Berlin

Mein Erst Tagen (May 25th, 2007)

The plane trip was uneventful, which is good for a plane trip. There were no problems with my ticket, the planes ran in to minimal trouble, and my luggage was there we arrived. We flew first to New York (JFK), and then to Berlin (Tegel). We left Atlanta at 2:30 in the afternoon, and arrived in Berlin at 10:00 AM.

The first day there was much to do. We had a bus tour of downtown Berlin. We caught glimpses of sights such as the Reichstag, the Brandenburg Gate, and the Victory Column. It was informative and interesting, but not especially exciting. We arrived at the hotel closer to 11:30 or noon. After checking into our rooms and putting our luggage away, a large group of us decided to explore the neighborhood. We found several local sausage and meat stands as well as several biergartens. In my first day I think I met 20 people. Everyone seems very friendly and amiable.

It is hot! Vincent, our bus driver, says there has been quite unusual weather lately. During the day its been getting into the high 80’s F. At night there have been thunderstorms, but other than that it has been sunny.

Our second day, Sunday May 26^th, we started with an amazing breakfast. Europeans sure know how to do breakfast. Fresh rolls, sausage, bacon, eggs, fruit, yogurt, etc. It was wonderful, and since a meal included in the program fee, there is no reason not to take advantage of it. We then had two lectures. One in Art history, and one in Music History. After our Art history lecture we went on a Bus/Walking tour of Berlin with Prof. Lewcock, the Art History Professor. We looked at the architecture of the downtown area and some major monuments of Berlin. After that we had some free time, so a large group of us came back change clothes and went downtown via the U-Bahn (subway). It was a fun adventure. We walked around downtown, went into some shops, and explored. We finally found the Sony Center that we had seen earlier on the walking tour and had lunch at a restaurant called Lindenbrau in the center. The Sony Center is a large covered courtyard surrounded by shops and restaurants on all sides. Several major shops are owned by Sony. It is a beautiful area, and the food was great. After that we met the rest of the class across the street at the Berlin Philharmonic Symphony Concert Hall. We saw the Philharmonic Symphony perform Prokofiev’s Piano Concert No. 2, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony Nm. 2 “Winter Dream”. Both were very well done, and I enjoyed it greatly. I’ll have to write a report about it for my Music History class eventually. After I came back to the hotel, and changed in to more casual clothes. At about 11 PM several of us decided to go out for a few drinks, and we all headed over the biergarten across the canal from our hotel. It stayed for about an hour and a half, and it was a lot of fun. I met a few new people there. I’m really enjoying meeting so many new people, and lover our stay in Berlin. My knowledge of German is coming in handy at restaurants and biergartens. I’m surprised how much I remember
More Fun to Come!

May 29, 2007

Today we had an hour art lecture to prepare for two museum visits. First was the Gemäldegalerie. Here we had the opportunity to explore some Northern Renaissance Art. There were some very interesting paintings by artists such as Peter Paul Reubans and Jan van Eyck. After the museum we went to the Berliner Bahnhof (Berlin Trainstation). It is an amazing architectural structure completely of glass on the outside with 5 stories of shops and restaurants. Here we had lunch, and shopped for a few hours. After the Berliner Bahnhof we went to the Hamburg Bahnhof. This is an old train station that was transformed into a modern art museum. This was one of the weirdest experiences of my life. In this museum was all kinds of 20^th century abstract art. I just don’t get this stuff. I can’t figure out why it is art at all! After this stopped in another interesting part of town called the ?. Here we shopped and explored for several ours and finally had dinner in a restaurant called Mansy. It was good, but a little expensive. After that we came back to the hotel and just crashed. It was a long exhausting, but very entertaining day.

May 28, 2007

Today we got up, and had a music lecture. After our lecture we headed downtown to the Altes Museum (Old Museum). It was an amazing museum with a huge Egyptian exhibit. Among the wonders was the Mask of Neferatiti, the Book of the Dead, and hundreds of statues of various Pharaohs and major Egyptian citizens. Unfortunately I spent all my time in the Egyptian exhibit before I realized there was a Greco-Roman downstairs. The central dome room of the Altes Museum was absolutely amazing. It was huge and filled with Greek God statues. After that we were allowed to go where we wished. We gathered a large group and headed to the Pergamon Museum. Here there were innumerable treasures from the ancient worlds. First we saw the great alter at Pergamon Alter. It is a huge stairway surrounded by Greek sculpture and engravings. At the top are the pillars which held the huge structure together. In one wing of the museum is a huge exhibit of Ancient Mediterranean artifacts. The most awe inspiring was the Ishtar Gates. These Gates stood at one of the entrances to Babylon. It is an awe inspiring site with its guardian figures and glazed bricks, not to mention that the walls are 40+ feet high. This must have been a truly terrifying site to besieges of the ancient world. Several other artifacts including Assyrian and Persian ruins, statues, and tools were in the exhibit. The other wing was a collection of Greco-Roman Art and Statues. Statues of all the Greek gods were in appearance. I also was able to have my picture taken with great historical figures such as Athena, Plato and Caesar Augustus. This museum was an amazing adventure. Next we stopped in a small market, and had lunch. After lunch we went to the Checkpoint Charlie Museum. This museum was a memorial to the people that suffered during the Berlin Wall. It had exhibits of the political situation leading up to the wall. Also there were stories and pictures of people who had escaped from the east during the communist rule. It was a long, but very interesting museum. There were things such as suitcase apparatuses, and car compartment displays that were used for escapes. It was very informative of the Communist split in Berlin. After Checkpoint Charlie we headed to the Sony Center where we rested and spent a few minutes on the internet. Next we headed through the Tiergarden to the Victory Column. The Tiergarden is a huge central park within Berlin, and the Victory Column is a tribute to German victories throughout the ages. It stands in the western part of the Tiergarden. Unfortunately when we arrived it was to late to climb the tower to the top. After this we headed back toward the Brandenburg Gate. Just beyond the gate we grabbed a quick dinner at a small stand in the middle of the street. After dinner we headed to the Reichstag. Here we were allowed to go to the top of the Reichstag and enjoy the beautiful view of the city from the huge glass and mirror dome at the top of the Reichstag. The dome also looks down into the Parliamentary room of the Reichstag, and while the German Parliament is in session one can watch the proceedings. Later we returned to our hotel. Unfortunately I had to spend the rest of the night until three in the morning working on my summary report of the Brandenburg Philharmonic Concert to be turned in the in morning on the Bus on the way to Prague.