Berlin

I thought Munich was crazy... I was wrong. Berlin had proved to be the city that never sleeps (sorry New York).

My first evening in Berlin a high school acquaintance came in to spend the weekend in the city. We ended up just walking around town and venturing into some bars and clubs.

The next day I did the free walking tour around the city. Berlin has such a rich history, and most of it unfortunately isn't the best. Between WWII and the Cold War, the city is filed with monuments. We didn't get back to the hostel until nearly 6pm because of the tour and hanging out with a group afterwards. We ended the night with a pub crawl as a group and had amazing fun.

While the next day was rough, I was convinced not to sleep. We went to the top of the TV tower and for a beautiful view of the city. We also stumbled upon a famous little burger king and enjoyed the taste of home.

The Jewish Museum in Berlin might be the best museum I've ever been to in my life. It's interactive and keeps you interested as you journey through the course of history for Jews. From the crusades to the holocaust. From Jewish traditions to modernizations made by Jews. It's an interesting way to kill 4 hours.

The Red Berlin tour focused on the city during the Cold War. A lot of what I learned about the stazi made me want to incorporate this period of history into my 1984 unit. There was 1 secret police member for nearly every 6 Germans. People were literally overnight sprayed from loved ones and friends.

I was really excited about the Third Reich tour in Berlin because I did the one in Munich. Munich is where it all started and of course Berlin became headquarters. The tour did focus on some of the role Berlin played in Nazi Germany, but it was more about the memorials and leadership of the party (which I had already learned in Munich). So, I was a little disappointed, but at least I was able to learn more about the monuments and see how Berlin has chosen to remember this part of their history.

Today I am of to Munster to hang out with my dad for a few days.

Until then,
Kristin