Photographic Logbook: Tales of an Orchestra Den Mother

Monday, April 18: Olympiastadion

During breakfast Monday morning, we were challenged to find a sufficiently palatable yogurt as a vehicle for The Bear's peanut smoothie. This was an ongoing problem as we moved from place to place. Luke arrived to breakfast late, beginning to crystallize a reputation for running behind. Gabe, his roommate, swore that Luke was awake before he came down to breakfast. And thus, Gabe learned what every parent knows; just because a teenager acknowledges you, it does not mean that they are actually awake!

After breakfast, we were introduced to our local tour guide Johannes and set out to explore more of Berlin.

Our first stop was the Olympiastadion (Olympic Stadium) built between 1934 and 1936 as the Reichssportfeld for the infamous 1936 Summer Olympics. Despite Hitler and the Third Reich manipulating this Olympics into a massive propaganda exercise, American athlete Jesse Owens earned four gold medals and refuted Hitler's notions about the so-called Master race. As we stood in the plaza leading up to the Coliseum-inspired Nazi stadium, I envisioned Hitler throwing a racist hissy fit over Owens becoming the most successful individual athlete of these Nazi-organized summer games. The stadium is one of the few Nazi structures still standing in Berlin, though the British removed all swastikas and other Third Reich trappings when the facility was under their control post WWII.

The Bear and Erica in front of the Olympic Stadium.

Izzy and The Bear at the Olympic Stadium.

Berliners like their bears! From the 2006 World Cup hosted in Berlin.

I spent part of the morning at the stadium texting with a family friend of Izzy's who was studying in Berlin. We hoped to find a way to connect the two girls before moving on to the next destination. In the end, she committed to possibly coming to the concert that evening. Though a tentative plan, Izzy was doing better than I was. I had made preliminary plans to reconnect with my friend and colleague Peter, but he departed the city on a last-minute vacation to the Baltic Sea with his family.

These Third Reich-era statues created by Nazi sculptor Karl Albiker have stood on the Olympic grounds since the tainted 1936 Olympiad and have drawn controversy for their portrayal of the Nazi physical ideal. In a city that has assiduously worked to remove Nazi iconography, opinion is divided on whether they should be allowed to stand or not.

Monday, April 18: Bus Tour

Schloss Charlottenburg, dating to around 1700.

As we passed this landmark, Johannes wryly described it as "Tom Cruise's crazy church."

Charlottenburger Tor (Charlottenburg Gate) dates to 1907 and marked the boundary of the once independent city of Charlottenburg. Urban sprawl is real!

At the center of a massive roundabout stands the Siegessäule (Victory Column). Built in 1873, it commemorated Prussian victory in the Second Schleswig War (1864), the Austro-Prussian War (1866), and the Franco-Prussian War (1871).

The column is decorated with actual canon barrels taken from foes during the preceding wars and gilded.

Atop the column stands the Roman goddess of victory, Victoria. Berliners have nicknamed the statue "Goldelse" that loosely translates to "Golden Lizzy".

Although these photographs from the bus fail to do it justice, we passed the Holocaust Memorial, also known as the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. Completed in 2004, this abstract collection of rectangular stelae of different heights serves as a tribute to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. It seemed the kind of place that might inspire quiet contemplation, but there was no opportunity for that on this trip.

We passed the Sowjetisches Kriegerdenkmal (Soviet War Memorial in Tiergarten) erected in 1945 to honor the 80,000 Russian soldiers who died in the Battle of Berlin from April to May of 1945. After the Berlin Wall was built, the memorial stood in the British sector of West Berlin and needed to be protected by Soviet honor guards. The memorial embodies mixed feelings, both honoring those troops who helped remove the Nazis from power, but also serving as a reminder of how this ushered in an era of communist rule for East Berlin.

