The arts scene here is a well-known and beloved feature of Berlin. The blend of cultures is also unlike anything I'd seen before. I expected to be eating mostly bratwurst and pretzels while here, when instead I found Turkish, Sudanese, Italian, or Ethiopian restaurants on every other street. For being the capital, Berlin is probably the least typical city in Germany. It's much less traditionally German than Munich, for example. Nevertheless, its unique character draws visitors from all over the world. There is much to be seen and much to do; there are spacious green parks, music halls, museums of all kinds, and grand opera houses. I knew I'd need to come back.
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| Berlin's most recognizable and most beloved symbol, the Brandenburg Gate |
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| Our first weekend in Berlin, there was the Long Night of Museums, in which many of the 175 museums here stayed open until 2am! You could see as many as you wanted with an 8 euro ticket. These are some friends from the program; I'm on the far right |
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| The Hamburger Bahnhof Museum for Modern Art |
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| The TV tower was built in East Berlin to be seen as a sign of technological superiority over the West Berliners |
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| Our mensa, or cafeteria |
Based on a former teacher's suggestion, I looked into the European Studies Program at Freie Universität, and it seemed like a perfect fit. I'm now almost finished with the semester, and still have only good things to say about this program. It's been so helpful in understanding the history and character of this place. The classes I'm taking are Art and Dictatorship, 20th Century Art in Central Europe, and a German course that meets 4 days per week. In the Art and Dictatorship course, I've enjoyed learning more about memorials and their effectiveness (or lack thereof), and the very problematic artistic styles employed during the rules of Hitler and Stalin, that essentially said, "Everything is going well, and our people are happy and healthy, see?" This, of course, was not the case. Understanding the role of art in politics has helped me understand these histories much more. Every 2-3 weeks, our classes visit memorials, monuments, and museums--three "m" words that are very central to the character of Berlin, and Germany as a whole. To truly separate any city from its past is impossible, but I think that Berlin may be one of the most obvious examples of that. In just the 20th century alone, Berlin has seen much: World War I, a crippling depression, the Third Reich and and World War II, the 30+ year Soviet-controlled German Democratic Republic, and the end of that era--the Cold War--with the fall of the Berlin Wall. My expectation for a city that has been through this much--most of it very damaging, both physically and ideologically--is that it'd take a long struggle to regain its footing. Berlin, however, has climbed out of its own disrepair time and time again to show that it's a place worth knowing. The city is resilient. Germany as a whole has restored many of its old wounds well. It's actually because of this dark and difficult past that makes the city and this country so fascinating for most. The importance of memory is so evident here; the memorials keep a stone record of the wrongs committed on this ground, and the great seriousness with which Germany now holds its apologies for them. Though it took several decades after the war to realize the necessity of these memorials (like the Holocaust memorial, which wasn't opened until 2005) they are here now, and speak loudly. I'm grateful to be here and witnessing the effects of the country's post-20th century past, and standing in the present as a new history is created.
Germany is a truly fascinating place.
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| The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, designed by Peter Eisenman and opened to the public in 2005. The several thousand concrete stelae gradually grow taller as you walk further into the memorial, symbolizing the growing number of Jews killed as time went on |
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| The U-bahn and S-bahn are the two underground systems in Berlin. One of my favorite pastimes while here has been to choose a random stop, get off and explore, come back to the station and continue my commute home |
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| Our classroom set-up |
Hello: Hallo
Goodbye: Tschüss ("chewss")
Thank you: Danke ("dahn-kuh")
Excuse me: Entschuldigung ("int-shool-dih-goong")
My name is (I am called): Ich heiße
Another helpful hint: the character ß is pronounced as a double s. Straße, for example, is pronounced "strah-suh"
Lastly, my 5 tips for study abroad:
1. Research your city (and country) as much as possible before you go. Have an idea for the history and what makes that place unique. This will make each day there even more special for you, as you'll have a greater understanding of everything that it took for that place to become what it is today. (This goes for anywhere you are---just appreciating that place for what it is. Greensboro is a pretty fascinating city, too!)
2. When shopping for souvenirs, it's fun to pick a theme. I started collecting patches and postcards from each city, and am always grateful to have these small, lightweight reminders of my trips to take with me. Friends and family appreciate postcards, too, so it's fun to send some of those home.
3. Take more photos than you think you'll need! While enjoying the moment is important, I have always, always been more grateful to have snapped a quick photo of that funny menu item or taken that group photo when looking back.
4. Keep a journal of some kind; make sketches even if you don't like to draw, and make notes of the name of that dish you liked, or the names of the streets you visited most. Press flowers and leaves and make a note of where you found them. A friend of mine says that she writes about what she did each day, and then 3 interesting things she observed. Find a method you like and try to include it in your daily or weekly routine.
5. Don't feel bad if you don't make each of the cities on your list. I tried to keep my traveling to the areas closest to Germany, so that I'd feel like I had time to understand and soak in the heritage and histories of the Netherlands or Denmark, for example, rather than gaining a somewhat brief insight into 5 or 6 countries. Also, it's very satisfying to feel like you know a country beyond its most visited city -- that you've gotten to know a place for both its grand plazas and its small side-streets, and both its largest city and smallest countryside town. Flying in Europe is rather inexpensive, though, so if the opportunity presents itself for a weekend in a capital you've always wanted to see, go for it! Those short trips are great fun, too :) I personally just had a better time experiencing more depth than breadth when traveling around.
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| Berliners soaking up the last of the August sun at Wannsee, on the outskirts of the city. |
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| A typical German house, but rather untypical for urban Berlin |
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| One of Berlin's architectural highlights on the Spree River |
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| Berlin is well known for its street art |
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| The park that is part of the Charlottenburg Palace in west Berlin |
Thanks for reading!
Juliet Furst
Freie Universitat
Berlin, Germany
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