The group trip to Berlin left early Thursday morning. Hans, our bus driver, drove the 6 hour drive in his "coach." We made one stop on the way to Berlin in a town called Wittenburg where Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses against the Catholic Church. I had taken a test earlier in the week in my World Civilization class about the Protestant Reformation, so actually seeing Luther's town and church made history all the more real. We arrived at the hostile in Berlin about 5 p.m. I shared a room with Briona, Jennifer, Jessica, and Kelsey. The group took the U-train, which is like a subway, to Zoologischer Garten for a bite to eat. I went with a group to mexican and had good chicken fajitas. We walked around the downtown area for a while, then went back to the hostile for the next busy day.
Day 2: On Friday we had a walking tour that lasted about 6 hours. The tour guide was born in Bulgaria, moved to New York when he was 7, and has been living in Berlin for the past few years. He did a wonderful job explaining the long, long history of Berlin. It just so happens that we were in Berlin for the 20th anniversary of the reuniting of east and west Berlin. I stood on the memorial of The Wall near the Bundestag, the "house of representatives" branch of government. I saw Museum Isle, the Brandenburg Gate which is a staple symbol to Germany, the American Embassy, Checkpoint Charlie, the Berlin Dom, and many other landmarks in Berlin. I was most effected by how many buildings have only been re-opened since the 1990s because of repairs since the bombings in WWII. I also went to Ritter Sport, which is a German chocolate brand and bought a few different flavors to bring home. Mrs. Ritter invented the bar because it would fit inside a pocket and would not break easily. The old "design" of the chocolate bars were too big for a sport fan to take to a game and would melt easily. I helped myself to a chocolate bar for the full experience. The group also had a tour of the Bundestag at 8 p.m. The outside of the building had been repaired since the burnings by Hitler. However, the inside was all brand new with only a few pieces of vandalism on the walls kept as a reminder of old Germany. I took a test the previous week in German Culture over politics so this field trip was very interesting.
Day 3: I woke up early and got on the bus with Griffin and 10 other students to visit the Postdam to see the Palace of Sanssouci built by Frederick the Great. I walked around the outside of the palace and surrounding gardens for 2 hours and still didn't see all of it. The grounds consisted of tons of small paths with fountains and tree tunnels. When I got back to Berlin, I went with Toby and Kelsey to 2 museums: Pergamon and Neuses. The Pergamon museum housed the Gates of Ishtar by the Babylonians. Seeing these gates is another example of how I had no idea the amount of historical landmarks I would see when I decided to study abroad in Germany. I ended my last night in Berlin by going to Potsdamer Platz where the Sony Center is located. We saw a movie and brought sandwiches in for dinner. I was so happy to see a movie in English because going to a movie is my favorite!
Day 4: The intent to leave Berlin was suppose to be at 1, but because of some speculated security alerts in Berlin, we left early at 1o to drive back to Regensburg. The 20th anniversary of Berlin was taking place so it was best we said our good-byes early. My plan was to see a Jewish museum, but at least I conquered lots of Berlin the days before. In all the weekend was wonderful and I loved seeing the biggest city-state in Germany!
Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast."
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