For the past two days we've gotten to spend a lot of time exploring Berlin, and I've fallen in love with the city. The two days have been especially fun because we haven't done AS much AS depressing stuff.
On Friday we learned a lot about the Berlin Wall, which I always found really interesting so it was really cool. A lady who had been an American teaching in Berlin when the wall went up spoke to us. A number of her students were seperated from their families when the wall divided the two halves. As an American, she could visit families on the other side, letting them know how their children were doing and bringing them supplies. She was very courageous and inspiring. We got to see parts of the wall and I got a much better idea of what t was really like with the wall up.
We went to visit a factory whose owner attempted to save his blind workers from imprisonment in concentration camps by saying he needed them as workers. This factory was located in an ally of Berlin, which happens to be one of the coolest places I've ever been. Colorful, political-statement-esque graffiti covered almost every inch of it.
This morning a group of us attended Easter Sunday mass. The mass was of course in German, but we could kind of catch on to what part of mass it was, and regardless the church was beautiful. After, we got free time, and went to a coffee shop and enjoyed coffee and pastries outside in Berlin. We shopped and lounged on the grass taking in sights.
We then met the rest of the group and went to the Jewish Museum. Ms. Freeman told us 3 key exhibits to visit: the tower, the garden of exile, and the fallen leaves exhibit. All three of these were very artistic and creative memorials and very open to interpretation, and most of all very very moving and effective. They were absolutely haunting, and I think the most effective memorials to the holocaust I have experienced, even though they included no information about the holocaust. (Emily C)
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