DAY 11 / FRIDAY / MAY 21
BERLIN CITY TOUR
OVERNIGHT IN BERLIN
Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. With a population of
3.4 million within its city limits, Berlin is Germany's largest city.
Berlin is a vibrant cosmpolitan city, often called Europe's most trendy metropolis,
having risen from the ashes and devastation wrought by the Red Army in January 1945.
In retaliation for the brutality of the German Wehrmacht and the SS, the Russians
wreaked havoc, leaving hundreds of thousands of civilians dead and millions
more fleeing westward.
First documented in the 13th century, Berlin in 1650 had a population of only 6,000.
But it grew and was successively the capital of the Kingdom of Prussia
(1701–1918), the German Empire (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–1933) and the Third
Reich (1933–1945).
Our Berlin city tour starts at the Brandenburger Tor (Brandenburg Gate),
the symbol of Germany and one of Europe’s most famous landmarks.
It is the only remaining gate of a series through which one formerly entered Berlin.
The gate is the monumental entry to
Unter den Linden, the renowned boulevard of linden
trees which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs. It was
commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace. One block to
the north stands the Reichstag.
Our tour follows the line of the Berlin Wall, through the Nazi Government District
to Checkpoint Charlie. Sights include the 1920s Cabaret Mile, The Reichstag, Hitler’s
Führerbunker, the former
SS Headquarters, the new
Holocaust Memorial, and Potsdamer Platz.
The Topography of Terror (German: Topographie des Terrors) is an outdoor museum located
on Niederkirchnerstrasse, formerly Prinz-Albrecht-Strasse, on the site of buildings which
during the Nazi regime from 1933 to 1945 were the headquarters of the Gestapo and the SS,
the principal instruments of repression during the Nazi era.
Here, in close proximity to the traditional government district,
the Secret State Police, the SS leadership and the Reich Security Main Office set up
their offices.
The administrative headquarters of the Secret State Police and the
notorious Gestapo "house prison" were located at Prinz-Albrecht-Strasse 8. The
neighbouring Hotel Prinz Albrecht housed the offices of the SS Reich leadership.
The Security Service (SD) of the SS Reich leadership was established at
Wilhelmstrasse 102. In 1939, Prinz-Albrecht-Strasse 8 was also the address
of the newly founded Reich Security Main Office.
The buildings that housed the Gestapo and SS headquarters were largely destroyed by
Allied bombing during early 1945 and the ruins demolished after the war. The boundary
between the American and Soviet zones of occupation in Berlin ran along the
Prinz-Albrecht-Strasse, so the street soon became a fortified boundary, and the
Berlin Wall ran along the south side of the street, renamed Niederkirchnerstrasse,
from 1961 to 1989.
The wall itself was never removed from the site, and the section adjacent to the
Topography of Terror site is the second-longest segment still in place (after the East
Side Gallery in Friedrichshain).
The Topography of Terror
Charlottenburg Palace is decorated in baroque and rococo styles
The Kurfürstendamm, known locally as the Ku'damm, is one of the most famous avenues in
Berlin.
The street takes its name from the former Kurfürsten (Electors) of Brandenburg.
This very broad, long boulevard can be considered the Champs-Élysées of Berlin — full of
shops, including those of the most famous designers, as well as elegant homes, hotels
and restaurants.
The Charlottenburg District is situated north of the famous Kurfürstendamm. It is
one of Berlin's major shopping areas that developed in West Berlin during the years that
Berlin was divided. The district's most famous landmark is
Schloss Charlottenburg, an elegant palace
commissioned in 1695 by Queen Sophie Charlotte.
The harmonious Gendarmenmarkt is known as
one of the most beautiful squares in Europe
The Maritim proArte Hotel Berlin is perfectly located in the heart of the city, two
blocks from Unter den Linden, and near the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag.
One of Berlin's most beautiful squares is a few blocks from our hotel. The Gendarmenmarkt
is the site of the Konzerthaus and the French and German Cathedrals. The center of
the Gendarmenmarkt is crowned by a statue of Germany's poet Friedrich Schiller.
The square was created by Johann Arnold Nering at the end of the 17th century as the
Linden-Markt and reconstructed by Georg Christian Ungerin 1773. The Gendarmenmarkt is
named after the cuirassier regiment Gens d'Armes, which was deployed at this
square until 1773.
DAY 12 / SATURDAY / MAY 22
ALTE NATIONALGALERIE & PERGAMON MUSEUMS
AFTERNOON FREE
OVERNIGHT IN BERLIN
Museum Island (German: Museumsinsel) is the name of the northern half of the Spreeinsel,
an island in the Spree river in the center of the city.
The island received its name for
several internationally renowned museums that now occupy all of the island's northern half:
the Alte Nationalgalerie, which houses one of the largest collections of 19th century
sculptures and paintings in Germany, as well as the Altes Museum, the Neues Museum,
the Bode Museum, the Pergamon Museum, the Berlin Cathedral and Lustgarten.
The Museum Island has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the architecture
of the buildings alone would make a visit worthwhile.
The Alte Nationalgalerie on the Museuminsel
The Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery) boasts an exceptional
collection of Classical, Romantic, Biedermeier, Impressionist and early Modernist
artwork.
The Alte Nationalgalerie is regarded as a comprehensive collection of art of
the era between the French Revolution and the First World War, between Classicism and
Secessions.
The harmonious relationship between the museum building and its collection
is unique: designed under the auspices of Heinrich Strack according to plans by August
Stüler, the gallery was built in the years 1867 to 1876. The collection it houses today,
one of the most beautiful of its kind, originates from the same century. Hence, a tour
through the museum offers a profound insight into the art of the 19th century.
The Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery) in Berlin
Altar to Zeus in the Pergamon Museum
The Pergamon Museum is the most visited art museum in Germany. It houses
original-sized, reconstructed monumental buildings from Greece, Turkey and the
Middle East, such as the Pergamon Altar, the Market Gate of Miletus, and the
Ishtar Gate, all consisting of parts transported from the original excavation
sites. The museum is subdivided into the antiquity collection, the Middle East
museum, and the museum of Islamic art.
Museum Island and the Pergamon Museum
Germania: Hitler's Architectural Plan for Berlin
Berlin Wall 1961 - 1989
DAY 13 / SUNDAY / MAY 23
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