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Nope, it's not standing anymore. Sidonienstrasse is just east of the Hauptbahnhof - no chance a villa could have survived the bombing there. You would be surprised how many famous musicians, composers, actors, writers ... artists have lived in Dresden for a while. Many of them Russians (thus the Russian-Orthodox church south of the Hauptbahnhof which *did* survive the bombing).
Related music news: It was announced yesterday that Christian Thielemann signed a contract to become Chief Conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden from 2012 on. YAY! He's probably the best Wagner/Strauss/Bruckner conductor alive. |
Hi,
I'm another who just falls more in love with the city every time I go (two times so far). The first time, Ingo took me on a wonderful walk down the Elbe and its villas to see the wonderful Blue Wonder Bridge. The second time, despite a pocketfull of plans, I just flit from cafe to cafe enjoying the sunshine and food and people-watching. I think it just gets under one's skin -- or not. I hope to go back pretty soon and maybe get to all the cultural events. 2012 . . . hmm. . . s |
What a wonderful trip report, yk. You always make me want to pack and go!
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<b>Day 5
A Day on the Museumsinsel, and our first wurst finally! October 1 (Thursday)</b> When we were in Berlin, only 4 museums on museumsinsel were open (Pergamon, Bode, Altes, Alte Nationagalerie). The 5th one (Neues) will reopen soon this month. <b>Pergamonn Museum</b> http://www.smb.museum/smb/standorte/...=1&r=4&lang=en We began at Pergamon Museum, which is where be bought our 3-day Museum Pass. One thing I really like about the Berlin museums, is that audioguide is always included with admission fee. The first thing that hits there is the enormous <u>Pergamon Altar</u>. While impressive, it’s not my favorite in the museum. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4528.jpg http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4530.jpg The next big item is the <u>Market Gate of Miletus</u>. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4533.jpg After you walk through the Gate, here comes my favorite: the <u>Ishtar Gate</u> and Processional Way. I love the blue-glazed tiles and the animals that adorn the walls. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4540.jpg Upstairs is the Islamic Art section, with beautifully tiled Minrabs, a wooden ceiling from the Alhambra, and the delicately painted Aleppo room. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4556.jpg We spent less time in the Hellinistic section (we’re not into Greek & Roman sculptures). Altogether, we were at Pergamon Museum for 2 hours. <b>Berlin's Famous Currywurst!</b> It’s now lunch time. While we could eat a museum café, we decided to get our currywurst from the famous <u>Konnope’s Imbiss</u> @ the Eberswalder Strasse station. http://www.konnopke-imbiss.de/ Tram M1 conveniently runs between Am Kupfergraben (2-min walk from Pergamon Museum) and Eberswalder Strasse station. The ride is 20 minutes and we welcome this break from the museums. We each ordered the currywurst with fries, plus a beer. It does taste very good, but is it really the best? That I don’t know as I don’t have others to compare with! To top off this greasy meal, we each had a Magnum Classic for dessert, as if we didn’t ingest enough fat already! It was windy and cold, but that didn’t deter us from having ice-cream! http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4558.jpg http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4557.jpg <b>Bode Museum</b> We rode Tram M1 back to Museumsinsel, and our next museum is Bode Museum, which houses European sculptures. http://www.smb.museum/smb/standorte/...2&objID=28&n=3 We are NOT particularly interested in sculptures, but we went in anyway, roamed through galleries and hallways, and found 1) Donatello's <i>Pazzi Madonna</i>; and my favorite 2) Entire room of works by <u>Tilman Riemenschneider</u>. I find his sculptures very moving. We were already ready for another break, so we visited the new cafe on the 2nd floor at the Bode Museum. It is a nice, airy and open space. We recharged ourselves with 2 coffees. <b>Altes Museum</b> http://www.smb.museum/smb/standorte/...2&objID=24&n=2 Altes Museum holds mostly Greek and Roman works of art. Again, we're not into those much. We did stop and enjoy quite a few Greek amphoras; but our main goal was to see <u>Nefertiti</u>, which is temporarily there until her move into Neues Museum. Well, sadly, Nefertiti was NOT on view. We asked one of the guards, and my understanding is that she is "resting" before the big move later this month. I've seen Nefertiti before, but I was looking forward to seeing it again. <b>Alte Nationalgalerie</b> http://www.smb.museum/smb/standorte/...2&objID=29&n=1 http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4564.jpg Our last museum for today. Alte Nationalgalerie houses paintings - mostly by German romantic artists, and some French Impressionists. I was interested in seeing paintings by Casper David Friedrich, esp after Pegontheroad had mentioned those on her TR. Another disappointment! The entire 3rd floor of the museum was closed to the installation of an upcoming exhibition of Carl Gustav Carus (mentioned by Ingo here: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...omment-5894396 ). As a result, only 4 Friedrich paintings were on view; of the 4, I like <i>The Abbey in the Oakwood</i> the best. We also went to the French Impressionists galleries before we left. <b>Visit to West Berlin</b> It's only around 5pm and it's still light out. With our 7-day transport pass, we decided to hop on a city bus to head to West Berlin. DH has read/heard about Ku'damm a lot and wanted to see it, even after I told him it's nothing more than a shopping street. We got off at <b>Kaiser Wilhelm Church</b> http://www.gedaechtniskirche-berlin....isch/index.php to check out the bombed-out building and the new church. