When I left you last time I was heading off to Museums Island and I did manage to see two museums that were great. The first one was Pergamonmuseum which contained a huge amount of Greek and Roman ruins - yep I still can't escape from them but one thing that was different was that it also had a great exhibition on Islamic art as well. Thought this was good and it also provided alot of historical information around the Middle East which I hadn't heard before. The next museum I hit was the Bodemuseum. It is primarily a sculpture museum - I enjoyed it but since I still hadn't had dinner and it was getting late I zipped through that one probably a bit quicker than I normally would have. Finally got out and had some dinner then headed back to the hostel. I think I got there around 10.30 - note to parents - don't worry I was in large crowds the whole time.
Next day I got up and honestly had no clue what I was going to do (which is fairly typical of me anywhere I have been) and I ended up going to see Checkpoint Charlie and the Jewish Museum. Re Checkpoint Charlie it is quite amazing some of the lengths people went to to try and get out of East Germany. The East Germans were so paranoid about the loss of the population they even banned things like scuba diving gear since people could go underwater and to cross the border. It was quite heartbreaking though some of the stories that were mentioned there. Also in the Checkpoint Charlie musuem there is another section around the history of people's freedom being limited eg Ghandi gets a mention in liberating India while the one that I had never heard of before was the Ukraine and the Soviets back in the 20s and 30s where the Soviets, who were concerned about the affluence of the Ukraines since they had a well developed farming system, literally starved the population to death. The figures will never be known but they estimate that it would be around 7 million people died. All through my time here in Berlin it has shown how human beings can be so cruel to other human beings - and its all within the last few generations which makes it even scarier from that perspective.
After Checkpoint Charlie I took myself to the Jewish Museum. The architecture on this building is quite off putting - if you suffer from vertigo then you will probably fall over here. The walls and floors are oddly shaped and slanted so if you are walking down the corridor then you feel like you are walking in a crooked manner when in actual fact you aren't. I spent a good few hours wandering around this museum and enjoyed it and it gave me a good history of the Jews throughout history. After spending so much time in Islamic countries it did provide me with a different view....
Next day in Berlin saw me going to the Bauhaus Archives. I had seen a documentary years ago in relation to the Bauhaus and was interested in the museum and the history it contains. It was actually a bit of bust all things considered. The Bauhaus for those who don't know was around the beginning of the 20th century and influenced alot of design principles that are seen in everyday life today - esp in architecture.
After the Bauhaus I went to the Deutche Technical museum - again this was a bit of bust but it was fun to wander around in for awhile. After having some lunch because I was starving by this stage I decided to head towards Hackescher market to see what it was all about. Lonely Planet describes it as a bit of a offbeat area and it is and I enjoyed wandering around it for awhile. I was also on a mission to buy some socks since I had the choice of washing some or buying some more to get me through until I get back to London. Found a three pack at the Puma store.....
Next day it was all free stuff I went to - more by accident than design really. I firstly went to the Topopgraphy of Terror which is basically an open air museum on the grounds where the old Third Riech SS headquarters were. It is just images and literature put up against a fence but it is still quite moving to see. I read quite a bit there and all told spent a fair amount of time there as well.
After this I wanted to find Hitlers bunker which was supposed to be quite close i.e. a few blocks at the most. Turns out you can't actually go there and there is apartment buildings all around it now. Bit of a come down for the furher probably... From there I went another couple of blocks and got to the Halacaust Memorial for the European Jews who died in WWII. The memorial I am sure is supposed to represent something - its quite large and is essentially blocks of stone in the same dimensions but just having irregular heights - but I am unsure exactly what the meaning was. Beneath the memorial is an exhibition to view the stories and facts about the experiences of the Jews during WWII - esp within the concerntration camps. To some extent it also covers what occurred to the other persecuted groups of the Nazis eg gypsies, homosexuals etc. Its all very disturbing and sad but its probably something that brings home that man can be the worst enemy against man. The problem is that it makes you think have we gotten any better???
After this I went across the road to Tier Garten which is the parklands smack bang in the middle of Berlin. here I wrote my postcards to everyone (I posted them this morning) then wandered up to the road to the Brandenburg Gate which was having some sort of festival out the front of it. I wandered around the stalls and checked it all out but frankly I am still unsure what they were celebrating. At first I thought it was some sort of push bike thing but then I saw alot of greenie groups there as well so who knows.....
That brings me to today - my last full day on the road for this 3 month odessy - I slept in because really why shouldn't I?? Also the dreaded plastic bag girls from the previous three nights had left the day before... Note to anyone staying in a hostel - zippers and plastic bags DO MAKE NOISE. I swear these girls had everything in 50 different plastic bags and once they found it there was a zipper that needed to be negotiated to get to their stuff from there. I was soooo over them by the time they left. Anyway I digress but had to have a quick vent - after I got up I had a quick brekkie and headed out to the Deutche History Musuem. This was very good and started around 100 BC up until the present day. I read a hell of alot and enjoyed learning about different things. I spent more time than expected there so by the time I came out later there wasn't much left that I could see that was actually open (most sights are shut on Mondays) so decided to do a spot of shopping. I found the German equivalent of Harrods mentioned in Lonely Planet and it turns out I have been going past it every time I have headed back to my hostel. I went up to the food court which was great and had a excellent very late lunch/ early dinner then wandered around a bit more up and down the street and found this cheap internet cafe.
