It has been quite a while since we’ve been to Berlin, and now that Delta Airlines has added Berlin to its summer schedule, we decided to revisit this city. Berlin is a beautiful city, but it should be marketed as a Peace City, similar to Hiroshima, in that many memorials and cemeteries represent many countries that lost their citizens in the World Wars.
Berlin is a historic city in that informational placards are everywhere, explaining the history of what happened on the spot in front of you. You find yourself immersed in the history of where you are standing, and you keep moving from placard to placard, reading one after another, trying to understand precisely what happened in this city during and after the two world wars.
Adding to the city’s historical nature are the many religious crosses on fences throughout Berlin, representing those who tried to escape from the East to the West over the Berlin Wall during the Cold War. The names of these people have been inscribed on each cross.
It is incredible to visit Brandenburg Gate, the 18th-century neoclassical monument, and understand how this symbol has changed today, the current symbol of the free world, and yesterday, the symbol of several terrible world wars and authoritarian regimes.
We walked all over the city, but one of the nicest streets to walk in Berlin is Friedrichstrabe. This excellent shopping street leads to another memorable and significant time and location, ‘Checkpoint Charlie,’ which was the most renowned crossing point between the German Democratic Republic and the Federal Republic of Germany during the Cold War. Once again, you almost feel yourself walking backward in history, trying to sense what it must have felt like at this monument 70 years ago. Interestingly, the famous Friedrichstrabe Train Station was originally located entirely in East Berlin but was serviced by surface trains and subways during the years that Berlin was divided. During this time, trains were allowed to operate through closed stations without stopping.
One of the best things to do in Berlin is to visit the Reichstag, the center of Germany’s government, with its glass dome on top of the central building. Visiting Reichstag is a must, and it is possible in that you can easily apply for a pass online or receive a pass while physically waiting in line at the base of the building. There is also Kafer, a fine dining restaurant at the top of the Reichstag with excellent city views.
Similar to our first visit, we stayed at the Berlin Marriott Hotel on Potsdamer Platz in the city’s center. The mass transit in Berlin is very efficient, and airport transportation can be made by surface train or subway. On this trip, we took a cruise up the beautiful Spree River that runs through the center of the city.
An excellent side trip and a very short train ride from Berlin is the picturesque city of Potsdam, Germany. For history buffs, this was the famous site of the Potsdam Conference, renowned for the meetings of Harry Truman, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin after World War II in 1945.
Berlin is a beautiful city that provides travelers with tremendous value and is not to be missed. Berlin Brandenburg Airport opened in 2020 and is spectacular.
Note: The German Aviation Departure Tax was $17.00 (USD).
