Exploring Berlin Past & Present

With a nice early start at Heathrow on Sunday, 46 Fifth Year pupils flew to Berlin, heading promptly to our B&B, before a 3-hour whistle stop tour of all of Berlin including Museum Island, the Berlin Wall, the site of Hitler’s bunker and the old Luftwaffe building. We admired all the parts of Berlin, overseen by the Soviet TV tower, with our lovely tour guides Ben and Hannah, ending at the Brandenburg Gate. We heard stories of the Cold War, Nazi Germany and brave adventures of the Berliners, an excellent foothold in our current studies. After that we walked through the murdered Jews of Europe memorial with quiet reflection. For dinner it was straight to a German beer hall filled with laughter for a relaxing end to a busy day. Then it was back to the B&B and straight to bed, with Mr. Hosking warning of even more walking on the morrow.

We started the morning at Schloss Cecilienhof to talk about the Potsdam and Wannsee conferences, before heading to the Bridge of Spies and the story of Gary Powers. We finished the morning at Gleis 17, the site from which Berlin’s Jewish inhabitants were deported, now a deeply moving memorial. After an appropriate period for reflection, we fortified ourselves with currywurst for lunch then set out through the stunning Tiergarten towards the Bundestag (formerly Reichstag) building and some top-notch views of the city. After a warning from Mr. Hosking that we were now heading for Berlin’s ‘tastier’ and ‘edgier’ underbelly, we successfully navigated the S-bahn and disembarked near the East Side Gallery. The longest open-air gallery in Berlin, we walked 1.3 kilometres, admiring the artworks from 118 different artists.

On day three, to the disappointment of all, Mr Hosking packed away his shorts for our tour of Sachenhausen concentration camp. A hush fell on us as we spent the morning touring the site, getting the history of the camp from Mr. Salem and Mr. Hosking, under the brooding gaze of the Russian memorial to the communist victims of the camp, a looming figure in the skyline. After a more subdued coach journey than usual we disembarked back in the heart of Berlin to the sight of an old techno club which is now the mall of Berlin for lunch and shopping. After a quick kebab or schnitzel we were back on the S-bahn to the grand and neo-classical Olympic Stadium. Built for the 1936 Olympics, we were dwarfed by its massive size and endless rows and rows and rows of seats and empty space. After buying some tourist ‘rubbish’ (pace Mr Hosking) we headed back for some pizza to fuel us as we dived deeper into Berlin’s thriving counter-culture scene. Walking through Berlin, reunited with Ben and Hannah, we learnt all about squatter communities, graffiti and dance halls, and Berlin’s history, which is closely intertwined with counterculture, ending our tour at the Dead Chicken Collective. Upon arriving back at the hotel, Mr. Salem spoke about his grandmother and grandfather, and their history during WWII, with a heartfelt translation of an extract from his grandmother’s diary by Mrs Datta. After all that, we collapsed into bed, ready for our last day in Berlin.

On Wednesday Mr Hosking’s shorts made a return amidst much celebration. We headed first to the German Historical Museum and their exhibition on Roads Not Taken, an exploration of moments in time when Germany might have taken a different path. With many hungry grumblings we went for lunch, before it was to Alexanderplatz for some tourist shopping, with many head shakes from Mr Hosking, seeing the great Soviet TV tower and the ‘Pope’s Revenge’ up close and personal. Back on the bus, we said goodbye to the wonderful Berliners and all the sights we had seen and headed back to the airport. Much to Mr Salem’s dismay, ‘the soundtrack to the cold war’ was rejected in favour of what, with withering disdain, the staff described as ‘current popular music.’ Katy Perry, Beyonce, and a karaoke machine bought with Jeremy and Anson’s money, we had free entertainment and X-factor level singing all the way to the airport. With spirits high and tiredness levels increasing, we said goodbye to Berlin and were back into the loving (definitely) arms of our parents.

Lyla B