I'm getting tired of being this far behind in blogging... so these ones are going to be pretty speedy, sorry! But at least the events will be jotted down.
We went to Check Point Charlie first. This museum is in the same spot that the most well known crossing existed between East and West Berlin during the Cold War. Today, this museum serves as not only a preservation of a historical spot, but also a reminder of the Soviet regime. The exhibit was extremely extensive, with countless personal stories and accounts of life behind the "Wall". My favorite part of the museum dealt with various incredible escape methods that people used to get across the border. Hot air balloons, hiding in suitcases, one family even found a "look-a-like" family accross the border and stole their identities in order to escape. The inventions got even crazier and more risky as the wall got thicker, both literally and in a political sense. The museum gave a good idea of what it had to have been like to live in such constant fear. The secret police had access to all of your information, as well as a practically unlimited supply of weaponry and unrestricted violence. A failed attempt at escape was almost certain death, or if you were lucky, you might just be beaten in prison. One story told of a woman whose children were taken away from her after their capture and given new names, and their records were erased. The woman was told that her children were taken to new homes, however these "invisible children" were never again found. This was only one of many horror stories.
I feel like this section of history is sort of skipped over in America. Between WWII and The Cold War we just like to brush through. There are so many awful, gritty details that we ignore because it's not fun to think about... I think I've said this before, but I learned more in this one week long trip about this time in history than I learned in years of history classes. Puts the education system under a harsh light in my eyes... anyway, back to museums!
We also went to the Reichstag which is sort of like the equivalent of the White House for Germany. We didn't get to see much... too much security (go figure). But we did get to go to the top and see some amazing sights. Here are some pics...
Moving right along... We also saw the Perganon museum that is a gigantic Roman Antiquity collection. This museum was huge! They had entire Roman buildings re-constructed within the building. Cool. It also had a lot of Ancient Egyptian ruins as well as some Middle Eastern Art.
Next was the Egyptian Museum. Now... I know what you're thinking... "Susan, you are in Berlin. Why oh WHY did you go to an Egyptian Museum??" Well you see, they have one of the most extensive collections in the world (besides Egypt of course) and I had a free pass. Anyway it was super cool and very beautiful, however by this point I was very over-museum-ed... and don't really remember all that much. The main thing worth noting is that this is the home for the famous "Bust of Nefertiti". Now the art historian in all of you should be jumping for joy... if not, no worries. But it's pretty much like the Mona Lisa of this style of art. Pretty sweet!
The last museum really deserves its own blog... but I'm on a roll. This was by far the best and most important visit of the trip for me. We went to the Holocaust Museum that is built underneath the Holocaust memorial that I put pictures of earlier. It was so powerful to be in the same city that Hitler stood and convinced so many people that it would be a GOOD idea to commit a genocide, and to so humbly stand and listen to the stories of all those lives it affected. Part of the exhibit was a very dark room where you could literally just sit and listen. A voice read out the names and ages as well as a small history of literally EVERY victim they have on record. To listen to them all would take something like 6 or 7 YEARS. There were places where desparate letters were sent to loved ones, saying goodbye, the writers often knowing that their deaths would come quickly and horribly. I couldn't stay very long in the museum. I was so emotionally overwhelmed by the horrors that the human race could cause. It was jarring to go from the quiet museum full of dark stories and memories to the light and noise of the outside where there was so much beauty and life.
For me, the most important lesson is that we always remember what we are capable of, even when being led by just one influencial man.
No comments:
Post a Comment