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4571.jpg The mosaic ceiling of the old church is dazzling: http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4566.jpg http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4567.jpg There is also displays in English detailing the history of the church. While I don't like the exterior of the new church, the mid-night blue stained glass viewed from the inside evokes a sense of peace: http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4568.jpg We picked up another bus and rode down Ku'damm. After 5-6 stops, DH decided he's seen enough. We got off, crossed the street, and rode a bus back to <b>KaDeWe</b>, the famous West Berlin Department store. http://www.kadewe.de/en/ We headed straight up to the Gourmet food floor. We were thinking of picking up some food to bring back to our apt as dinner. But then, we went one more floor up to the top floor wintergarten where the Buffet is http://www.kadewe.de/en/shops-stops/...ants/lebuffet/ and we decided it's easier to just eat dinner there. I ate here in 2003 with my parents, and didn't think prices were too outrageous. Perhaps this is now under a new managament, because it IS expensive. Hot main dishes for dinner are 15 euro. We opted for the cold buffet bar (charged by weight), thinking that it may be cheaper. But our bill ended up being 36 euro, and we didn't get that much food! One "problem" I noticed is that the plate is being weighed and charged as well. The cashiers don't seem to cancel out the weight of the glass plate; which easily weighs 100 or 200 grams. Our plate of antipasto (half a dozen marinated mushrooms, 4 stuffed grape leaves) cost 12 euro. We should have stuck with hot main courses instead. But the space is really quite nice. On our way out, I did our <u>only shopping</u> on this trip. A section of Berlin's <b>Ampelmann</b> products caught my eye. In case you're not familiar with Ampelmann, you can read all about him here: http://ampelmann.de/index_english.html I bought an Ampelmann Sigg water bottle http://ampelmannshop.com/product_inf...roducts_id=709 which I've been using daily ever since I've bought it! |
Ingo, will you miss Fabio Luisi? He'll be guest conducting the Boston symphony Orchestra next month.
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Is Gate of Miletus finally off its scaffolding?
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111op, click on the link:
<i>The next big item is the Market Gate of Miletus. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4533.jpg </i> |
That's great. Thanks. Have never seen it without scaffolding before.
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"While I don't like the exterior of the new church, the mid-night blue stained glass viewed from the inside evokes a sense of peace:"
I had the same experience. The exterior was so unattractive, I did not even want to go in. A few days later I did - found the interior strangely beautiful . |
Another terrific report, yk! I always love the way you incorporate photos into your writing.
We're in the planning stages of a return trip to Berlin and Dresden, the last one being several years ago. As we prefer to stay put for a week or so at a time, I'm intrigued by your Berlin apartment, so I'll be checking it out further. Well done! |
Excellent new installment, yk! I personally don't care for Currywurst, but to each their own ... and if you're in Berlin you have to try it once. Wow, still a load of museums ... I think I'd been extremely tired that evening. I love the Pergamon Museum, been there a couple of times before the wall came down. Sorry about the Caspar David Friedrich paintings. But you said you'll come back one day, eh? When the Albertinum iin Dresden opens you'll get to see a stunning collection of his (and his fellows' like Carus, Dahl etc.) paintings.
Luisi excelled in some Italian operas like Don Carlo, Rigoletto. On the other hand he has NO business in Wagner (awful Meistersinger and Ring) and Strauss (Alpine Symphony) except for Hero's Life which was awesome on tour in New York as a friend told me. No, I won't miss him. Hi swisshiker, in the planning stages? ;-) |
I am enjoying your trip report so much! I, also, love the Ampelmann products. I bought a kitchen sponge and enjoy looking at it while doing the dishes. It is so nice to see your photos. Bravo! CJ
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The Ishtar Gate is beautiful- I love the indigo tiles. There is a sma bit of it at the ROM in Toronto- one animal's worth, if I remember correctly. I was lucky to see more of it at the Babylon exhibition at the Louvre last year.
