[Berlin diary] Sunday daytime
24 Oct 2005 02:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
karohemdGot up at about 8, despairing at the rain outside but decided to go anyway. ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lsur was busy with various things so I went on my own.
Had cakey breakfast at the pastry shop around the corner and by the time I had finished, the rain had slowed to a light drizzle. Took the tram and then got confused a bit a the S-Bahn station as to which platform I needed but found it eventually. Outside the Friedrichsstr. station it was literally chucking down with rain so I went back in and bought a cheapo umbrella which I then almost didn't need. D'oh. Various delays meant that I reached the Reichstag building at 9:30 where there was already a sizeable queue so I had to wait for not quite half an hour to get in and through the security check (like in an aiport). Entry is free but you can only go up to the roof and inside the glass dome, if you want the tour of the parliament portion or access to the gallery, you need to book in advance.
The modern steel/glass dome is quite impressive and makes an interesting contrast to the old traditional building into which it sits. Had the weather been nice, you would have had a fantastic view of Berlin as the area is quite flat and it's one of the highest points. Only the Fernsehturm (TV tower) in the former East is higher. As it was, it was far too gloomy to make out much detail. Still quite impressive, though.
Inside the dome are two spiral walkways along the inside wall (one for going up and one for coming down) with a panoramic walkway across the top. Despite the dull light, I managed to get some interesting photos of reflections and angles, I think.
Obviously, just when I had left the roof, the sun came through nicely and the weather cleared up. Bah.
Next stop was the Holocaust Memorial, a fascinating and huge array of differently sized granite blocks arranged in rows. I could have easily spent a whole day there taking photos because the light/shadows change constantly as the sun moves. The whole thing isn't on flat ground (slanted in one direction, rolling hills in the other) which adds another dimension. Very impressive.
Walked further along to Potsdamer Platz which used to be one of the busiest in Europe at the previous turn of the century and ended up being No Man's Land after WWII, just a barren wound in the city. Now it's all high rises, posh business and residential buildings and shopping centres etc. Lots of interesting things (and people) to see and take photos of. Had lunch at an Australian themed restaurant which was quite good (kangaroo filet strips, stir-fried veg and big jacket potato).
lsur joined me later so we took the 200 bus again for a small tour during daylight (on Saturday you could hardly see anything for rain) and got off at the Zoologischer Garten. Took photos of the ruin of the Gedächtniskirche and the inside of the new one and then we wandered along Kurfürstendamm for a bit before making our way back to the flat again.
lsur was busy with various things so I went on my own.Had cakey breakfast at the pastry shop around the corner and by the time I had finished, the rain had slowed to a light drizzle. Took the tram and then got confused a bit a the S-Bahn station as to which platform I needed but found it eventually. Outside the Friedrichsstr. station it was literally chucking down with rain so I went back in and bought a cheapo umbrella which I then almost didn't need. D'oh. Various delays meant that I reached the Reichstag building at 9:30 where there was already a sizeable queue so I had to wait for not quite half an hour to get in and through the security check (like in an aiport). Entry is free but you can only go up to the roof and inside the glass dome, if you want the tour of the parliament portion or access to the gallery, you need to book in advance.
The modern steel/glass dome is quite impressive and makes an interesting contrast to the old traditional building into which it sits. Had the weather been nice, you would have had a fantastic view of Berlin as the area is quite flat and it's one of the highest points. Only the Fernsehturm (TV tower) in the former East is higher. As it was, it was far too gloomy to make out much detail. Still quite impressive, though.
Inside the dome are two spiral walkways along the inside wall (one for going up and one for coming down) with a panoramic walkway across the top. Despite the dull light, I managed to get some interesting photos of reflections and angles, I think.
Obviously, just when I had left the roof, the sun came through nicely and the weather cleared up. Bah.
Next stop was the Holocaust Memorial, a fascinating and huge array of differently sized granite blocks arranged in rows. I could have easily spent a whole day there taking photos because the light/shadows change constantly as the sun moves. The whole thing isn't on flat ground (slanted in one direction, rolling hills in the other) which adds another dimension. Very impressive.
Walked further along to Potsdamer Platz which used to be one of the busiest in Europe at the previous turn of the century and ended up being No Man's Land after WWII, just a barren wound in the city. Now it's all high rises, posh business and residential buildings and shopping centres etc. Lots of interesting things (and people) to see and take photos of. Had lunch at an Australian themed restaurant which was quite good (kangaroo filet strips, stir-fried veg and big jacket potato).
lsur joined me later so we took the 200 bus again for a small tour during daylight (on Saturday you could hardly see anything for rain) and got off at the Zoologischer Garten. Took photos of the ruin of the Gedächtniskirche and the inside of the new one and then we wandered along Kurfürstendamm for a bit before making our way back to the flat again.
