Travel Archives '06: Berlin

Berlin will most likely be an entirely diffierent city 5-10 years from now, as much of it appears to be undergoing a major facelift, and there are numerous building projects underway throughout the city. It seems that very little remains of the Berlin that was, with the exception of a small neighbourhood in East Berlin that has been restored, and a number of monuments and buildings such as the Brandengburg Gate and the Reichstag still stand. It was interesting to see how revitalized Central Berlin and East Berlin have become. I was not particularly keen on staying in the heart of the former Communist Berlin, as I still have memories of what life was like on "the other side" of the wall from the 80s, or at least what the Western capitalist-controlled media led us to believe. I spent most of mz time in Berlin in this section of town, however, since what I was most interested in seeing was in this part of the city. You'd never know by the look of it that Berlin itself was levelled 60 years ago, and one half of it essentially left to rot.

While Berlin appears to be well on its way to becoming a city of the future, it has not attempted to ignore or cover up the past. There wasn't a sense that anything regarding the war was being ignored or lightly dealt with, in fact, it's the opposite. There's a fantastic Holocaust Memorial located just a block or two from the Reichstag. If you visit this site will in Berlin, make sure to look for the entrance to the underground exhibit/museum, which depicts the history of the Nazi persecution of the Jews and other groups quite well. I would have missed this entirely had I not walked from one end of the above-ground memorial to the other. There is also an open-air museum that documents the terror tactics of the Nazi Party, and specificallz the SS and SA, and documents the proceedings and outcomes of the Nuremberg Trials.

One of the more interesting aspects of Berlin was coming across leftover sections of the Berlin Wall, the longest section being a 1 km stretch in East Berlin, which is referred to as the East Side Gallery. Artists from around the world came here in 1990 to paint individual murals on the wall, creating an interesting mosaic. Unfortunately, most of the works have been graced with East Berlin's answer to Art Nouveau: half-assed graffitti tags that can be seen on just about every building and sidewalk in this part of town.

That being said, I probably spent half of my time just outside of Berlin, travelling to Potsdam to see the palaces of the Prussian kings and princes (which are located in a garden the size of Port Coquitlam), and to Orenienberg, to tour one of the SS concentration camps that was used primarily for detaining political prisoners.

I didn't feel as if I connected with Berlin in the same way I have with other cities. Maybe it was because I was so far out from the central hub of activity, but I also think a lot of it has to do with a rather dull hostel scene here in Berlin. I mean, I'm sitting here at 11:00 PM with a litre of beer in my hand writing this, and apart from the staff, there's no one else here. Oh wait, here are a couple of 14 year-olds up at the bar ordering Cokes. I guess I should mention that the hostel has been overrun these past few days with busloads of high school kids from England, France, and from elsewhere in Germany. Sadly, there have been no WWII re-enactments; things might have picked up a bit. Imagine this scene:"My grandpa blew up your grandpa! Oh yeah, your grandpa was a race traitor!" Funny? No, didn't think so.

There were a few folks a little older that I've seen during my stay here, in particular a trio of blonde English girls from Northern England. Apparently there are good looking English girls after all. Unfortunately, they were on their way out, and I was left with the best of the rest, so to speak. I've become increasingly weary of constantly meeting the same people in each hostel. It seems that no matter where I go, I inevitably run into the same types of people. If anyone has "hostelled" before, you probably know what I mean. For those of you who have not, I've preprared a rough analysis of these hostel types:

1) The Tragic Backpacker: This is the kind of person, either male or female, that has been backpacking for months, maybe even years, and wants you to know it. These types can easily be identified by their unkept dreadlocks, facial hair (yes, even on the women), tattered and worn clothing, and a general look of suffering and despair on their faces. They generally like to wax philosophic, with special attention paid to Marx and organic farming.

2) The Homoerotix: Generally speaking, this type consists primarily of young, British men, but does not necessarily exclude the Aussies, which I'll get to later. This group travels abroad in packs with the sole intention of getting laid. Sadly, those in this group have neither the looks nor the skills to accomplish this task, so they are resigned to getting outrageously drunk together in the absence of any females, secretly hoping that one of them will let their pants down.

3) The Siestas: This is a particularly interesting group, consisting primarily of Spaniards, but in my experience can also include the Maltese. Persons in this group can be found in one of three positions throughout the couse of a day: sleeping, showering, or sitting around their room with their shirts off. I'm not sure exactly what the Siestas really do in a day, since I've only seen them engaged in one of the previously mentioned endeavours.

4) The Aussies: The Aussies are generally a fun-loving bunch and can be found in every hostel you go to. I figure there are so many Aussies abroad due to a shortage of crocs left to wrestle in their own country, thus leaving them with very little to do. hte Aussies fall into a similar description as the Homoerotix, but typically only travel in twos, and are not exclusively male. The Aussies are a high-maintenance bunch, however, and if there is no possibility of getting laid or obtaining exctasy, they'll most likely take the party elsewhere.

5) The Xenophobes: Usually American, and typically unwilling to talk to anyone. Move on, you won't get anywhere here.

Of course, I'm not sure yet how to classify myself. I feel as if my attitude and demeanor has changed to fit each place I've stayed at, responding to each situation as it arises. Perhaps we might describe that as typically Canadian. In fact, I'd say that the best people I have met on the road thus far have been Canadian (and one Mexican!), so I think that says a lot.

Brett

Next: Lederhosen and Bratwurst, and still yet to come, and in-depth look at German fashion trends.