Berlin

A portion of the Berlin Wall near Bernauer Strasse

We have returned from four days in Berlin, where Tina had lived from September 2012 until she arrived in Bensheim in February 2013. During our winter visit, when Gavin, Mom, and I visited with the Bovermanns in the Czech Republic, Tina and I had come to Berlin for two days. I loved it then...and loved it again this time around.

Berlin, Paris, New York City...somehow these are all sympatico. Busy. Full. A feast for the eyes, the skin, the belly. Better walked than ridden through. Smelly. Human. Alive with diversity in all its forms - languages, food, posters, neighborhoods.You don't close your eyes for a minute, or you'll miss something. Heaven for photographers and tourists. Layers of history and people. Complicated twists and turns. Perfectly large yet navigable under and above ground train systems. Places to which you can return over and over and experience them for the first time.

Bernauer Strass

Neither Paris nor New York have captured my attention like Berlin. I'm fascinated by the Berlin Wall, which fell as I was reaching the end of my senior year at the College of Charleston, but whose story was so far from my understanding as an American 20-something. One street Bernauer Strasse is of particular interest. Seen left in this photo, it was a place where the street itself was Western occupied and the apartment buildings were Eastern occupied. You jump from your window...and you are free. Many did before the Stasi eventually caught on and bricked up the apartment windows. Inches from one another, families and friends were separated by a 12' tall concrete wall. So common and base. A wall. And though you could climb over with the help of a ladder, no one did...because a "death strip" awaited you on the other side. And very few...if any?...made it through. 

I drank beer at every turn. When in Berlin, do as the Berliners do. It's a city where people walk around with open beer bottles in hand, sipping as they go. Other places in Germany, of course, love their beer, but this (even Tina said) was highly unique. Had my first dunkel heffeweizen. Didn't even know they made dark wheat beer. It was great! Drank plenty of pils, local and not so far off brewed. Between the beer and the pommes, the Turkish kebabs, pastries, and wurst, I'd be big as a house if I lived in Berlin.

A squatted community on Köpenicker Straße

The city is full also of little communities that are "squatted," where people committed to difference, anarchy, self-governance, shared living come together and make a village out of boxes, recycled goods, and come what may. When I return to Berlin someday, these are the communities where I'd like to spend more time. Tina said that they put on plays and concerts for the neighborhoods, and many are known for being welcoming. A place of refuge for any and all people...no matter who you are. It's not idyllic by any measure. Rats, smelly trash, and general disarray are part of the squatters homes. However, also part are art, play, creativity, critical thinking, freedom at all costs, and openness. So....next time I've had a deeper look.

If you'd like to see the album from Berlin, have a look here. Thanks for reading!