It's just getting dark and it's nearly 10:00 PM.
Just woke up from the most amazing nap. We left at midnight last night and our bus got here at like 5 in the morning. We watched 'Notting Hill' with Czech subtitles. oh, Hugh. Nothing was open at that time, so we basically spent all day (exhausted... the bus was cold and I hardly slept) waiting around for things to open. We couldn't get into our hotel rooms until 3 PM.
We walked the city a bit and ended up at the Jewish History Museum. What a well-executed design! You have to climb a long, grueling set of stairs up to the top of the museum and work your way down. The top floor is dedicated to the beginning of Jewish history, and goes through history and famous Jewish figures and important Jews in science and medicine and music and literature, etc. It also reveals the persecution of Jews throughout history, and the bottom floor is dedicated to victims of the Holocaust. The walls (and many of the floors) are at angles, which adds to the experience. The architect/designer made it almost physically demanding to get through everything, which serves to illustrate the struggle of Jewish people.
He also constructed what is called the 'Holocaust tower'. . . a cold, metal tower you can access at the bottom of the museum. There is only a sliver of natural light coming through at the very top. The tower is all constructed of jagged angles, and at one side comes to a very rapid point. It is almost devoid of noise, except for the faint sounds of activity on the street outside. Needless to say, it was pretty sobering. Especially to see a museum like this in Berlin. It's obvious that they understand the need for a wider understanding and an appreciation for Jewish culture.
We walked along where the Berlin wall had been constructed, and went to Charles checkpoint. Remains of the wall are preserved all over the city. So many interesting things to look at. The thing that sort of got to me, though, is how much of a tourist place this has become. You can have your picture taken with a German soldier on either the East or West sides... or buy shirts with the words "You are leaving the American sector" on them (taken from the original sign), or you can buy and wear reproductions of German military uniforms. It is just amazing how fast we become desensitized, I suppose. I know all of this was set up for tourists, but "the wall" must still be very real to the people who live here.
Anyway, enough with my ranting. I have wi-fi in my hotel room so I'll update before I leave on Sunday night and post pictures when I can.
Oh, and P.S. I think I'm really going to love this city.
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