Berlin

The Frau and I spent a week in Berlin so she could research at the German National Archives.  My last visit to Berlin included a trip over the "Wall" into what was then East Berlin.  That was in 1987.  Since that time Germany has undergone reunification and Berlin is a different city.  Our first impression of the "New Berlin" was our hotel room.  Upon arrival the proprietors exclaimed "Ahhh, die Amerikaner sind hier!" (Oh! The Americans are here!) and showed us to our room.  The room looked like something from old Las Vegas!  It was painted a dark burgundy red and had large chairs with a leopard skin pattern.  There was even a chandelier over the bed.  At least we had a good Wi-fi connection!

Our hotel room in Berlin

The leopard skin chairs

Our first full day in Berlin we did the tourist thing.  We went to the Brandenburg Gate and visited the sites downtown.  Unfortunately the weather was not good, grey skies and drizzle.

The Brandenburg Gate

On my last visit to Berlin the Brandenburg Gate was in "no man's land"  within the border area.  Now people walk freely around, through and under the gate without fear of being shot.

We spent the entire day just walking and seeing the sites.  Below are some photographs of the sites of Berlin.

Memorial to those killed trying to escape East Berlin over the Wall.

The Reichstag in Berlin

The Siegessäule

View of the Fehrnsehturm from Alexanderplatz.  This was in East Berlin the last time I visited.

Monument to the Russian soldiers that liberated Berlin at the end of WWII

The monument to Marx and Engels is still there!

A portion of the Wall that was left standing as a memorial

The old Checkpoint Charlie

The "good ol' days"

These are just some of the impressions and sites in Berlin.  There are still many renovation projects going on in the former east.  Sometimes it seemed like the city was being totally rebuilt.  I also visited the German Photography Museum and saw an exhibit on Helmut Newton.  He was a fashion photographer in the latter half of the 20th century and not really my cup of tea.  I lean more toward photo-journalistic and "National Geographic" style of photography.  But, it was interesting none the less.

While in Berlin I also was privileged to visit two Masonic lodges. My wife's cousin is a 33rd degree Freemason (I am only a 32nd degree) and he introduced me to the Masonic circles of the city.  There are two types of lodges in Germany, the Humanitarian and the Christian lodges.  These names do not really describe the differences in the lodges, but it is the names the Germans use.  The Humanitarian lodge I visited in Berlin was the Friedrich Ludwig Schroeder Lodge, No. 506.  This meeting was a "Vortrag Abend" (Lecture Evening) and we heard a lecture on the current "moral code" in Germany.  This was an informal evening and the discussion after the lecture became quite lively.  Being and American, I stayed clear of the fray!
The next evening I visited the Zum goldenen Schiff Lodge, No. 68.  This was the induction of a new member and therefore I cannot say much about what occurred during the proceedings.  It was much different that on my US lodge!  Zum goldenen Schiff is a Christian lodge that follows the Swedish form.  This is very formal.  I was wearing my tuxedo with black tie and white gloves and I was under dressed.  Here it was white tie with top hat.  It was very strange to me, but also very enlightening.  These fellows take their Masonry serious!

When I was stationed in Germany in the 1970's I was a member of the Army Security Agency and was assigned to Field Station Augsburg.  We worked closely with the Field Station in Berlin.  I never was able to visit the Field Station in Berlin while it was in operation.  It still exists (in ruins) and I decided to make the trip to the old site.  It is totally in ruins and covered with graffiti.  To think that while it was in operation it was a state of the art facility made me sad to see it in this condition.  But, it was not the buildings that I thought of while here.  It was the people.  We were the front lines of military intelligence during the Cold War.  We had a job to do, and we were excellent at it.  Even today I cannot say much about what I did, but I am proud of it!

The guard shack at the entrance to Field Station Berlin

The ruins of Field Station Berlin

Graffiti covered almost everything

The "golf balls" that covered the antennas

Field Station Berlin (Teufelsberg) from a distance

Next week we are planning on traveling to Dresden and then on to Prague in the Czech Republic.  I do not know if I will be able to post on the road or if I will have to wait until we return to Hamburg.  Check back for more of the continuing travels of Kurt!

Lubeck, Germany

Hauptbahnhof in Lubeck

Last Sunday, October 6, the Frau and I made a day trip to Lubeck.  Lubeck is one of the old "Hansa" cities and you can see this everywhere.  A short walk from the central train station is the Hansa Tor or the (once) main gate in to the city.  I was here about forty years ago with the Frau when we were young and newly engaged.

The Hanse Tor

The Frau

From there we went into the main part of town and discovered the annual Kartoffeltage (Potato Festival) was going on.  We had lunch at the festival and then continued to explore the city.

Kartoffel Fest

Grilling wurst at the Kartoffel Fest

We then strolled through the town just watching the Northern Germans enjoy the unusually fine weather.  Sitting in outside cafes the first weekend in October is a rarity!

Outdoor cafes

Lubeck is known for Marzipan.  This is a candy that is made from almond paste and is absolutely one of my favorite candies.  I simply cannot resist it!  Niederegger is the best know of Lubecker Marzipan and, of course, I had to stop by and see the shop.  I was very proud of myself for not buying any.  I will eat enough of this come Christmas!

