The weather was beautiful for the whole trip and there was so much history and culture to explore that I was busy for the whole four days I was in Berlin. I also got to catch up with a friend who attended Moira for 3 months earlier this year, so I was really glad I went. Despite and eccentric hostel (yes, there really were cowboys in the lobby one night, an army of Justin Bieber clones another) the city was as beautiful and historic as I’d heard.
World War II fascinates me and one of my favorite history courses in high school was Modern European History. I even wrote my thesis paper about Hitler and his impact on global dystopian literature during that time period. I saw the Wall and the Brandeburg Gate and Checkpoint Charley and learned about all of the restoration work that has taken place since the 40’s. It’s amazing to think that just 70 years ago the city was practically in ruins, and now it is a vibrant bustling metropolitan to rival London and Paris. I made sure to take some photos around the Brandeburg gate, where the iconic photos of Hitler’s army were taken, and stood at Checkpoint Charlie looking down the street at where a piece of the wall still stands, one foot in what was Soviet territory and the other in what was American territory.
Obviously one of the most well known landmarks in Berlin is the Berlin wall, which fell in 1989. I was instantly captured by the images of the soviet era and the stories that the graffiti on the wall seemed to tell. Although it was a beautiful warm sunny day when I went to visit, and I even posed smiling in front of the wall, I couldn’t help but feel a nearly tangible melancholy in the air. Small groups gathered around photos of the Nazi army marching the streets or of rebellious teenagers sitting atop the wall hurling insults and anyone who would listen, and not one of them smiled. Since visiting this historical monument, I have read countless stories about escape attempts (both successful and failed) including one that I particularly enjoyed about a set of three brothers who all successfully “jumped” the wall by the names of Ingo, Holger, and Egbert Bethke. The first brother floated down the river on a mattress to escape detection. The second, used a system of arrows and cables (yes he actually shot an arrow over the Berlin wall and snaked a cable down the line) to cross the successfully. However, when it came time for the youngest, Egbert, to give it a go, he sought some help from his two brothers. Together, they flew two ultra light planes, one to pick up Egbert and one to VIDEOTAPE the affair. After painting them with the Russian stars, they crossed the wall and picked up Egbert then went on a short joyride around Eastern Berlin before touching down in the American part safely. The brothers have since been quoted saying that if they’d known then that the wall would fall the same year, they would have done it anyway. A bit off-topic, but its this sort of heroic story of 3 parts ingenuity and 1 part lionhearted stupidity that I think comprise and important part of this monuments history.
On my last day in Berlin, after Linds had left me to head back to school, I met with a good friend of mine who lives just outside Berlin. We met this year, when she came to study at Moira for three months, but I hadn’t seen her since December, so I was really excited. We walked around central Berlin for a while just catching up before grabbing lunch at a nice restaurant in the train station. She taught me a little bit about the German train system and showed me where her house was on the map as we headed out of central Berlin a bit to go see a square she enjoyed sitting in. As it turns out, there was a little market set up in the square, styled similarly to the Christmas markets that spring up all over Europe during the holiday season. We spent an hour or so walking around and munching on some little treats, and before we said goodbye she gave me a traditional German cookie similar to gingerbread as a parting gift.
Obviously one of the most well known landmarks in Berlin is the Berlin wall, which fell in 1989. I was instantly captured by the images of the soviet era and the stories that the graffiti on the wall seemed to tell. Although it was a beautiful warm sunny day when I went to visit, and I even posed smiling in front of the wall, I couldn’t help but feel a nearly tangible melancholy in the air. Small groups gathered around photos of the Nazi army marching the streets or of rebellious teenagers sitting atop the wall hurling insults and anyone who would listen, and not one of them smiled. Since visiting this historical monument, I have read countless stories about escape attempts (both successful and failed) including one that I particularly enjoyed about a set of three brothers who all successfully “jumped” the wall by the names of Ingo, Holger, and Egbert Bethke. The first brother floated down the river on a mattress to escape detection. The second, used a system of arrows and cables (yes he actually shot an arrow over the Berlin wall and snaked a cable down the line) to cross the successfully. However, when it came time for the youngest, Egbert, to give it a go, he sought some help from his two brothers. Together, they flew two ultra light planes, one to pick up Egbert and one to VIDEOTAPE the affair. After painting them with the Russian stars, they crossed the wall and picked up Egbert then went on a short joyride around Eastern Berlin before touching down in the American part safely. The brothers have since been quoted saying that if they’d known then that the wall would fall the same year, they would have done it anyway. A bit off-topic, but its this sort of heroic story of 3 parts ingenuity and 1 part lionhearted stupidity that I think comprise and important part of this monuments history. 
On my last day in Berlin, after Linds had left me to head back to school, I met with a good friend of mine who lives just outside Berlin. We met this year, when she came to study at Moira for three months, but I hadn’t seen her since December, so I was really excited. We walked around central Berlin for a while just catching up before grabbing lunch at a nice restaurant in the train station. She taught me a little bit about the German train system and showed me where her house was on the map as we headed out of central Berlin a bit to go see a square she enjoyed sitting in. As it turns out, there was a little market set up in the square, styled similarly to the Christmas markets that spring up all over Europe during the holiday season. We spent an hour or so walking around and munching on some little treats, and before we said goodbye she gave me a traditional German cookie similar to gingerbread as a parting gift. 
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