The museums in Berlin sound so good I think I'd like to set up camp in one of them. |
swisshiker, if you have more specific Qs about the Berlin apt, don't hesitate to ask. I was looking at Apt 1's availability caledar, and it appears to be quiet popular.
CarolJean, I should have gotten an Ampelmann sponge too. But I probably wouldn't want to use it. Apres, more museums to come in the next 2 days! |
<b>Day 6
Old Masters Paintings; Modern Architecture; and more wursts! October 2 (Friday)</b> In the morning, we went grocery shopping again, this time in the Schonhauser Allee shopping arcade. We picked up 4 weisswurst from the butcher shop (2,75 euros for 4), milk from the basement supermarket, and baked goods from the bakery. We also picked up veggies and noodles from the Asian market on our street. <b>Kulturforum</b> After lots of aggravation with Berlin's public transit, we finally arrived at Kulturforum. This complex is West Berlin's answer to East Berlin's museumsinsel during the Cold War period. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4573.jpg Across the street from Kulturforum is the odd-shaped home of the <u>Berlin Philharmonic</u> http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4572.jpg [No, we didn't attend a Berlin Philharmonic concert while we were in Berlin. The program wasn't too appealing, and it wasn't Simon Rattle conducting, and tickets were expensive. Plus, the Berlin Philharmonic with Rattle will be in Boston next month, which I've bought tickets for already. Unfortunately, it appears that I may miss it as I'm being tempted to go on another trip.] <b>Gemäldegalerie (Old Masters Painting Gallery)</b> http://www.smb.museum/smb/sammlungen...en&objID=5&p=0 I was in heaven. Period. I visited the Gemäldegalerie in 2003, but at that time, I was still rather ignorant of art & paintings. That's why this is a must-see for me on this trip. It has a huge collection of Flemish Primitives, one of my favorite time period. van Eyck, Memling, van der Weyden; just to name a few. And of course the famous Bruegel painting: <i>Netherlandish Proverbs</i>. Too bad the display next to the painting only has the proverbs listed in German but not in English; otherwise I could have easily spent an hour just looking at each proverb! It also has many Lucas Cranach, Holbein, and Durer paintings. The 2 Vermeers are both lovely: <i>Woman with Pearl Necklace</i> and <i>Glass of Wine</i> What else? A room full of Rembrandts, a stunning Caravaggio. We walked through the Italian Renaissance rooms rather quickly. As I've mentioned before, these don't interest me as much. However, we still stopped to see paintings by Botticelli, Raphael, Titian, Correggio... <b>Bratwurst for Lunch!</b> We ate lunch at the 1st floor cafe of the Kulturforum. The food is quite nice, though the setting isn't as nice as some other museum cafes. I had a bratwurst plate (bratwurst with 2 sides: potato salad and green salad). DH had a pasta special of ravioli with pesto. Lunch was 16 euro. <b>Kunstgewerbemuseum (Museum of Decorative Arts)</b> http://www.smb.museum/smb/standorte/...jID=37&n=3&r=3 At the other end of Kulturforum sits the museum of Decorative Arts. 4 floors of galleries display items chronologically from Medieval times to modern times. Based on our interests, we only visited 2 floors. The top floor houses Art Nouveau and Art Deco objects. I thought it was slightly disappointing, as there are few Art Nouveau but plenty of Art Deco. The basement houses modern designs, including Eames chairs, Barcelona chairs, furniture by Marcel Breuer. To be continued... |
<b>Day 6 continued
Old Masters Paintings; Modern Architecture; and more wursts! October 2 (Friday) Neue Nationalgalerie (Mies van der Rohe)</b> After the 2 museums in Kulturforum (Gemäldegalerie & Kunstgewerbemuseum), we crossed the street to visit the Neue Nationalgalerie. http://www.smb.museum/smb/sammlungen...ID=20&typeId=1 The building itself is a late masterpiece by Mies van der Rohe (A version of Barnett Newman’s ‘Broken Obelisk’ is in the foreground.) http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4575.jpg I was very much looking forward to see its permanent collection, with works by Kokoschka, <i>Die Brücke</i>, Max Beckmann, Gerhard Richter... We were met with disappointment! The entire building is devoted to 2 special exhibitions; so no permanent collection is on view currently. We couldn't enter the special exhibits with our MuseumPass. Since we don't know anything about the 2 exhibitions, we moved on. Looking at my map for Plan B, I decided we'll visit the nearby <b>Bauhaus-Archiv (Walter Gropius)</b> http://www.bauhaus.de/english/ Because of the huge Bauhuas exhibition at the Martin-Gropius-Bau, the Bauhaus-Archiv was <u>empty</u> during that show. As a result, the Bauhaus-Archiv decided to put on an architecture "exhibit" of the building itself; taking advantage of its emptiness to showcase Walter Gropius' design. The "exhibit" is a 25-minute self-guided audio tour of the building. There are a total of 8 stops, starting at the main exhibition hall inside the building, then heading outside to the entrance courtyard, then to the S side along the canal, then the West facade; and eventually back to the main entrance on the Eastern end. We really enjoyed this tour. Gropius initially designed this building for a different location; but it was finally settled in its current location after his death. Therefore, his plan and design had to be altered in order to fit into this plot. From the S http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4583.jpg From the W http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4578.jpg From the E (walkway leading to the main entrance) http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4581.jpg <b>Jewish Museum (Daniel Libeskind)</b> http://www.jmberlin.de/site/EN/homepage.php?meta=TRUE Since the Jewish Museum is open until 8pm every day, we saved this as our last museum for the day. The main building, as many of you know, is designed by Daniel Libeskind. It is famous for the slashes across the outer facade; as well as multiple "voids" within the building. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4586.jpg I had thought this museum is all about the Holocaust, and it isn't. It is more of a chronological display of Judaism in Germany and later Berlin throughout the ages. I thought it was well done and I learned a lot about the Jewish culture. Of course, the Holocaust is still featured, but it's not overwhelmingly dominant. We could have spent hours there, as there are lots of interactive (audio, video) displays. The 2 most memorable spots in the museum are: 1) Shalechet (Fallen Leaves) installation in the Memory Void http://www.jmberlin.de/site/EN/01-Ex.../kadishman.php This is one of those "void" spaces within the building; but the ground is covered with over 10,000 open-mouthed faces made in iron. The guard told us that we could walk on top of these iron faces across the void. DH did so. The noise and echo he made (in this otherwise silent space) was creepy. 2) The Holocaust Tower http://www.jmberlin.de/site/EN/05-Ab...aust-tower.php <i>The bare concrete tower is 24 meters high and neither heated nor insulated. It is lit by a single narrow slit high above the ground.</i> When we went inside the tower, it was dark already. Once we went through the thick heavy doors, I was in complete darkness, except for very very dim light coming through that slit. It was cold, impersonal, and scary. I couldn't see my fingers held in front of me. It gave me a taste of what a concentration camp prisoner must have felt - helplessness and hopelessness. I couldn't wait to get out of there. <b>Quartier 207 (Jean Nouvel) & 206 on Friedrichstrasse</b> http://www.q207.de/en/architektur.html http://www.quartier206.com/ Quartier 207 is home of the Galeries Lafayette. http://www.galerieslafayette.de/ The building is designed by Jean Nouvel. We looked at the giant glass funnel in the middle of that store. The gourmet food level in the basement was rather small actually. Through a passsageway we entered Art Deco-style Quartier 206. It is a shopping mall with a dizzying floor pattern: http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4589.jpg <b>Wursts for dinner</b> We pan-fried the weisswursts for dinner back at the apartment. They were delicious. I also made veggies noodle soup. We ended our dinner with a slice of cheesecake bought from the bakery this morning. This lovely dinner cost about 7 euro. |
I was in complete darkness, except for very very dim light coming through that slit. It was cold, impersonal, and scary. I couldn't see my fingers held in front of me. It gave me a taste of what a concentration camp prisoner must have felt - helplessness and hopelessness. I couldn't wait to get out of there."
I was there on a sunny summer day but felt the same way. I have never imagined an empty space could be so moving. Some people came out weeping. |
danon, off-topic completely, may I ask which Habitat Apt in Barcelona you stayed in last year? I saw you referred to that company in several threads, but I didn't see which particular apt you rented. I may need further apt location assistance from you as you seem to be very familiar with Barcelona.
