End of Week Two

The weather is hot and sticky here in Berlin, and we've been out in it every single day, soaking in the city and the sights.

Last Thursday our group visited Sachsenhausen concentration camp, which is just outside Berlin. We arrived in the tiny town of Sachsenhausen early and most students were surprised by how close the buildings of the town are to the site of the camp. We had a long tour of the camp with our guide, Matthias, and were sometimes shocked and sometimes overwhelmed by the things we saw.

"Work will make you free" entrance sign

The day was hot and we were all tired and emotionally exhausted from walking around the camp all day, but we found new energy as we boarded the train back to Berlin. Once there, many of us decided to get off the train at Bellvue, a stop close to the Tiergarten. We knew Barack Obama was in Berlin and we hoped we hadn't missed his speech at the Victory Column. Tired as we were, we marched long the Strasse der 17. Juni and ended up relatively close to the site of the speech. It was a very neat experience to be present for what may turn out to be an important speech, perhaps comparable to Kennedy's and Reagan's speeches in this city.

Casey and Ashley in the crowd waiting for Obama's speech.

When I note that we were "relatively close," I mean it: in the picture below, you can barely make out the Brandenburg Gate in the background. People were stretched all the way to the Gate and beyond: about 200,000 people are estimated to have been in attendance.

Bunches O' Germans and the Brandenburg Gate

After the speech, the Tiergarten was abuzz with activity, criticism, praise, and speculation. T-shirts that spoke of the "Global Tsunami for Change" were seen all over (Dr. Scribner has photos). The German news magazine Der Spiegel has a nice photostream of the event here.

On Friday, several students left for Warsaw, Poland and Dr. Scribner took off to visit an old friend in Macedonia. It turned out to be a restful day for most of the students who remained in Berlin. Rose, Ashley, Molly and Dr. Slagter went out in the hot sun for a few hours to see the Neue Wache (photo below), the official German memorial to those victims of war and dictatorship. We then marched to Bebelplatz (site of one of the Nazi book-burnings) and the Gendarmenmarkt, perhaps the prettiest square in Berlin (and maybe in Europe?). Later that evening, Stacy T. and Dr. Slagter took in an amazing performance of Gershwin's folk opera Porgy and Bess at the Deutsche Oper (despite the teasing from John and Molly).

Kaethe Kollwitz sculpture in the Neue Wache

Saturday, Rose, Katie P., and Stacy T. headed to Winterfeldplatz to enjoy the huge open-air market held there every Saturday. This is a lovely way to spend a morning, and we all enjoyed the fresh fruit (including the largest blackberries imaginable) and Dr. Slagter introduced Stacy T. to the glories of Kaiserschmarrn, destroyer of waistlines everywhere.


Saturday afternoon most students were on their own, enjoying the city in their own ways. John took off on a long walk and "tried to get lost, but was unsuccessful." Ashley, Amy and Lukas went to Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, which opened in Berlin only very recently (7/5/08). See Ashley or Amy's blog for great photos (assuming they post them).

As for Dr. Slagter, she spent Saturday afternoon improving U.S.-German relations with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. A professor's work is truly NEVER done.