So I made it to Berlin… dang this place is huge! It’s not consolidated into a single, dense urban core but is spread out across a series of “neighborhoods”. It’s “downtown” alone stretches five miles but it’s got a great mass transit system to navigate around. But before I go further, we need a little history!
Berlin was a humble, marshy burg until prince electors from the Hohenzollern dynasty made it their capital in the mid-15th century. Gradually their territory spread and strengthened, becoming the powerful Kingdom of Prussia in 1701. As the leading city of Prussia, Berlin dominated the northern Germanic world long before there was a united “Germany”. Thanks largely due to Frederick the Great (1712-1786), Prussia was well-positioned to lead the German unification movement in the 19th century. And when Germany became a unified modern nation in 1871, Berlin was its natural capital.
After Germany’s defeat in World War I, Berlin thrived as an anything-goes cultural capital of the Roaring Twenties. During World War II, the city was Hitler’s headquarters and the place where he died. When the Soviet Army reached Berlin in 1945, the protracted fighting left the city in ruins. Berlin was divided by the victorious Allied powers – the American, British, and French sectors became West Berlin, and the Soviet sector became East Berlin. The city became the main battlefield of the Cold War. In 1961, pretty much over night, the Soviets built the Berlin Wall creating an Iron Curtain completely encircling West Berlin, cutting Berlin in half. Finally on November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall came down. Today, going on 30 years later, Berlin is a thriving city.
So I didn’t get here until about 4 PM, and we changed our clocks back here last Sunday so it now gets dark around 5 PM. Bummer! So most of the pics are in dusk/dark but I tried to lighten them up. Here goes…
The first pic is the only one I know you all were waiting for. It’s the Hotel Adlon and the middle balcony with the light on and door open is where Michael Jackson dangled his infant son over the railing. So I guess I can leave Berlin now knowing I’ve seen the most important site! Lol
Next of course is the famed Brandenburg Gate. It’s the grandest and last survivor of the 14 original gates in Berlin’s old city wall. The name came from the fact that this one led to the neighboring city of Brandenburg.
Next is the Reichstag which is the heart of Germany’s government. It’s where their Bundestag (the lower House of Parliament) meets to govern the nation (similar to our House of Representatives).
Next is 96 slabs honoring the 96 Reichstag members who spoke out against Hitler and the rising tide of fascism. When Hitler became chancellor, those 96 were persecuted and murdered. Each slab has their name engraved on the top.
Next is a memorial to the victims from East Berlin who died trying to cross the Wall to freedom. The cross closest shows the last person killed was 20-year-old Chris Gueffroy who died a mere nine months before the Wall fell.
Next is a close up on the chariot on top of the Brandenburg Gate. It’s driven by the Goddess of Peace. When Napoleon conquered Prussia in 1806, he took this statue to the Louvre in Paris. Then, after the Prussians defeated Napoleon, they got it back (in 1813)… and the Goddess of Peace was renamed the “Goddess of Victory”.
Next is the US embassy (pretty much right next to the Brandenburg Gate) with its flag flying at half-staff in memory of the 11 people murdered at the Jewish Synagogue in my hometown of Pittsburgh. My prayers go out to all of the victims families as well as the first responders who were injured. So sad and tragic.
Last one is interesting. It’s pretty much an old run down parking lot with just a sign up explaining that this is where Hitler’s Bunker (Fuhrerbunker) was and where he died. In early 1945, as Allied armies advanced on Berlin and Nazi Germany lay in ruins, Hitler and his staff retreated to this bunker complex. He stayed here for two months. It was here, on April 30, 1945, as the Soviet army tightened its noose on the Nazi capital, that Hitler and Eva Braun, his wife of less than 48 hours, committed suicide. A week later, the war in Europe was over. I guess no one wants to turn Hitler’s final stronghold into a tourist attraction (rightfully so!).
Well that’s all for now. Don’t eat too much Halloween candy!
Jeff
The Wandering Italian 