Tag Archives: Germany

Berlin

Euro Trip, , ,
A piece of the Berlin Wall stands in Leipziger Platz (once no mans land between East and West Berlin ) with the Canadian Embassy in the background.
A piece of the Berlin Wall stands in Leipziger Platz (once no mans land between East and West Berlin ) with the Canadian Embassy in the background.

I arrived in Berlin from Munich on the night train, having a decent sleep. After doing a red eye from Toronto to Paris I certainly slept better then that horrible 3 hours of fitful unconsciousness where my feet froze. (Why I was so cold on the exit isle of an airplane I don’t know.)

But I’ve digressed.

I used a AirBnB for the first time and wanted to try it out. The stay was great and the host named Tee was accommodating had a large room and was in a nice local neighbourhood, I also found a decent place for breakfast near by.

The thing about Berlin that is very apparent is it’s still very much in the metamorphosis. Yes all cities are constantly changing, but it’s more prevalent in Berlin then any other city I visited in Europe. Potsdamer Platz was the largest construction site in Europe while it was being developed in the 1990’s but the city is still very much under construction and still healing old wounds from the city being ripped apart during the East German Occupation.

After visiting Juno Beach in Normandy and the German National Museum of Contemporary History  in Bonn ( Haus der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik Deutschland ) it was important for me to see as much history as possible while I was in Berlin.

Bike Tours

Biking in the Tiegarten Park. (trying to take a picture smile and cycle at the same time)
Biking in the Tiegarten Park. (trying to take a picture, smile and cycle at the same time)

Berlin also started a bit of a trend I really tried to stop:

  • Take a bike tour on the first day
  • Get completely lost getting to bike tour company
  • Arrive horribly late
  • But still make the tour with minutes to spare.

Bike tours are a great way to see the city, especially on a beautiful sunny day, but only if you are an experienced cyclist as you will be cycling in traffic . They give you a great reference for the city you are visiting and give you a decent experience in the layout of the city center.

I like bike tours because you can cycle trough parks and squares and places where buses can’t venture. I really like Tiergarten park, once inside the park it reminded me of the interior of Stanley Park with it’s tall tree’s, gardens and grassy areas.

I found visiting central Berlin emotionally exhausting, the entire city was in some way effected by the either the Second World War or the Berlin Wall, or reunification.

The Alte Nationalgalerie seen through the columns of the Neues Museum.
The Alte Nationalgalerie seen through the columns of the Neues Museum.

I visited Museum Island which is very much under construction. But I saw the egyptian collection at the Neues Museum. The Museum building itself was heavily damaged in the war and the renovations of the building and the vestibule and main staircase show the scars from that damage. There seem to be a really sense in Germany and Berlin not wanting to forget the mistakes of the past and showing the scars of the past is one of those ways.

The main entryway of the Bode Museum one of the most ornate entrances I have ever seen.
The main entryway of the Bode Museum one of the most ornate entrances I have ever seen.

I also visited the Bode Museum which has one of the most ornate entrance hall of any museum I visited. The Bode Museum is huge and I made the mistake to try and take it all in, but I really enjoy seeing a sculpture by the renowned carver Donatello. The grand staircase was just as impressive as the entry hall and it really takes a while to take it all in.

One of the top must seas I heard about was having breakfast on top of the Reichstag at the Käfer Dachgarten-Restaurant. It does required reservations at least 24 hour in advance and my breakfast wasn’t the cheapest in the world, but the view is spectacular on a clear day and after your meal you get to leisurely visit the dome at the top of the building. ( Yes you can visit the dome for free, but I hear the line ups are long and you have to reserve a head of time for security reasons anyways. )

I thought after seeing present day Germany I would remember the past by visiting the German Resistance Memorial Center ( Gedwnksätte Detscher Widerstand ). I wanted to see the BendlerBlock after watching the 2008 movie Valkyrie as I though it was important to see what inspired the very true to actual events movie. What I wasn’t prepared for the was the emotional impact visiting the center would have on me. The shear amount of people who were involved not just in the July 20th resistance but in all resistance movements was far greater then I ever believed.

