A City Without Age (Day 17)

Things we don't have in Berlin: Old Buildings
Things we have a lot of in Berlin: History

General explanation: World War 2

My expectation in coming to Berlin, especially considering the position that the city has held in European politics for the post four or five hundred years, was that it would be a place where Central European history might literally come alive. Unfortunately we bombed history to death in the mid-fourties.

Not Good for Historical Preservation

This leaves yours truly both happy that we ended the Nazi dictatorship (go us!) but also disappointed at the lack of the sort of crumbling old edifices commemorating so and such long lost event that I've come to expect from European cities. As opposed to America where we built our own ruins along the Hudson (only we would do that, or for that matter the masterwork that is fridgehenge). I mean I'm studying history for pete's sake, at least give me some sort of cryptic statue to try and understand! Somewhat unfortunately at least one of those statues were melted done make munitions.

The Preservers at Work / Trümmerfrauen

This leaves yours truly both happy that we ended the Nazi dictatorship (go us!) but also disappointed at the lack of the sort of crumbling old edifices commemorating so and such long lost event that I've come to expect from European cities. As opposed to America where we built our own ruins along the Hudson (now thats a bit odd). I mean I'm studying history for pete's sake, at least give me some sort of cryptic statue to try and understand! Somewhat unfortunately at least one of those statues were melted done make munitions.

This has created a number of interesting effects for the city. First, unlike Paris it has nothing to preserve and as such tends to have a much more modern and dynamic feel (even though it does have some pretty extreme building requiremets). Secondly, which allied power was occupying your section of the city had a disproportionate effect its development. With the vast majority of the German housing stock destroyed by the war as well as a huge influx of Germans coming from formerly German administered areas like East Prussia and Silesia, the allies had to effectively rebuild the city to avoid (more) serious refugee problem. For the Russians this meant big mass produced housing areas whereas as the west it was left more to individuals to finance. In both areas however, creating housing was the most important political issue of the day so things got built fast.

East Germany/ Somewhere by Prenzlauerberg

West Germany / Somewhere by Tempelhof

Even more interestingly, even in West Germany, each administrative zone tended to have a different feel (some maintain it is still visible today). I haven't really gotten good enough at this to tell yet.

Third, there is a big emphasis on reconstruction. Two notable examples are the Reichstag and the Berliner Dom (The Berlin Cathedral). Both were famously destroyed (one more famously than the other) and are now rebuilt thanks to dedicated municipal efforts. The Reichstag got remade by Sir Norman Foster and is now adorned with a beautiful glass dome through which one can see most of the city as well as down through the floor at the Parliament in session.

A View into Germany's Parliament / Das Reichstagsgebäude

The Reichstag's exterior

The Berliner Dom was built before the first World War to be the Protestant counterweight to St. Peter's in Rome. Accordingly it was built in a gorgeous "Italian Renaissance Style"which basically entails frosting the building with decorations both inside and out. Moreover, as a imperial symbol it houses the bodies of the dead Hohenzollerns in its crypt. If one goes down there today they can see the bodies of such notables as Fredrick Wilhelm the Great Elector.

Sculpture on the side of the Berliner Dom / Museum Insel

More Berliner Dom

These two buildings at least give some hint of the old city.

A statue on the Berliner Dom watches over his city

The Berliner Dom