Berlin is a city full of recent history that will be easy for anyone to connect with. A very unique and enjoyable way to see the city is by signing up for a walking tour. We found our company outside of the Zoologischer Garten train station. After paying our small fee we were set. The first order of business was to buy a one way ticket on the train to East Berlin. After our group arrived at our destination the tour really began.
This is where all the connections take place; we walked around learning about each sight’s significance either during WWII or the cold war. It is eerie how you feel like you are transported back to some of the most turbulent times in history made only easier by seeing the building riddled with bullet marks from the Second World War. Our tour guide was able to point out areas that are not marked, like sights of book burnings, Hitler’s bunker, where high profile people were killed. One of my most favorite parts was seeing the Berlin wall, here was something talked about as if it could stop a massive invasion built up as one of the ultimate signs of oppression and evil. To finally see it was an anti-climatic experience, a small section only left standing crumbling growing smaller by the year as tourists and others steal small pieces. Ironic since this was the ultimate symbol of the communist era in Berlin now being sold for profit by people. By the day’s end you have seen more history pertaining to WWII and the Cold War than a month of watching the history channel could ever deliver. With the tour over, we were exhausted, as the tour turned out to be 6hrs long, all of if walking, we headed back to our hotel to find some food and get some much needed rest.
