Berlin

When I arrived in Berlin I remembered how much I liked Germany. Berlin is very different from Munich though, that is for sure. Berlin is really modern and hip. The city is also HUGE. I had to break down and take public transit because it took me too long to walk places! I like to walk everywhere because I feel like you get to take in so much more, and I did have a couple chances to do that in Berlin. I stumbled upon neat little things like this:

Lego Giraffe with Daises!!

heart in the grass!

I was in Berlin for five days and had a great time. Sadly I was sick the first few days, BUT still managed to do quite a bit. Museum Island is AMAZING. The quality of the museums in Europe just blows my mind constantly. My favorite one was on the island was definitely the Perganom. Ancient Roman, Greek, Babylonian, and Islamic architecture? Um, yes please!

Oh, you know, just the Ishtar Gate...no big deal

The procession also from the Ishtar Gate

Museum island also holds some iconic views, like this one:

The Berliner Dom and the TV tower.

Berlin, like most big European cities, is rich in history. The vast majority of the city was destroyed in WWII, so it is less like walking through time and more like with each newish looking building you realize something else was there first. The city has been replaced for the most part and in some areas given that shiny coating like nothing ever happened, but when you look at it all in context its mind blowing how much was lost from this place. Then you have the history from the aftermath of the war, which luckily is mostly still standing. Take Bradenburg Gate, or the sections of the Berlin wall that still remain, or Kaiser Wilhem Church (photos of two below, wall will come later).

So surreal to walk through this thing!

Kaiser Wihlem aka the hollow tooth church. One of the only buildings left after WWII.

Not only are there these historical monuments, but also monuments built to honor the history. The one I found to be the most striking of all can be seen below...I stumbled upon this as I was walking home one night and was quite literally taken aback. This is an ENTIRE city block of coffin shaped stones and very few lights. It creates a somber mood immediately. There was no way you could pass this by and not think about the holocaust and again the history of the country. I know I have mentioned this before but it is just such a new experience to stand in a spot where such history took place. These events transform from simple words on a page to reality in an instant.

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So more history, happier topic, ART! Berlin, is known for many things, but its street art is up there. They have an urban art tour through the city and its so worth the money! It's a walking tour and takes you through some great spots in Berlin!! I fell in love with the areas we went through and was bummed I went later in my trip, because I would've spent way more time there! The Berlin art scene was booming up until about five years ago and it began after the wall fell. There was a loop hole in the law that stated that you could alter any building you did not find "ascetically pleasing." Neat hu? I thought so! A lot of the art was grassroots style with squatters opening up art schools and then making connections with colleges and sharing the same spaces. The street art is so beautiful too! I put a few of my favorite pieces below!

Gorgeous no?

There was one building especially that will blow your mind if you ever go there. Tacheles. This place is made of squatters who run classes and studios out of an abandoned building. They sell some of their work (a few pieces I now call my own) upstairs and they also actually work with the local colleges and share space. There doesn't seem to be that ohhh you don't go to school for this attitude. It's just artist to artist and its awesome. Here is the staircase of the main building and some shots of the metal pieces below. AMAZING!

awesome staircase, leading to a wonderful world of creativity!

I love this one.

"I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike..."

After all this the tour leads you to the East Side Gallery, before you reach it though, you cross over the river Spree. This area of the river is still untouched, but is slowly being bought up by corporations that just want beach bars and expensive high rises. Right now this lower income neighborhood has green space along the banks for kids, for recreation, but not for profit. Unfortunately we all now profit wins everytime and now that the contracts are up, the buildings are being built. I took this picture because when/if I make it back that way these banks will be full of high rises-metal and glass, no green.

Now onto the Gallery...

The East Side Gallery is the longest section of standing Berlin wall. Contrary to popular belief it was not painted prior to the fall. The whole idea is to honor the fact that if anyone had come close enough the wall to paint in on the east side, they would have been shot and killed immediately. If anyone got by the wall, the river is next. Artists painted political messages or simply beautiful pieces, something the east side hadn't seen in a long time. What was really neat was that while I was there I was days away from the 20th anniversary of the wall coming down and in honor of that Germany invited the original artists (or their families if they were deceased/unable to come) to come repaint their original pieces, or if they are no longer relevant politically, revamp them!

PIECE OF HISTORY FOLKS!

So, now to rant a bit more about politics. O2, a phone company in Europe, built a stadium near the East Side Gallery. Now for the terrible part...not only did they build this arena, they got a sanction to MOVE the east side gallery. They split up the longest piece of standing Berlin wall. The reason? So their guests could then have river access/boat transport to and from said arena. WHAT?! Historical monument? ORIGINAL PIECE OF HISTORY ALTERED FOR A BS REASON...do you feel my anger?? I hope so, and you should be pissed too!! I know at least one artist agrees, the revamped piece on the wall?

need I say more?

That was pretty much it for Berlin, minus an odd encounter with this guy in a Christmas Market, which you can ask me about in person...

And finally I went up to a magical place, the region called Spreewald. This region is BEAUTIFUL! The towns are all on rivers, these folks still get their mail via boat! They have kayaks for rent and you can just get yourself lost in the systems. The fall colors were in full swing, and I was in heaven...sadly my camera died so be sure to click that link above and for sure go there if you're in the Berlin region!!

Berlin was my last stop in mainland Europe, it was back to Ireland with me!