Berlin Trip
My first train ride
From November 22nd to 24th, our group had the opportunity to travel to Berlin with three German teachers from Anne-Frank. This weekend trip was amazing! The teachers that went with us were super fun. They had a great time learning American slang phrases and teaching us German words! We had such a great time, and were able to see many historic places.
I had never taken a train before. This is a very common form of transportation in Europe. Berlin is across the country, and it only took four hours! While on the train, we passed one of the original manufacturers of Volkswagen. It was really interesting!
We arrived in Berlin around 6 pm in the main train station. It was ginormous with Christmas lights, stores, and restaurants. I lost count of how many escalators we took to get to the ground floor. To the left you can see what our platform looked like when we arrived. It was so large; I thought it would never end. After arriving, we had to take a bus to our hotel, The Indigo.
Victory Column
On Saturday, we began our exploration with a tour of the Berlin Victory Column. This column was built to commemorate the victory of the Danish-Prussian War during the 19th century. It stands in the middle of a traffic circle, and you have the ability to climb to the very top to see the view. On top of the column s a solid gold statue of Victoria, representative of the Prussian victory. We were so excited to go to the top, but soon regretted our decision. We counted 282 steps on a VERY narrow, spiral staircase up the center of the column. This adventure was definitely not for the claustrophobic! After making it to the top, it was so worth the sore legs. The viewing deck is 360 degrees of the city and surrounding forests. It was amazing just how far you could see! Off in the distance stood the TV tower, many cathedrals, and buildings of parliament.
BelleVue Palace
The Chancellor of Germany lives in this building. The Chancellor is the leader of Germany, similar to the President of the United States. When the flag is flying above the building, the Chancellor is in the country.
Brandenburg Gate
Built in the late 18th century. Since the demolition of the Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate has been a representation of the unity of Germany. Fun Fact: the chariot statue on top of the structure has been stolen many times, once by Napoleon in 1809.
Bundestag
This is one of the major buildings in parliament. Many negotiations and meetings are held here, and visitors can travel to the glass dome at the top and observe these meetings held below.
memorial to the murdered jews of europe
Above are images from the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. This was such an impactful place to experience. The columns are solid concrete and, as you walk further into the memorial, the columns get larger and larger. Once you made it to the heart of the structure, it is quiet, cold, and disorienting. The artist made this memorial to be an experience for its visitors. This experience was very emotional, as it represented the event of the Holocaust. The emotions and sensations felt by the visitors are to represent the same emotions felt by those leading up to the Holocaust.
Checkpoint charlie
After leaving the memorial, we made our way to Checkpoint Charlie. "Charlie" refers to "C" in a sequence of checkpoint locations at the Berlin Wall. This location was so significant because it was the single location for foreigner and the Allied Forces to cross the wall's divide. It was really neat to see images and artifacts from the original checkpoint. You can even see the original structure where guards and gates stood. There were also some images of more grave events surrounding Checkpoint Charlie, including the death of Peter Fechter. Peter was an East German teen who attempted to escape to the west side. He was shot by East German guards, became entangled in barbed wire, and bled to death.
We weren't able to tour the museum, but we were able to look around in the museum's gift shop. Below are images of the Christmas tree decorated with various flags from foreign countries as well as a view down the street from where Checkpoint Charlie stands.
The Berlin Wall memorial
We concluded our tours of the city with the memorial of the Berlin Wall. This was one of the most emotional sites we visited, in my opinion. In the museum, visitors could watch film of the walls construction, demonstrations against the divide, and citizens attempts to escape. Outside of the museum was a 4 story observation deck where we were able to see a portion of the preserved wall. Many don't realize that the wall was built in multiple layers. So if someone was lucky enough to make it over the concrete structure, there were armed guards and barbed wire fencing stopping them as well.
We also saw metal in the ground where the city has outlined the original path of the wall as well as underground escape routes. Some of these routes are still open, while others were filled in. It was so emotional to see how divided Berlin and Germany was just 30 short years ago.