CROSSROADS CHRONICLES

Last week, during the meivakantie in the Netherlands, we drove to Berlin, Germany for a weekend escapade. From Noord Holland, we embarked on a 7.5-hour journey, traversing the afsluitdijk, passing through Friesland and crossing into Duitsland (Germany) before reaching Berlin (via Hamburg).

Our itinerary followed a typical 2 Days in Berlin itinerary. However, personally, it provided me a profound insight into the tumultuous era of World War 2, far surpassing the depth of knowledge I gained from my high school history textbook. I suppose there’s truth to the saying that one learns more from traveling ten thousand miles than from reading ten thousand books.

Here’s our simplified 2-day Berlin itinerary:

Day 1

• Branderburg Gate
• Reichstag (parliament building)
• Tiergarten & Soviet Memorial (expansive central park, the memorial is inside the park)
• Memorial to the Murdered Jews (concrete slabs)
• Topography of Terror (open-air museum delving into the harrowing history of Nazi Germany, intertwined with remnants of the Berlin Wall)
• Checkpoint Charlie (Reflecting on the historic border crossing point between East and West Berlin)
• Friedrichstraße (main shopping avenue)
• Gendarmenmarkt (French and German cathedral)

Day 2

• East Side Gallery (open-air gallery stretching 1.3 km along a section of the Berlin Wall) *Check out the photo gallery here
• Alexanderplatz & TV Tower (bustling public square and transport hub. TV Tower is the tallest structure in Germany)
• Berliner Dom (architectural masterpiece)
• Museum Island (plethora of museums clustered here, UNESCO World Heritage site)
• Bebelplatz, Neue Wache, Opera House (historic landmarks nestled in close proximity)
• Friedrichshain (Famed district of East Berlin, the Berghain nightclub is located here)

We also went to the techno club. It was fun, but I’ll save that for another entry. 🙂

Did I miss any must-visit spots that are essential for a 2-day Berlin itinerary? Let me know in the comments.