Year: 2013

The Reichstag is a spectacular looking building in Berlin, which was used by the German parliament from 1894 to 1933, then was gutted by fire. The German parliament moved to Bonn until reunification with East Germany in 1990, then they moved back to the Reichstag in 1999 where they are still based today.

I climbed to the top of the Berlin Siegessäule (Victory Monument) with my new friend Annette. The monument was originally built to commemorate the Danish-Prussian War, but by the time it was erected in 1873, it was also used to commemorate the Austro-Prussian and Franco-Prussian wars. It was smaller and located closer to the German parliament, but the Nazi’s moved it further away and lengthened it by 7.5 m in 1939. The French wanted to dynamite the monument in 1945, but thankfully they were prevented from doing that and we were still able to enjoy the (windy) view of Berlin from the top.

I visited the “Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe” in Berlin, a collection of huge concrete slabs. Not far from there is the “Sinti and Roma memorials”, containing a peaceful garden and a small pond.

I visited the Brandenburg gate in Berlin. This is a huge concrete monolith built in 1791. It is has been used for political statements by Napoleon and Hitler and was made off-limits during much of the communist reign in East Germany to avoid it being used for political purposes. This situation changed after reunification in 1990, and now anyone can wander underneath it’s huge arches.

The history of the Berlin wall is fascinating. The wall itself … not so much. It’s just a concrete/wire mesh fence really. Not much to see.

What has surprised me the most about the Berlin wall, is how many people I know who don’t know anything about it. They know that it existed, but not why or how it came to be. If you are in that camp, then I recommend doing some reading up on the subject. I’m not going to attempt to explain it here myself, as there are others who are far more knowledgeable about such things than I and can explain it much better.

I visited the Nazi party rally grounds (Reichsparteitagsgelände) in Nürnberg (Nuremberg). This area is where the German Nazi party held their huge party rallies between 1933 and 1938. ~150,000 people could assemble to celebrate the German Nazi party, alongside Adolf Hitler and other prominent national socialists.

After World War 2, the huge swastikas and eagles were blown off of the top of the main section via explosives. The blast marks are still present.

Unfortunately, years of decay resulted in a lot of the front facade being removed due to it being considered too hazardous, but the primary section in the middle is still present. It sure is creepy standing up there and looking out at what would have been a sea of fans adoring their Führer.

Scroll to the bottom to see some photos of what the area looked like during the 1930’s.

I visited the Nazi Congress Hall (Kongresshalle) in Nürnberg (Nuremberg) in Germany. The building was intended as a congress center for promoting the German Nazi party. It is a huge facility and is modeled on the Rome Colosseum, but on a much larger scale. It was meant to have a self-supporting roof, and would have provided seating for up to 50,000 people. Following World War 2, construction of the building was abandoned and it has been left by the city of Nürnburg as a reminder of the dangers of national socialism.

Standing inside the Colosseum area is a creepy feeling. Had history taken a different path, this building may have been one of the most prominent political buildings in the world. As it stands today, it is a rather pathetic reminder of a sad piece of history.

I stayed in a nice little hostel in Nürnberg (Nuremburg) called the “Five Reasons”. It was cheap and very nice. It is situated right beside the Nürnberg city wall, a relic going back to the 12th and 16th centuries. About 4 km of the original 5 km wall is still standing. The moat surrounding the wall was never filled with water and is now a nice walking path.