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<b>Day 7
Modern to Contemporary Art October 3 (Saturday) - German Unification Day</b> Today is our last full day in Berlin; as well as Day 3 of our 3-day MuseumPass. We began our day at the several museums in Charlottenburg, right across from Schloss Charlottenburg. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4593.jpg <b>Bröhan Museum (Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Functionalism)</b> http://www.broehan-museum.de/en_museum.html I really like Art Nouveau, so I enjoyed this small-ish museum a lot. Ground floor exhibits both Art Nouveau and Art Deco objects (ceramics, glass vases) plus furniture. I'm not too familiar with Art Nouveau artists names, but at least one set of furniture there was designed by Guimard. First floor mainly shows Art Nouveau silverware - dinnerware and coffee/tea services - from different European countries. So one can compare and contrast AN styles of say, Great Britain vs Denmark, or Austrian vs Belgian. The other half of first floor is the paintings gallery. The top floor is closed for an installation of a new exhibition. Per the website, <i>On the 3d floor a cabinet is dedicated to the Belgian Art Nouveau artist Henry van de Velde and another to the Vienna Secession artist Josef Hoffmann.</i> Sadly, I wasn't able to see any of this. <b>Museum Berggruen (Modern art)</b> http://www.smb.museum/smb/sammlungen...ID=22&typeId=1 Located right next door to Bröhan Museum is Museum Berggruen. Its main collection is works by Matisse, Picasso, and Klee. The building is circular, so one follows a circular route through the galleries, which hangs the works (mostly) chronologically. Ground floor begins several galleries with Matisse. The last room or 2 is Picasso earlier years (1900-1910). 1st floor is completely dedicated to Picasso. Since it doesn't have an overwhelming collection, I find it perfect to get a taste of various styles & stages of Picasso throughout his life. We went from his Blue Period to Cubism, then Guernica/WWII period. There were also many portraits of Dora Maar in different renditions. The last paintings by Picasso there are from 1960s. I am not a huge fan of Picasso, but mostly because of his long career and his HUGE oeuvre. Every time I go to an exhibition of his, I get exhausted by the overwhelming number of works. Therefore, I really liked this Picasso collection at Berggruen. It covers 60 years of Picasso's career in a manageable fashion. 2nd floor has one room of Giacometti's sculptures. The rest of the galleries filled with works by Paul Klee. This is another artist I'd like to know more about. However, because of time-constraints, we didn't have time to listen to the audioguide. Next time, maybe. <b>Collection Scharf-Gerstenberg (Surealism)</b> http://www.smb.museum/smb/sammlungen...12807&typeId=1 This is housed in a building across the street from Museum Berggruen. They must be part of the palace buildings as they are identical. But Collection Scharf-Gerstenberg also extends beyond the circular building into the next door former Royal stables. This entire building used to be the Egyptian Museum. When I was in Berlin in 2003, this was where I saw Nefertiti. This surrealist collection is a quite disappointing, with few paintings by well-known artists. Having had enough art and museum for the morning, we ate lunch at the new cafe here. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4594.jpg It only serves sandwiches, soups, and salads. Choices are limited but quite good. We also like the airy setting. We shared: brie sandwich, green salad with feta, tomato soup, and flaky pastry filled with spinach and cheese. Our lunch was 16 euro. To be continued... |
I also like Giacometti and Paul Klee a lot. Basel and Zürich are *must* see places for you then.
Too bad so many collections were closed or not on display. See, you need to return soon ;-) |
I just returned last night from a week in Switzerland (gulp . . . being a budget traveler, had quite the shock, pricewise!), so am late reading your wonderful report.
Your reports are so much better than any guidebook, and I copy each of them for future travels. Thank you so much for posting and for posting so entertainingly. Sandy (in Denton) |
yk,
I rented from Habitat twice , both 2 bd. apt.: Via in L'Eixample and Princesa 1 in El Born I visited Barcelona 3 times in the last three years. The first time, we stayed in a private home in a residential part of the city Les Corts which was a nice way to see the areas of Barcelona usually not on the tourist map. I just love the city . We are going to Spain in April and will ,most likely, go to Barcelona again. Your reports are always so good and informative. I did not have the energy ( after Prague and Dresden) to see all the museums you have seen.... hope to go to Berlin again some time in the future . |
YK
I didn't say I USED it. I just look at it. I absolutely love it. (Yes, I'm wierd.) Love your report and admire your stamina. Oh, to be young. I envy all of the trips and memories you have ahead of you. CJ |
Wow, you went through those museums and it's only lunch time?!