By bus, we got a better look at the Reichstag building of German parliament than what we saw by boat the day before. Although the building was completed in 1894, it currently features a large glass dome added in 1999 as part of the building's post unification refurbishment. Natural light from the dome pours directly into the legislative chamber and a large shield automatically tracks the position of the sun to attenuate its brightness.

A spiraling walkway within the dome can be visited by the public and we could see people walking there. The large inscription over the main entrance, Dem Deutschen Volke, translates to "The German People".

Another view of the Reichstag.

Monday, April 18: From Old Fritz to the Neues Museum

Finally, we were able to disembark from the bus and stretch our legs, walking along the famous Unter den Linden (Under the Linden Trees) boulevard. As we explored, Johannes spoke to us through "whisperers", small radio receivers with headphones that allowed him to speak to our large group with a conversational volume.

Reiterstandbild Friedrichs des Großen (Equestrian Statue of Frederick the Great) is a bronze statue dating back to 1851. It pays tribute to "Old Fritz", better known as King Frederick II of Prussia. He evidently had a nice hat.

Looking eastward along the Unter den Linden with the Berlin TV Tower and the Berlin Cathedral dominating the skyline and the German Historical Museum in the foreground.

As a group, we entered Bebelplatz, the site of an infamous Nazi book burning. As Indiana Jones once said, "Nazis...I hate these guys."

Saint Hedwig's Cathedral was originally consecrated in 1773.

This structure contains the old library for the Humboldt University Law School.

The Bear stands before the Humboldt University Law School.

Old Fritz again, viewed from Bebelplatz.

This picture contains three very important people from our tour. Second from left in the dark coat is Julia, one of our two tour guides that stayed with us throughout our European swing. Next to her, third from left, is Ruth, who manages all the administrative details for HYSO. Fourth from left, near center frame is Randy. Randy is HYSO's "Jack of all trades". He is particularly capable with black duct tape, especially when a musician is in need of a black shoe. On this day, his role was sheep dog. He stayed near the rear of our gaggle and ensured that no one wandered off. Because I tended to hang back where I could get better pictures, I'm sure that I absolutely drove him crazy.

Staatsoper Unter den Linden (Berlin State Opera).

The Neue Wache (New Guard) was completed in 1816 under orders from King Frederick William III of Prussia as a guardhouse for the palace. It was rededicated as a war memorial in 1993, the Central Memorial of the Federal Republic of Germany for the Victims of War and Tyranny. Within stands a single statue of a mother cradling her dead child that is positioned directly beneath an opening in the roof where rain and snow falling on the statue symbolize the suffering of the populace during war.

Deutsches Historisches Museum (German Historical Museum).

The German Historical Museum is located in the former Zeughaus (arsenal). It is the oldest structure on the Unter den Linden, built between 1695 and 1706.

Deutsches Historisches Museum (German Historical Museum).

Like many museums and government buildings in Berlin, the Ukrainian flag was on prominent display.

Museum für Asiatische Kunst (Asian Art Museum) and part of the Humboldt Forum.

The Asian Art Museum is in the former Königliches Schloss (Royal Palace) that is now incorporated into the Humboldt Forum that we saw from the river on the previous day. A palace has stood on this site since 1443 though the present main structure was not completed until 1894. This was home to the Prussian Kings, including Old Fritz depicted on horseback just down the road.

Statues on the 1824 Schlossbrücke (Castle Bridge).

Ravaged by both World War II and by the East Berlin government, the palace has been reconstructed with jarringly modern elements and transformed into a museum complex called the Humboldt Forum.

Courtyard of the former palace / Humboldt Forum.

Support for Ukraine in a Humboldt Forum atrium.

Massive atrium within Humboldt Forum.

The Humboldt Forum complex was an interesting juxtaposition between sleek, modern architecture and surviving portions of the original palace.

Across the street from the former palace stands the Berlin Cathedral, still undergoing restoration and repair from its time under communist authority.

Berlin Cathedral.

Main entrance to the Berlin Cathedral.

