A Tour through Berlin: the Results of National Socialism

Goethe Institut offers various programs through the week. Some are presentations by area professors, some are museum visits, and some are guided tours through certain parts of Berlin. So on Tuesday, September 11th, I went on a tour through the parts of Berlin that Hitler had changed during his rise to power. First, we stopped by the Brandenburg Gate. Here Hitler would show off his military strength to foreign dignitaries. The tour guide showed us the plans that Hitler had for the city. One only wonders how different the world could be, had Hitler gone into architecture and city planning instead of to war.

The American Embassy is right there by the Gate, and because it was September 11th, the flag was lowered to half-mast.

After that we visited the Holocaust Memorial. It's an abstract piece of art, with about 2000 coffin-shaped stones with varying heights and on varying grades. In fact, no stone is identical to another. It being abstract art, I suppose you can come to your own opinions about what that means. I don't particularly enjoy abstract art, but I got the feeling that this memorial was trying to give.

Not far away was the place of Hitler's bunker, though there is no sign to attract you to its existence. The tour guide showed us the parking lot under which it was located. Though most of the rooms have been destroyed by the attempts of the Soviets', and more have flooded, caved in, or filled with rock, I think there are still a few rooms that one could go through. I'm not sure though. In the picture below, the bright blue van in the background is where Hitler's body was burned.

Right by this parking lot is a typical East German apartment flat: very plain and made of concrete. As Keaton Christiansen noted, "the power of centralized bureaucracy... what wonders it hath wrought."

Next we stopped by the entrance to Hitler's Reich Chancellery. Interestingly, a Chinese restaurant is located there now. People who wanted to see Hitler had to walk 150m to his office, being surrounded by the best of German art and might on the way. No doubt this was to impress them, but I'm sure it was also a security measure for Hitler.

Then we saw the building that was built for the Ministry of Aviation (Luftwaft) in the 1930s. It's still intact, and the German Finance Ministry inhabits that place now. From what I gathered, the reason it didn't get bombed because it had a lot of anti-aircraft guns around it.

Finally, we walked to the Topography of Terror, which described the rising of the Nazi Party and the events surrounding WWII. Honestly, I couldn't take a lot of photos, because they just wouldn't do justice to the horror that was depicted. One picture in particular caught my eye, and I think you know why. It's of Bonhoeffer, because he was arrested and executed for being a part of a plot to kill Hitler. He spent a while in prison, from which he wrote many letters, but he was killed within days of Allied forces reaching his prison.

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Limlingrode, Eisenach, and Wartburg

This this past weekend I visited Thuringia, in central Germany. The trip there didn't take very long, only a few hours, and it was nice to travel through the German countryside. We arrived that afternoon to a farmyard in the village of Limlingrode, which is barely a dot on the map. There was some really neat traditional Fachwerk ("framework") in the buildings around the village. Here's three pictures of the barn. You can see my full album here: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151143820568788.470703.500163787&type=1&l=aaa701a5d6

After an afternoon break for beer/coffee/kuchen (the British call it "afternoon tea"), we went for a walk. Note to self: walks in Germany are not just plain walks. Not only was there the beautiful countryside, but soon the farmer who was leading us around pointed out the furthest that the East Germans could walk; 500m later was the border to West Germany. The farmer (Helmut) told a few stories about life during the separation. Apparently, some of the locals could pass through to move flocks around, but they had to be from the local area and have a reason to come back (a wife and children). Nevertheless, anyone sneaking around in the dead man's land was not safe from the border guards.

Going past the 500m marker, he brought us to a well, out of flowed a small stream of water. Someone had brought a water bottle, so we filled it up and took a drink. It wasn't particularly cold, nor particularly different in taste. Nevertheless, I wish I could've taken a picture of it.

