It has been over four years since I visited Berlin and this visit was a vastly different experience to that one. For a start I wasn’t hitting the city with a bunch of friends though ironically Laney and her crew were in town as well, rather I was visiting my brother who had been working in Berlin since the beginning of the year. I was happy to skip the typical tourist attractions that I hit last time like Museum Island, Checkpoint Charlie and all the various other historical sites. Instead this visit was filled with animals, Lego, long exploratory walks and … food! (Surprise Surprise!)
| Why Go? | Aside from what I said last time go for the great gastro scene and the hippy/trendy vibe. |
| Weather | Cool and warm, Sunny for the most part |
| Hints | Make sure you have coins for public transport |
The Experience
These were the highlights of my visit to Berlin.
The non-profit group took us through the main Gesundbrunnen bunker situated under the Gesundbrunnen U-Bahn. Lasting around 90 minutes you wind your way through the various rooms in these these very well preserved WWII bunkers. Along the path of the tour are also various artefacts which demonstrate the ingenuity of the survivors as they crafted various items from military waste. Its amazing to think just how many people crammed into these bunkers during the war – even with just 30 or so of us it felt extremely crowded! And, many years later, the smell is clearly significantly improved – back then it would have been horrific.
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There were other disturbing stories and artefacts that we saw including toilets were many women took their own lives rather than live with the stigma of being raped by the Russians. Here is one fact that may surprise – much of the “mountains” or “hills” that exist in Berlin are actually the result of an accumulation of rubble from the war. It is also the reason many roads collapse – the rubbish under the roads settling and causing cave-ins.
Patrick refused to believe me that there are brown bears in a random park in Berlin. Not attached to any zoo – mother and daughter Schnute and Maxi are brown bears who live unassumingly in the heart of Kollnischer Park, and are the Official City Bears of Berlin. It is a little disturbing to see these lumbering beasts sitting in their little enclosure but I sure was happy that they made an appearance for us.
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This was clearly my suggestion for the weekend and though Patrick was a bit doubtful at first I think he ended up really enjoying the experience. The best thing at the Discovery Centre is the Miniland. Its so incredible what can be re-created with Lego – the Miniland even had the fall of the Berlin Wall (with the wall falling and then being re-erected in preparation for falling again) and a rock concert by U2! I like how there was even a time lag effect so that you could see what Berlin would look like from sunrise to sunset and all the way around to sunrise again. Really smart.
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Check out Checkpoint Charlie!
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The Bob the Builder 4D movie was also interesting … especially as it was in German!! Had us giggling though – especially when we were getting splashed by water … It’s a shame part of the Discovery Centre was shut for renovations – so we missed out on the Lego Factory 🙁
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The former airport site (closed in October 2008) was opened in May 2010 as a city park. It is now the site for recreational activities and today that seemed to include flying kites, biking, skating … and even dry wind-surfing.
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1.3km of the Berlin Wall is dedicated to paintings of over 100 artists from around the world. Its inspiring to walk along the wall and witness the paintings expressing the relief and hopes for a free future.
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Mauerpark translates to “Wall Park” and refers to it being part of the Berlin Wall and its Death Strip (thanks Wikipedia.) Most of it is now an open green space but part of it is dedicated to regular a flea market. It has a real bohemian feel to the place. It is also a venue for open air karaoke – quite a crack up!
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It was absolutely brilliant weather over this weekend so we took lots of long strolls including around the river.
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A lovely weekend discovering a very livable city. I can totally understand why it’s the next big thing after London, New York and Paris.
And now on to the food!