I just got back from Paris [which was a wonderful weekend] and know I am behind on my blog so I decided to write more about Berlin so I can blog about my weekend in Paris.
On Friday, We decided to take a four hour tour around the city. Our tour guide Alex was from Liverpool, a history major, ex-journalist, entrepreneur/horror house owner who provided a detailed history of the city. We spent a long time discussing World War II and the Cold War and saw SO much. Just to name a few: Brandenburg Gate, Holocaust Memorial, the site of Hitler's bunker (which is now a parking lot), Lufthansa headquarters, the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie, German and French cathedrals, the site of the Nazi book burning, Humboldt University (where the Grimm brothers studied and Einstein taught), Museum Island, the Berliner Dom, and so much more.
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| Chris and I at the Brandenburg Gate |
Alex also told us random interesting facts such as Fanta was created for the Nazis because they wanted Coca Cola but couldn't ship the right ingredients during the war and Hugo Boss designed the Nazi uniforms.
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| At the Berlin Wall |
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| Chris in West and East Germany |
Berlin is so beautiful, especially for a city that is only 20 years removed from the communist regime. I don't know what it is about communist history, but it really affects me. Maybe because my family had to live through it. I just can't imagine waking up one day to a divided city, where your husband could be on the other side and you can't see him. What a horrible situation to have to live in.
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| Standing where the Berlin Wall used to be. One foot in East Germany, the other foot in West Germany. |
After the tour, we also decided to look at the Holocaust Memorial (Officially called the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe). Every Holocaust memorial has the words "forgive but never forget." What a powerful message to carry when reading testimonies from Holocaust victims and survivors.
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| Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe |
Berlin was depressing, but it was also fascinating, having had to deal with such dark parts of history.
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| Hanging out with Ampelman! He helps Germans cross the street. |
Well, I am exhausted so I will share about Potsdam and Koln (Cologne) tomorrow.
Love,
Olga
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