Next, we took a different route back, and he showed us a ditch which was manmade. Along the sides grew trees, and it really didn't make much sense why the long ditch was there until he showed us three stones, each about 100m (110 yards) apart. They only had a few letters on them, but signs nailed to trees above each one gave information about them. One stone in particular said "KP" on one side and "KH" on the other. Does anyone have any guesses? The 'K' stands for "Königsreich" and the 'P' and 'H' stand for different kingdoms. Still nothing? Ok, "KP" is the Kingdom of Prussia, and "KH" is the Kingdom of Hanover. The otherh two differentiated between other older, smaller kingdoms. I can't exactly remember now. We found a fourth stone on which was a six-spoked wheel, probably the coat of arms of Mainz. But Mainz is all the way across the other side of Germany! Explanation? The Archbishop of Mainz no doubt claimed this territory as part of his electorate and control. At one time he would have been in charge of all area north of the alps, as the primus Germaniae, but I'm not sure when he lost control of his territory in Thuringia.

The walk ended with picking some early plums, a bit larger than grapes, and they tasted pretty good.

That evening the Germans grilled out, and boy was it good! There were grilled sausages (sigh..."brats" for you Americans), sausages with cheese inside, and pork strips. Everything was greasy and delicious. Of course I washed it down with the regional beer. Unfortunately I can't remember the brand, but it was a weak stout, more fitting for the summer. I've had stronger stouts in the US, but still, it tasted very good and went well with the food. If you ever travel Germany, I encourage you to ask for the regional beer; it's a great way to get along with the locals, who have a lot of pride in that brewery, and you get to try a wide variety.

That night after supper, a neighbor took us to the village church, since she had a key. Unfortunately it was dark outside, so I couldn't get any pictures, and the ones inside were a bit dark as well. Oh well. Again, you can see the full album at the link above.

The next day we traveled to Eisenach and the Wartburg. Eisenach is the birthplace of JS Bach, and the childhood home of Luther (but not his birthplace, as I mistakenly mentioned in my post a few days ago). We really didn't spend much time in Eisenach. I'll have more time later to find the places that I want to visit. We did go up to the Wartburg castle, which was quite awesome. We all know it as the hiding place of Martin Luther when the Emperor had put a bounty on his head. He masqueraded as Junker Jörg, or Knight George, and it was there that he translated the New Testament into German. But this isn't all it's famous for: the castle had been built in the late 11th century and is still very well kept up. Furthermore, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, known for her charity, was sent there as a girl to eventually marry the King of Thuringia, which she did at age 14. She was widowed at 20 and died at 24, but she was most well known for setting up hospital in Eisenach and distributing alms to people in her husband's territory.

From there, we traveled back to Berlin in the dark. The ICE (Inter-City Express) was very fast; it would be nice to have that sort of public transportation in America. The only problem is that no one would use it, because everyone has cars or is used to flying to places to which they can't drive.

My classes are going well. I got a '2' ('B') on my first self-evaluation test. Basically, we took a test, and the teacher graded it, but it doesn't count for anything. It does give one an idea of what to practice, though, which was good.

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Homework on the train

Don't tell a German teacher that you did your homework on the train. She'll be happy that your homework is done, but she'll draw a picture of you sitting on top of a train, with the whole class laughing. I guess the English expression "on the train" doesn't translate very literally into German. "In the train" is preferred.

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The Brandenburg Gate, Soviet Memorial, Victory Tower, and Goethe Institut

Well, this post has been overdue, especially since I've lost the entire thing twice. Both were on my iPad, and I think the post was too large for the app to handle. 14 pictures isn't too much, is it? Anyway, now I'm using my reliable computer (PC), praying nothing happens to it in the next hour.

So last Tuesday, I decided to visit the Brandenburg Gate area and eat my lunch there. I arrived and was utterly astounded by what I saw. The number of tourists and their behavior was appalling! Most were high school or college students just fooling around, taking pictures with the many people dressed up in various costumes, from two Darth Vader to a German Mickey Mouse. It was obvious that no one was paying attention to the Brandenburg Gate or even caring about its history or significance. I only took two pictures quickly before any gypsies or beggars could accost me.

See the Iron Cross on the standard? That was added after the Germans got the Quadriga (the four-horsed chariot) back from France, who had stolen it when Napoleon stormed through Prussia, triumphantly walking through the Brandenburg Gate after his conquer of Berlin. In typical German style, having won it back, they decorated the Brandenburg Gate, put the Quadriga back up on top, and partied. The Brandenburg Gate wasn't damaged much in WWII, but it was restored in 2000. It was pretty much ignored by the DDR, who put up the wall on the wrong side of the Gate, blocking it from West Germany. It became the place of celebration when the wall came down.

