Berlin: Resilient, Reunited, and Reborn: Travel Details
This is a quick and handy source for details on the sights, hotels, tour guides and restaurants featured in the "Berlin: Resilient, Reunited, and Reborn" show. For much more (and updates), see this year's edition of Rick Steves' Germany & Austria guidebook.
The Reichstag
The parliament building — the heart of German democracy — has a short but complicated and emotional history. When it was inaugurated in the 1890s, the last emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, disdainfully called it the "house for chatting." It was from here that the German Republic was proclaimed in 1918. In 1933, this symbol of democracy nearly burned down. While the Nazis blamed a Communist plot, some believe that Hitler himself (who needed what we'd call today a "new Pearl Harbor ") planned the fire, using it as a handy excuse to frame the Communists and grab power. As World War II drew to a close, Stalin ordered his troops to take the Reichstag from the Nazis by May 1 (the workers' holiday). More than 1,500 Nazis made their last stand here — extending World War II by two days. On April 30, 1945, it fell to the Allies. It was hardly used from 1933 to 1999. For the building's 101st birthday in 1995, the Bulgarian-American artist Christo wrapped it in silvery-gold cloth. It was then wrapped again in scaffolding, rebuilt by British architect Lord Norman Foster, and turned into the new parliamentary home of the Bundestag (Germany's lower house). To many Germans, the proud resurrection of the Reichstag symbolizes the end of a terrible chapter in German history (free, daily 8:00-24:00, last entry 22:00, most crowded 10:00-16:00 (wait in line to go up — good street musicians, metal detectors, no big luggage allowed, some hour-long English tours when parliament is not sitting, tel. 030/2273-2152, www.bundestag.de).
The Gemäldegalerie
Germany's top collection of 13th-through 18th-century European paintings (more than 1,400 canvases) is beautifully displayed in a building that's a work of art in itself. Follow the excellent free audioguide. The North Wing starts with German paintings of the 13th to 16th centuries, including eight by Dürer. Then come the Dutch and Flemish — Jan Van Eyck, Brueghel, Rubens, Van Dyck, Hals, and Vermeer. The wing finishes with German, English, and French 18th-century art, such as Gainsborough and Watteau. An octagonal hall at the end features an impressive stash of Rembrandts. The South Wing is saved for the Italians — Giotto, Botticelli, Titian, Raphael, and Caravaggio (€8 Kulturforum ticket or €15 Museumspass, free Thu after 18:00, open Tue-Sun 10:00-18:00, Thu until 22:00, closed Mon, clever little loaner stools, great salad bar in cafeteria upstairs, Matthäikirchplatz 4).
Pension Peters
Pension Peters, run by a German-Swedish couple, is sunny and central, with a cheery breakfast room. Decorated sleek Scandinavian, with every room renovated, it's a winner (S-€36, Ss-€47, Sb-€58, D-€51, Ds-€68, Db-€78-83, extra bed-€10, prices guaranteed through 2006 with this book, kids under 12 free, family room, cash preferred, Internet in lobby, 10 yards off Savignyplatz at Kantstrasse 146, tel. 030/3150-3944, fax 030/312-3519, www.pension-peters-berlin.de, penspeters@aol.com, Annika and Christoph).
EurAide
EurAide 's information office, located in the Bahnhof Zoo Reisezentrum (in front of train station, by taxi stand), provides an excellent service. They have answers to all your questions about Berlin or train travel around Europe. It's staffed by Americans (so communication is simple), and they have a knack for predicting your needs, then publishing free fliers to serve you (Mon-Fri 9:00-12:30 & 13:30-17:00, closed Sat-Sun and all Jan, great opportunity to get future train and couchette reservations nailed down ahead of time, Prague Excursion passes available, www.euraide.com).
Berlin Walks
This is the most established operation, with the most serious tours aiming at a clientele with a longer attention span. They don't offer "free tours" or pub crawls. I've enjoyed the help of O.B.W.'s high-quality, high-energy guides for many years, and routinely hire them when my tour groups are in town. I've always been impressed with the caliber of the guides that founder Nick Gay has assembled. Tours generally cost €12 (€9 with the WelcomeCard or if you're under 26). Readers of this book get an additional €1 discount on their first tour in 2006. For any of these tours, just show up at the taxi stand in front of Bahnhof Zoo. Many tours have a second departure point 30 minutes later in eastern Berlin 's Hackescher Markt S-Bahn station, outside Häagen-Dazs.
Checkpoint Charlie
While the famous border checkpoint between the American and Soviet sectors is long gone, its memory is preserved by one of Europe's most interesting museums. During the Cold War, the House at Checkpoint Charlie stood defiantly — spitting distance from the border guards — showing off all the clever escapes over, under, and through the Wall. Today, while the drama is over and hunks of the Wall stand like victory scalps at its door, the museum still tells a gripping history of the Wall, recounts the many ingenious escape attempts (early years — with a cruder wall — saw more escapes), and includes plenty of video coverage of those heady days when people-power tore down the Wall (€9.50, assemble 10 tourists and get in for €5.50 each, €3 audioguide, discount with WelcomeCard but not covered by Museumspass, cash only, daily 9:00-22:00, U-6 to Kochstrasse or — better from Zoo — U-2 to Stadtmitte, Friedrichstrasse 43-45, tel. 030/253-7250, www.mauermuseum.de). If you're pressed for time, this is a good after-dinner sight. With extra time, consider the "Hear We Go" audioguide about the Wall that takes you outside the museum (€7.50, 80 min).