Germany - Part 2 - Berlin

On our last full day in Germany, the Schünemanns took us to Berlin, where, on the next morning, we would catch our flight back to the U.S. Wilhelm drove us, and it was our first time on the Autobahn. Wilhelm cruised at 210 kph (125 mph) for part of the trip.

Our first stop was in Potsdam, to see some beautiful gardens and castles (left). This was the site of the Potsdam Conference, with Truman, Stalin, and Churchill deciding the post-war fate of Germany. After a quick walk through parts of the grand gardens, we headed for Berlin, where we got a view of the enormous new train station, and then walked past the Chancellery (right), where Chancellor Angela Merkel lives and works – similar in some respects to our White House – on our way to the Reichstag (below).
The Reichstag, or the Bundestag as it is more correctly called today, is the house of the German Bundestag or Parliament. The building was originally opened in 1894, and was destroyed by fire in 1933. It was entirely rebuilt, leaving only the original facades, and adding a beautiful globe on top. We ventured to the top of the globe for a beautiful view of Berlin, and then had coffee and dessert in the restaurant located there.
It was moving to walk so easily across what had been the Berlin Wall, seeing some sections that have been preserved, and walking without fear or concern through the streets of the former East Berlin. Again we saw some noteworthy sites, including the Berlin Cathedral (above) and the Holocaust Memorial (below). The memorial was quite moving, walking into the depths where you are overwhelmed and disoriented by the stele, and then walking back up and out into East Berlin once again.
We walked through the Brandenburg Gate (below) on our way into and out of East Berlin. Memories of the people gathered there as the Berlin Wall came down flooded back. And the history – two World Wars, the Holocaust, the Communist state, the Wall, “Ich bin ein Berliner,” “Mr. Gorbachev, tear this wall down,” all the bombs dropped, the people killed, the buildings destroyed… and rebuilt – was overwhelming.

“They will build houses and dwell in them;

they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit….

The wolf and the lamb will feed together,

and the lion will eat straw like the ox,

but dust will be the serpent’s food.

They will neither harm nor destroy

on all my holy mountain,

says the LORD. -- Isaiah 65