American Hook Organ finds new Home in German Church

On my way to the America Memorial Library in Kreuzberg, I passed by a stunningly beautiful Gothic Revival style brick church with multiple svelte towers springing up into the sky: The Church of the Holy Cross.

 

According to the wishes of Emporer William I. of Prussia this monumental church was designed by Johannes Otzen, the son of an organist and village school teacher, and built from 1885 to 1888. Being too modest for the Emporer's taste, the unpretentious design priorly offered by architect Blankenstein had been rejected in favor of the four times as costly representative edifice. 

The church consists of a nave and a transept with a crossing tower which in about 20 meters height is topped by a dome.

World War II left the church in ruins after fire bombs had hit the building. In the years following 1945, pastor and parish were strongly opposed to governmental demolition plans and managed to enforce the building's reconstruction. The interior was kept much simpler from then on: The hitherto decorative brick work was plastered over, giving the space a somewhat sterile feeling.

In 1995 the structure was extensively renovated for prospective clerical and secular utilization. Apropos: As soon as I entered the churches vestibule, I was greeted by a vile stench and when I turned my head I saw a homeless man peacefully snoring in a corner surrounded by all his worldly possessions.

In 2001 the church received a unique instrument: The Organ op. 553 built in 1870 by Hook Bros., Boston. It is the only 19th-Century American organ in Germany. This gigantic instrument possesses 2370 pipes and is a genuine instrument of high romanticism.

Hook Organ
Church of the Holy Cross – Homepage

What makes a Door Handle so special?

Are you in the market for a new or used door handle? Then you may consider having it hand-crafted like the one I found on the entrance door of Berlin Schöneberg's City Hall. Top view: Just a beautiful giant door handle.

Life teaches us simple lessons: It's always better to look twice!

 

Kaiser William Memorial Church - Anti-war Memorial

Kaiser William Memorial Church, or as my daughter refers to it: "the broken church", is indeed an extraordinary landmark of Berlin. The Protestant church is located in the center of the Breitscheidplatz on Kurfürstendamm and visible over a great distance. The church - inaugurated in 1895 - was severely damaged during a bombing raid in 1943. Whereas the National Socialists promised the reconstruction of the church, the allied forces were reluctant to do so, as the building stood for the Wilhelmian-German national pride.

In the late 50s/early 60s a new church with a tower, a foyer, and a chapel was built and grouped around the ruins of the old church. The buildings are constructed in concrete, steel, and glass, the walls being made of a concrete honeycomb with more than 20.000 unique stained glass inlays by the French artist Gabriel Loire from Chartres. The predominant color is blue interspersed with red, green and yellow. The atmosphere inside the new church is delightful, due to the prismatic variation of colors.

The entrance hall of the damaged spire is open to visitors and presents beautiful mosaics, bas-reliefs, and sculptures along with panels which tell the story of the damaged church.

Source: Bundesarchiv

Kaiser William Memorial Church

Go climb the Alex!

Sad, but true: Many Berliners have never been on top of their city's 365 meter high TV tower at Alexanderplatz. Visit the 70s style rotating restaurant on top  (it is not expensive) and enjoy the marvelous view over Germany's most exciting city.

Watch the miniaturized city life, downscaled trains and suddenly so tiny tower buildings. Now, during the Festival of Lights it would be a good idea to go there at night and contemplate the illuminated urban life.

Get your passport stamped!

You can find that tourist shop at the East Side Gallery. I thought it was a funny idea, until I learned it was a felony ;) in this forum: Beware of criminal passport stamping!
Hilarious! Please read the answer written by "klaush" - it is the third post on the page.