Berlin was on my list of places to visit because of the historic events that took place there. I wanted to see the memorial for the Berlin Wall and one of the concentration camps.
One of the first historic sites I saw was Checkpoint Charlie, which was the best-known border crossing between East and West Berlin during the Cold War. The site has a replica of the original gate house.
About a mile down the street are remnants of the Berlin Wall. I stood in what was once West Berlin. There’s also the Topography of Terror, an outdoor and indoor history museum. I didn’t go in the museum but I’m told that it’s worth a visit.
I next went on a tour to a concentration camp. We met up with the tour guide at the train station where we boarded the train for a 45-minute ride. We walked through a neighborhood which was the same route the prisoners of the camp had to take. The guide mentioned that most of the prison guards and other workers of the camp lived in the neighborhood. Just thinking of this was quite eerie. At the end of the street there is the camp (Sachsenhausen Camp). There are 2 of the barracks still there but if I remember correctly, one is a replica. All other barracks were destroyed. The pictures below give you an idea of the camp. The stories told my our guide was unbelievable. I can’t imagine how anyone survived the torture of that place.
I also did a tour of the city on a sightseeing bus. It was nice to see the other areas of the city instead of all the gloom and doom. I spent some time in one area that had shopping, restaurants, and lots of people.
When time came, I was ready to leave Berlin.
