Synagogues, Soccer, and Sanssouci

First of all, here is my favorite piece of art from the East Side Gallery. I wasn’t able to upload it last week but I thought it was worth sharing. I love it.

Last Tuesday I went to the Neue Synagogue. 

I obviously realize that Jews and Germany have a tragic, violent history; however, I didn’t expect there to be so much security around the synagogues still today. There were guards all around the building. We had to put our stuff through a conveyer belt and walk through a metal detector. One thing I learned during our tour is how entrenched the Berlin Jews were in German culture. Two religious tapestries that hung on the wall contained script written in both Hebrew AND German (something that would have shocked orthodox Jews). The Berlin Jews showed their nationalism in the design of their synagogue, which was influenced by the Christian churches nearby. There was even a saying that if the Jehovah came to Jerusalem, all of the Jews would gather except for the Berlin Jews because they loved their country so much. I think that it adds additional significance to the Holocaust. Reminders of “The Final Solution” can be found all over Berlin. For example, walking down the street you sometimes see little gold markers on the ground, marking places where Jews were taken from their homes. Here is one:

I also had the opportunity to go to a Käthe Kollwitz museum. She is one of my favorite artists. She was a German painter, sculptor, and printmaker who lived through both world wars. She was an influential advocate for peace and her work shows her empathy for the less fortunate. Ironically, she died before the end of WW2 and never lived to see the peace that she fought for. She did a lot of mother-child themed pieces. Most of her work is very sad but very touching. Look her up! Here is one of her drawings:

On a lighter note, I went to the zoo again! We went to see the aquarium which was pretty impressive. However, mostly I just want to show you a picture that I took outside the zoo. I love elephants:

We also had the opportunity to go up the Fernsehturm. It is a TV tower built by the GDR and is one of the symbols of Berlin. It is the tallest structure in Germany and had an amazing view of the city. The sky looked really cool that day:

Fun fact: When the sun shines on the Fernsehturm the reflection usually appears in the form of a crucifix. Berliners call this unintended effect the “Pope’s Revenge”. Reagan even mentioned it in his famous “Tear down this wall” speech:

"Years ago, before the East Germans began rebuilding their churches, they erected a secular structure: the television tower at Alexanderplatz. Virtually ever since, the authorities have been working to correct what they view as the tower's one major flaw: treating the glass sphere at the top with paints and chemicals of every kind. Yet even today when the sun strikes that sphere, that sphere that towers over all Berlin, the light makes the sign of the cross. There in Berlin, like the city itself, symbols of love, symbols of worship, cannot be suppressed."

This Saturday I had to travel to Potsdam to see a play for my opera class. We decided to make it a day trip and see a bit of the city (including the palace Sanssouci). The gardens were gorgeous! Here are some pictures:

 On Saturday Germany beat Portugal in a soccer game. They set up huge TV screens on the street from Brandenburg Gate to the Victory Column. It was filled with fans. Because extreme nationalism and Germany have a bad connotation, Germans didn’t display flags until a few years ago at the world cup. I went to a soccer game Friday and it was great to see everyone dressed up and singing cheers about “Deutschland”! I am really glad they have been able to regain some of their nationalism without people pointing fingers at them. I even bought a German jersey! I can’t wait for next game on Wednesday. Los Deutschland!

P.S. I tried to climb the Berlin Wall. I wasn't very successful.