Berschner Waterfall

Last weekend we celebrated Mother's Day with a spring hike in the alps.  We drove up into the mountains and hiked to "Berschner Waterfall."  The trail is in the village of Berschis, which is just east of Lake Wallensee (about half an hour from our house.)  Nowadays it's a good time to see waterfalls in Switzerland, with all the runoff coming off the mountains.  On the way back to the car Megan spotted a patch of wild strawberries, which we picked and snacked on for the rest of the way.  

Berlin, Germany - Final Thoughts

Berlin was pretty amazing.  Going into the trip I wasn't sure what I would think of it, and I was especially unsure how the kids would react to it.  I knew I would enjoy all its history, but I wasn't sure if it would be too dark and depressing (especially for the kids.)  To my surprise, we all really enjoyed our visit.  There's lots of things to do in the city, and we found the people very easy to get along with.  The kids enjoyed Berlin as well.  I doubt Ben and Megan were able to comprehend all the war history, what the Cold War was, and what exactly was East Germany...but overall they liked everything we did.  The city and its people are all acutely aware of its dark past.  They remember it, they acknowledge it, and they learn from it.  Nowadays Berlin is a city that is progressive and open, and it has completely gone against all its old mindsets.  Also, much of the city is new and fresh, since much of it was bombed during the war.  In some areas I felt like I was in a city back in America, with all the high rise glass buildings everywhere.  And speaking of America...Berlin loves its capitalism.  We saw more American restaurants and shops in Berlin than probably anywhere else in Europe.  I also noticed English is widely spoken and written.  It's not surprising considering that the largest US military base in Europe is in Germany.

Anyway, I found Berlin fascinating.  It's been about a week now since our trip and I still find myself thinking about everything I learned and experienced.  I was truly moved, and I would love to go back someday. 

Berlin, Germany - Day 3

On our last day I took the subway over to Bernauer Strasse to check out the Berlin Wall Memorial.  Bernauer Strasse is a neighborhood that was literally split in half when the wall first went up.  The wall literally went right through a block of houses and apartments.  Neighbors, family members, loved ones, friends...they were all separated for decades, and were not allowed to talk to one another or even wave at each other from afar.  It was also where many of the most famous escape attempts took place.  Today on the street only half of the wall remains, and the portions that are now gone have been replaced with beams to mark the missing pieces.  As you can see in one of the pictures below the wall actually consisted of two walls, a big one and a smaller one.  The space in between was known as "the dead zone," complete with traps, guard towers, you name it.  Today at this memorial the "dead zone" has been replaced with a greenbelt, complete with a walking trail and exhibits.  The entire exhibit is incredibly moving and informative.

If you're ever in Berlin here's a trick for figuring out if you're in West Germany, or East Germany. If you see graffiti on the wall you're in the west (the free side.). In the west you could get as close as you want. If the wall is clean then you're in the east, because you would be dead before you ever got close enough to spray the wall.

One interesting sidenote to this area.  The subway station at Bernauer Strasse was a "ghost station."  After the wall went up the East German government closed several subway stations that crossed underneath the wall in order to prevent escapes. For decades the subways ceased stopping here, as if it just vanished. It didn't reopen until 1990.

Moving on...later in the day I met up with Jenny and the kids and we walked over to Brandenburg Gate for a few more pictures.  Then after that we went to the Lego Discovery Center, where we saw a Lego version of the Brandenburg Gate.  Shortly after that it was time to go home.

I was a senior in high school when these holes were made (1989).

There were many tunnels dug under the wall that connected the east to the west.  "Tunnel 57" was one of the most famous routes.  It was built in 1964.  25 students split into two teams, working 12 hour shifts for five months, in order to dig the tunnel.  It was not possible to stand inside, so they had to dig lying down.  They only managed to dig about a meter a day, and in the end the 145 meter tunnel took 5 months to make.  It was named after the number of East Berliners who managed to crawl through it.  

The Berlin Wall was about 11 feet high.  Here's some teenagers fooling around trying to climb it.  You can get an idea how tall it is.

The "Dead Zone."

Photographs of the people who lost their lives on Bernauer Strasse.

Not everything from East Germany has been erased. This is the "Ampelmann," or "traffic light man." This little icon for crossing the street was only found in East Germany. When Berlin unified in '89 many of these lights were gotten rid of. Eventually public outcry took over and this beloved character was brought back. Now you see him all over Berlin (east and west.). They even put him on t-shirts, 

A quick game of chess before we head to the airport.