I ended my Berlin trip with a visit to the Potsdammer Platz. Where I remember there was a huge Roger Walters The Wall Live in Berlin in the 1990’s. I saw a Canada Flag and realized that this is where the Canadian Embassy was located, sadly the Marshall McLuhan Salon is only open on Friday’s but I took a picture of the Embassy none the less.

While the Spy Museum looked interesting the topic was touched upon at the DDR museum they weren’t part of the Berlin City Pass and gave no discount so $20 ($30 CDN) entry fee was a bit steep for me and I was exhausted. So I left for my AirBnB and a good night sleep in preparation for my trip to Amsterdam.

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Munich

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I spent my second day in downtown Munich and checked out the out the beautiful and ornate Rathaus-Glockenspiel at lunch time.

The Ornate Munich Rathaus Glockenspiel at noon.

I then Immersed myself into Pinakothek der Moderne which is a feast for the eyes.

Go on Sunday it’s only a single euro for all four section of the museum: Art, Design, Architecture and Design.

I was able to see a number of works of art from Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and a print of Andreas Gursky Rhein II the most expensive photograph in the world. I also really enjoy the works of Joseph Beuys He was really playful with this art and he was a new artist for a foreign like me.

I also learnt about the works of Otto Freundlich in the Degenerate Art exhibit and how he was denounced as a jew murdered on the day he arrived in the concentration camp Lublin-Majdanek. It was horrific the effect National Socialism had on every spec of life in Germany at the time.

Skylight feature in the main lobby of the Pinakothek Der Moderne. What a gorgeous building.
Skylight feature in the main lobby of the Pinakothek Der Moderne. What a gorgeous building.

The building is quite impressive and I really enjoy the architecture, The cafe was busy but really decent. I shared a table with local who in seeing my camera invited me to his table. It made for easy fun conversation over lunch.

The English Garden of Munich
The English Garden of Munich

I closed down the Pinakothek der Moderne and decided to walk to the English Gardens of Munich near by. There I had a conversation with Johannes Mirtschink who was photographing the park. I asked if he had got some decent photos.

I didn’t have plans for the rest of the evening so Johannes invited to go see the Allianz Arena as there was a large football (soccer) match happening that night and it was lit up.

Johannes had a tripod and suggested we get some long exposures from a highway overpass.

In something that is just really unique to photographer, I spent my last night in Munich hanging out on a highway over pass with someone taking some night photos.

Time exposure of Johannes setting up for the next exposure sequence.
Johannes setting up for the next exposure sequence.

We working on the photo together to get the best photo we could, It had been a long while since I did any real long time exposures and Johannes was still learning the tricks of the trade. There was a lot of trial and error but working together we got a really decent photo.

While hanging out on a highway overpass on your vacation may not sound like a lot of fun. But making new friends and creating awesome photographs, for me, it certainly was.

While I came with the mission of seeing Octoberfest and I was happy with what I saw. I really didn’t see enough of Munich or the surrounding area. I hope to return.

The Allianz Arena in Munich illuminated in red the color of the home team. The FC Bayern. Photo is a collective effort of Johannes Mirtschink and Robert Dall
The Allianz Arena in Munich illuminated in red the color of the home team. The FC Bayern. Photo is a collective effort of Johannes Mirtschink and Robert Dall

I left Munich for Berlin on something I really had an interest in taking. A night train, where you go to sleep in one city and Boom wake up in the next and true to form both the quality of sleep and the train wasn’t that bad.

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Oktoberfest

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One of the big events of my trip to Europe was going to Oktoberfest with my brother and visiting the relatives who live just outside of Munich.

Seeing Oktoberfest on a beautiful sunny Saturday was an awesome experience and a fun highlight of the trip.

But OMG going to Oktoberfest on a beautiful sunny Saturday is an absolutely crazy idea.

A packed Oktoberfest on a Saturday Afternoon from the top of the Ferris Wheel.
A packed Oktoberfest on a Saturday Afternoon from the top of the Ferris Wheel. Approximately 200,000 people in the festival grounds.

