Berlin Today, Budapest Tomorrow

Hey folks. It's been quite the whirlwind here for the past few days - and it will be for at least the next two as I make my way to Budapest.

I've spent the last four days in northern Germany - staying with friends of friends in a small town called Tressow. It's quite the life here. I:
- Toured three smallish towns (Wismar, Schwerin and Lübeck).
- Ate good food - smoked fish sold right off the boat at the harbor in Wismar, blueberry cake and milch kaffee (latte) in a little forest park in Tressow.
- Went to school (this was arranged by the family I'm staying with, who are friends with the English teacher.) One third grade boy ran up to me, after learning I spoke English, and said, "I haven't got a brother, and I haven't got a sister." Ha.
- Stayed in two different homes - The first, a little brick country home in Tressow. The second, a stunning city apartment in Schwerin.
- Sampled good wine, beer, some sort of Caraway liqueur, some kind of fizzy and sweet "fresh" wine (sadly not sold in the US), a few more beers, a few more liqueurs - the family I stayed with enjoys their fine beverages. We got along well.

It's been quite the experience staying in people's homes. One day I'm eating a hearty German breakfast (it's all about meat, cheese and bread here) with a couple I've never seen before in Tressow, the next day I'm making myself a coffee in this amazing, beautiful apartment in Schwerin, with 12 foot ceilings, hardwood floors, hundreds of books, decorations from all sorts of travels (can you tell I want that life?). I never could have imagined that I'd be in these places. It's really amazing how people will open their homes to a traveler, and say - hey, take anything you want, it's no problem; leave the key on the counter and close the door behind you when you leave.

Anyway, today I'm in Berlin! I got here last night, and I'm staying in yet another home - the sister of the person I was first staying with. Again, she said - you can stay as long as you want, here's your room and here's some food; what else can we do for you? It's amazing. They have a massive city apartment here. I'm leaving early tomorrow for Budapest, which leaves me with little time for Berlin, unfortunately. It rained all morning, and the sun is just now coming out. I'll see what I can see before calling it a night and resting up for my flight to Hungary tomorrow, but I honestly think I'll have to give Berlin a better chance on a future visit. All I've heard from other travelers is how awesome Berlin is, and I just won't have a chance to see it.

Next up: Budapest! Wish me luck - I'm a little nervous to head off to a place where you can't assume everyone speaks English. But I'm pretty good with hand gestures. Here goes. !