I think they should market a Babylon Berlin Walk – I’d like to check out all of the places used in that show. In the event Joe organised a walk with at least one site that featured in the show. Here he is planning it.
While I write my blog. This is how we spend most mornings on our holidays together.
This day Clare had gone into the city on an exploration on her own. Joe had discovered we were close to where the Communist Party’s 1929 Mayday demonstration that resulted in the complete breakdown in support by the Left for the Weimar Government had taken place. This was featured in one of the Babylon Berlin episodes. The Government had banned the demonstration and when the Communists persisted the police shot into the crowd – either as instructed or on their own initiative – the tensions between all the players is brilliantly portrayed in the show. In real life there were nineteen demonstrators killed and 250 wounded. Here is the actual street where the demonstration was held. It’s so small!
Here am I next to the street name – to prove that we were really there! A man walking down the street with his daughter must have wondered why we were there taking pictures. Unless he knows its history.
The surrounding apartment buildings, then and now, are all very deep, reaching back to the canal that runs alongside the street. As depicted in the show, they were full of impoverished working class people. Police claimed they were shot at from the tenements, demonstrators denied it. You can imagine the chaos and confusion as everyone became entangled fighting, shooting, running. We found the memorial. Next to Joe you can see the QR code that when scanned tells you the whole sad story.
You can see the inscription better in this photo.
We then followed the path alongside the canal.
You can see how densely populated the area would have been during the Weimar years in apartments where as depicted in the show people shared beds – one slept during the day, one during the night whilst they worked their different shifts. Awful.
It was a very pretty walk. This looking at the canal from the bridge near the memorial.
It was a beautiful day, the trees are looking lovely and the water is soothing.
Lots of interesting buildings on the other side of the canal.
We didn’t know what they were.
And plenty of graffiti on our side.
Interesting artistic venues.
As well as modern new housing estates.
It was a very pretty walk and there were plenty of other people about enjoying it.
By and by we came to a park.
Which contained this statue – a sure sign we were near the site of the Wall.
As indeed we were. Joe is standing at the corner indicating where the street signs tell us the Wall stood.
And so we followed the street, eventually coming upon this further sign on the pavement. When we were young we thought the Wall would be there forever and yet it lasted less than 30 years.
Continuing along we came upon a military hospital – Joe wondered whether there would be any Ukrainian military personnel being treated there.
There was military stuff on our right hand side as well – which we couldn’t see due to a high hedge and obviously not for photographing! Turning right down at the corner we came upon this remembrance of time past.
It’s one of 280 watchtowers occupied by border soldiers along the Wall and is now a memorial to Günter Litfin who, on August 24, 1961 became the first person shot and killed attempting to cross into West Berlin after the Wall was completed on August 13, 1961. He’d grown up in the East and worked in West Berlin and was cut off from his job by the Wall. I think it would be awful to be overlooking this tower from one of the nearby apartments. I wonder what people think of it; I suppose they get used to it. History is everywhere in Berlin so much so that perhaps it is nowhere.
While we were looking at this a helicopter was hovering overhead – can you see it in the picture below? Look at the crane in the background and the scaffolding on the right – Berlin is a city of building works.
This yellow structure is the Golda Meir Bridge spanning the Berlin – Spandau Canal – still a major shipping thoroughfare.
Here am I beside it, with the Golda Meir bridge behind me.
It’s a very beautiful stretch of water.
Further along – I think we have turned to the right and away from the main canal we came upon this.
I’ve been trying to get a picture of the pipes that take water from building sites – as I’ve said before I think these are all over Berlin. Here’s an example from just before the building above.
And then these – no signs to tell us what they were, but we suspect something about the Wall. On the other hand it might just be an avant garde art installation! It was beside a very busy road.
At the same place I saw these lovely flowers – some sort of crocus I think. I’ve seen them growing wild in a number of places. Pretty.
Homeward bound we came upon the massive Bayer complex – about six full blocks. I tried to capture the enormity of it in one photo but it was impossible. This is about half of what is on one side of the road.
While this is on the other side.
And turning down the road the buildings kept coming. Mostly modern.
But incorporating this lovely old building.
I was surprised to find that from here it was a relatively quick walk back to our apartment. Past this very chic coffee place where we intend to frequent one day.
Clare had had a good time exploring Berlin but had still had time to collect ingredients for dinner – she cooked us up a delicious meal of our favourite weisswurst sausages with brussels sprouts and walnuts and pomegranate. Very flash.
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