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After a week in Berlin I have started an ongoing list of things that enhance my love for this city. So far we have:
- Cobble stone streets
- Apartment keys that look like those from The Secret Garden
- Graffiti that actually enhances certain areas
- An endless variety of gummy candy
- No open container laws
- A different language heard daily
- An affinity with spreadable cheese that I can relate to
- Sight-seeing opportunities that won't quit
So far my only complaint is that some areas of the city…well a lot of areas… are rather dirty. Despite beautiful canals, trees, parks and bridges, there is a lot of trash and in some areas people don't pick up after their dogs. This isn't true throughout but where it is it's a little upsetting for an Oregonian to see. But, if you don't stare at the ground while you walk you'll see well-dressed people of all ages, children running and biking around the neighborhoods, people outside local diners and cafes eating Döner Kepabs (Turkish version of the Gyro), Asian cuisine, curry wurst or sipping on coffee, wine and beer. You'll see people bringing groceries home in wheeled carts (because you have to pay for plastic bags here), young travelers squinting at maps and bicyclists everywhere. You'll also hear a plethora of languages wherever you are. Being one of the most international cities in the world, it's not surprising to hear English, Spanish, French, Turkish, Italian, Swedish, Arabic and every dialect of German in one day.
As far as sight seeing goes, I am in wonderland. I did a walking tour with my personal tour guide, Steve. We saw Brandenburger Tor (Brandenburg Gate), which leads to Brandenburg through a colossal park that used to be hunting land for the king. We saw but haven't yet gone up the famous Fernsehturm (also known as the Berlin Tower), which is a city defining landmark much like the Space Needle is for Seattle, WA. You can pay to go up to the bulbus top and see great views of the city and have a nice dinner. We saw the Berlin Cathedral, which is a beautiful and enormous Evangelical church in Berlin Mitte (the middle) that stands near the Spree River. In this part of the city there are sprawling lawns for lounging, spewing fountains and horse-drawn carriages passing large tour buses.
The most moving and spectacular sight so far has been The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. I knew that's where we were headed but had no idea what to expect. Maybe a wall with names, dates and photos or maybe a museum? Although Steve knew we had arrived to the memorial, I practically stumbled into the massive cement blocks. You might think…blocks? But when you first come upon the memorial you just see giant, perfectly rectangular grey stone blocks standing foot to waist high and stretching out in this seemingly endless expanse of uniformity. Steve said, "We're here…this is it." I looked at him sideways thinking, "What am I looking at?" He told me to just keep walking into the jungle of blocks and I'd see. He was right. While you walk through the blocks, as though in an intricate maze, you slowly begin to descend into an abyss with blocks that no longer come to your hip but high over your head. In no time you are deep within this cavern with no clear way out. Each block stands perfectly next to its neighbor, silently. The depth of meaning and the physical depth are no coincidence. There are exactly 2,711 stelae (the proper name for the concrete slabs) that stretch over a 19,000 sq. meter space out in the open. The ground is not even either. I was moved to run into the depths of the memorial and as I did I found myself going up and down hills in a ripple pattern.
Designed by Architect Peter Eisenman, this memorial is symbolically designed from top to deep bottom. According to the project text, the stelae were designed "to produce an uneasy, confusing atmosphere, and the whole sculpture aims to represent a supposedly ordered system that has lost touch with human reason."
After getting lost in the symbolism for a while I started to realize that despite the depressing overtone, people of all ages were enjoying the memorial in more typical ways. It was basically a maze, after all. Kids were sprinting down the paths and playing hide-and-seek. Steve and I joined in for a while and I realized when I was hiding from him just how scary it was. I don't like things jumping out at me but with the crosshatch design, I couldn't avoid it. I was always found quickly and always screamed a little. Although we were just messing around I couldn't help but think about the real persecution that gives this memorial meaning in the first place. Afterward we took the free tour in the museum that lies beneath the stelae in one corner. It was sad. That's all I can say about it. So many personal stories revealed through photos and letters; enough to make you crazy with anger. But in the end I was glad I experienced it and gave my time to think about the past.
The following day we went to the largest stretch of the Berlin Wall that still stands. About a mile or so long and artfully decorated, it's still daunting in its enormity. Steve said it lacks truth because it once had coils of barbed wire and trip-wire activated automatic machineguns where now artists have painted thoughts and symbolism (some clear and some so abstract you wonder, "why is there a Star Wars memorial on the Berlin Wall?"). But, of course, the art is much preferred. It was amazing to walk the length of it taking pictures and trying to understand each artist's perspective. Pieces of the Wall still stand in the city and where it is not standing, the ground is clearly marked with the path it once took dividing East from West.
During the first week of my stay in Berlin we were put up by one of Steve's good friends, Hendrik. World-traveled and multi-lingual as well, he let us stay in his apartment until we found what we were looking for: Our own place (kind of) for the remainder of our time in this city. We are now renting an apartment for three weeks in Neukölln, a liberal and artsy neighborhood in Northwest Berlin not far from Mitte. As is common here, a girl who left to travel posted her apartment for subletting and we decided it would suit our needs. While she is off in India we are making camp in her home. Not a common practice in the States…apparently people are more trusting here.
Before leaving I need to tell you about the food here. YUMMY. Any culture that eats bread and cheese two out of three times per day is all right by me! O.K. it is more diverse than that but that is very typical. Brötchen (rolls) with cheese, spreadable meat (sounds gross but sometimes hits the spot), butter or jam and sometimes snack-sized veggies commonly dresses the breakfast table. For dinner or "abendbrot" meaning "dinner bread" it is common to have just that: bread. Also accompanied by cheese or liverwurst. To drink it's anything from hot tea to orange juice, nothing surprising there. But, being in Berlin lends itself to a variety of dining options due to its largely international makeup. The only thing I haven't seen much of is Mexican or Latin food. It's not impossible to find but its definitely not around every corner like curry wurst or döners. Curry wurst is a lightly deep-fried sausage (with the consistency of a hot dog) covered in a ketchup-like curry sauce. So good. Döner Kebaps are like Gyros but with beef or chicken instead of lamb. A pita piled high with red cabbage, feta, cucumber bits and lettuce then topped with a sauce of your choice (I recommend the garlic sauce) is sometimes just what you need when bread isn't doing it for you. And for about 2 Euros it's not a bad meal.
With one week behind me and three weeks to go before exploring other countries in Europe, I hope to take full advantage of being in Berlin. Today I started language classes and so will go to school (haha) every weekday morning for the next three weeks. Hopefully when we visit Rodersdorf this weekend, Steve's home "willage", and I meet his parents... I will be comfortable with more than just "Hallo, wie gehts?"
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