A Life, Lived

Wandering Berlin

The weather appears to be changing. It is getting warmer and is incredibly windy - so windy that signs were blowing over in the sidewalk. We decided to take advantage of the lack of rain to head out and wander parts of Berlin that we hadn't visit before.

We used our unlimited transit pass to take a combination of tram and subway to arrive at the Brandenburg gate.

They must have been expecting some important visitors - it was all barricaded off and there were quite a few security police out blocking people and watching others.

I took Paul to see the German parliament but on the way we stopped at the monument to the murdered Sinti and Roma. The mass murder of Europe's Sinti and Roma population was set in motion even prior to that of the Jews. In 1938, Heinrich Himmler, who was head of the infamous SS, distributed an order for the formulation of a "final solution to the gypsy question." It remains unclear exactly how many were ultimately murdered in the Nazi death camps, but the most reliable estimates indicate a total of half a million. It was not, however, until 1982 that the genocide was officially recognized by the German government. 

The Memorial by artist Dani Karavan consists of a well with a retractable stone on which a fresh flower is placed daily. Panels present information on the persecution and mass murder of this minority under the National Socialist regime of terror.

In front of the Reichstag is the memorial to the politicians who were killed by the Nazis in their drive for power. This row of slabs  remembers the 96 individuals who were persecuted and murdered because their politics didn’t agree with Chancellor Hitler’s. They were part of the Weimar Republic, the weak and ill-fated attempt at post-WWI democracy in Germany. These were the people who could have stopped Hitler. So they tried…and they became his first victims. . Each slate slab memorializes one man: his name, party, and the date and location of his death — generally in a concentration camp. They are honored here, in front of the building in which they worked.

I've seen pictures from when it was opened in 2008 and it sure looked more impressive then then it does now surrounded by those temporary visor security and reception centres. Now it just looks like a fancy slate bicycle rack.

Paul had not wanted to visit the Reichstag itself so I didn't bother getting tickets (generally you need to book them about a month in advance). I got the sense that he regretted that decision now.

Following World War II, the Reichstag was a ruin, having been heavily damaged by Allied bombs and fighting during the last days of the war. It now stood in the British Zone next to the border of the Soviet Zone. After 1961 the Berlin Wall ran along the back of the building. Since the capital of West Germany was now in Bonn, the Reichstag could not be used as a seat of government. However, in 1955 the German Bundestag decided that the structure should be preserved. An architectural contest was held for the design of the renovation of the Reichstag building. Architect Paul Baumgarten designed the reconstruction which took place from 1961 to 1964, but the building sat largely unused until 1990 and German reunification. After 1971, the Reichstag housed a museum with an exhibit called “Fragen an die Deutsche Geschichte” (“Questions concerning German history”).

A first meeting of the parliament of the reunified Germany took place as early as on October 4, 1990 but it was clear that a significant renovation of the building was needed before the parliament could move here permanently. To this end an architectural competition was launched which was won by Norman Foster. He decided to keep the exterior intact as a reminder of the past. The interior was completely stripped and modernized. Construction started in 1995 and the Bundestag moved in in September 1999.

The highlight of the new Reichstag is its striking glass dome. Foster's original plans did not include a dome; it was only added at the insistence of the German government. At first the subject of much controversy, the dome, which is supported by a mirrored column, has become one of the city's most recognized landmarks.

From here we wandered deeper into the Tiergarten park.

There are three memorials to dead olviet soldiers in Berlin. I showed Paul the one in the Tiergarten. The Tiergarten memorial was constructed on the orders of the Red Army shortly after the end of World War II. It was the first Soviet memorial in Berlin and was put up in the heart of the city, not far from Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag building. It stands where the "Siegesallee" (victory avenue) planned as a north-south axis by Albert Speer, Adolf Hitler’s chief architect, would have intersected with the east-west axis.

Behind the memorial are the unmarked graves of 20,000 Soviet soldiers.

We continued walking through Tiergarten until we reached the memorial to the murdered homosexuals. This one was a little harder to find, almost hidden away in the forest.

