Here’s the youtube video!
When we weren’t rehearsing or performing, we experienced Berlin….
The East Side Gallery is a 1.3km section of the wall that was painted by artists from all over the world in the early 90’s. It is currently the focus of much political tension because it may be moved or destroyed in order to make way for luxury apartments. I hope that does not happen; it’s very powerful to see all of these images on the original wall in its original position….
There were so many paintings and they were all so different. Here are a few:
And a video of a small segment:
Berlin is filled with Museums. I went to three. First, I visited The Pergamonmuseum in Museum Island. It is filled with antiquities, including the Pergamon Altar and the Gate of Ishtar from Babylon. It was awesome to see the processional way in its entirety:
The canvas reads:
The content of this painting is invisible; the character and dimension of the
content are to be kept permanently secret, known only to the artist.
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From left to right: Alex, me, Elizabeth, Daniela |
The next morning I listened to the various project presentations at the conference. A dozen grantees were selected to present their projects; the variety was astounding and every one’s project sounded super interesting! Here are few topics that I found particularly interesting:
Milovantseva
and pastries!!!!!
…then off to a picnic lunch in Viktoria Park/Kreuzberg. This is a very large hill in an otherwise totally flat city, which means after an icy climb to the top, Alex and I got a great view of the city.
The view from the top. |
Looking up towards the hill and monument. |
And the best part of the park:
and GOATS!!!!!!
Some thoughts on Berlin:
Memories of WWII and the divided city are present everywhere. There is an eerie feeling of tension–of the city trying to rebuild itself and find an identity. It’s as if the wounds from the 20th century have not yet entirely healed; the scars at the least are present in every day life. There are so many monuments and statues everywhere, it’s impossible to escape the city’s history. The sounds of the trains and trolley cars and crows, lots of crows, seems to add to the eeriness. Yet Berlin is full of a lively grittiness. The contemporary music and art scene permeates the city. I got to listen to a bit of jazz and see some of the smaller galleries–which reminded me of New York. Overall, it’s a fascinating city where you never know what you might find!
Gallery of Random Photos:
A very German bar where I enjoyed some German beer in Germany, finally! |
Tiergarten. You can see the flea market where I bought a beer stein in the background. |
Brandenburg Gate |
Radio tower and my hotel to the right of it. |
St. Nikolai Kirche, the oldest church in Berlin. |
Oberbaum Bridge |
Giant Crows!!!! |
Berliner Dom (Cathedral) |
A box of pretzels on the street, which is normal, because there are pretzels everywhere! |
The Hauptbahnhof (or main train station in Berlin with the Reichstag in the background) |
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