Luckly our relatives had a contact who worked with Paulaner and got us reservations to the Festzelt Winzerer Fähndl.

Very little had prepared me for an experience of a Beer Tent at Oktoberfest. It is the largest party in the world.

Prezels the size or steering wheels, Huge Lebkuchen Hearts with a variety of messages hung from your neck and litres and litres of traditional Bavarian beer.

So how do you get into a tent in Oktoberfest without relatives who have contacts with a brewery?

  1. Don’t go at the start or end of the festival.
  2. Don’t go on a weekend if you can help it early weekdays are best.
  3. Arrive very early Tents open at 10:00 and can be full by 10:15
  4. Be prepared to wait hours to get into a tent.
  5. If you can’t get into a tent try a beer garden. Their are both tents and gardens.

You can have an awful lot of fun without going into the tents and there is a variety of family fun available. One of the most uniquely Munich things we did was the Teufelsrad or Devil’s Wheel which has been part of Oktoberfest since 1910.

Teufelsrad (Devil's Wheel) has been part of Oktoberfest since 1910
My niece takes on the Teufelsrad (Devil’s Wheel) which has been part of Oktoberfest since 1910

To survive the Devils Wheel you need to have a strong sense of balance a good start position on the wheel and some good luck. I tried my hand at the wheel and well I don’t think the two litres of beer before hand helped my chances and I was flung off in quite short order. But my niece Morgan did far better surviving to be the last girl on the wheel. (Being 10 at the time she was also far more sober then I )

Oktoberfest tourist hat
Don’t buy this hat. You’ll just look like an idiot.

Also an attire suggestion. Don’t buy one of these hats. You’ll just look like an idiot.

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Down the Rhine

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On our way to Munich and Octoberfest we travelled down the Rhine counting the castles along the way.

River boats travel past the famous Lorelei rock on the Rhine.
River boats travel past the famous Lorelei rock on the Rhine.
The tiny streets of Sankt Goarshausen
The tiny streets of Sankt Goarshausen

We stopped at a little town of Sankt Goarshausen which is near the famous rock cliff of Lorelei to purchase some wine for our relatives who are hosting us in Munich.

The town was nestled up against a cliff face, we got off the highway and parked up against the river.  Once walked across the highway and entered the town we encountered streets that were little bigger then sidewalk between the buildings.

We found a Weinstube in the “wine cellar” of a building.

Getting some wine corked at the weinstube.
Getting some wine corked at the weinstube.
David Hasselhoff on the jukebox!
David Hasselhoff on the jukebox!

This little old lady was filling corking a couple bottles of wine for us to bring to our relatives. (She was very nice but the only sharp photo I have is the one of her not smiling)  I went to check out the tunes on the old skool jukebox and there I found the largest of all German stereotypes, David Hasselhoff! We didn’t have time to throw a couple of euro’s in the juke box We had to get to Munich!

Oh the unique experiences of a road trip down the Rhine in Germany.

Crossing the Rhine at the town of Lorch, Germany.
Crossing the Rhine at the town of Lorch, Germany.

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Kunst Museum Staircase

Kunst Museum Staircase in Bonn, Germany
The Architecture of the Kunst Museum in Bonn is just as amazing as the art inside. I loved this staircase. I though it also would look better in black and white. I love the contrast of the white against the black with 256 shades of grey in between.

The Dacia Sandero Bet

Dacia Sandero with a Nurberg Ring Sticker
Dacia Sandero with a Nurberg Ring Sticker

Being treated to a DTM race at the Nurburgring during my european vacation by my brother. On our arrival we both saw a number of vehicles with the a Nurburgring sticker on them, with both my brother and I being fans of Top Gear. I said,

“I’ll give you 10 Euro’s if you can find a Dacia Sandero with a Nurburgring sticker on it. “

Less then a minute later my brother laughs out loud and points! HA! Yes in the thousands of a cars in the parking lot at the GP track a Dacia Sandero with a Nurburgring sticker sits in front of us. I paid up and can only imagine what James May would be saying.