We’d tried to book a visit to the Bundestag when we arrived but were unsuccessful; there was no availability until next weekend.  We felt cross that we hadn’t thought ahead, but the concierge in our hotel had an idea – he’d book us a table for dinner!

So this evening, we set out in drizzly rain and found ourselves in front of the Brandenburgertor with hardly any traffic.  Picture time!

Just to our left, outside the French Embassy lay hundreds of flowers and candles.  Another sad reminder of events in Paris the weekend before last.

By the time we reached the Bundestag, the rain was falling heavily and though that looks like a lovely moon in the photo, it’s actually a raindrop (or two…)

Through security and up in the lift, we dodged the rain a couple more times as we scuttled across the roof to the restaurant entrance.

We had a beautiful window table with a fine view of the city – though as we noted, looking east there’s not much of a skyline, although the TV tower at Alexanderplatz kept coming into view and disappearing again as the clouds came down during the evening.

The food was delicious, although we’d both choose somewhere offering more hearty fare normally.  In particular, my pudding was quite cute I thought – a hazelnut parfait wearing a spiced prune beret with winter spiced biscuits and tiny plums.  As yummy as it looks, believe me!

Before leaving, we walked up to the top of the dome and down again, getting dripped on from time to time because it was still pouring with rain outside.

A fine view of the cabinet meeting rooms from here, too.  Don’t you love the transparency of government here?

No—one sitting at this time of night, of course.

With a last look through the “ja”, “nein” and “enthaltung” division doors, we went out into the rain and back to the S bahn.

Fingers crossed, the weather front will have passed through by morning.