In Nazi Germany, homosexuality was persecuted to a degree unprecedented in history. In 1935, the National Socialists issued an order making all male homosexuality a crime; the provisions governing homosexual behavior in Section 175 of the Criminal Code were significantly expanded and made stricter. A kiss was enough reason to prosecute. There were more than 50,000 convictions. Under Section 175, the punishment was imprisonment; in some cases, convicted offenders were castrated. Thousands of men were sent to concentration camps for being gay; many of them died there. They died of hunger, disease and abuse or were the victims of targeted killings.

Having walked for a fair bit we decided to head to Potsdamer Platz to see if we could find a cafe to hang out in for a spell. Since reunification, what used to be a wasteland with the Berlin Wall running through it has become a completely new neighbourhood. In only five years, Europe’s largest building site was transformed from nothing into a new urban centre. 

We ended up sitting outside of a Starbucks (I know) and watching the world go by for a bit.

After a relaxing break it was back on the transit system to visit the Kaiser The Gedächtniskirche or Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church which is now a symbolic centre of West Berlin, an anti-war memorial to peace and reconciliation. Following allied bombing during WWII, the original west Tower has remained standing as a ruin and is hauntingly named the "hollow tooth" as it is literally an empty husk.

In 1961 a new, octagonal church designed by Egon Eiermann was built alongside the existing tower. The church is a reinforced concrete structure with blue-colored glass bricks. The freestanding hexagonal bell tower next to the church was constructed on the site of the former main nave of the destroyed church. A third and small rectangular building is also part of the new complex.

Inside, the glass brick walls result in a unique atmosphere while a giant statue of Jesus above the altar attracts all the attention. Opposite the altar is the Stalingrad Madonna, a charcoal sketch made by Kurt Reuber, a German doctor who died in a Russian prisoner of war camp. The drawing was made in Russia in the winter of 1942, during the Battle of Stalingrad.

It had been a day of memorials and thinking. To be honest, we were now in the mood for something completely different. The most prestigious shopping destination in Berlin was a short walk away. :-)

Kaufhaus des Westens or KaDeWe as it is popularly known, is Germany’s most iconic and largest department store with it’s enormous size of over 60.000 sq m of sales space. Built in 1907, the KaDeWe is a true West Berlin landmark on Kudamm that’s seen everything from the roaring 20’s to the Nazi era where it was stripped away from its Jewish owners only to be bombed to annihilation during World War II. Throughout the existence of the Berlin Wall, the KaDeWe was the symbol of West German wealth and one of the most visited destinations for East Berliners that crossed the wall for the first time.

I spent WAY too much money on a pari of gloves and a scarf. Neither will keep me warm in the winter but I shall look good. :-)

Once I had recovered from sticker shock (sort of) we went to the top floor where there is a huge dining hall. We had eaten lunch in Potsdamer Platz but it was time for dessert!

Paul's beer went to his head - he was almost catatonic on the trip back to the apartment!

All in all it was a great day wandering Berlin.

The Jewish Museum

Paul decided that he wanted to visited the Berlin Jewish Museum today. At the start of the 20th century, Berlin was the largest Jewish city in the world. One third of the 100 richest Prussians were Jews. By 1945 Hitler had destroyed Germany's rich diversity, making it both poorer and more homogeneous. Berlin's Jewish Museum – with its extension by Daniel Libeskind – explores two millennia of German Jewish history. But far from being locked in the past, the museum looks forward.

Built in 1999 and opened in 2001, it’s an attempt by architect Daniel Libeskind to express not only the horrors of the Holocaust, but also to examine the broader history of Jewish life and culture in Germany.The museum’s striking zinc clad structure, with its violent slashes for windows and unsettling zig-zag form, is intended to resemble a “dislocated” Star of David when viewed from above, readily indicates to visitors that they are not in for a comfortable experience.

The entrance to the museum is via an adjacent Baroque building, built in 1736, that originally housed the Prussian chamber court and later the City Museum. This all feels normal enough.

However, once you’ve passed the security check, things change quite dramatically. A steep black staircase descends into the heart of the main building, and what Libeskind describes as his ‘Trio of Axes’ – three lengthy, geometrically skewed corridors that crisscross to represent different aspects of the Jewish-German experience.