Next, I went to the Soviet Memorial. The Soviets put it up right after WWII in memorial of the 80,000 Soviet soldiers who died taking Berlin. A few thousand are buried nearby.

 While I was there, I looked down the street and noticed something golden, so I decided to check it out. It was about a mile away, but it took awhile with a short trip through the Tiergarten, which was very beautiful. It turned out to be the Siegessäule, or the Victory Column, which Prussia put up after defeating first Denmark, then Austria and France. (Good time to be Prussian, huh?)

Inside was a small museum that had information and models of towers and monuments from around Germany, then Europe, then the world. It was quite interesting and unexpected.

I kinda ran out of time, because it was already 12:30, and I needed to be at Goethe by about 1 to see where I got placed based on my test. To get there, I had to go 1.3 miles (again stopping by the Tiergarten) to the train station, where I had to get on a train only to get off at the next station to switch trains, going again one stop before getting off and running to Goethe. After checking my placement and where my room was, I slinked into the room a bit late, just in time for the students to introduce themselves to everyone. I justify myself, though, that I wasn't the last person to show up. Shame on that person. Yeah...

<A distraction attempt, using a picture from the Tiergarten>

Back on topic, I quickly found out that the class was easier than I had expected, probably as a result of the writing portion of my test, which I didn't do well on. Anyway, I asked the teacher to advance to the next level, so after the next class day on Wednesday, she moved me up a bit. I like my new class and teacher, and I can tell that it is a bit harder, though that is a good thing. I don't feel like I'm a 5th grader in a 2nd grade class anymore. I still feel like a 5th grader in German, though. I've got a lot of learning and practice to do, but I'm looking forward to another three weeks.

My teacher loaded us down with homework, which I'll have to do on the train, because tomorrow (actually today, by the looks of it) the Müllers and I are going somewhere. I can't remember the name of it, but Benjamin said it was a small town that didn't have much. We're going to visit Eisenach and the Wartburg Castle on Sunday, so I'll have some pictures and stories to share on Monday.

Until then!

No!!! Always save!

I lost my extremely long blog post tonight. I should have locally saved it on my iPad before uploading it to the internet. More on the Brandenburg Gate, the Victory Column, Goethe, and Lutheran/Catholic dialogues later. Sigh. There goes 2.5 hrs of my life.

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Church today! And the Goethe Institut begins tomorrow!

So I today went to the SELK (Selbständige Evangelische--Lutherishe Kirche) congregation in Berlin-Marzahn. It is a mission congregation started by one or two other SELK churches in order to reach out to the East Germans after the wall fell. There were about 30 people present. It was the first time I've ever registered for communion and had my name written down, a common practice in Germany, which also used to be common in the LCMS until modern times. For reasons Benjamin could explain better, they don't have a pastor at their congregation, but are served by what we would call vacancy pastors. So I got to meet a pastor whose name I can't find on the bulletin, but who traveled to Fort Wayne last year to give a paper at the Löhe Conference. Anyway, the service was very orderly and proper and beautiful, and I could understand much more of it than I normally do of conversation. Following in their hymnal was pretty straightforward, which was very helpful. There was kuchen and coffee afterwards, and it was fun to converse with the congregation members, especially the children who are learning English in their schools.

Well, my own language instruction is starting up soon! I'm going to take a test tomorrow at Goethe so they can place me in the right section. Then the classes start up Tuesday. I visited the Institut last Monday to find out where they're located and to see what route I'd need to take. It was a bit hard to find, but now I know where it is. There are classrooms in the main building, and a library in an adjoining part with many easy to read books, for different levels and with different topics. There's tvs with headphones for watching instructional videos, and some audio stations as well. I'm looking forward to the education, but especially to being able to converse at a faster speed with the Germans. Right now I feel like I load down the conversation trying to get out a single sentence. Oh well. Thus is life. It's time for bed here, so gute nacht!

