Weekend Experience: A Day Of Wandering Around Autumn Berlin

It so happened that I had a quick flight to Berlin for my job. But the flight time to home was only late in the evening the next day, meaning, I had time to wander in this beautiful city with 3.4 million inhabitants. Germany is the only country in my travel practice to which I was absolutely indifferent "before" and which I became genuinely interested in "after". And I managed to see quite a lot in just one day of wandering there.

First, I had a goal to walk to Hackescher Markt. After asking a couple of times if I was going the right way, everyone was surprised at how far I wanted to walk on foot. But, on the way there was a Jewish cemetery, Brandenburg Gate, Reichstag. Museums and opera and the most beautiful Catholic Church.

Alexanderplatz is the central square of Berlin. Berliners call it in a very familiar way - Alex. The Spree River often appears in the frame, as it flows through the historical center of the city.

Reichstag. In the USSR, this building was declared the main symbol of Hitler's Germany. And Stalin, as is known, ordered the Victory Banner to be raised on it.

The famous Brandenburg Gate - a symbol of the United Germany, there are a lot of tourists here. I remember the history of sculpture. We see a cart at the top, driven by the goddess of victory, Victoria. Initially, she had an olive branch in her hand, as a symbol of peace. But when Napoleon conquered Berlin, he ordered this composition to be removed from the gates and took it with him to Paris. When Napoleon was defeated, Victoria returned to her place, but she was already given an iron cross. An iron cross as an award was given only to those who distinguished themselves in the battles for the liberation of Germany from Napoleon.

I got lost on purpose. I wandered around without thinking about where I was going. All the people I talked to were very friendly, they told me more than I asked. I did not buy a 24-hour city tour for 28 euros. It is much cheaper to buy the Berlin Welcome Card, you can use all city transport, and it costs 8.60 per day. And I did 23000 steps per day. I think I visited many famous places.

I stopped at Museum Island too. As the name suggests, there are several famous museums here. Generally, the most interesting historical part of the city, where the largest number of ancient buildings and monuments have been preserved, is Museum Island. This island is called a museum for a reason. There are several museums here, old and new, as well as a gallery.

The photo below shows the old national gallery, where masterpieces by Manet, Rodin, Degas, and others, whose works are priceless, are kept. The Old Museum, where relics of ancient civilizations and bygone eras are collected - jewelry, sculptures, household items, and much more. The Old Museum has a sculpture of a horseman killing a Lion. You can also visit a museum of modern art with many sculptures and monuments presented there. I noticed that most of them are on horses.

This is where another symbol of Berlin is located - the Cathedral, built in 1894 in the Baroque style. This is a functioning Protestant church.

The TV tower is considered as the tallest building in Berlin. Its height is 368 meters. There is an observation deck on the tower. Next to the TV tower is the Red Town Hall.

The Victory Column, popularly known as Golden Elsa. The gilded eight-meter statue of the goddess of victory Victoria is installed at a height of 67 meters, located in the central part of the Tiergarten.

And here begins the Berlin Wall, or rather, what is left of it. Once it was a whole complex of structures 155 km long, consisting of a concrete fence, ditches, watchtowers, and anti-tank fortifications. But in 1990, the wall that divided East and West Germany, West Berlin and East Berlin, was demolished, leaving a symbolic reminder of it that is 1.3 km long. The concrete wall was dismantled, and in its place a low concrete fence was erected, which was decorated with graffiti and not only...

As you can see, there is nothing threatening left from the Berlin Wall, and the images are more likely to amuse. But there are always a lot of tourists here.

Berlin reminds me of my country in some ways. Lots of interesting shops and plenty of bars and restaurants. Bakeries with delicious cakes. But big cities like this are not for me. Maybe i am getting old, or maybe I'm used to living in my town with 200K citizens.

I did not have enough time to get to know the city well. But even in one day, I could see a lot. And the "remains of the remnants" of the famous Berlin Wall were rather amusing. Berlin has interesting monuments and ancient buildings, but in general, the city is not like other European capitals. It is more modern, and there is active construction around. Gray box-like houses several stories high are gradually being torn down, replaced by more modern high-rises. I liked that the city is very green, and the park areas are simply huge.

One day to visit Berlin is very little. I categorically disagree with those who claim that there is nothing to do in this city and one day is enough.

Berlin through my eyes - modern, business, beautiful, calm, and a bit cold.