Ed Yourdon
Typical Germans on the streets of Berlin
If it weren't for the German signs in the background, I think this could be almost anywhere in the world.
The metal grate that you see in the background is an entrance to the German "U-bahn" subway service
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For the final few days of our vacation, we traveled by air from Amsterdam to Berlin — and spent about four days in the “Mitte” section of the city, quite close to what was once the dividing line between East and West Berlin; indeed, our hotel was technically in East Berlin.
We spent the first afternoon wandering around the local area, partly to see the infamous “Checkpoint Charlie” (just a few blocks from our hotel), and partly to get a sense of the buildings, the people, and the overall “look and feel” of the city. Since I spend much of my time focusing on “street photography” in New York, I did the same thing here … and aside from the German language that you’ll see on a few of the signposts, the people look much the same as they do in any other big city.
I did get a few photos of the Brandenburg Gate and the Holocaust Exhibition, and some video clips from inside the TierGarten (which I’ll upload in the next few days). I also took quite a few photos of some “street art” that was created on one of the few remaining sections of the old Berlin Wall; these two will be uploaded in the next few days.
We took a driving tour around the city one morning, including a quick circle around the old 1936 Olympic Stadium; we also had lunch in a fancy restaurant atop the old Reichstag Building, which is now (as I understand it) the home of the German legislature. But I certainly don’t feel that I saw very much of the entire city; it would be like making a whirlwind tour around a few parts of Manhattan, and then trying to claim that you’ve seen all of New York City.
As a child of the Cold War (and having been born exactly one year before the day that Hitler committed suicide), I have always been intrigued by Berlin — and would love to go back several more times to see more of the neighborhoods, the culture, and the people. I don’t think I would ever claim to “know” Berlin in any complete sense; indeed, I don’t even feel that way about New York, after living here for 45+ years. But I could certainly learn a lot more, and I found it sufficiently interesting that I would like to learn more…
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During the first two weeks of September 2015, we took a river cruise down the Rhine River, and wrapped up the trip with a few days in Berlin. This Flickr album contains various photos from that trip …
We spent the first couple days recovering from jet-lag in Interlaken, Switzerland. This is the site of the Jungfrau and various other spectacular peaks in the Alps range — but it was so foggy that we could hardly see anything. I’ve included a couple of videos of a tram ride down the mountain, as well as some paraglider who floated down into the town park.
We then traveled to Bern, where we got on-board a Viking Cruise ship that headed north for the next several days — eventually arriving in Amsterdam, after making stops nearly every day to see ancient castles and fortresses, as well as various villages and small towns that have survived various wars, tyrants, and regimes for well over a thousand years.
From our final cruise destination in Amsterdam, we flew to Berlin — where we spent a few days at a very nice hotel that turned out to be in what was once East Berlin. Indeed, the separation between East and West Berlin, once so obvious and important, is now almost impossible for a visitor to spot. Except for some rubble, and a few small mementoes (like Checkpoint Charlie, a few blocks from our hotel), there is no obvious difference between East and West from pre-1989 days.
Typical Germans on the streets of Berlin
If it weren't for the German signs in the background, I think this could be almost anywhere in the world.
The metal grate that you see in the background is an entrance to the German "U-bahn" subway service
**********************************
For the final few days of our vacation, we traveled by air from Amsterdam to Berlin — and spent about four days in the “Mitte” section of the city, quite close to what was once the dividing line between East and West Berlin; indeed, our hotel was technically in East Berlin.
We spent the first afternoon wandering around the local area, partly to see the infamous “Checkpoint Charlie” (just a few blocks from our hotel), and partly to get a sense of the buildings, the people, and the overall “look and feel” of the city. Since I spend much of my time focusing on “street photography” in New York, I did the same thing here … and aside from the German language that you’ll see on a few of the signposts, the people look much the same as they do in any other big city.
I did get a few photos of the Brandenburg Gate and the Holocaust Exhibition, and some video clips from inside the TierGarten (which I’ll upload in the next few days). I also took quite a few photos of some “street art” that was created on one of the few remaining sections of the old Berlin Wall; these two will be uploaded in the next few days.
We took a driving tour around the city one morning, including a quick circle around the old 1936 Olympic Stadium; we also had lunch in a fancy restaurant atop the old Reichstag Building, which is now (as I understand it) the home of the German legislature. But I certainly don’t feel that I saw very much of the entire city; it would be like making a whirlwind tour around a few parts of Manhattan, and then trying to claim that you’ve seen all of New York City.
As a child of the Cold War (and having been born exactly one year before the day that Hitler committed suicide), I have always been intrigued by Berlin — and would love to go back several more times to see more of the neighborhoods, the culture, and the people. I don’t think I would ever claim to “know” Berlin in any complete sense; indeed, I don’t even feel that way about New York, after living here for 45+ years. But I could certainly learn a lot more, and I found it sufficiently interesting that I would like to learn more…
**********************************
During the first two weeks of September 2015, we took a river cruise down the Rhine River, and wrapped up the trip with a few days in Berlin. This Flickr album contains various photos from that trip …
We spent the first couple days recovering from jet-lag in Interlaken, Switzerland. This is the site of the Jungfrau and various other spectacular peaks in the Alps range — but it was so foggy that we could hardly see anything. I’ve included a couple of videos of a tram ride down the mountain, as well as some paraglider who floated down into the town park.
We then traveled to Bern, where we got on-board a Viking Cruise ship that headed north for the next several days — eventually arriving in Amsterdam, after making stops nearly every day to see ancient castles and fortresses, as well as various villages and small towns that have survived various wars, tyrants, and regimes for well over a thousand years.
From our final cruise destination in Amsterdam, we flew to Berlin — where we spent a few days at a very nice hotel that turned out to be in what was once East Berlin. Indeed, the separation between East and West Berlin, once so obvious and important, is now almost impossible for a visitor to spot. Except for some rubble, and a few small mementoes (like Checkpoint Charlie, a few blocks from our hotel), there is no obvious difference between East and West from pre-1989 days.