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danon, thanks for the info. I didn't realize you rented 2BRs, which is probably too much room & too pricey for me.
sandy_b, thanks for reading this! I hope you enjoyed your trip to Switzerland. Thank you again for all the assistance you've offered me! MFifi, I think we saw those 3 in 3 hours. Bröhan Museum doesn't have audioguide; and not very much English displays. Since the top floor is closed, and I'm not interested in the painting galleries, we really only have to see 1.5 floors of that museum. We didn't use audioguides for the other 2 museums; so we went through them rather quickly. Honestly, by Day 7, we are museum-ed out. I try to make sure the first museum of each day is the one that matters most to me; as I have the most energy and attention in the morning. CarolJean, nothing wrong with looking at Ampelmann sponge and not using it. :) Ingo, there was a Giacometti exhibit in Dallas (@ Nasher Sculpture Center) a few years ago and we absolutely loved it. |
Great report as usual, yk - thank you much. I really never had much interest in Germany but those museums sound great. For Klee, you should go to the Zentrum Paul Klee in Bern - I took a trip there about 4 years ago.
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yk,
Habitat has a number of one bdms .in the same areas of Barcelona ( even the same buildings) |
<b>Day 7 Continued
Modern to Contemporary Art October 3 (Saturday) - German Unification Day Hamburger Bahnhof</b> http://www.hamburgerbahnhof.de/text.php?id=94&lang=en http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4597.jpg Hambruger Bahnhof is the museum for Contemporary Art. It picks up from where Neue Nationalgalerie drops off. Unfortunately, we only have one hour there. The space is huge and one can easily spend hours there. Therefore we spent our hour in: 1) East Gallery - Works by Anselm Kiefer, Rauschenburg, Cy Twombly, and Warhol 2) West Wing - full of works by Joseph Beuys This shows one of the Beuys gallery with Dan Flavin's light installation: http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4599.jpg <b>Sammlung Hoffmann</b> http://www.sammlung-hoffmann.de/inde...te/sammlung/en I found out about this private collection through 111op's & caroline_edinburgh's Berlin trip reports. One has to email in advance to reserve a spot, as it is only open once a week on Saturday. English tours are available. Tour lasts 90 minutes and costs 8 euro. Erika Hoffmann changes the artwork once a year during the summer. Each year she has a different theme. We were the only 2 people who showed up for the 4pm tour. There were a few others who had signed up but didn't come. This year's theme, in conjunction with the 20th anniversary of the Fall of Berlin Wall, has to do with Germany & Berlin's recent history. Our guide who grew up in East Germany, added her own personal point of view too. While we don't know most of these artists (mostly German), it was fascinating to see works done as a reaction to contemporary history. If you are going to Berlin this year or early next year, I highly recommend coming here for a visit. BTW, we got to meet & speak with Mrs. Hoffmann during our tour! <b>Ending our trip with a blast!</b> After a brief rest and change of clothes back at the apartment, we set off for our final destination on this trip - the <b>Reichstag</b>! http://www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/visits/kupp.html I made a dinner reservation for this evening about 2 months ago. I chose tonight simply because it would be our last night in Berlin, and I thought that would be a lovely way to end the trip (and celebrate our wedding anniversary). In addition, I had no desire to wait in line to get into Reichstag. With a restaurant reservation, one can use the handicapped entrance and bypass the line. Of course, when I made the reservation, I had NO IDEA that today is German Reunification Day, which of course is a BIG DEAL in Berlin, esp around Reichstag & Brandenburg Gate! Because of traffic and crowds, we were 10 minutes late for our 8pm reservation, but we didn't have trouble with the guards at the handicapped entrance (they have a list of names who have reservations). DH decided to go for the 4-course dinner for 68euro. One can choose any dishes from any courses for that. He had scallop tartare topped with 3 types of caviar as starter; then ravioli with chanterelle mushrooms as "primi"; veal coated with mustard sauce as "secondi"; and finally dessert (which I can't remember what it was). I ordered a la carte: carrot-ginger soup to start, followed by black cod (I think). Here's the dinner menu PDF in German only: http://www.feinkost-kaefer.de/filead...a_la_carte.pdf We received chef's <i>amuse bouche</i> before our meal. We must be getting old, because neither DH nor I can remember what it was (I didn't write anything of the food down, GASP!). We were offered a plate of petits fours at the end of our meal. Our bill was 119 euro. I asked the server about tip and he said it was included. We added another 6 euro tip (not sure if that was okay, too little, or too much?) Our dinner took 2.5 hours. Service was slow initially when the restaurant was completely full. Reichstag is open until 12 MN, but last entrance is 10pm. Therefore, by the time we were done with dinner and ready to visit the dome at 10:30pm, the crowd was thinning quickly. There is a huge outdoor concert going on right at Brandenburg Gate. From the rooftop of Reichstag, we see a sea of people and we could hear the music loud and clear. