Berlin Wall Memorial

Berlin Wall Memorial Visitor Center

From August 13, 1961 to November 9, 1989, a nasty line cut through Berlin's entire city center: The notorious Berlin Wall, built to prevent citizens of the GDR from fleeing to the West. West Berlin was an island located in the middle of the GDR.

As the wall alone couldn't stop people from trying to escape from the GDR regime, it was additionally fortified by a death strip all along the border, as well as a "shoot-to-kill" order.

The area along the restricted zone was patrolled, watchtowers were set up, signal fences giving silent alarms were installed and the land around the border was declared no-man's-land and was lit up bright as day during the night.

Observation platforms in the West allowed tourists and West Berliners to sneak a peek "over the fence" into an other world.

In the peaceful revolution of 1989, the guards of Bornholmer Straße border opened the gates on November 9th without formal order and masses of people flocked to the West.

The Berlin Wall Memorial partly is an open-air museum and the memorial grounds on the former border strip are open all year round. Admission is free. There also is a viewing platform at the Documentation Center (Bernauer Strasse 111). Don't miss it!

If you are up to some research, check out the specialized bookstore on the history of the Berlin Wall in the Visitor Center.

A really intriguing and actually quite spooky part of the Berlin Wall history is on display in the Nordbahnhof S-Bahn station: The "Ghost Station Exhibition". 

What is this?

As a result of all the wall building and the busy cutting the city in two halves, public transport network had to be divided too. Three lines that passed through the city center and a short stretch of East Berlin territory stayed open to West Berliners while East Berlin stations were closed down.

Read more on Ghost Stations

American Memorial takes Form of Public Library

 

After World War II, all major libraries were located in the eastern part of Berlin, so that the western sectors were left with almost no research libraries. 

At its opening in 1954 the American Memorial Library, a gift from the United States to the people of  Berlin, was the most modern library in Europe. Constructed according to the quintessential American democratic ideal that knowledge and education should be available to all, regardless of social class, this universal library offers a broad spectrum of literature for everyone.

The open library concept where readers could hang out and browse books and magazines at leisure was totally new in Germany. This concept for free "education, information, recreation", the freedom to learn, study, and seek the truth, is also expressed through the building's architecture which conveys a sense of spaciousness and transparency.

The entrance to the library is linear and free of barriers. Once you have entered the vestibule, you can immediately see the library's hall through the glass doors in front of you. 

The location of the library (now protected as a historical site) was carefully selected: Only half a mile away from the border, it was clearly visible in East Berlin. The large neon letters on top of the building which read "Gedenkbibliothek" (= Memorial Library) could be seen from the Friedrichstraße train station, then located in the eastern sector.

Since 1995 the library has been part of Berlin's central and regional library. Among other things it possesses a vast film department (50 000 movies), and even a Black Box, where films are projected on a large screen. In the picture-lending library (Artothek) you can borrow paintings, sculptures and figures. In the music department, concerts are held, and there is even a Piano Room (with one Bechtstein and one Steinway) which visitors can use to practice. The room can be reserved for up to two hours a week.

The American Memorial Library truly is a library for the people. Contrary to most libraries I know, the atmosphere is refreshing and lively. Young people of all nationalities meet up to read and chat, do their homework together, or roam the aisles browsing for literature.

The children's and young adult's library, also located in the building and named "Hallescher Komet" (= Halle's Comet as an allusion to the closest  subway train station Hallesches Tor) is the largest of its kind in Germany.

Address 

"Ich bin ein Berliner" - I am a Citizen of Berlin

The above building - City Hall Schöneberg - was the stage for John F. Kennedy's famous words. From a platform on the steps of the City Hall he spoke to a crowd of West Berliners  living in an enclave in the "deep East" in 1963, and fearing East German occupation.

On November 9, 1989 - exactly 20 years ago today - the East German government announced that all GDR residents were allowed to visit West Germany and West Berlin. A torrent of East Germans climbed over the wall joined by West Germans on the other side. After so many years of separation, families and friends were finally united.

Events celebrating the Fall of the Berlin Wall

Kennedy's speech on Youtube

East Side Gallery

The East Side Gallery, located close to the center of Berlin and running alongside the river Spree, is a 1316 meter long section of the Berlin Wall. After the opening of the Wall in fall 1989, the east side of the wall was painted by over 100 artists from 21 countries.

The gallery was inaugurated on September 28, 1990. It is the longest permanent open-air gallery of the world.
All photos here

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