Visiting Kreuzberg

Today we went on a tour of Kreuzberg with Dr. Brown and Dr. Evans’ friend Manuela. She showed us several significant aspects of the area, including buildings that personally resonated with her.

That is her in the photo, posing where we were standing in the years before the Wall came down. She was in, to quote Manuela, her “punk phase” during the time.

For lunch, we were able to eat lunch at the Markethalle, right where Herr Lehmann complained about breakfasters!!! 

Afterwards, Manuela took us to the Soviet WWII Memorial. It was an incredibly sobering experience. Honestly there are no words to describe how powerful and intense the memorial is. The Russian viewpoint is so often ignored when discussing WWII, so we feel it was very eye-opening. Walking through the memorial, with the trees bare from winter, the grass still just a dull brown-green, and the crisp, silent air, it really drove home how devastating the war truly was–for both sides. 

After the memorial, and to end her tour, Manuela led us to the Jewish Museum Berlin. It wasn’t a mandatory visit, but the group all decided it was something we’d like to do while already in the area. Yet again, this was an incredibly sobering experience. Not only did it tell the history of the Jewish genocide during the Holocaust, but it detailed so much of Jewish history from far beyond the Second World War (Emily balled her eyes out). 

Coming of Age display at the Jewish Museum Berlin

In order to finish the night on a happier note, we went with a group to the Tutti Gusti restaurant–the same restaurant we had gone to on our first night in Berlin. It isn’t far from our Hotel, and the general aura is welcoming and friendly. The waiters challenge us with their German, yet they are patient (and even joke with us) if we get something wrong when attempting to order. 

All-in-all, today was a mixture of enjoyment and education. We learned an abundance about Kreuzberg, specifically before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall, as well as some Jewish background prior to WWII. We ate good food, and we enjoyed wonderful company. 

Text and images provided by Chelsea and Emily