Long Weekend in Berlin!

Last weekend we had another long weekend. Monday was Pfingsten (Whitmonday) so we had the day off. For the first time, I did some solo travelling. I also stayed in a hostel for the first time. Well, actually I've stayed in hostels before with friends, but we've always reserved the whole room for just us. This time I was in a 5 room female dorm. I was a bit nervous, but it turned out to be a great decision. I met some interesting people, and so had some travel companions for the weekend after all.

First night in Berlin - got in about 20.30 and checked into the hostel. Then headed out for a walk. This was my introduction to Berlin. When I got to Unter den Linden all I could see was construction and the horrible blue temporary building in the background. I think it is pretty horrendous, good thing it is just there before they rebuild the old palace.

Unter den Linden

The Brandenburg Gates

View of the Reichstag (German Parliament)

The facade of the Reichstag building is old, but the inside and the dome on top are pretty new. Built by Sir Norman Foster, the German parliament only moved back to this building in 1999 (having been elsewhere since it burned down in 1933).

Inside the dome

It was free to go up, though I had to make an appointment online beforehand. The dome is right over the main hall of parliament, and serves to direct natural light into that room. The centre is all mirrors, and the thing on the left is a sun shade which moves around as the sun moves. The inside of the centre post gives airflow and directs water away from inside (since the top of the dome is an open hole). I went up the spiral ramp up to the top viewing area. It is really neat, because the ramps are one directional. There are actually two spirals, one for going up and one for going down. 

Out on the balcony having a wander around. View of on of the four corner blocks. The building was originally completed in 1894, having been built by a Frankfurt architect.

The words "Dem Deutschen Volke" (to the German people) were added in 1916

The Canadian Embassy

After my visit to the Reichstag I spent the rest of the morning and afternoon wandering around the city. From the top of the Reichstag I had seen a Canadian flag, and managed to track down the Canadian embassy. 

Across from the embassy - Potsdamer Platz. I remember coming here in 2001 with my dad, when all the new buildings were just being built and it was full of cranes.

Street signs at Potsdamer Platz

I then walked down Potsdamer Straße, through the Tiergarten (not actually into the zoo, just through the public park/forest) and all the way to the Kurfürstendamm (the Ku'damm). By this time I was super tired and with sore feet, so I hopped on a city tour bus. It was a nice 2 hours just seeing the sites around the city. They had commentary in English and German, but unfortunately not too in depth. A lot of it was "and on your left is the embassy of Saudi Arabia" ...

Haus des Lehrers - the house of teachers. I believe it is the building of their teachers' association.

Back on the Ku'damm after the bus tour. I walked down until I got to where our hotel was in 2001. I didn't know theexact location, just the Sbahn stop it was near to.

This was our S-Bahn station. left - 2012, right - 2001. New sign, probably the same elevator. Definitely the same trains. I was surprised how old the trains are in Berlin. I guess I am use to Frankfurt where all the trains seem pretty new. 

After that I took the S-Bahn back to the hostel, where I relaxed and finished my book. I then met two of the other people in my room. Dora was originally from Mexico, but has been living in Vancouver for the past 8 years. The other lady (she had an unusual name that I didn't catch) was from Australia, but had just moved to Heidelberg. It was nice chatting with them, seeing what they'd been up to in Berlin. I had a late dinner  with them in a German restaurant by the hostel. 

Before the walking tour started at the Brandenburger Tor

The next morning Dora, Erica (also staying in my hostel room) and I set out to go on a walking tour of Berlin. I am so glad that I went with them, because the guide knew so much about the city and its history. He was from Manchester, but had moved to Berlin almost 2 years ago. 

Dora, Erica and I ready to start the 3 and a half hour walking tour

Standing over the Führerbunker. It is still underground, though the government doesn't acknowledge it. Apparently it was build so solidly that they couldn't even destroy it when they tried blowing it up.

Gendarmenmarkt, with the Konzerthaus in the middle, Deutscher Dom on the left and Französischer Dom on the right

The French dome was built in the early 1700s for the Huguenot community of Berlin. Then the German population wanted one too, so an almost identical one was built for them. The Huguenots were invited by Frederick the Great to come to Berlin in the 17th C. to increase the population of the city, and this also allowed them to escape persecution in catholic France. 

St. Hedwig's Cathedral

This cathedral was built and designed by Frederick the Great for the Catholic community in Berlin. He was known for his religious tolerance, and wanting to attract skilled and artistic peoples to Berlin. The cathedral was built on one of the main squares to show that he meant what he said about religious tolerance.

A statue of Frederick the Great on Unter den Linden

Berliner Dom

The tour ended in the Lustgarten, this green space in front of the Berliner Dom. The cathedral was actually only built in 1905, but Kaiser Wilhelm II wanted Berlin to have an "old" cathedral like all other great European cities. 

The tour guide ended the tour by telling us the tale of the fall of the Berlin wall. He went through the events leading up to the fall and the actual night it happened. He was such a great story teller. His story included basically paraphrasing the entire press conference in which a DDR press officer, giving the first international press conference, by accident leaked/made up information that the DDR was going to start allowing East Germans to travel into the west. This led to the wall falling that very night. 

After the tour I went to the Pergamon museum. My landlords had told me that I had to go to their special exhibit. It was a 360° panorama of the ancient city of Pergamon. They had a high viewing tower and I just walked around and around looking at the different buildings and people. It was a neat combination of a computer drawing and real pictures. All the people in the panorama were real pictures. You can see a picture here: http://resources0.news.com.au/images/2011/10/03/1226157/465464-111005-pergamon.jpg

I then went through the exhibit on the archaeology of Pergamon, and the regular exhibits. I enjoyed the Pergamon altar, but what I really like were these gates. This is the market gate of Miletus.

Walking back to the hostel with an icecream after the museum. The building on the right is the beginning of the museum island. The tower on the left is the TV tower built by the East Germans in the 60s. It is the tallest structure in Germany. 

A walk to Checkpoint Charlie later in the afternoon. All throughout the city there is a cobblestone line showing where the Berlin Wall was. Here I am in the east and the west. 

Again later in the evening I went out for dinner with some girls from the hostel, and another we'd met on the walking tour. The next morning, my last in Berlin, I went to the Deutsches Historisches Museum. I only had time to go through their European Fashion 1700-1915 exhibit and quickly to their exhibit on Frederick the Great. The second exhibit turned out to be just on his influence on later eras. I was hoping for history of his life, which I still need to learn more about. 

The fashion exhibit was great though. They had dresses and suits from all the different styles during those times. There was a little guide where each costume or piece had a short explanation. It was neat seeing all the different styles, and materials, and accessories. 

And then it was time for my train back to Frankfurt from the Berlin Hauptbahnhof

I had such a lovely time in Berlin. With so much more to see I can't wait to go back!