A Trip to the Historic Center

Guten Tag,
Oof, I'm still jet lagged and my feet ache, but I had another good day out, and I ventured from my part of town in the west of the city to the historic center where I visited the Deutsches Historisches Museum.  I wanted something engrossing but easy to navigate.  The weather was fresh and cool--no rain to my disappointment, but maybe some drops will materialize.
Since it's Saturday after loading up the dishwasher my first trip needed to be down the street to the grocery because most stores are closed on Sunday, and while I don't mind picking up some fast food, I'm not keen on going all the way to the Hauptbahnhof for supplies.
I walked down Kurfurstendamm to the Uhlandstrasse U bahn station for the first leg of my train journey.  I had to change twice more to get to my destination.  Despite its name the U bahn does not run underground the whole way.  I really got a sense of how big a city Berlin is and how complex.
The route I had chosen involved a lot of walking to transfer lines rather like it is in Paris.  I actually figured out a better route coming back that involved only one transfer and dropped me off much closer to home.
A lot of construction blocked the route to the museum and the view, but I discovered that some other things I wanted to see were close by, so now I know where to find them.
The museum is in a handsome Neo Classical building.  It's big and holds a lot of exhibits but has an airy and uncrowded feel to it.  Unlike Story of Berlin, this museum covers the main time line of all of German History and places it in a European and World context.  The only complaint I had is that the lighting was low, and sometimes it was hard to read the English labels.  Occasionally there were no English labels.  The visitor can rent an audio guide.  I did not.
The museum emphasizes kings and battles although other topics emerge occasionally.  A lot of portraits are displayed, and it does help if one knows who these folks are to begin with as (ahem) I do.  A section on Reformation and Counter Reformation is not all that enlightening, but I enjoyed looking at the weapons, armor, and artifacts from the various periods.
At one point the visitor may touch some chain mail, and a sign invites one to try and lift it.  I could but it is heavy!  When worn the weight would be distributed around the body, but it would still take strength and energy to bear such a thing--especially in battle.
One thing I really enjoyed was the costume exhibits.  I rather took to two muslin dresses in the Empire style, and I am convinced they would fit me nicely.  I also liked the few period rooms they had set up.
Of course things take a dark turn when the visitor reaches the Twentieth Century.  The collection of political and propaganda posters was truly harrowing.  Germany deserves credit for not white washing the uglier aspects of its history.   Some people in the United States do not show the same candor and courage about our nation's past.
I ended up walking a lot and got tired by the end of my visit, so I came home and am treating myself to a cup of tea and a slice of toast thickly spread with butter.  I'll describe dinner and drink later.
Ok. It's later.  The beer of the day is Erdinger Weissbier.  It's brewed from wheat and is markedly less hoppy.  I think it tastes smooth and rich.  I've made a sandwich out of German ham and cheese.   Now this is decidedly unorthodox as Germans rightly believe each ingredient is good enough on its own.  But I asked, won't both be twice as good--and with beer, too.  The cheese is mild and creamy, and the ham fragrant and slightly smokey.  Shall we have a bite?
Of course, I am hungry, but this tastes soooo good.  I suppose I should have tried them separately first, but I'm going for the combo!