A Little Berlin Sightseeing

I first visited Berlin back in 2008 and it is without doubt my favourite city, I love spending time there and when I am not in Berlin, I crave to be there. It’s a smashing place to do a little sightseeing so here are some of my favourite bits of Berlin.

Like Big Ben in London and the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the Brandenburg Gate is a famous symbol recognised the world over and a great place to start your time in Berlin.

There is a wonderful atmosphere surrounding the gate day and night with people milling around taking pictures and marvelling at this beautiful site, grab yourself a coffee from near by and spend sometime doing a little people watching, Berlin style.

Alexanderplatz also know as Alex by Berliners is a large square and transport hub in what was central East Berlin. It is also home to the Fernsehturm (Television Tower) where you can look out high over the city from a viewing platform at 207 metres high.

The Berliner Dom is a beautiful cathedral not far from Alexanderplatz and Berlin’s most famous street, Unter Den Linden. Some how it survived the constant bombing of the city in WW2 where virtually all buildings were flattened.

A picture of myself laying on the grass is not usually the most interesting subject but here I am enjoying the autumn sunshine at Tempelhof Airport laying right next to the runway. On the runway itself people are cycling, skating and jogging with no fear of a plane coming to spoil the fun as in 2008 the famous airport closed and was opened up as a park. You have got to love Berlin.

Close to Tiergarten Park you will find the Soviet War Memorial, just one of several erected by the Soviet Union after fall of Berlin in 1945. Flanked by two T-34 tanks it is certainly an important place to visit if you are on the WW2 Berlin trail.

In July 1944 Claus Von Stauffenburg a German army officer led a plot to assassinate  Adolf Hitler in what was known as operation Valkyrie. It was planned and put together here in his office which is now a museum at the Memorial to the German Resistance. When the plot failed he was taken from this room and led outside into the courtyard where he and his fellow brave conspirators were executed.

Tiergarten Park sits beautifully in central Berlin, a great place for a stroll in the sunshine and somewhere to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

In 1989 the Berlin Wall came down, but dotted around the city you are still able to find places where it still stands today. The East Side Gallery is where the longest piece stands at 1km in length. It is truly an amazing site.

 

Every October at The Festival of Lights, Berlin’s famous monuments and streets are lit up brightly by coloured laser illuminations which makes for a remarkable looking city. Walking around Berlin at night you cannot help enjoy the terrific atmosphere and who doesn’t love a little colour thrown on everything?

 

Ah you see, now I am craving another visit to Berlin :)