch of Harrods and bought pens for the girls at work who are covering for me. Not that exciting but hard to know what to buy them that doesn't take up too much room. Our bag is pretty much at its limit weight wise, though we still have capacity to have a 2nd carry on bag 😃.

I was just getting into the swing of shopping when Cam came and found me to tell me he'd read it was a 15 minute walk to our gate, so we had to get going....so I've left the UK with pounds still in my pocket...which I guess is good news for Nick.  It was a very long way to the gate, even with moving walkways. Looked outside and the weather seems to be clouding over, so good timing for us to be moving on. 

The flight to Stuttgart was only 1 hour 10 minutes, but it had taken us hours to just get to the departure gate. Our plane had to wait in a queue of planes for 15 minutes, but we were very pleased it was actually going. Our snack on the plane came in a cute little Germanwings bag...half a cheese sandwich, a rice cereal bar & water. I had forgotten how hard the German bread is ...very dense and dry with a distinctive aftertaste. Not awful, just different to the soft fresh bread we are used to.

Was a very smooth flight in the sunshine above the clouds. As we got nearer we could see snow on the ground, so guess it is going to be cold again.

Not much to do at Stuttgart airport, but we had immigration to clear and then security for the domestic flight...where both Cam and I got a full going over front, back and under our shoes while holding our arms out. By now we only had 2 1/2 hours until our flight. I had a look around the few shops which were lovely quality but very expensive. I did come across the most gorgeous angora wool coat in a bright turquoise colour with matching fur on the hood. It was so soft and warm. There was only one which I figured would be too small but the shop assistant urged me to try it... And it was perfect.... Looked made for me and the colour was stunning. Unfortunately it was €580 (reduced from €800) and quite bulky. I figure it might look a bit much for little ole Lower Hutt...but boy was I tempted (thinking birthday yet again). Very hard to walk away but I managed. They also had jewellery by Dryberg Kern that I have admired in NZ.  It was much cheaper here and had 30% off, but I restrained myself here too.

It was actually a very long boring wait for our flight... Looking around only took 15 minutes. Definitely our least exciting day so far, and Cam was getting bored & grumpy.  It doesn't help that we have been stuck inside with little exercise all day, and have been filling up on jelly tots and other sugary things in our bag...mainly out of boredom. The free wifi only lasts an hour - we're not meant to be here so long for a domestic flight.  Then as it was past our boarding time the departure information updated to show our flight leaving over an hour later than scheduled. We were getting tired and hungry now... It was after 8pm and the few food places open had hardly anything left...so we had no choice other than a cold salty pretzel. It was food but not the usual standard for Germany.

Eventually 90 minutes late our flight took off & despite selecting good seats our boarding passes gave us middle seats in different rows.  The flight went very fast and we landed at Berlin Tegel airport. Were very relieved to see our bag as we've been parted a very long time. We found the bus heading to where our hotel was & the views along the way we're really interesting. We were starting to lose our enthusiasm for Germany, but what we've seen of Berlin looks really cool and different to anywhere we've been. Our hotel is literally next door to the central railway station and it is the most modern shiny area we have seen in a long time.

We checked in and went for a 10 minute walk in the area to see if there were any supermarkets, but it's after midnight and everything was closed or closing, so came back to our room and decided we have earnt a beer from the mini bar after the day we have had.

Tomorrow is another day!