I used a stop-over in Berlin to visit the areas around Ku’damm and the sightseeing spots in Mitte – particularly, I wanted to take a look at the newly rebuilt (and highly controversial) Berlin Castle that now houses several museums.
tl;dr – Want to watch a video instead?
Ku’damm
Originally a road leading from Berlin to the royal hunting grounds in the woods west of the city, the Kurfürstendamm (usually shortened to Ku’damm) developed into the centre of West Berlin when the city was divided during the Cold War. During the Cold War, Ku’damm turned into a centre of business and entertainment and a showcase for the capitalist West. After reunification, the area changed to be dominated by exclusive luxury shopping venues.
Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church
One of the most visible landmarks of Ku’damm is Kaiser-Wilhelm-Memorial-Church. The church was originally built in the 1890s. During the Second World War, it was badly damaged in 1943. After the war, the church was not rebuilt, but the damaged spire of the old church has been retained and its ground floor has been made into a memorial hall. A new church was built right next to it in concrete and glass.
Berlin Mitte – Siegessäule & Brandenburger Tor
Right in the centre of Berlin is the big Tiergarten park area with the Victory Column (celebrating the unification of Germany in the 19th century) in its middle. At the Eastern end of the park area, the famous Brandenburg Gate marks the former entrance to the city of Berlin. The Brandenburg Gate is the only city gate left of the former Berlin city wall (the late medieval city wall, not the Cold War Berlin Wall).
…and I came across this beautiful rendition of the Brandenburg Gate in LEGO.
The rebuilt Berlin Palace
Finally, I visited the newly opened “Humboldt Forum”, a complex of museums located in the reconstructed Berlin Palace. The palace was originally the main residence of the House of Hohenzollern (and thus, the German emperors) from 1443 to 1918. After the Second World War, it was heavily damaged and ultimately demolished by the socialist government of Eastern Germany. In its place, they built the “Palast der Republik”, a modernist building housing restuarants, a theatre and government functions of the socialist state. After German reunification, the socialist building was once again replaced by a reconstruction of the Berlin Palace – a highly controversial project as the Palast der Republik had also become a part of the troubled history of Germany in the meantime.
Bengt Beier - travels and photography 