After studying both Nazi Germany and the Cold
War through nondescript GCSE textbooks and handouts, I and thirty nine other
year elevens were thrilled to visit the place about which we had heard so much
about; Berlin.
Touching down at the grey, concrete airport
just outside central Berlin and travelling then down the main roads, the most
immediate observation to become apparent was the similarity of the buildings.
The vast majority were functional to the point of dull and had obviously seen
better days. This was the first hint at the gulf of difference between
capitalist London, which has a varied kaleidoscope of architecture, and Berlin
with its communist history.
We next enjoyed a fantastic tour of the main
touristic hotspots of the city on foot. Although reaching temperatures of minus
eleven, most of us were engrossed in the hoard of interesting gems of
information and insight that under our layers we felt fine.
Thinking back, the people of the city, the
everyday Berliner of Potsdamer Platz, seemed oblivious to this history that has
become synonymous with their city. Our
group were polar opposite to how they felt. It begs the question, do we, living
so close to London; once the capital of the British Empire, reject our history?
In Berlin, an example could be the site of
Hitler’s infamous bunker. It is situated only ten metres from a huge block of
flats but since filled completely with concrete. Of course, it is wise to avoid
turning the site into a monument for Neo-Nazis, but I do not believe that
smoothing over history as if it never happened is wise either. Surely humanity should
remember its darkest period so history does not repeat?
Wishing to give a chronological account of
all the places we visited, word counts apply. I will, however, touch upon the
place that touched us most. Located disturbingly close to metropolitan Berlin,
Sachsenhausen concentration camp was in a prime location as the administrative
control centre for the whole Holocaust. I shall not list the obscene facts about this camp but one does stick
in my mind. The camp was at one point so overcrowded that one dawn role call
took eighteen hours as all ‘workers’ were counted. Having to stand during this
time caused over twenty people to drop dead.
In the
four days were there, we visited many sites of both the communist and fascist
eras. It was interesting to how the two regimes dealt with their victims. The
communist Stazi police force focused on intense, individual and physiological
torture to extract information from political opponents. This contrasts
dramatically to the techniques used by the Nazi Party shown above. I noticed
the contrast while visiting the Stazi Prison. Surrounding the Prison, greyness
was supreme; colour had been eradicated.