Along the Holocaust Axis, visitors pass a series of eerily lit display cases that showcase anti-Jewish Nazi propaganda, and personal mementos from those who either survived or were murdered in the Holocaust; an embroidered Star of David and phylacteries from Leo Sheuer, who spent 15 months hiding in a hole in the ground; letters between “Aimee and Jaguar”, two female resistance fighters and lovers who were separated by the Nazis and never saw see each other again.

At the end of this series of heartbreaking personal stories awaits the Holocaust Tower. Entered via a heavy metallic door, the tall, cold, strangely-angled structure is relieved only by a thin slit at the top that lets in a tiny amount of light and the muffled sounds of the outside world.

At the end of the Axis of Emigration lies another disorienting experience; the Garden of Exile. This installation comprises 49 concrete columns that on first appearance look weirdly crooked, until you realise that the columns are in fact straight. It’s the ground that’s askew. This sudden perceptual shift causes a feeling of nausea that increases as you stroll in and around these towering, specifically built by Libeskind to provoke the alien, unnerving experience of exile.

The final Axis – the Axis of Continuity – winds its way through the rest of the building and, with the exception of the occasional deliberate dead-end (including one right at the top of the main stairs), thoughtfully-placed void, leaves behind the darker expressions of absence and disappearance to enter more familiar museum territory.

The broader story about the Jewish relationship with Germany comes almost as a relief, especially given the enjoyably innovative and varied nature of the exhibition. Spread over two vast floors, visitors find oil paintings, reproduced texts, films and touchscreen presentations, a coin minting machine, and lots of personal histories of the famous (Einstein, Rathenau, Liebermann) and the forgotten, such as the journal of Glikl bas Juda Leib, which gives rare insights into 17th century Jewish life for Jewish women.

We also learn of how anti-Semitism was a part of the Jewish-German relationship pretty much from the offset - at first based upon religious prejudices and later political/pseudo-scientific ones. Of course, the events leading up to the Holocaust are also covered, with further eruptions of the museum’s overarching themes of loss and absence.

It was an art instalation, Fallen Leaves (Shalekhet) by Menashe Kadishman, the cut the sharpest. When first viewed from above it looks like an interesting space with objects on the floor. When you focus on those objects you realize you are looking at faces with their mouths frozen open in a scream. These 10,000 open mouthed faces are coarsely cut  from heavy, circular iron plates cover the floor. The text panel in the museum said that this exhibition dedicates it to all innocent Jews victims of violence and war. Also the title “Fallen Leaves” raises suggestion of both negative predestination and of hope for new life in the coming spring.

When I was last in Berlin I was a bit rushed going through the museum - it was great head back and see exhibits and displays that I had missed.

It was about 1:30 when we left and our stomachs were telling us it was time to eat. Retracing our steps we got off the subway at Alexanderplatz and went to the Galeria Kaufhof dining hall. I had had a great lunch there when I was last in Berlin and was eager to show Paul how Europeans do cafeteria food. Sure enough it did not disappoint!

Great German food done cheap!

We wandered around a bit but with our colds being what they were we really did not feel much like shopping.

On the way back to the subway we passed a pharmacy where a lovely pharmacist sold me some cold drugs.

Back at the apartment I got drugged up and lay down for a nap.

When I woke up from my cold drug induced nap I still felt shitty but also felt the tug of going out. We walked around the corner to a wine bar that we have passed a few times. Instead of passing we went in and had a lovely time sipping amazing wines and nibbling on snacks. I am so glad that I forced myself to go out because it really was a great evening.

We made our daily run to the grocery store to pick up a few essentials (which at this point seems to consist mostly of candy, chips, wine, and beer :-) ) and it was back to the apartment to relax.

A Rainy Day in Berlin

Today was forecasted to be a grey and wet day in Berlin. This meant that it was a 'museum' day.

Paul wanted to visit the German Historical museum.

Rather than trudge through the rain we decided to figure out the Berlin transit system. We have unlimited transit use included with our Berlin Welcome Card so it was a cheap option.

We managed to make it there without incident. The entrance fee was 25 % off with the Welcome Card. We figured we'd get audio guides as well although in the end we probably would have been fine without them as there was excellent signage in English.

The museum was mammoth.  From the Neanderthals to the Nazis and beyond, the entire saga of German history is presented in this museum housed in the old Zeughaus (Armory). Like many German museums, this one is exhaustive and can be exhausting because it attempts to cover 2,000 years of German history in pictures and documents. The rooms are set up chronologically, finishing with the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification.

