Berlin was never on my travel itinerary. For some reason, I just never had a desire to go. When my friend Krista put me in contact with her best friend Lisa, I had no reason not to go. What I did not realize is how new the city is. It has been in constant change for the last 100 years. When Hitler rose to power, Berlin became home to the Nazi regime and faced great changes. Following Hitler’s death, the Soviets took over Berlin and communism took over the city. The Berlin Wall was erected in 1961 and stood there until 1989. It is crazy to think that the wall only came down 20 years ago. I was alive, though young, but still alive. My generation is resurfacing the face of this city and giving new meaning to the way in which they live their lives. I arrived in Berlin on the 30th of June after taking my last Ryan Air flight. I will say, I will not miss the experience but will miss the price.
One of the most interesting sites I went to while in Berlin was the Jewish Memorial. It is a large memorial above and underground. The symbolic representation is left up to the viewer to decide. Peter Eiseman, the architect behind the memorial, does not share his interpretation, but feels that it is up for every viewer to create his or her own. The memorial is placed at a 19,000 square meter site with 2,711 stones. The stones are of various heights, but have the same widths and lengths. Though Eiseman does not provide a meaning for the memorial, his project documents state that the placement of the stones is meant to make the visitor feel uneasy and it creates a confusing atmosphere.
This was my interpretation: It looks like many different things at once. Standing at the front looking directly into the memorial, it looks like massive headstones or coffins placed one on top of the other. As I walked into the memorial, and passed between different stones, I felt like I was wondering through a deportation or selection line. Various stones in differing heights represented children, adolescents, adults, and the elderly. I weaved in and out of the lines, feeling disoriented and turned around at times. Depending on the time of day and the suns position in the sky, different sides of the stones receive a shadow. The stones are cold, though the day was warm.
Under the stone memorial, there is an exhibition. It starts with history of the Holocaust, Berlin, and Germany under Hitler. The next room is directly below the memorial. This is evident by the stones that are in the ceiling. Artifacts are projected onto the floor and presented in a block shape, representing the stone memorial above. Again, the visitor must walk around the room in the same manner as the above memorial. The room is quite. The border of the room is a list of countries that suffered from the Holocaust. Because the memorial above is built on slanted ground, the roof of the exhibition moves up and down, making some rooms taller than others.
While under the memorial there is a room that lists names of victims that are on record. It tells their stories or what is known about them (i.e. dates born and died). The next room is dedicated to various concentration caps across Europe. There are information booths with phone to listen to additional information. It is interesting the way that the Holocaust is preserved in varying mediums. How does one preserve and honor memory? We erect memorials and monuments, create a film or write a script, poem, or book or take pictures. These are all important ways to preserve memory, because soon, the personal accounts from survivors will only be a memory to be preserved by their lineage.
What I really came to love about Berlin is the resurgence of youth and the city’s ability to turn negative aspects into positive ones. I saw this mainly with graffiti and Germany’s policy on recycling. Graffiti is no longer a crime and walking down any given street will provide someone with amazing artwork and murals. This makes Berlin so unique. I saw some of the most amazing graffiti just walking down random streets. The artistic representation of humanity and change on the East Side Gallery is amazing. The new generation of Berlin is not living in the shadow of the past. They are very aware and critical of the tainted history of Germany and Berlin, but this is not stopping them. When it comes to recycling, Germany charges a deposit of .25-euro cents for any plastic or aluminum container. Most tourists throw these containers out. They do not sit in the trashcans for long because the homeless and poor collect them. This keeps the city clean and gives the poor and homeless credit at a grocery store.
A highlight of the trip was going to a bar called Froschkönig (Frog King) and having a truly local experience. An old man joined out table and was hilarious. He only spoke German, which Lisa translated for me. He had been drinking for some time, and he turned to me, and in German, he said something along the lines of you have beautiful ears in this light. We all had a good laugh and continued having a few drinks with the old man and the bar owner. This was another great experience with being the minority in language but enjoying myself nonetheless.
Pictures to be added later....
Peace,
JP
