We said a heartfelt goodbye to ba noi today (little did she know she would be whisked off to the airport soon after we left, as a surprise birthday trip to Paris!) and hopped in our little red car.

Our plan for afternoon was to find a nice coffeeshop, get some work done, and drive to a campsite. The day was a relaxing success. After much driving (mostly in search of parking), we found the nice place to settle in for the day: Winterfeldt Schokoladen, a coffeeshop/upscale chocolatria. In years long past, it had been an apothecary. As a result, there were many gorgeous wooden cabinets, little drawers everywhere, carved signs, and fancy moldings.

Eschewing the typical mugs found in most coffee shops, Winterfeldt served their drinks in antique teacups and saucers.

We had a great view from our table looking outside…

…and quite a nice one looking inside on all the fancy chocolates too.

We spent several hours working…

…and finally, around 5 PM, we decided to call it a day. In a refreshing change of pace, we hopped into our car, instead of on to our bikes, and headed home.

…on the way, we cranked the stereo and sang along loudly (and terribly):

I can't believe it. We actually managed to get a car, and soon we will be headed into Russia with it!

About 20km outside of Berlin, we arrived at camp, set up our tent, and enjoyed the fact that we didn't have to extricate our belongings from our bikes' bungee nets (for some indescribable reason, both of us hate this simple task). Once everything was set up, I went for a walk, camera in tow.

Our campsite bordered a beautiful lake where many people (and ducks) were enjoying the water.

What a lovely day.