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4622.jpg We then made our way into the dome and up the spiral ramp. By now, there were no more than 2 dozen people left in the building. It was GREAT! I love looking down at the mirror funnel into the Parliament chamber below. http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4614.jpg http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4619.jpg http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_4623.jpg At the top of the spiral ramp is a landing with a large circular bench. The bench is shaped in a way that one can lie down on it and look up at the sky. The top of the dome is open to air, so we basically were lying on our backs and watching the dark sky. It was just <i>magical</i>. It reminds me a bit of James Turrell's skyscapes. It was a perfect ending to our trip. We happened to leave Reichstag right when the concert ended, so we walked along Unter den Linden with thousands of Berliners, most of them very happy and quite drunk. -------------------------------------------- If you want to visit Reichstag but without spending the $$$ at the restaurant, I think you should consider arriving around 9:30pm or so. The fact that so few people remain past 10:30 or 11pm makes the visit much more pleasant! |
<B>Day 8
Home - 15 hours and 5 meals later...</b> Don't ask me why, but I decided to book us on a 7:15am flight out of Tegel Airport. I think I had 2 options when I was booking flights, either this early one which would get us on the morning flight out of London to Boston; or a late morning flight from Tegel that connects with the afternoon flight out of London to Boston. We didn't go to bed until 1 am the night before; and our alarm was set for 4am. Initially, I was going to pre-order a taxi for us. But feeling quite frugal, I thought we could just use public transit (€2,80pp). I used the BVG Journey Planner to double-check the train and bus schedules. We were able to leave our apartment key on the dining table and close the door behind us. The manager-lady had no desire to check the apt with us that early in the AM. We left the apt just before 5am and walked over to Schonhauser Allee S-Bahn station. I expected the entire place to be deserted, and was a bit worried about safety. OMG, how wrong was I! There were TONS of people out and about at 5am on this Sunday morning. Even the wurst/gyro stand was open for business. DH remarked that there were more people out right now than the Sunday afternoon when we arrived a week earlier. The S-Bahn train arrived on schedule. Almost every seat was taken. We got off at the Beusselstrasse Station to change for the TXL bus. There were about 8-10 people waiting at the bus stop. This was 5:30am!!! When the TXL bus came, the bus was almost full. I could not believe so many people are out and about in the wee hours in the morning! At Tegel Airport, we stopped at the BA Lounge for breakfast. Tegel is similar to Vienna's airport: each 1-2 gates have its own security and immigration check. Therefore, the BA Lounge is located OUTSIDE security. The Lounge is small, with very mediocre food for breakfast. We didn't stay for long. On our short flight to Heathrow, we were served a breakfast sandwich. At Heathrow, we had to do the reverse T5->T3 transfer. This took about 40 minutes. Now that the new BA Terrace Lounge has opened in T3, that's where we went, instead of the AA Lounge which is undergoing renovations. The BA Terrace Lounge is <u>very nice</u>. It's huge, light and airy, and lots of good food. Naturally, we ate our third breakfast there. :) I booked flights with the <i>shortest</i> connection time possible, so sadly it was time to leave the Terrace Lounge. It is so nice that I really wish we had more time to hang out there! I swooped through the duty free shop to pick up some skin care products (still much cheaper than US, thanks to the weak £), then headed to our AA flight home. On our flight, we were served an edible (in fact, quite tasty) lunch; followed by the usual cheese pizza (I passed) right before arrival. Our plane touched down at Logan at 1pm ET. With no line at immigration on this Sunday afternoon, and with no checked luggage to collect, we were out on the curb by 1:15pm! As soon as we stepped out, we saw the courtesy shuttle for our parking lot. We were home in no time. |
I checked my notes and apparently we met Mrs. Hoffmann also. I guess she really makes a point of meeting her guests.
