2024 • Berlin
June 27, 2024 to June 29, 2024
The last stop on my European trip was to Berlin, the capital of Germany. As the political center of one of Europe’s most powerful and historical states, Berlin has a lot to offer, from history to culture and, indeed, sport. Speaking of sport, while I was in Berlin, the city (along with other German cities) was hosting the 2024 European Soccer Championships. While it was interesting to be in Berlin while such a big event was going on, it was also a bit annoying at times being that the “fan zones” made it more challenging to walk around the historic center of the city—particularly around the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag. Even with the challenges that the Euros presented and the extreme heat that had rolled in just for me, Berlin still afforded me a great time, and I will be sure to go back sometime in the future.
One of the first things that we did while in Berlin was go up to the top of the Fernsehturm Berlin to get lunch and enjoy the panoramic view from the top. The Fernsehturm was built in the 1960s by the East German government to show off and make a case for the superiority of the communist system. They were, of course, wrong, and East Germany and communism would end up falling, leading the Fernsehturm to become a symbol of a reunited Berlin. Because of the heat, we did a number of things to try and get out of the sun as much as possible, including going into the DDR Museum, an exhibit put on by the German Historical Museum, going on a boat ride on the River Spree, and visiting the Topography of Terror. The Topography of Terror was the site of SS headquarters during the days of the Nazi regime, and an exhibition was set up to document the crimes of the Nazi regime and educate people about the dangers of fascism. When I was last in Berlin in 2009, there was a small exhibition on the site, but nothing as extensive and thorough as the one that is there today. Another thing I did while in Berlin was go to the Victory Column in the Tiergarten. The Victory Column was, at one point, in front of the Reichstag but was moved in 1938-39 to its current location and now offers a view of Berlin from the middle of the Tiergarten. Of course, we also spent a fair amount of time just walking around the city, and because the Euros were in town and a Switzerland-Italy game was to be played on the day we were leaving, we actually happened across a Swiss fan zone and they were partying and having a grand old time! Not long after that, it was time to head back to London and subsequently head home!
