Our friend’s Stef and Uli were kind enough to pick us up at the airport late on a Saturday night and we spent the night at their house (thanks again!). After our few days in warm Lanzarote, the Potsdam air definitely felt a bit chilly, but we had just enough layers to keep ourselves warm.

Our first stop of the following day was the famous Park Sanssouci. When we visited in March 2009 we had the grounds almost to ourselves; since it was at the end of summer this time the crowds were larger, but the gardens were in full bloom and more than made up for the extra people.

So many of our European trips happen in the colder months, so I really enjoyed seeing the water features running too.

The buildings were as beautiful as we remembered.

From here our friends suggested lunch at a charming little Indian place near downtown. As we walked back to our parking spot we had a great view of the Church of St. Peter and Paul from Brandenburger Straße and the Potsdam Brandenburg Gate.

Next up was Schloss Cecilienhof, a sprawling, half-timbered building with another set of gardens.

By this point Leandra’s foot was getting achy, so we headed over to our hotel to rest up a bit before exploring Berlin on our own.