Berlin 2015

This post was a long time coming but I finally got down to blogging about it and here it is! 
In September, I spent 4 days in Berlin and it was wonderful. My sister and I mapped out places to visit, booked a hostel and a couple of days later, we (Mum, sister, s’ husband) boarded a bus from Copenhagen central station to Berlin. For the duration of our trip, we stayed at Acama Hostel in Kreuzberg, which was a short walk away from Möckernbrücke station. Since most of the places we were visiting were located in Mitte, it made commuting there easy.

Day 1

The Brandenburg Gate: Is only surviving Berlin city gate and a potent symbol of the city. The gate was designed in 1791 to resemble the Acropolis in Athens. The Brandenburg Gate symbolizes reunification (after dividing East and West Berlin for decades).

Bebelplatz: Nazi Propaganda Minister Josef Goebbels made Bebelplatz infamous on May 1933, when he used the square across from Humboldt University to burn 20k books by "immoral" authors of whom the Nazis did not approve. This was however, just the start. The Bebelplatz was later used to burn people. Look out for the underground monument! (Having walked through the entire square, I still missed this)

Tränenpalast (Palace of Tears): It was a former border crossing at Berlin Friedrichstraße station, where East Germans said goodbye to visitors going back to West Germany. Here, you’ll see historical videos, testimonials, photographs, listening and exhibits of the Germans. Entry is free and I’d recommend taking the free audio guide/tour of the museum.

The Reichstag (The Federal German Parliament Building): You have to register at the service centre or book a slot in advance to enter the dome! You’ll also have to register and provide some form of identification prior to visiting. We queued for a slot in the afternoon and got an 8 pm slot the same evening. The dome has a 360-degree view of the city and the night view was breathtaking.

Day 2

Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp (By Insider Tour Berlin, 12 € if you’re under 26 and 15 € if you’re over): This was by far my favourite place to visit in Berlin, even though it was deeply upsetting to learn about and see firsthand, what the prisoners experienced during their time there. As a former history student, I could only imagine the horrors of what was the prisoner’s life but being there and seeing what it was, was a whole other experience. We met up with our guide (Pip) at Zoologischer Garten Train Station (you don’t have to pre-book) and travelled there. The tour of the concentration camp lasted 6 hours even though it felt short while we were there. It’s open all year round, and I definitely recommend giving this place a visit if you’re ever in Berlin.

Holocaust Memorial: Needs no introduction. It is a memorial to the 6 million murdered Jewish victims of the Holocaust. It’s definitely a must-see.

Day 3

The Berlin Wall Memorial: Located at the small section of the huge wall that kept the eastern and western part of Berlin separated from 1961 to 1989. 

Underground Tour M (Guided tour by Berliner Unterwelten  E.V): We learnt about the escape stories of people who tunneled to freedom, the outcomes, Stasi (German secret police), tunnels dug during the division of East and West Berlin. The tour costs 11€ and lasts for about 2 hours. The stories were heartwarming and we had a lovely guide which made it all the more fun, definitely recommend this one too. 

Day 4

Topography of Terror: We spend most of our last day at the topography of terror where we learnt about Berlin from 1933 – 1945, Hitler and Germany as a whole. It was insightful, informative and a must visit. It’s Germany's main documentary centre about the crimes of the institutions of the Nazi state - based upon the former Gestapo headquarters, documenting the actions of the German propaganda machine and its crimes.

Checkpoint Charlie: The most famous of the border crossings between East and West Berlin, while the city was divided from 1945 to 1990. It lay on Friedrichstrasse on the border between the Soviet and the American sector. It is today an iconic marker of territorial boundary and political division. Until the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989, it signified the border between West and East, Capitalism and Communism, freedom and confinement.

I had the best time in Berlin, it was everything i dreamed of and more. If you ever find yourself taking a trip there, plan your own itinerary, book your own tours, explore and travel everywhere. Berlin has given me plenty more reasons to visit Germany again and I can't wait for my next trip there!