Berlin

         

Brandenburg Gate

           Dear Mr. Meyer, this whole post goes out to you!  For those of you who do not know Mr. Meyer, he was my junior year US History teacher.  I was part of a program in high school that was called The Academy of International Studies, Academy for short, and so much of that class has shaped how I view things today.  Berlin specifically brings me back to Junior year.

          

           I was more than thrilled to get on that train in Warsaw to Berlin.  When we hopped off that train, you could totally tell we weren't in Eastern Europe anymore.  But on top of that, you couldn't exactly tell you were in Western Europe either.  Berlin is an ever-changing city.  Because of the destruction of WWII and the Cold War, Berlin is constantly rebuilding itself.  More and more museums and memorials are popping up as well as so many modern things.  Berlin was truly the one city I could have spent days just learning about.

          Although we had just spent days learning more about the consequences of WWII, the first thing I thought about when arriving in Berlin was the Berlin Wall and the Cold War.  I spent hours at night reading about everything the Cold War was before exploring the days.  Mr. Meyer told us the story about when he was in Berlin before the wall fell.  He had crossed the wall over to the soviet side and got to experience both sides of the Cold War.  Now, when you walk around the city, there is a line that goes right through all streets and sidewalks that shows where the wall had stood.  As weird as it sounds, I would give anything to go back in time to see what it was like when Mr. Meyer had visited.  To have the constant reminder is incredible.  

"Tear Down This Wall!"

Checkpoint Charlie

          There were also little things that were extremely amazing and interesting.  The big lit-up archway, called the Brandenburg Gate I have pictured, was relatively destroyed in the war and then during the Cold War, no one had walked through it because the wall was just outside of it.  Now people can walk freely through it.  We walked right past Checkpoint Charlie and Katie took a picture at the spot of "Tear Down This Wall".  So many moving moments that honestly I forgot to take pictures of a lot of the things I saw.  It's times like this where I wish Mr. Meyer had written me a handbook on ever aspect of history, or just have a mini-Meyer in my pocket at all times when I'm in need of a history lesson.

           But the all time craziest thing about all of Berlin and Europe was the big chunk of the Berlin Wall we saw left standing (pictured right).  Apart from the fact that this was the Berlin Wall, but literally a step from where the wall stood was once where the SS Headquarters were during WWII.  In all the hubbub over the Berlin Wall, I had forgotten that Berlin was the headquarters of all things WWII.  And now, in this specific spot, this ground was hit with two CRAZY parts of history.  The wall of the buildings and the Berlin Wall were maybe 10 feet apart from each other.  I literally said to Katie over and over that this was the craziest spot because it was WWII and Cold War all within twenty years.  

            Honestly, just because of Berlin, my friend Meghana and I spent a good 30 minutes sifting through all the History and American history courses we could take next year at our schools.  I wasn't the best when it came to History, but it is the thing I really can't get enough of.  Berlin is it.  Mr. Meyer, you've succeeded in making me a History nerd.  Thank you for exposing me to the immense amount of history in this city!     

American Flag styled graffiti on Berlin Wall