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St. Mary's Church and the Pergamon Museum

So on Friday I did a bit of traveling by myself, back to the Alexanderplatz, where I could take pictures of more of the area. I took many pictures of the church that I mentioned in my last post, St. Marienkirche, which is the second oldest church in Berlin. It is quite large and ornate, inside and out, but some of the paintings were starting to fade. As expected, there were many graves inside the church to the right and left, though I didn't take any pictures of them- I didn't immediately recognize any. Well-known pastors and royalty are sometimes buried in these churches, which are seen as more permanent recognitions of their lives than burial in the normal burial grounds. I took so many pictures on Friday, that what you see is only a snippet. I will try to post a link to an album that contains all of them. This should work, let me know if it doesn't: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151131635658788.468129.500163787&type=1&l=0f8b5434cc.
But scroll down! There's more!

Not a large organ, but still gilded quite beautifully.

The pulpit is very beautiful- I loved the relief above it. (See my album for a closer picture.)

I can't not take a picture of Martin Luther's statue.

Very close to the Marienkirch is Neptune's Fountain and the Berlin City Hall. Both were beautiful, but I unfortunately don't know much history or information behind either. Considering the amount of tourists around me, I don't think I was the only one who was just snapping pictures for the sake of the photos. Oh well. I hope you enjoy the pictures nonetheless.

About a ten to twenty minute walk away was the "Museum-Insel," which is home to five museums: Altes-Museum (pictured immediately below), Alte National-galerie, Neues Museum, Pergamon Museum, and the Bode Museum. Close by also is the DDR (GDR) Museum. A gypsy approached me in front of the Altes Museum, and she asked me to read a card in English. I started reading haltingly, "I from Romania" before I realized who she was, quickly ending with, "Nein!" She promptly left, looking for other American targets. Later a boy waved a piece of paper at me, saying, "Read!" but he got a quicker "Nein!" from me.

I spent about four hours in the Pergamon Museum, which I think was a good amount of time to digest the many artifacts and rooms housing material from classical antiquity. The most impressive is the Pergamon Altar. Perhaps included in the temple to Zeus, it is just an altar, though a very impressive one. Some speculate that it may not have been included in a temple at all, since the backside of it features the most impressive statues. These statues running around the base tell the story of Hercules' son, Telephus, who founded the city of Pergamon and, as myth states, is also the ancestor of Romulus, the founder of Rome. Thus this altar served also as an anti-Roman message, celebrating the very ancestor of the Romans. This altar was only one of three such worship sites in Pergamon. The other two I believe were dedicated to Athena, one or both of which had some pillars removed and taken to Berlin. It was a very impressive room whose pillars dwarfed the Altar itself.

A decapitated Zeus

You can see more pictures from the Peramon altar and Athena room in the album above. I don't have room for them here.

After that I went through the special exhibit, which consisted of a presentation of what we know about early humans and what they thought and knew. Getting past the evolutionary bias, it was interesting; there were a number well-thought out rooms, and some that didn't impress me at all. However, I didn't take many pictures; nothing really stuck out at me. I did recognize one artifact below, the Nebra Sky Disk, which is a map of the heavens on a bronze plate. You can probably find out more online. The other is a golden hat used for astronomical measurements.

Having left the special exhibit, I went through the Ishtar Gate, which was very impressive. The audio companion that I had said that the lions embossed along the wall would have impressed and filled with fear newcomers to the royal city. And I thought, "And not massive size of the walls?" To get a sense of the size, look at the animals on the wall- they're about 4-5' tall. Now compare the wall below with the smaller of the two walls in the second picture. Yeah. It was big.

A picture from the approximate height of the towers seen above.

After that came many statues and images from other time periods and places in the Middle East. While it was all very interesting, and I took many interesting pictures, I'm afraid you'll just have to look in the album. There were just too many time periods and kingdoms for me to keep straight in my head and to match up with the pictures.

After that I went to the Museum of Islamic Art, which was included in the same building as the Pergamon Museum. There were many beautiful carpets from antiquity, some of which had been partly torn or destroyed. The intricate architecture was beautiful, as you can see below. I enjoyed this small museum; it fit in well with the Pergamon Middle-Eastern section.

One of the less damaged carpets.

So that took about four hours to walk through, and I'm glad I wasn't rushed. It was wonderful to walk leisurely, taking photos and listening to the commentary. I will definitely have to visit the other museums another time. Below are some pictures I took coming out of the museum and walking around the Museum-island.

See the cross? That's the "Pope's Revenge."

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