Berlin & Potsdam — On a plane to somewhere...

While walking the streets of Berlin, one would not think that this bustling city used to be the city from which many of the horrors of the early 20th century came. It's not until you are standing in front of the Reichstag or the Brandenburg Gate that you cannot help but picture the Nazi flags that once flew here.

If you keep walking, you will inevitably run into some remnants of the Berlin Wall and your thoughts immediately shoot twenty years ahead to the height of the Cold War.

Even some locals will agree that Berlin is not the prettiest German city, but it is hard to find a German city with as much history as Berlin. Although it is steeped in so much history, the architecture there is somewhat deceiving. During the Allied invasion of Berlin to bring about the fall of the Nazi empire, approximately 89% of all buildings were destroyed requiring most buildings to be rebuilt. Instead of using modern architecture, many decided to rebuild Berlin as it looked before the war to try to preserve that part of German history, so even though many buildings look old, they are actually relatively new!

I started my time in Berlin with a visit to the museum "Topography of Terror." It is set on the site that once housed the headquarters of the Gestapo and SS during the time of Nazi Germany. The original buildings no longer exist due to Allied bombings during the war, but its location makes the exhibit all the more impactful. I won't give a history lesson here, but the exhibit tells the story of what the SS did to the Jews and any opponents to the Nazi regime. The museum also tells the story of how much unrest and rebellion was brewing in Germany before the war and how Hitler was able to exploit that to garner support for his cause. Wandering around the city I still feel an air of rebelliousness mainly due to the large amount of street art everywhere. "Large amount" is probably an understatement as I have never seen so much street art in my life. This rebellious attitude seems to be more of an artistic or social expression than one of complaint as was present in the late 1920s. After this morbid museum, it was time to lighten up with a visit to a hipster beer garden that actually reminded me a lot of Seattle!

After a visit to a few more sights such as the East Side Gallery, the Holocaust Memorial, and Checkpoint Charlie (the checkpoint that existed between East and West Berlin which almost caused WWIII) I took a train to Potsdam just outside of Berlin. Potsdam is a wonderful little city that is a nice contrast to the hustle and bustle of Berlin. It looks like a city stuck 100 years in the past and is actually the location Hollywood uses for many WWII films. It also is home to Frederick the Great's royal palace earning Potsdam the title "The Versailles of Germany." After visiting Versailles not long ago, it was easy to see how fitting of a name this is with the sprawling gardens and intricate architecture of the palace.

Potsdam is probably best known around the world as the location of the famous Potsdam Conference where Stalin, Truman, and Churchill/Atlee met to decide the fate of Germany (and most of Europe) following the surrender of the Nazis in WWII. Standing in front of Cecilienhof, the palace where the conference was held, it is hard not to get the chills thinking about how the fate of millions where decided right there by those men and how Truman first learned that America had successfully detonated its first nuclear bomb.