Out of curiosity, do you remember any of the German artists in Sammlung Hoffmann? I remember a c. 1960s German kinetic art piece from an artist whose name escapes me at the moment, but most of the artwork when I visited was not German. I guess even if she had a Gerhard Richter or a Neo Rauch, she was probably not going to put it on view. The most famous name when I was there was Frank Stella, and it was late colorful Stella rather than the early prized Stellas. However her art was well presented and thought provoking -- so much so that even before I looked at the notes, I could remember some of the stuff I saw there. The most interesting piece at that time was work by Marijke van Warmerdam, who was contracted to deliver an ice ball to Mrs. Hoffmann every Saturday. As I mentioned to you, I also used public transportation early in the morning for the airport with no trouble. Berlin is the only city in Europe I can think of that rivals NYC with smooth 24h public transportation. In fact, I guess it's really the city I can think of that can rival NYC in this area. |
<b>Thoughts on Berlin</b>
Here are my random thoughts about this city: 1) It's huge, too huge in fact. Even with great public transit, it still takes 20-30 minutes to get from Point A to Point B 2) It only took DH a few hours in Berlin before he commented on the Graffiti 3) I do not find Berlin pretty. It's nothing like Paris, or Vienna, or even London. In fact, I cannot think of any specific spot that is particularly scenic. 4) What attracts me to this city is not scenic spots. It is the HISTORY. You can feel it everywhere in the city. 5) I find the people in Berlin quite cheerful and friendly. We did not encounter one rude person on our trip. 6) In terms of prices, I find Berlin on par with other major European cities. ------------- I didn't plan this trip to Berlin just because this is the 20th anniversary of the Fall of Berlin Wall. It just so happened. Obviously, there are lots of events and celebrations this month and next month. If you're interested in this 20th anniversary, check your local German embassy to see if there are any events being held in your city. Yesterday, we went to the premiere screening of a new documentary titled <i>Writing on the Wall: Remembering the Berlin Wall</i> by John J. Michalczyk, a professor at Boston College. http://www.mfa.org/calendar/event.as...ate=10/11/2009 It is a nice documentary, hopefully it will be widely distributed. The documentary interviewed plenty of people, including former mayor of West Berlin, former German ambassador to Great Britain and Nato, a former pilot for the Berlin Airlift, Edwina Sandys (granddaughter of Churchill), and many local Berliners. Keep your eyes out for this film! |
We definitely saw 2 works by Richter. The other German artists I really don't remember, as I don't recognize their names. Many of them are from Dusseldorf. But even looking at this list: http://www.sammlung-hoffmann.de/inde.../kuenstler/en/ doesn't ring a bell for me.
We also saw 2 works by a Japanese female artist (who has been living in Berlin for severa years), 2 works by Fang Lijun, a video installation by a Korean woman, another video by Israeli artist Yael Bartana, an entire wall stacked with tin cookie cans by a French artist (each can is filled with the artist's own memorabilia)... And then there are a couple works by Judd, and a pile of posters by Gonzalez-Torres. |
Was the French artist Boltanski? He's pretty famous.
I think that we might have had Gonzalez-Torres also, and also Christopher Wool. I think the kinetic art piece I saw could have been by Heinz Mack (mentioned in the ZERO group on the web page -- actually all the names there are familiar to me). Thanks! |
Wow yk, great report! I think you may have convinced me what my winter Europe trip will be! Thank you!
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<i>Was the French artist Boltanski? He's pretty famous.</i>
Probably. I don't recall the name, but googling his works seems to fit with the installation we saw. There is another piece of work by him as well - it was a bundle of white cloth with some newspaper clippings hidden within. However, no one is allowed to touch the cloth to see what the newspaper clippings were about. Does that sound like Boltanski? I told DH that we are probably the least educated people (in contemporary art) to visit Sammlung Hoffmann. :) Hi amyb! You may want to reconsider going to Berlin in winter! I know you aren't afriad of the cold, but it really will be very cold and grey there; and short daylight hours. Wait, doesn't that sound just like where we live? :)) But in all seriousness, I think one of my cousins went to Berlin a few winters ago and they were stuck there because of ice/snow storm. No trains nor planes were running. |
hi yk
You may want to reconsider going to Berlin in winter! I know you aren't afriad of the cold, but it really will be very cold and grey there; and short daylight hours.>> and in the summer [we went at the beginning of august a few years ago] it's REALLY hot. we spent a lot of time in the air-conditioned museums and walkin around by the canals in the late evening. a good place to visit in spring/autumn. |
'In terms of prices, I find Berlin on par with other major European cities.''
As far as hotels go , one gets MUCH better accommodation in Berlin for much less than Paris or London. My very nice, big room at Melia in the center of the city was less than 90 euros in July. A very small, unattractive room in the center of 6th last July in Paris was 150 euros. But, Paris is Paris... |
and in the summer [we went at the beginning of august a few years ago] it's REALLY hot."
I was in Berlin at the end of July and it was cool with some rain ..it warmed up the last couple of days at the very end of the months. The weather is a mystery almost anywhere.. |
sorry.. month.
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What an informative report. You are so methodical!
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