The Altes Museum (Old Museum) was built under orders of King Frederick William III of Prussia. Completed in 1830, the building was actually constructed as a museum and is not a repurposed government building like so many other museums in the area.

In front of the Altes Museum stands the 1858 bronze statue Löwenkämpfer (Lion Killer).

Behind the Altes Museum we found the Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery). This current home to 19th century paintings and sculptures was completed in 1876. This building and the adjacent Neues Museum (New Museum) are the legacy of King Frederick William IV of Prussia.

Actually, that's him (Frederick William IV) on horseback in front of the museum. These guys really loved their horses.

A beautiful Kolonnadenhof (colonnade courtyard) borders the grounds of the Alte Nationalgalerie on three sides.

In Europe, everything is relative. The Neues Museum (New Museum) was finished in 1855.

"Mr. Gorbachev, Tear Down this Wall!"

We boarded the Gumdrop motor coaches again for a short ride through former East Berlin to visit what remains of the Berlin Wall.

There is something about the Soviet design aesthetic that manages to look distinctly foreign to an American / Western European eye. This includes architecture, artwork, and even airplanes. The artwork on this building in former East Berlin struck me that way.

The remains of the Berlin Wall have been repurposed into an outdoor art gallery.

Luke photographs the Berlin Wall.

Luke, The Bear, and Izzy at the Berlin Wall.

Izzy and The Bear explore the Berlin Wall.

Photo of the Berlin Wall by The Bear.

At one time, this gate would have looked into West Berlin from East.

This iconic portrait entitled, "Danke, Andrei Sakharov" (Thank You, Andrei Sakharov), was painted by Dmitri Vrubel and Viktoria Timofeeva in honor of the Soviet nuclear physicist and dissident who was persecuted by the State for his support of human rights.

"Fraternal Kiss", photo by The Bear.

One of the most famous murals on the wall was painted by Russian artist Dmitri Vrubel and is called, "My God, Help Me to Survive This Deadly Love" (but commonly called "Fraternal Kiss"). It depicts Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev and East German president Erich Honecker at the 30th anniversary of the creation of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1979.

In 2022, it is a simple matter to walk from the East Berlin side of the wall to the West. I was struck by how the expressive artwork is only applied to the former communist side of the wall.

Photo by The Bear.

The Bear stands on the former dividing line between East and West.

Even the placement of lights helped bring home for me how the wall was an East Berlin artifact that was well lit on the communist side to discourage those seeking to flee.

Seriously, when the population you govern is so eager to leave that you feel the need to put up a wall to keep them inside, that's a big sign that you're doing something wrong.

Monday, April 18: Rise of the "Hogwarts School Den Mother"

Back on the bus, The Bear and I were amused by this sign. "So so angry" has since became one of our catch phrases.

We passed the infamous crossing between East and West, Checkpoint Charlie, but did not stop.

We disembarked in Potsdamer Platz where we were turned loose to find lunch. I stayed with The Bear, Izzy, Luke, and Gabe.

"Not my Gumdrop buses!" (With apologies to Shrek).

We saw a lot of people riding motorized scooters that immediately ignited Izzy's enthusiasm. However, an adult with a credit card was needed to rent one. Izzy immediately started tough negotiations with me, but I refused to rent a scooter for her on the basis than Dena would kill me if her daughter returned from Europe with an arm or leg in a cast. To my surprise and relief, the other Hogwarts students had my back. Voices of reason, they were.

The five of us dined at this Paulaner Wirtshaus (inn) where everyone (and I do mean everyone) found something that they liked!

Izzy, Gabe, Luke, The Bear, and me. Photo by Luke.

Lunch was good and so was the company. The Bear is snickering into her glass because Gabe had just opined that her apple juice looked like pee. Because of this lunch, Yana dubbed me the "Hogwarts School Den Mother". It was a title proudly earned.

After lunch, the Hogwarts contingent took in some sun among college students gathered on this hill. Their repose was a temporary state. Before long, we went in search of dessert.