Day 5 (28 April) - Repeating History

Day 5 – Repeating History

We have decided to see whether or not the German History Museum is worth a visit or not, so we take the S Bahn and get off at Friedrichstraße and walk up to the Spree and then over toward Unter dem Linden.  We walk past the wonderful museums on Museuminsel, the Bode, the Pergamon (which is still being worked on – extensively) and then the Altes.  Along the way there are booths selling stuff – silver, china, handcrafts, unusual eye glasses (I pick up a pair of round dark glasses – a style that I dearly love), paintings, and other stuff.  It’s delightful and we meander through, taking our time. 

We get our tickets and our audio-guide and begin to make our way on the second floor, hoping to make our way down to the first, where the mid part of the 20^th Century is displayed.  I don’t know what we were thinking.  After two hours we had made our way to the Reformation and the rule of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and King of Spain.  It was clear that we would not be able to do the exhibition any kind of justice.  So we skim the remainder of the 16^th and the entirety of the 17^th, 18^th, and 19^th centuries.  Lunch was calling.

After ein Paar und Kirschennektar, we took up the remaining part of the 20^th Century.  It was sehr Schwer (very hard) to see the gradual decline and indecision of the Weimar Republic, and the complexities of an emerging National Socialism.  By the time I had made it to the death of Hitler, I was emotionally exhausted, as was Arthur. 

What we have planned for a soporific, as it were, by attending a concert (Classic meets Jazz) at Sankt Jakobi Kirche in Berlin.  It, like the Dom Vesper, is music with even less of a worship component.  Here the music is Couperin and Ravel played by a trio composed of a violin, a saxophone, and amplified guitar.  It is hypnotic, but a less than successful experiment.  We both zone out, and the “sermon” is again a long exposition on Cantate Sunday.  We leave just a bit disappointed, go to the U Bahn, and make our way back up to Alexander Platz.

Karl Marx Allee

Our goal is to ascend the Fehrnsehturm built by the East Germans as an announcement of their own prowess and engineering skills.  It is a lot of fun in spite of having to wait an hour to ascend (we grab snacks and something to drink).  The views are spectacular and the film on the building of the tower is quite interesting.  There is much to see and discover as we look at things from above.  The evening ends with a spectacular sunset, and we make our way home.