Berlin Birthday

---

Being in Berlin, a city I love, was a cool way to spend my birthday. We had five nice days to see the city, visit the museums, and enjoy a Paul McCartney concert at the Waldbuehne outdoor amphitheater, near the 1936 Olympic Stadium. New destinations on this visit were the Reichstag, the Memorial For the Murdered Jews of Europe, and the 1936 Olympic Park.

We have now moved on to the Greek Islands. Crete was our first stop before catching the ferry to Santorini. We'll be here until Wednesday (6/22). Next island will be Paros. It's hotter than usual for June. Even the locals are complaining. Feels like Florida minus the humidity.

Happy Trails,

RPM

---

Photos

Victory Statue in Tiergarten
Erected after the Prussians defeated Napoleon. We climbed the 385 stairs for the view.

City Center and Unter den Linden
Unter den Linden is Berlin's famous street.

Ishtar Gate at the Pergamon Museum
Unfortunately, it was under restoration. In fact, over half of the museum was closed for restoration.

Stumbling Blocks
These small blocks were placed in the sidewalk near buildings where Jews were taken from their homes and businesses during the Hollocaust. It gives the person's name and what happened to them.

Brandenburg Gate
A large music festival was setting up around and behind the gate.

The Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe.
There were 2700 rectangular slabs of different heights and at different elevations.

Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe
As people walked through the memorial they would suddenly disappear due to the topography of the memorial. The simplicity and the symbolism of the memorial was powerful.

The Reichstag Dome
The walkway gradually leads to the top of the dome.

Central mirrored tower
The tower is directly over the room where the German Parliment meets. From the base of the tower you can see into the assembly. This symbolizes the transparency of the modern German government.

Nikolaiveriertel - the Nicholas Quarter
This area is a reconstruction of Old Berlin which was destroyed during WWII.

Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Artsy
Nice shot