One final day, completely dedicated to tourist daytime activity, remained for Berlin. First I walked from Alexanderplatz to the Brandenburg Gate made internationally famous by the former Berlin Wall and speeches made by Presidents Kennedy and Reagan. JFK endearingly declared himself to be a “Berliner” or jelly donut and Reagan challenged Gorbechov to “tear down this wall”.
No walk down Unter den Linden would be complete without a protest of some sort. Today’s flavor was a protest by EU postal workers, impressive for its multinational contingency.
From the gate I made a right turn to head over to the Reichstag, the German equivalent to the Capital building in Washington, D.C. On the way the strong winds blew over a bike. In my mind I challenged, "I wonder if anyone will pick it up?" No sooner than I had the thought and three strangers bonded together to re-stand the two wheeler. That never would of happened in New York.
Across the street stood the Reichstag building with its impressive glass dome...
... and even more impressive line to get inside for the tour.
Not in the mood for an extended stance in line, I continued on through Berlin's equivalent of Central Park to the Grosser Stern with the Sieges-saule. This stunning statue rises on a pedistal that splits the Strasse des 17, Juni.
Moving right along, I plodded by the poppy lined Landwehrkanal and zoo to eventually exit the park by the Kaiser Wilhelm Church.
(The bees were busy along the banks of the canal.)
(And, of course there is always time for a quick currie wurst break.)
The Kaiser Wilhelm Church was an impressive building prior to the bombings of the 1940's.
The tower has remained as a testament of the destruction of World War II.
As with most things, the pictures of the past were much more impactful than the actual site.
But, in the new and very modern glass edifice an Australian children's choir sang and this was a welcome relief to hours of walking.
From the western edge of the Tiergarten park I took the U-Bahn or subway to Hallesches Tor to walk up Friedrichstrasse, location of the former "Checkpoint Charlie", the definitive and emblematic dividing line between East and West Germany during the Cold War Soviet occupation.
I completely rocommend the Haus Am Checkpoint Charlie for hours of intreguing historic artifacts and log of the Berlin segregation. Many of the contraptions and vehicles actually used to escape Soviet occupation are on display.
(Pretty obvious, but successful, front end compartment for a VW Bug.)
(Not so obvious, and successful, hollowed out pair of windsurfing boards strapped to a car roofrack.)
After a large dose of reality from the Checkpoint Charlie Museum it is almost stomach turning to walk outside and witness the clowns in Soviet and US Military uniforms. The lack of respect and horseplay by these hired immitators was hard to endure. The scene made me wonder how difficult it would be to have an actual military guard on site. These joking, flag dragging, buffoons didn't add an ounce of respect to an extemely tragic point in German history.
Amazingly, there is practically no trace of the segregating Berlin wall or "no man's land" remaining. To find an upright section you have to peer into a corridor outside of the Checkpoint Charlie Museum for a small section moved to it current location.
The one, not so obvious, bifurcating symbol of the former East and West Berlins are the street signal lights for pedestrians. The hat adorned green walking man and T-shaped standing man signal that you are walking an East Berlin street. If the modernized signals are present, then you are on a West Berlin street. This hat bearing street aid has turned into a bit of an icon, with t-shirts printed for tourists.
Finally, bless her heart, Martina met me after a long day at the law firm for evening drinks and conversation. With the aid of an extremely long exposure, the moonlight glazed the gables of this beautiful section of East Berlin.