It is a lot to take in.

Some have been critical of the limited coverage of the WW II era. Personally I thought this criticism was nonsense. The museum devoted plenty of time to the conditions after WW I that set the stage for the rise of Nazism, the tools the Nazis used to come to power, the German activities during the war (including a HUGE 3D sculpture of what crematorium # 2 at Auschwitz looked like in full operation). There are plenty of other museums which devote their entire collection to this era, the German Historical Museum, actually featured more than I would have expected given its 2000 year mandate.

After we left the museum we decided to grab some lunch. We stopped at a cozy pub by the Gendarmenmarkt where Paul finally tried currywurst and I had a bowl of goulash soup.

Our next stop was the Ritter Sport store where we likely bought more chocolate to bring home than we actually needed. OK, not likely, we DID buy way too much chocolate. In our defense, it is both delicious and cheap - who are we to ignore the pull?

Bags in hand, we retraced our steps back to the apartment for a bit of a rest.

Later we explored the neighbourhood a bit - it is a wonderful area full of families living their lives forgetting that 25 years ago it was divided by a wall. There are plenty of pubs and cafes. We even found two schools. This is why we prefer rentals and slow travel - you get a glimpse into the everyday lives of the people who call the place home.

We picked up some soup figuring it would be the perfect thing for our colds. Unfortunately, when we got back to the apartment we realized we were without a can opener. I briefly tried to convince Paul to go to the neighbours and ask if they had a can opener however he was cranky and my cold has sapped me of the energy with which I might normally make a convincing argument so I gave up and made sandwiches.

A double Polish version of NeoCitron (Colgrip) ensured that I had a good night sleep.

The Berlin Wall Memorial

The Berlin Wall used to run about 100 metres from our apartment building. Conveniently this stretch is also the site of the Berlin Wall Memorial.For the most part the 155 kilometer long wall that once divided West Berlin from East Berlin has long been demolished. Some parts however have been preserved, including a 220 meter long section on Bernauer Straße.

The wall is part of a much larger memorial site, stretching 1.4 kilometers long, that provides poignant information about the history of the Berlin Wall and the life of residents who lived near the Wall.

In 1961 the East German government decided to build a wall around West Berlin to prevent East Germans from fleeing to West Berlin. Bernauer Straße was right on the border so this meant that one half of the street ended up on the east side while the other was on the west side of the divided city.

On August 13, 1961, several citizens who found themselves on the east side of the wall jumped out of windows to the West. The windows were soon cemented up and the buildings were later demolished. In the early years Bernauer Straße continued to be a popular place for escape attempts and there were even an number of underground tunnels dug underneath the wall. Not all attempts to escape to the West succeeded however, and those who lost their lives during their attempts are honored here with markers located on the spot where they died or were captured.

Shortly after the Berlin Wall fell in November 1989, few residents were keen to preserve it and the wall was torn down at a rapid pace. A few parts of the Wall however had escaped demolition, among them a stretch at Bernauer Straße that even included a preserved section of the death strip. In 1994 the German government decided to create a memorial dedicated to the Berlin Wall here.

Exhibits along the length of the memorial site give insight into different aspects of the Berlin Wall and the residents living near it. You get information about the many attempts of people who tried to flee to West Berlin including very personal stories and historical photos. One of the most famous is that of the border soldier Conrad Schumann who fled to the West by leaping over the barbed wire fence at Bernauer Straße.

One of the more poignant exhibits is focused on the Chapel of Reconciliation (Kapelle der Versöhnung). The chapel was built at the site of the former Church of Reconciliation, a late-nineteenth century church that was situated on the east side of the border between East and West Berlin.

After the construction of the Wall the church ended up right on the death strip and thus became inaccessible to residents of both West and East Berlin. The church tower was even used by border guards as a watchtower. In 1985 the East German government decided to demolish the church.

In 2000, eleven years after the fall of the Wall, a modern chapel was built on the foundations of the former church. Some remains from the old church, including the church bells and the damaged altar are now preserved near the new chapel.

After we finished walking and viewing the entire exhibit it was time for lunch. Our guide told us about a great beer garden/restaurant located nearby so we hunted it down for a lunch of German food and beers. Sadly, it was closed.