Niederegger Marzipan

As is always the case with the Frau, when we come upon one of the magnificent, centuries old churches, we have to go in.  I really don't mind since these often provide fantastic photo possibilities.

Marienkirche

Marienkirche

Marienkirche

We really spent most of the day just wandering and seeing history at every turn.  We finished our visit by walking along the river and seeing some interesting fishing boats on our way back to the train station.

Fishing boats along the river

Later this week the Frau and I are headed to Berlin for eight days.  Our hotel there claims to provide Wi-fi service, but so far my experience has been that it was easier to get Wi-fi in Mexico than it is here!  Check back in a few days to see if anything is posted.  Of course, my Facebook friends and Twitter followers will be notified of all new posts.

Stralsund & Rostock

I am sorry for being so late with my updates, but I have been busy!  Last week the Frau and I tool a trip to Stralsund and Rostock.  These two cities are located in the former DDR.  I really like visiting the former DDR and find it very interesting.  Maybe it is because it was once our enemy or maybe it is because I was once forbidden to get withing 5 Km of the border, forbidden fruit so to say.  Anyway, I really like the former DDR.  It is interesting to note that even though it has been 24 years today since reunification, the former DDR is still relatively "run down".  Everything is be renovated or is under construction.

We took a regional train from Hamburg.  I really like riding the trains here.  They are always on time and the stations are usually in the middle of the city instead of the outskirts like airports.

Our train to Rostock

The trains are very comfortable and quiet.  Our car was a double-Decker and we sat in the upper section.

The Frau seems quite comfortable on the train

As our train traveled east we left the western part of Germany and entered the former DDR.  It is very noticeable when the former border is crossed.  You can still see mounds that were use to hide activities and the former administrative offices of the army, secret police and other governmental institutions.  Today those buildings are in ruin and decay.

Burms at the former border

Administrative offices at the former border

This part of the country is still run down from the DDR time

We had to change trains in Rostock and we arrived in Stralsund in the late afternoon.  It was a beautiful day by northern German standards and we had a lunch of Doerner (shaved lamb in the Middle East, shaved pork in Germany) in the Neuer Markt.  Afterward we found the Hotel zur Post and booked our room for the evening.  We then visited the Marienkirche which I had visited in 2006.  At that time there was construction equipment in the church doing renovations.  The church is still undergoing renovations, but the equipment has been removed.

The Marien-kirche altar in Stralsund

We then strolled over to the Alter Markt where the Rathaus and Nikolai-kirche were.  The renovations here were almost complete and this part of the city had been very much restored.

The Rathaus and Nikolai-kirche

The Nuerer Markt

Inside the Nikolai-kirche

We then went on to the harbor.  Stralsund has a small harbor that is used mainly for recreational sailboats and ferries taking people to the various outlying islands.  This area also has some Kneipes (cozy bars) where one can quench his or her thirst in the evening.  The kneipe that we spent the most time in (the Hafen Kneipe) had been in operation since 1332AD!

The harbor in Stralsund

Stralsunder Pils vom Fass

Stralsund is a photographers dream.  Here are a couple of unprocessed street scenes right off the card.

Street scene in Stralsund

Street scene in Stralsund

The next day we had a wonderful breakfast that included bacon and eggs, a rarity in a German hotel, and prepared to leave for Rostock.  But first we visited a monument built to honor those Russian soldiers that "saved" the East Germans from the west.

Monument to Russian soldiers

A symbol of the old days

The train to Rostock from Stralsund takes only about an hour and we were going to spend the afternoon there and then return to Hamburg.  The city of Rostock is under renovations and we were disappointed that we could not see the Rathaus.  It is said that the Rostocker Rathaus is one of the most beautiful in Germany.  Oh well, a reason to go back later I suppose!

Rostocker Rathaus under renovation

Rathaus Platz in Rostock

Rostock has strassenbahns!  These are electric trains that run on rails embedded in the streets.  When I lived in Augsburg in Bavaria I would ride these to get around in the town.  They are fun!

The Strassenbahn

The Frau had read something about an around the clock reading of Walter Kempowski's Das Echolot.  This is a collective diary written by eye witnesses to the Third Reich.  The book was being read twenty-four hours a day for a week in the Marienkirche.  The Frau wanted to see and hear this, so it was the first place we went.  The church was having a mid-day service with organ and stayed.  The organ was beautiful and loud.  It was one of those organs that can vibrate your chest when it is played in the lower registers.

The organ in the Marien-kirche

The Marien-kirche

As luck would have it one of the readers had to cancel and the Frau was able to take their place and read from Das Echolot in their place.  She was in Seventh Heaven.  Getting to read this in a church like this was like a dream for her.  I was very happy for her!

The Frau reading Kempowski in the Marien-kirche

Finally, after about three hours, I was able to extricate the Frau from the church and we could see something else of Rostock.  It is a pretty city.  In the Universitaets Square there was a small band from Sweden playing, what else, Abba songs!

Well, with that we returned to the train station for our trip back to Hamburg.  For some reason, I do not think this will be our last trip to Stralsund!