The Alternative Tour

We went on the alternative tour, and it definetly has to be a highlight of Berlin. You meet under the TV tower and are taken on a 3 hour-or-so walking tour of Berlin. It was amazing as with one tour guide and small groups it means the tour can be altered somewhat based on your groups interests. Our tour guide was very funny and informative. Told us lots of interesting facts about Berlin, advice on nights out, and showed us hidden parts of Berlin we may have missed otherwise. I learnt so much from the tour, and even better that it is a free tour, with an optional (though you areally should) donation at the end of the tour. Places we visited were Tascheles, The Berlin Wall, Mitte district, The Street art walkway etc. I really would advise the tour as a first thing to do to give you a feel for Berlin when you arrive.

TV Tower

The TV Tower or Fernsehturn i believe it is translated, is situated in AlexanderPlatz and is where the alternative tour begins. We found ourselves rushing towards this as we were running late (as always) for the tour. The TV tower was supposed to be 365 metres high (the same as the amount of days in the year, so to be easy to remember) however it is now 368metres! You can venture up the tower, it is seven stories high, and offers panoramic views of Berlin, aswell as having a restaurant inside. The TV tower is still the only TV Tower in Europe so is very unique and has over a million visitors a year.

The Jewish Memorial/Museum

In 2005, Germany finished completion of the Jewish Memorial, a monument to all of the murdered Jews, it features 2,700 concrete slabs of different heights, widths and depths scattered across a square. With steps in the middle which lead to the memorial museum. It was unveiled on the 60th anniversary of the end of World War 2. You can walk through the slabs in any direction as their is no specific route or information to follow. The memorial is situated by the Brandenburg Gate and is between East and West Berlin.

The Memorial below, was very insigntful, reading stories from the war was very harrowing and upsetting, but interesting at the same time. It offers lots of in-depth information and a chronolgical ordering of events that surrounded the war, with lots of displays and posters. I would definetly recommend anyone to visit.

Reichstag

The Reichstag is the old government building in Berlin, just a short walk from our hotel, we booked a trip to the dome, and we travelled up in the lift, then walked around the spiral slope to the top of the dome. Unfortunately the weather was not in our favour, so the view looks quite bleak, however was lovely to see the landscape of the city. I think the structure of the dome, is very striking, especially from the center:



Brandenburg Gate

The Brandenburg gate is one of the most historic landmarks in Berlin. It used to be one of the gates used to enter Berlin. Located in Unter den Linden, Linden being a type of tree which run down both sides of the street as you enter through the gate. It was comissioned as a sign of peace by King Frederick William the 2nd, although it suffered major structural damage in world war 2, it was restored in 2002.

In 1989 when the Berlin wall fell, the gate represented freedom to the residents of Berlin, who gathered there to celebrate. In the decemeber the west german chancellor crossed through the bridge to greet Hans Modrow the east German prime minister. In 2009 the Brandenburg Gate held a major celebration of the 20th year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall.

Tascheles

Tascheles is an art centre on Oranienburger Straße in the district of Mitte. The building is several stories high and features wall-to-wall graffiti. It had previously housed a Department store, Nazi prison, Cinema and Nightclub however is now the home to many srtists in residents who create astounding colourful murals, graffiti and scultpures.

(All images taken by me)