We had passed about 4 burger restaurants while we were walking and Paul had been triggered. One of my apps indicated that one of Berlin's best burger restaurants was located nearby so off we went. I must admit, it was a bloody good burger. It wasn't the schnitzel I had been craving but it was fresh, well-made, and delicious so who was I do complain?

We stopped by the grocery store on the way home and picked up a few things for dinner.

When we got home my cold (thank you PAUL!!!!!!!!!) was starting to take hold so I decided to nap. By the time I woke up the rain that had been in the forecast was here.

It was a wet, grey evening - perfect for hanging out in the apartment and thinking about tomorrow's adventures.

Walking Around Berlin

Yesterday we had a tour booked with Context Tours. It was the Berlin Welcome Tour. We had done a similar tour upon our arrival in Naples and loved it. The tour is designed to provide an orientation to the city, a bit of the history, and help us get our bearings.

We met our guide outside our apartment building. She asked us what we were interested in seeing and where we'd like to go. I left that up to Paul since I had been to Berlin and had an idea of the layout (although not in our direct neighbourhood).

We started off. It wasn't long before she pointed out some stolperstein.

The stolperstein art project was initiated by a German artist in 1992, and is still ongoing. It aims at commemorating individual persons at exactly the last place of residency—or, sometimes, work—which was freely chosen by the person before he or she fell victim to Nazi terror.

The majority of stolpersteine commemorate Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Others have been placed for Sinti and Romani people, homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses, black people, members of the Christian opposition, Freemasons, the Communist Party and the European anti-Nazi Resistance, military deserters, and the physically or mentally disabled.

South of our apartment we stopped at a church called the Zion Church. Apparently during the years leading to the fall of the Berlin Wall this was a base of the resistance.  In the mid-1980s, opposition groups such as the “Zion’s Church Peace and Environmental Circle” began meeting in the basement of the church. It was also where they hid the “Umwelt-Bibliothek” (Environmental Library), containing officially prohibited books and magazines on environmental and human rights topics. Following a raid, the Stasi arrested some of the members, which only brought the group to wider attention. Supporters held vigils and the events were closely reported in the Western media. The arrested members were soon released and the group gained great popularity, becoming a driving force in the civic movement that led to the end of the GDR.

I doubt we would have had any knowledge of these things having happened in our neighbourhood without our guide!

As we wandered around she pointed out restaurants to try, places to shop, etc.

Much of the area we were traveling through was a an area where many Jews lived prior to the war. She showed us the distinctive architecture they used for their houses with a series if interconnecting interior courtyards. One of the was decorated in decorative tiles in an art nouveau style.

We crossed the Spree and stopped for a bit on museum island where Dionysia explained the history behind the Berliner Dom and the various museums on the island.

As we crossed back to the mainland our guide stopped us and pointed out a nondescript building to us.

In that middle yellow building is where Angela Merkel lives. When she became leader of Germany she refused to live in the house designed and built for the German leader. Instead she chose to live in the apartment she has has since she was a student at the university. You can't see if from the picture but there are two police officers located outside - they are the only indicators that one of the leaders of the free world is living there on the second floor.

We continued on our way wandering along the main thoroughfare towards the Brandenburg Gate.  From time to time Dionysia would veer off and show us something that was slightly off of our route.

Eventually we ended up at the Jewish memorial where we sat and talked about the artist's design and the intention behind the distinctive memorial that everyone either loves or hates. The individual concrete blocks are laid out on an undulating background, divided up by symmetrical paths. The blocks gradually increase in size as they move into the centre, allowing just a fraction of light to penetrate through. The many different paths create a maze and a sense of “getting lost” among the grey, monotonous blocks, which combined with the lack of light inside the monument engender a particularly strange feeling for the visitor.

After we left the memorial we ended up at the traditional tourist stop - the Brandenburg Gate.

The Brandenburg Gate is one of the most iconic sights in today’s vibrant Berlin. More than just Berlin’s only surviving historical city gate, this site came to symbolize Berlin’s Cold War division into East and West – and, since the fall of the Wall, a reunified Germany.

It was here that we said auf wiedersehen to Dionysia. We were hungry so we stopped at a restaurant that she recommended for a late lunch.

