Berlin Day 2
Berlin is internationally renown for its museums, obviously those that focus on the unique and powerful history of Berlin and Germany itself, but also works of art and history from across history. In a unique, and somewhat ingenious arrangement, some of the most notable museums in Berlin are located on what is called “Museum Island”. The term ‘island’ is a bit of an exaggeration as it is located within the heart of Berlin, but is technically separated from the rest of the land mass by being surrounded by rivers. There are 4-5 museums on the island that were all included in the “Berlin Card” that I had purchased for access to the public transit system, so I figured I should make the most of it.
The first museum I visited, The Bode Museum is incredibly intricate, but if I’m being totally honest, was a bit of a bore. (I’m sure my father would make some joke here about it being a Bode-Bore or something). It was one of those museums that felt more like an obligation, but it was interesting to check out. They had a exhibit while I was there called “Beyond Compare” that was intended to show early European works of art in contrast with early African arts to show similarities and contrasts in art styles and how the two continents view each other through art. While this was certainly fascinating, its presentation left much to be desired. It was not much more than, “here is a European thing, and here is an African thing”.
The next museum was The Pergamon, which unfortunately is under heavy construction for the next few years, however it is a very impressive structure itself. Within the The Pergamon, there are numerous impressive artifacts from all types of ancient empires, Babylonian, Assyrian, Greek and Egyptian were the most prevalent. This museum was much more enjoyable to me than the Bode, and incredibly impressive. The most striking of its collection were two city gates, one Babylonian, and one Grecian that were reconstructed within the museum out of both authentic pieces and historically accurate recreations.
The Pergamon also had an incredibly fascinating exhibit on Islamic art as well. After The Pergamon, next door was the Neue Museum, which has a collection of its own, and was housing many of the Egyptian exhibits from The Pergamon while it is under construction. This is where the infamous bust of Nefertiti is housed, although we were not permitted to take pictures of it. I enjoyed this museum very much as well, although by the time I had made my way through my third museum on Museum Island, I was very ready to explore outside of a museum setting, and headed into the city to enjoy a Christmas market in the heart of Berlin. I’ve mentioned this about every place I’ve visited, but I love the Christmas markets, and they’re an exceptionally good place to eat local street food for fairly cheap and not feel awkward dining at a restaurant alone. Oh, they also have Gluhwein, lots fo Gluhwein (mulled wine). On the way back to my hotel, I passed by the New Synagogue in Berlin, which is a gorgeous building, albeit oddly smashed between more modern buildings in the street. Either way, I took the time to take a few photos. I have far too many photos from all the museums, but below are a few of my favorites.
After getting my fill of Bratwurst and Gluhwein at the Christmas market, I made my way down to Checkpoint Charlie, which was the main access point into Allied controlled Berlin while the Wall was up. Anymore, the checkpoint is a bit of Tourist trap, with a reconstruction of the checkpoint built in the middle of the street, and actors on hand to take pictures with tourists for cash of being ‘checked’ at the Checkpoint. There was a museum next door that I visited, that was fairly fascinating, but the free Wall Museum at the memorial that I had visited the prior day had done a much better job in my opinion. However I felt it was necessary to visit such a significant historical site, and I am glad I did. After a brief stop at Checkpoint Charlie and its museum, I headed to the Berlin Holocaust memorial (Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe). The Memorial is extremely powerful, and highly simplistic, it consists of seemingly endless rows of concrete blocks of different heights. As you walk deeper into the monument, the rows grow higher, and you lose all sense of directional awareness in the blocks of concrete. As simple as the design is, it’s incredibly moving to be surrounded in the vastness of it all.
