"Ich Bin Ein Berliner"

“Ich Bin Ein Berliner”

Said President John F Kennedy in 1963, “I am a Berliner” (some linguists say it also means “I am a sausage”, but since my German is sparse, I’ll go with Kennedy’s version) I have always been curious to see the city where the European theater of WWII ended and where Hitler won his final reward. My first visit to Berlin. Susan was here with her mother about 15 years ago.  Ann was born in Berlin.

Our first day utilizes our guide Yoav, an Israeli born, Austrian and German educated historian. We walked over 8 miles, all in the Mitte or middle of Berlin. Most of Mitte is in the former East Germany (DDR). The West German part of Mitte was an island of streets and buildings surrounded by the infamous wall and dead zone established by the Soviet sponsored East German government.

When the Soviet Union dissolved in 1989, the wall was no longer needed to keep the residents of East Berlin from escaping to the west.  The only remnants are one small section in its original location and several pieces displayed around the city.  The wall was a last ditch attempt to prevent East German citizens from leaving a city that was under harsh living conditions and equally harsh regulatory supervision. Anyone who attempted to leave was charged with stealing from the country, i.e. stealing themselves from the service of their country. Anyone old enough to be retired was welcome to leave so the DDR wouldn’t need to supply support services to them. Heck of a system, right?

Our walking tour first took us by the two cathedrals (one Catholic, one Protestant) restored to original condition by the DDR in order to attract tourist dollars. Both are magnificent, proving that the DDR can build elegant structures when they choose to do it. The nearby Hilton was built by the Communists and looks as good as the Hilton in Kansas City, although that is not high praise.  

Next to Check Point Charley, the iconic gate, often seen in films and portrayed in spy novels, is a guard post is manned by uniformed US and Russian soldiers. This is a tourist attraction not the real thing. Two pot bellied middle aged men wear US and Russian uniforms for picture taking. Fake sandbags surround the little hut hoping to add to its authenticity and failing to help miserably.

Before the wall came down, Check Point Charley was a ten lane facility like the border booths in El Paso or Tijuana.  Now it is on the island of four lane boulevard surrounded by high rise modern buildings. We take a photo anyhow, doing our part as good tourists to further the fiction of Check Point Charley.

Our guide walked us along a winding double line of bricks that mark where the Berlin Wall stood. A lone guard tower has been left and it was purchased by an entrepreneur who charges visitors to climb up into it. The DDR guards in those towers shot any East Germans who dared to enter the “dead zone”.

Mike walks the line

The Wall

I can criticize other things they have done but, I give accolades to the DDR and East Berliners for how they treated Nazi artifacts. The Nazi Shutzstaffel  (SS) headquarters building is now a city block of stone rubble. .. a fitting tribute to these thugs.

The SS started out as Hitler’s private guards. As the war evolved, the SS became part of the Army, Intelligence Service and a political faction loyal to Hitler. The SS carried out dirty work against Jews in the beginning, but as Germany’s fortunes waned, the SS performed dirty work against other German civilians and even German military not thought to be loyal to Hitler.  When the war ended the SS Headquarters was bombed or shelled (or both).  After gathering all the incriminating evidence from the building, the DDR reduced it to rubble… and kept it that way. A modern museum at the far end of the property displays artifacts and tells the story of the SS.

A few blocks away is the site of Hitler’s bunker. Hitler and his wife Eva committed suicide in the underground offices and living quarters known as the bunker. I call it “the site” because nothing is there.  It is a parking lot. The DDR did not want it to become a point of interest, so they filled it with cement and paved it over. A small signpost is all the recognition of the location. Congratulations DDR! The sign is more notice than the miserable bastard deserves.  No memorial for you Adolf!

Less than a quarter mile from the bunker site is the Memorial to the Jewish Dead. A huge open lot has been filled with grey rectangular cubes of cement in varying sizes. No signage explains the memorial. The artist leaves it up to each person to decide what it means. It looks like a New Orleans cemetery to me, with all the tombs above ground. Others might see the plain stones as markers for anonymous dead. The display is prominent, but not easily identified as to its purpose.  Maybe the Germans meant it to be so?

The line of bricks defining the former wall passes alongside the Brandenburg Gate.  Before the reunification of East and West Germany in 1989, this historic archway was blocked because it was too close to the wall. Reagan gave his “Tear down this wall” speech just across from the gate. Now it has returned to its former glory. The plaza beneath is busy with people and souvenir vendors.  Our guide explained that the statue on top of four horse drawn chariots was stolen by Napoleon and taken to Paris. Later the Germans marched into Paris and took it back. That statue has some miles on it. So do we, so back to the hotel.

Brandenburg Gate

After a short break, we taxied to the Reichstag for dinner, except the Germans do not like you to call it that now. They prefer Bundestag now. It is the big building that was Hitler’s headquarters. Now it is a government building, museum and restaurant. Good dinner. Great views.  Ugly history. My opinion… deserves to be rubble.

Dinner View Reichstag

More Berlin tomorrow.