Reminiscence of the Wall
Two days ago, I just finished my travel through small part of Europe, Germany & Poland. I arrived home safely, tired, and jet lagged. But somehow I feel like that it's time to update the blog. As some of you might know, I haven't updated the blog since more than a month. It's pretty long for you to forget this blog. So, now, it's a real update. Give me a try to keep up. And yet, I've chose Berlin for the first post about my European journey. Berlin, so there I was. One of the most memorable city during my recent travel. Its rich history, its colorful life scene, its accessibility, and even its cheap food left me stunned. Now, while writing this post, I still can recall my walks with a perfect clarity.
Captivated by its nowadays intensity, I probably could easily forget that before the 90s, Berlin has experienced a hard time. But I couldn't help myself. I kept lured by my curiosity to the trace of this painful Berliner memory. One of the most obvious things that still scattered around the city is the reminiscence of the infamous Berlin Wall.
Berliner Mauer (The Berlin Wall) was stood since 13 August 1961 until its fall on 9 November 1989. Complete info are available in wikipedia :)
The Berlin Wall today is a tourist attraction by large. No tours in Berlin can be completed without at least wandering around at any remaining walls. The longest part of the wall that still remains are in Mühlenstraße of Kreuzberg. In this part of Berlin, the wall still stands for more than a kilometer. Graffiti from many anonymous artists are painted on the east side of the wall, which formerly only existed in west side before the fall of the wall. This longest open air gallery in the world called East Side Gallery. Other section of the wall also can be found in Potsdamer Platz and Bernauer Strasse.
Interestingly enough, while I was there, I noticed the reminiscence of the Berliner Mauer extends not only to the wall itself. But also in the small things at it surroundings. Through posters, t-shirt, souvenirs, or simply by some people attempt of making a business by acting as the former border guard to simply attract the curious tourists.