The last three months have been great and I can honestly say I have enjoyed it all - some parts more than others. I have to get up early tomorrow morning to get to the airport but from there another adventure begins - living and working in a different country. I promise to keep the blog up to date though....
Wish me luck
cheers
Toni
After Checkpoint Charlie I took myself to the Jewish Museum. The architecture on this building is quite off putting - if you suffer from vertigo then you will probably fall over here. The walls and floors are oddly shaped and slanted so if you are walking down the corridor then you feel like you are walking in a crooked manner when in actual fact you aren't. I spent a good few hours wandering around this museum and enjoyed it and it gave me a good history of the Jews throughout history. After spending so much time in Islamic countries it did provide me with a different view....
Next day in Berlin saw me going to the Bauhaus Archives. I had seen a documentary years ago in relation to the Bauhaus and was interested in the museum and the history it contains. It was actually a bit of bust all things considered. The Bauhaus for those who don't know was around the beginning of the 20th century and influenced alot of design principles that are seen in everyday life today - esp in architecture.
After the Bauhaus I went to the Deutche Technical museum - again this was a bit of bust but it was fun to wander around in for awhile. After having some lunch because I was starving by this stage I decided to head towards Hackescher market to see what it was all about. Lonely Planet describes it as a bit of a offbeat area and it is and I enjoyed wandering around it for awhile. I was also on a mission to buy some socks since I had the choice of washing some or buying some more to get me through until I get back to London. Found a three pack at the Puma store.....
Next day it was all free stuff I went to - more by accident than design really. I firstly went to the Topopgraphy of Terror which is basically an open air museum on the grounds where the old Third Riech SS headquarters were. It is just images and literature put up against a fence but it is still quite moving to see. I read quite a bit there and all told spent a fair amount of time there as well.
After this I wanted to find Hitlers bunker which was supposed to be quite close i.e. a few blocks at the most. Turns out you can't actually go there and there is apartment buildings all around it now. Bit of a come down for the furher probably... From there I went another couple of blocks and got to the Halacaust Memorial for the European Jews who died in WWII. The memorial I am sure is supposed to represent something - its quite large and is essentially blocks of stone in the same dimensions but just having irregular heights - but I am unsure exactly what the meaning was. Beneath the memorial is an exhibition to view the stories and facts about the experiences of the Jews during WWII - esp within the concerntration camps. To some extent it also covers what occurred to the other persecuted groups of the Nazis eg gypsies, homosexuals etc. Its all very disturbing and sad but its probably something that brings home that man can be the worst enemy against man. The problem is that it makes you think have we gotten any better???
After this I went across the road to Tier Garten which is the parklands smack bang in the middle of Berlin. here I wrote my postcards to everyone (I posted them this morning) then wandered up to the road to the Brandenburg Gate which was having some sort of festival out the front of it. I wandered around the stalls and checked it all out but frankly I am still unsure what they were celebrating. At first I thought it was some sort of push bike thing but then I saw alot of greenie groups there as well so who knows.....
That brings me to today - my last full day on the road for this 3 month odessy - I slept in because really why shouldn't I?? Also the dreaded plastic bag girls from the previous three nights had left the day before... Note to anyone staying in a hostel - zippers and plastic bags DO MAKE NOISE. I swear these girls had everything in 50 different plastic bags and once they found it there was a zipper that needed to be negotiated to get to their stuff from there. I was soooo over them by the time they left. Anyway I digress but had to have a quick vent - after I got up I had a quick brekkie and headed out to the Deutche History Musuem. This was very good and started around 100 BC up until the present day. I read a hell of alot and enjoyed learning about different things. I spent more time than expected there so by the time I came out later there wasn't much left that I could see that was actually open (most sights are shut on Mondays) so decided to do a spot of shopping. I found the German equivalent of Harrods mentioned in Lonely Planet and it turns out I have been going past it every time I have headed back to my hostel. I went up to the food court which was great and had a excellent very late lunch/ early dinner then wandered around a bit more up and down the street and found this cheap internet cafe.
The last three months have been great and I can honestly say I have enjoyed it all - some parts more than others. I have to get up early tomorrow morning to get to the airport but from there another adventure begins - living and working in a different country. I promise to keep the blog up to date though....
Wish me luck
cheers
Toni
posted by Toni Black at 10:33 AM
1 Comments:
What an excellent trip you have had so far! Can't wait to see how you go in London. Are you going to find a place to live in, or are you bunking with your friend?
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