On track again (adventures in Germany continued ...)

In the morning light of the next day we saw our hostel in Berlin in Prenzlauer Berg which was still dominated by the Alexander Square Tower, an iconic symbol in the former East Berlin. Now the Wall has gone, it is often difficult to know which side you are in. A clear difference is still in public transport, then as now, trams in the East and buses in the West.

Again, we had not been in Berlin for many years; in 1982 in the then DDR. Memories and objects from that repressive era and way of life have rightly been consigned to a museum as history. We visited that on our tour round the now reunified Berlin. The route of the wall can be followed by parallel lines of dark stones set into the pavements. The Red Town Hall is still red as the city administration is a coalition of Social Democrats and former Eastern Socialists. Some interesting political demolitions and reconstructions have taken place over the past century.

The Reichstag, called uncharitably but not without some reason by Kaiser Wilhelm, 'that Monkey-House' is now back in use and restored as the Parliament of the Federal Republic, after being burned down in 1933 by the Nazis and lying empty until reunification. The Town Palace of the Hohenzollen Emperors was demolished as a symbol of German imperialism and militarism by the East German authorities after WW2, though it always amused me that they failed to see the irony of having a regular changing of the guard by a goosestepping Prussian regiment at the monument to Victims of Fascism and German Militarism. Nonetheless, the Berliners have a great sense of humour and enjoy puncturing pomposity. They have a series of alternative names for modern buildings, statues and works of art. This is worth a blog in itself! It was replaced by a copper glassed concrete monstrosity called the Palace of the Republic. AKA: Eric's Light Shop because of the expensive and numerous and tasteless modern chandeliers that hung there there. This in turn has been demolished by the new Federal Authorities and it is suggested that the old Imperial Palace be reconstructed.

In the evening we had supper in the now fully restored Nicolai Quarter opposite the Church where Paul Gerhardt was pastor. We had 'Now thank we all our God' as one of our wedding hymns. The next morning we set off for Prague from another new steel glass and concrete ediface, the New Central Station.

By car, train and plane

We (Ida, Keith, Catriona, and Mubita) left Edinburgh a week ago last Sunday on an overcast morning in a wee smirr of rain and drove down the A7 to Carlisle through the Borders; a trip we had last done in 1979! Our first night we were spending with friends from Zambia at Ulverston in the Lake District. Locally the road from the M6 to Barrow is called the 'cul de sac'.

Later that evening we went for a run, in the road traffic sense, along the side of Windermere. The Lake District is reminscent of some areas of the Highlands but it is surprisingly compact and a bit more manicured and overdeveloped than we are used to.

At the risk of sounding a 'here's tae us, wha's like us note here' or 'whaur's yer Willie Shakespeare noo?' (well, we did pass the MacDiarmid Memorial at Langholm on route after all!), but I don't think the Bard of Avon is standing on the platform at Stratford Station waiting for a train - any train to London! Stratford-upon-Avon is another cul de sac as far as the railway is concerned. We spent our second night there with my youngest brother's family. It was good to see them after four years. We had missed them on our previous furlough.

London and the Methodists
The next day we taxied to Warwick to catch the 0719h London train as we were due at Methodist House at 1030 on Tuesday to meet with a series people. Our Mission Partner appointment is an ecumenical one between the Church of Scotland and the Methodist Church and they help with our support.

An hour and a half saw us 'detraining' at Marylebone and after depositing the luggage at reception in Methodist House we then breakfasted on a croissant and coffee in Baker Street opposite Sherlock Holmes' flat. We next got Catriona safely installed in the queue for Madame Toussaud's and crossed the road to Methodist House for our first meetings where we were introduced to some people in the World Church Office.

It was good to meet with Jan Deakin with whom we had communicated extensively by email but without ever meeting. We then had the opportunity to share with Tom King, the Team Leader of the World Church Relationships, and we made a interesting connection there. Tom's son had worked at Beit Cure Paediatric Hospital in Lusaka with Allan Norris, a surgeon we got to know when he came to operate at Mwandi.

Jane Cullen, the Discernment and Selection Officer, was especially interested in how the linking of Mission Partners to Presbyteries worked in the Church of Scotland. The Methodists may be thinking of doing something similar with Mission Partners and their Districts.

George Luke from the Press Department interviewed us both about our life and work at Mwandi.

We finished off with a pizza lunch with Bunmi Olayisade, the Partnership Coordinator for Africa, a good time of fellowship and conversation covering amongst other things HIV Advocacy, African Politics and Women's Empowerment.

Berlin at Midnight
We then took the tube to Earl's Court to catch the airport bus to Gatwick. We arrived in good time and joined the good-natured queue at the bag drop-off counter, went through security, had supper and waited for our flight. It was delayed so we landed two hours late in a still sweltering Berlin at midnight. We managed a bus and two underground trains finally trundling our luggage the last 500 metres to our Hostel, where we relished the cool shower and drinks, despite the late hour, before retiring.

The tabloid newspaper headline in the hostel lobby exclaimed: 'WAS FÜR EINE HITZE!' - the German for 'COR WOTA SCORCHA!' I presume.