Finding Famous Sites in Cold Berlin, Germany

Two years ago we decided to visit Christmas markets in Europe. We went to Budapest and Prague because they had markets that continued after Christmas. However, we felt like we really needed to go to Germany to truly see Christmas markets. This year we realized we could visit the markets early over Thanksgiving week when travel was less expensive. We started with a visit to Berlin. My daughter and her friend would join us for the first half of our journey.

We left on Friday, and after an uneventful ten hour flight to Frankfurt followed by a short flight, we arrived in Berlin. Here our challenge was trying to figure out the transportation system to get to our hotel. The hotel had provided information on the train routes to take, but they didn’t jive with what we saw in the airport. We also couldn’t seem to figure out how to purchase a ticket. Finally with some help we managed to determine the route and process to get into Berlin. We eventually arrived at our hotel tired and ready for bed. However, it was only about 3:30 so we needed to stay up for a while.

We had dinner at a nearby hamburger restaurant and then decided to walk around. We ended up at a mall which sold Nespresso capsules. They were nearly half the price of those at home so my coffee loving wife bought a number of boxes to take home. We got back to our hotel, and finally about 9:00 we crashed with both of us asleep within minutes of lying down.

The following morning we enjoyed a lovely breakfast at the hotel and then set off to explore parts of Berlin. One of the interesting places right down the street from our hotel is an old and large Jewish Synagogue. There are three domes on the top of the building which are quite striking. Unfortunately the building was nearly destroyed during World War II. The back of the building was later torn down and the front has been reconstructed. One can visit the synagogue, but most say the interior is not worth checking out. We just took photos of the beautiful exterior.

We then headed over to what is commonly called Museum Island. The island is in the Spree River which splits and goes around it. This is not a small island, and it has a number of interesting places. The main museum, however, was closed and will remain closed for a few years as they are doing an extreme renovation to shore up the foundation of the museum.

While some of the other museums were open, we chose not to explore them. Of course that didn’t mean we couldn’t take pictures of the exteriors which we did.

My main reason for going to the island was not to see the museums, but to see a large church there. While most of the churches I have seen in Europe have been Catholic churches, this church is a Lutheran church. The Protestant Reformation had a strong influence in Germany with Martin Luther so the country is more Lutheran than anything else.

Berlin Cathedral is a huge and imposing building. I wanted to check out the interior, but as it was a Sunday, the visiting hours for tourists was later. We planned to stop back by later, but we didn’t manage that on this day. We did manage a number of photos of the exterior which was imposing enough. The church fronts a large square and another museum also faces the square.

Across the street from the church the area was obviously set up for a Christmas market, but it was not open yet. We wandered over to see if we could determine when they would be open, but couldn’t find any information.

From there we wandered toward central Berlin. We passed the Berlin Palace. It is a large building housing a number of organizations. A dome caps the end facing the river. There was also a large police presence there. I don’t know if that is typical or not. It was here that I noticed how interesting their manhole covers are. They are quite decorative.

We crossed the river and went off the island. I walked over to another red brick church to take some pictures. I’m not sure what denomination the church is. I didn’t go inside. The door of the church was quite elaborate.

From here we started walking down the main boulevard of Berlin which leads to the Brandenburg Gate. We continued to pass a number of museums with some interesting architecture, However, the closer we go to the gate the fewer older buildings we saw. We passed a large dome church which was quite interesting. It was back off the street. Again a service was in progress so we were not able to check out the interior of the church.

We continued to walk along the boulevard for some distance to finally reach the Brandenburg Gate. The size of the crowd around the gate surprised me. Apparently when the city was divided the gate was not inside either sides of the city. However, when they tore down the wall, it became a symbol of unity between the two parts of the city. Interestingly the American Embassy is near the gate.

We knew that Andrea and Jacob would be arriving soon so we walked back to our hotel with only a few stops along the way for photos. This included more photos of the Berlin Cathedral.

Andrea and Jacob showed up a little later. Like us they arrived very tired after their flights and hungry. We took them out for a Mexican dinner. It was still early after dinner so Silvette and I decided to go for a walk along the river. Since it was dark, I wanted to see if some of the buildings were lit up.

The church had some lights on it, but some of the other buildings did not. We walked a little farther along the river than we had walked earlier. We then headed toward the Fernsehturm or better known in English as the TV Tower. This landmark frequently stands out in photos of Berlin. It has often been visible throughout our journeys today.There is an observation deck one can visit to check out the city. Since it was night we didn’t go up.

To get to the TV Tower we passed the Town Hall, a red brick with a clock tower. Across the street from the Town Hall is a Christmas Market which again was not open. We will check it out in the next few days.

With that we headed back to our hotel. As is often the case with us as we travel, we did a lot of walking today. I’m not sure how far, but I have some aching feet to prove it.

There’s a possibility of a bit of snow tonight. The weather has been extremely cold with the high temperature today barely above freezing. While the weather seems very cold, it does make it feel more like Christmas is just around the corner. Tomorrow we will begin to explore some Christmas markets. Join me back here next Wednesday to read more about our time in Berlin.