{"id":8058,"date":"2025-12-06T17:56:38","date_gmt":"2025-12-06T17:56:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/?p=8058"},"modified":"2026-03-19T19:14:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T19:14:21","slug":"germany-berlin-past-and-present","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/?p=8058","title":{"rendered":"Germany &#8211; Berlin Past and Present"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nearly twenty years after a shore excursion to Berlin with the Regent Seven Seas cruise of the Baltic Sea, our high-spirited guide\u2019s comments resonate again, as if the past is repeating itself only as a different story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><em>Memories as Facts<\/em>&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The agricultural land along the 180 kilometers (112 miles) from the German port town of Warnem\u00fcnde to Berlin unfolded monotonously until we met Burkhardt. Our guide had immediately set the tone on the drive along Unter den Linden\u2014Berlin\u2019s&nbsp;historic grand boulevard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere was nothing democratic about the ill-fated German Democratic Republic,\u201d he said, meaning East Germany. Many years ago, I had heard this from students in the Federal Republic of Germany, also known as West Germany.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Jewish Memorial stands almost above Hitler\u2019s former bunker.\u201d Burkhardt\u2019s karmic insinuation wasn\u2019t missed as we passed by the Holocaust Memorial, a field of 2711 concrete blocks, among which visitors meander and reflect. \u201cJewish people represented only 0.77% of the German population, but millions were killed in Poland.\u201d We all seemed to carry the unwarranted guilt of this genocidal fact as we got off our charter bus.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our tour continued with a boat ride on the Spree River, and so did Burkhardt\u2019s thought-provoking comments, as if he had made it his life mission to remind everyone of what happened. \u201cMarshall Br\u00fccke was letting boats through during the war, but had fences below the water.\u201d Burkhardt could only veer from that cryptic statement with sarcasm: \u201cBerlin has more bridges than Venice, but the ugliest bridge in Venice is nicer than the nicest bridge in Berlin.\u201d His humor briefly lightened the mood until he pointed to signs along the canal, warning of the danger of mines and forbidding the throwing of anchors.&nbsp;Even Angela Merkel had to evacuate her apartment; construction work still uncovers bombs today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Burkhardt then became more personal. As a young boy, he visited the&nbsp;Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church,&nbsp;nicknamed \u2018the church with 15 bathtubs<em>.<\/em>\u2019<em>&nbsp;<\/em>After Berlin\u2019s oldest church was heavily damaged, it collected rainwater from its roof, while also serving as a multi-faith sanctuary for protesters. Nearby, the Palace of Tears Museum is a reminder that for the then-separated families like Burkhardt&#8217;s, the single-day visa to visit loved ones in East Berlin could only end with tearful goodbyes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><em>The Berlin Wall<\/em>&nbsp;<\/strong><em><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>in Brief<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our guide then moves on with a to-the-point factual history lesson. After WWII, Germany was split into four zones:&nbsp;American, British, French, and Soviet. Then Berlin was again split in two, the Soviets controlling East Berlin and the Allies controlling West Berlin.&nbsp;When East Germans began to flee to the West, the Soviet East German government sealed the border overnight in 1961, first with a barbed wire fence, then with a fortified concrete wall, electrified fences, and guard towers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Burkardt became animated again with the tug of war that ensued, Russian Premier Nikita Khrushchev closing off Berlin with 11 checkpoints and President Kennedy ordering tanks to Checkpoint Charlie. The Russian conceded after a 14-day standoff, and Checkpoint Charlie allowed free passage from East to West to foreigners. Germans who attempted to cross over were killed; he would later point to the white crosses in the city, serving as their memorials. In 1989, protesters breached the wall, and its demolition was completed in 1994.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We kept pace with Burkhardt until he pointed to plaques on the street, marking the length of the defunct wall, which led us to the East Side Gallery, the 1.3-kilometer (0,8 mi.) remaining section of the wall, where artists had freely expressed themselves. Our walk ended at the Brandenburg Gate, a part of the Wall until new buildings were constructed after reunification.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em><strong>Berli<\/strong>n&#8217;s Past and Present<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the time of our tour, in 2010, Berlin was in a baffling economic situation. According to Burkhardt, millions of square feet of office space stood empty, and so did the 21 five-star hotels\u2014more than in Paris or New York. The end of the Cold War had sparked an \u00fcber enthusiasm for development that even freedom couldn&#8217;t buy.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our spirited guide then left us with an anecdote. For a time after the reunification, Eastern Germans so resented any reminder of the&nbsp;F\u00fchrer&nbsp;that the term S<em>tadtf\u00fchrer<\/em>&nbsp;(city guide) was changed to&nbsp;<em>Stadtbild Erkl\u00e4rer&nbsp;<\/em>(city map explainer).&nbsp;Since then, semantics has returned to its original purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As for the remnant of the Berlin Wall, it struggles to remain the symbol of nations being better off as allies than adversaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Note:<\/strong>&nbsp;In 2025, Berlin visitors occupied approximately 66 percent of hotel capacity, thanks to its cost-effective policy that attracts fairs and conventions, and a thriving music, film, fashion, and design industry.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-wall-with-plaque-017-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8064\" style=\"width:536px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-wall-with-plaque-017-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-wall-with-plaque-017-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-wall-with-plaque-017-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-wall-with-plaque-017-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-wall-with-plaque-017-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-wall-with-plaque-017-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">Street markers of the Berlin Wall (MCArnott)<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-caution-sign-on-canal-because-of-bombs-078-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8067\" style=\"width:568px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-caution-sign-on-canal-because-of-bombs-078-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-caution-sign-on-canal-because-of-bombs-078-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-caution-sign-on-canal-because-of-bombs-078-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-caution-sign-on-canal-because-of-bombs-078-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-caution-sign-on-canal-because-of-bombs-078-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-caution-sign-on-canal-because-of-bombs-078-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Berlin bomb warning sign on the Spree River (MCArnott)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-051-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8065\" style=\"width:567px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-051-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-051-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-051-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-051-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-051-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Berlin-051-2048x1152.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">Berlin Holocaust Memorial (MCArnott)<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-090-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8078\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.5;object-fit:cover;width:572px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-090-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-090-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-090-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-090-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-090-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-090-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Berlin historic boulevard Unten den Linden &#8211; under the linden trees (MCArnott)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-137-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8079\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.3333333333333333;object-fit:cover;width:577px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-137-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-137-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-137-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-137-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-137-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/marieclaudearnott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Berlin-137-2048x1152.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Checkpoint Charlie sign in Berlin (MCArnott)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nearly twenty years after a shore excursion to Berlin with the Regent Seven Seas cruise of the Baltic Sea, our high-spirited guide\u2019s comments resonate again, as if the past is repeating itself only as a different story.&nbsp; Memories as Facts&nbsp; The agricultural land along the 180 kilometers (112 miles) from the German port town ofContinue reading &rarr;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8066,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8058","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel","has-thumb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with 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