Eugene IHS in Berlin

So after many moons of being silent on this blog, it is time to begin anew.  I have included mostly pictures of the students rather than the sights; they can show you their pictures of those when they get home and tell you all about it!

Saturday morning was the start of a long day for the lucky few going on our spring break trip.  After meeting at the Portland Airport at 8AM, checking in, and a game of 2 Truths and a Lie, the group flew out.  Things got exciting after an easy transfer in SFO and a long flight to Frankfurt when a bizarre mixup led to the plane being held on the tarmac.  The resulting missed connection was rectified, and the group finally arrived in Berlin on Sunday, tired and a bit delayed, but no worse for wear.

Gus, Kendra, Kaela, Sera, and Tess playing 2 Truths and a Lie in PDX

After dumping our bags in the hotel in Spandau in western Berlin, we hopped a train to the Alexanderplatz, the square that served as a major hub of East Berlin and that is now a bustling area.  There we met up with the other part of our tour group--a school from near Ottawa, Canada.  We walked down past the Neptune Fountain to Hackische Hoefe, a series of interesting and artsy courtyards, which we explored briefly before heading to our dinner location--just next door to Schloss Charlottenburg.  By then we were tired after two days of travel and sightseeing, and we returned to the hotel by 8:15.  By 9:00 we are pretty sure everyone was asleep.

Kaela, Kendra, Justice, and Alex waiting for the train

Sera, Tess, and Serren enjoyed the Hackische Hoefe

Serren, Justice, Alex, Kendra, and Kaela at dinner

This morning we experienced a typical German breakfast--bread rolls (Broetchen) and cold cuts, cheese, fruit, cereal, and eggs.  Then it was back on the subway to Checkpoint Charlie, where we learned about the Cold War, the Berlin Wall, escape attempts, and many other interesting things.  Since we were given free time, some of us went souvenir shopping while others wandered the neighborhood enjoying the lovely weather.  A few of us made it to the Topography of Terror museum, which houses exhibits about the SS and is situated on top of the old SS headquarters site.  It sits next to a long section of the wall which is still intact.  After lunch, we headed over to the Jewish Museum, which tells not only of the Holocaust, but of the history of Jews in Germany over many centuries.  This was completely fascinating.

Hailey celebrated her 18th birthday today--at Checkpoint Charlie!

Gus teaching Alex and Justice about the history of the Wall--while standing at the Wall (behind me, not in the picture).  Think they are learning anything on this trip?

Walking back after Topography of Terror--did you know that a family once escaped East Berlin by zip lining from the building on our left (a ministry building) over the Wall (on our right) on a homemade harness and line?

The Memory Void exhibit in the Jewish Museum--the idea is to walk across the metal faces without making any noise.  Can't be done.  Powerful exhibit.

After so long on our feet, we were glad to do a bus tour.  Our local guide was an Oregonian(!) who has lived in Berlin since 1960 and was a long time State Department employee--he used Checkpoint Charlie almost daily.  Our bus tour took us to the Bayerischer Platz, a former Jewish district that is still pretty today; there we took a short walk around the neighborhood and saw the placards that explained the laws passed to restrict the rights of Jews over the years under National Socialism.  Students got a kick out of watching local children on the playground, too.  Once back on the bus we headed over to Gruenewald, a beautiful villa district and home to the Gleis 17 Memorial.  It was from this train station in the upscale neighborhood that many of Berlin's Jews departed on their way to ghettos in Lodz or concentration camps like Theresienstadt.  While the memorial is somewhat dark, the villas, lovely scenery, and phone booth library all served to lighten the atmosphere.

Here we are with our Canadian friends.

Our drive then took us up the Kurfuerstendamm, West Berlin's main boulevard, past the KaDeWe (Kaufhaus des Westens, the Harrod's of Berlin), the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, and Embassy Row.  We hopped out and walked across the Holocaust memorial, which is a series of stones among which people can easily lose each other.  We kept walking past the American Embassy to the Brandenburg Gate and the Tiergarten.  We also saw the Hotel Adlon of Michael Jackson dangling baby fame.  We got back on the bus and drove down Unter den Linden, the primary boulevard of a reunited Berlin, across the Spree and past the Berliner Dom (the major cathedral), the Alexanderplatz, and Hackische Hoefe to our dinner destination just next door to the old synagogue.  Then we had a short free time to wander and do a bit more shopping before heading back to the hotel on the train, where Sera and her suitcase shared a joyful reunion.

Serren, Tess, and Sera review the day's pictures on the train back to Spandau

Tomorrow we head to Warsaw.  We are excited about our long train ride--what a great way to see the countryside!  We've been enjoying getting to know the Canadians, and while students loved Berlin and want to stay and experience so much more, they are also ready to see what the next city has to offer.  Stay tuned for our next update, this time from Poland.