We had a toast to Berlin. I had a bowl of chicken soup (now that Paul's cold has roosted in me I am eating a lot of soup) and goulash. Paul had schnitzel. All amazing food.

Afterwards we slowly made our way back to the apartment.

I did notice this modified billboard along the way . . .

Evidence of the anti-immigrant sentiment which Dionysia told us has thrown the country into a bit of a turmoil since the recent election.

By the time we got home I was exhausted. Six hours of walking will do that to an old, out of shape man! I had a nap while Paul did some laundry.

When I got up we popped over to the store only to find it closed today.

We made do with what we had in the fridge for dinner.

A great first day in Berlin!

Hello Berlin

Yesterday was essentially a travel and get settled sort of day. This is why we limit our travel from one place to another while on vacation - who wants to waste a precious day of vacation on something that can be so stressful. I remember our first trip to Italy where we foolishly had 5 travel days in the midst of our time away . . . . it is a wonder we did anything else.

So all in all yesterday was smooth. Long, but smooth.

We left out apartment in Krakow at 11:00 AM and arrived at our apartment in Berlin at 5:00 PM. The biggest time suck was waiting for our flight in Krakow. Because of the time we had to leave the apartment and the fact that there was nowhere to store our bags we got to the airport about 4 hours before the flight left. Of course Air Berlin posted the gate late so we were stuck for most of the time on the wrong side of security from the nice restaurants and wine bars.

When we finally did get through security (smooth and quick) we did pop into a restaurant for a last meal in Krakow. Paul had pork tenderloin and I had pierogies made with goose and apricots. MMMM You do not get airport food like this at home!

The airport even had a giant chess board near the gate to amuse you while you waited or your flight.

The flight was short - about an hour and twenty minutes. The plane was less than a quarter full. Paul wasn't going to move but I made him move so I had the row to myself. I stretched out and slept.

Our luggage was the first off of the plane (actually, it may have been the only checked luggage on the plane), and soon we were quickly lined up for a taxi.

I was supposed to text the owner of the apartment when we left the airport so that they could meet us there. Do you think I could figure out how to send a text to a German number? What a phone loser.

We figured we'd just head there and take our chances.

Happily it all worked out.

The apartment is centrally located not far from the Berlin Wall Memorial. We have two bedrooms, a smallish kitchen, a beautiful bathroom, and a large living/dining room. The owner is clearly a youngish, hipster type pf person judging by the art and furnishings.

Although I do not know what to think about these . . .

:-)

There is a grocery store nearby so we set out in the rain to stock up on provisions. Normally I love wandering a foreign grocery store seeing what I can find but this one was very crowded and people did not take kindly to a gawking Canadian tourist.  We loaded up two baskets, paid, and headed back to the apartment.

Paul put everything away while I recovered (I think Paul's cold has come to roost with me).

Later we made dinner.

Yes, the lighting does suck. All of the bulbs give off a yellowish, orange hue. Funky, yes. Good got pics, no!

I went to bed at about 10 leaving Paul relaxing on the couch. It wasn't long before I could hear him snoring away.

Travel Tuesday - Berlin

I was thinking about our planned trip to Berlin later this year. I was there once before in January so I am looking forward to exploring the city again in some warmth.

Of course, I had to go and view my pics from that trip . . .

Travel Tuesdays - Berlin

Facebook is very good at reminding of things that you have done in the past. For example, today it reminded me that three years ago my friend Nancy and I arrived in Berlin. It was a great visit only marred by the fact that we were both quite ill - me at the arrival and Nancy near the end. We didn't get to do everything that we had wanted but we still had a great time. In fact, I enjoyed myself so much that Paul has insisted that go to Berlin this fall after our visit to Poland.

here are some shots from my time in Berlin in 2013 . . .

Sign Fail

This store used to be located near our house. It recently closed. I'm not suggesting a correlation between this sign and the closing but really people!

Travel Tuesday - Berlin

Last week I posted some pics from my 2013 trip to Amsterdam with my friend Nancy. After a week in Amsterdam we hopped the train and took a looooooooong train ride to Berlin. I was sick as a dog for the entire 14 hour journey however I managed to pull myself together by the time we arrived in the German capital.