Trip to Berlin

I'm back with some pictures and thoughts about my trip to Berlin. I spent four days the week before last on a Bildungsreise, an "educational trip" in Berlin with Nick, another exchange student, and Wolfgang and Birgit, his host parents.

I was actually really lucky to get to go along on the trip. Every exchange student from my program has a sponsor in the Bundestag, the German Parliament. Nick's sponsor invited him and his family to go on the trip, but Nick's host brother couldn't afford to miss so much school. So, I got to visit a wonderful family in Düsseldorf for a weekend and spend four days in Berlin.



The Jäkels and Nick

The trip turned out to be very interesting. Most of what we saw was focused on the eastern part of the divided Berlin during the socialist East German regime. One thing that stands out on a visit to Berlin is that it has been shaped by its recent history--World War II, the Holocaust, the division of Germany, and the reunification. If you know what to look for, you can see history everywhere in this city.


A row of bricks traces sections where the wall used to be.


Almost all of the wall was torn down immediately after the reunification. A few sections, however, remain standing and have been painted over, most famously the East Side Gallery.

Another aspect of Berlin's history that has left its mark on the city was World War II. Traces of this time are found all over Berlin today, be it the over 1,000 Stolpersteine, which stand in front of houses in which Jews killed during the Holocaust used to live, or be it the scars remaining from World War II.


Picture from Stern magazine

This shows the Reichstag, where the German Parliament meets, at the end of World War II.



This picture shows the Reichstag as it looks today.



Not all of Berlin has been restored. The Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche was left a standing ruin as a reminder of the war. Another building was built next to it, but the damaged tower, called der Hohle Zahn (the hollow tooth) is still a landmark in Berlin today.



We then visited the former headquarters of the Staatssicherheit (state security), the East German secret police whose tens of thousands of employees spied on, question, and imprisoned East German citizens. All of the files they kept laid end-to-end would be about 100 miles long. Ever since the reunification, more and more of the files are being made available to those who were spied upon. Some find that friends, coworkers, and even spouses were informants for the secret police.


We also visited a former prison of the Stasi. Here prisoners were tortured psychologically, being questioned every day and not being allowed human contact other than with the interrogators.



The prison grounds.


An example of a van with which the secret police would inconspicuously take captors. Painted on the side of the van are the words "Obst und Gemüse", making it look like a delivery van for fruits and vegetables. Inside are four tiny cells and a seat for a guard.


After a lot of walking and soaking up information and a several pleasant evenings in Berlin, we hopped back in the train to Düsseldorf. Here you can see Birgit and Wolfgang sitting comfortably in the ICE with the display in the background indicating a speed of 250 km/h (155 mi/h).

I'll be back soon with a report from my favorite holiday so far, May 1st.

Has anyone else been to Berlin? What were your impressions?