Berlin in a nutshell

I am just so overwhelmed with story after story, I couldn't possibly tell them all on this blog. Or on a thousand blogs. I just got back from three weeks of travelling all over Europe. I went to Berlin, Poland, Barcelona, Madrid, and the Czech Republic. I know, some of those places are odd choices, but you'd fall in love with the little Polish town of Poznan and the countryside of the Czech if you were there, too. And Prague was beyond-words breathtaking. trust me.

But I'm going to go country to country, splitting up my blogs so I don't get too overwhelmed. Well, I already am, especially because it is almost 2 in the morning and I should be sleeping, but I promised myself I would write a blog before Monday. So here goes...

Berlin and Poznan were part of my acdemic study tour with my Medical Practice and Policy Program. From the last blog, you have an idea of the academic activities we did, so I'll focus on the cultural ones:

On our way to Berlin, we stopped at a concentration camp. It wasn't a big-name one, I'd never heard of it. But it was incredible to see. All of our stomachs just dropped and we all fell silent through the hour or so that we were there. It was an experience I'll never forget, especially the moment I willingly walked through the entrance of the camp that so many people were dragged through. I still can't possibly conceive of all that happened there, could you?

Then, on a lighter note, our first dinner in Berlin was at a blind restaurant. Yes, you read that right. Every server at the restaurant was blind, and to top that off, we sat in a completely dark room, as if we were blind ourselves. Luckily, that also meant that noone could see me eat with my hands and accidentally get food all over my face. I dont know how that happened. Honestly, every sense is thrown off a bit when you can't see, including the hand-to-mouth sense.

The next day we took a city-wide bus tour of Berlin with a great tour guide. What struck me the most about this city was that it was so easy to see all that these people had been through. They didn't try to hide their past, but instead acknowledged and accepted it. And we could tell the difference between East and West Berlin, mostly in the architecture. it was incredible. Moment number two that I will remember forever: walking from East Berlin over the two-brick-wide line where the wall used to be to West Berlin, then through the Brandenborg Gate. Something that East Berliners used to only dream about. Bonus- there was a Starbucks on the other side!

That day we also went to the Berlin Dom, this amazingly beautiful cathedral in the middle of the city. We even climbed up what seemed like neverending stairs to the base of the dome to see the entire city of Berlin! Stunning!

We also saw the Berlin Olympic Stadium, which hosted the Olympics in 1936, one year before the Holocaust exploded. Huge, magnificent stadium. Interesting fact- since the germans wanted no memory to Hitler, they cut off the part of the balcony where he used to sit and watch the games. It is now two feet shorter.

At night, a few of my friends and I would wander through the city, finding little parks and buildings, cafes and brautwurst. the lights in the city were so colorful and truly dazzling, in preparation for the Festival of Lights starting in a few weeks. And nothing beats walking through colorful fall leaves on a crisp but not too chilly night in Berlin.

We also visited KaDeWe, Berlin's equivalent to the New York Macy's. Their displays had already been infiltrated by Christmas decorations, which made me all the more excited for the holiday season.

And in a nutshell, that was my trip to Berlin. I think it will always remain one of my favorite cities. The history was incredible, the people amazing, the architecture breathtaking. It was just beautiful. I could never explain that feeling of walking in the footsteps of so much history, turmoil, tears, heartbreak, and death. But that city had taken leaps and bounds since then, never forgetting where they came from, always commemorating those who died.