Berlin and Potsdam's Sanssouci Palace

Sanssouci

Sanssouci palace is the former summer palace of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia at Potsdam, some 20km south west of Berlin. The palace was built between 1745 and 1747. It was named sans souci meaning without a care - this reflects the king's need to escape the pressures of royal life. When I entered the palace grounds I felt like stepping into a fairytale. The Sanssouci palace overlooks lush vineyard terraces, a pleasure garden, a number of white marble sculptures and an elegant fountain. It must have been indeed rather easy to escape royal life in these surroundings.

The palace offers a nice view of the surrounding Sanssouci Park . When the palace had been built this baroque garden with flower beds, hedges and trees was created. A number of buildings can be found in the park, including an Orangery and New Chambers. The beautiful decorated New Palace is at the other end of Sanssouci Park. Built from 1763 to 1769 it is considered to be the last great Prussian baroque palace.

More information on Sanssouci Palace can be found on the Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg website.

Berlin

The Berlin Victory Column is one of Berlin's most famous sights. The bronze sculpture of Victoria on top of it is more than 8 meters high and weighs 35 tonnes. The Brandenburg Gate is a former city gate and another main symbol of Germany's capital city. It was built around 1790 and stands 26m tall. Above the gate is the Quadriga with the goddess of peace driving it.

The Reichstag building was constructed to house the original parliament of the German Empire, the Reichstag. Opened in 1894 it housed the Reichstag until 1933. It was only 66 years later that it became the seat of the German parliament, the Bundestag. The glass cupola was added by Norman Foster in 1999 and is open to the public. Just 400m to the south lies the large Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.

The Berlin Wall was a separation barrier between East and West Germany as well as an iconic symbol of the Cold War. The fall of the wall in autumn 1989 paved the way for the German reunification in 1990. By then, it had divided Berlin for 28 years. Checkpoint Charlie was designated as the single crossing point for foreigners and members of the Allied forces. The Haus am Checkpoint Charlie is a private museum which details the history of the Berlin Wall and features some various exhibitions including some artefacts from successful escapes.

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