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  >  Destinations  >  Germany  >  Going back in time to Berlin

It’s hard to believe so much of the history of Berlin is so recent.  It’s a city that you can step through the past and attempt to imagine what it was like.

Part of this is done through the museums – The city holds one of the world’s best museum complexes on Museum Island.  The gem of this is the Pergamon Museum, which houses many original Greek and Roman monuments including the 2nd Century BC Pergamon Altar. We did not make the visit as I had been previously, and there was also a fest happening at the Deutsche Historiches Musesum.  

The German History museum provides an overview of the nation’s economic, political and social history, starting from the ninth century and continuing all the way to the present day. You could spend an entire weekend in there!  Small but interesting fact is that it holds the oldest globe – its a very interesting view of what they thought the world looked like!

Another part is actually seeing some of the past.  The Berliner Dom is the largest church in the city, and well worth the seven euros for a visit. It is a beautiful cathedral, and it also allows for great views of the city should you choose to climb on to the dome!

Down the road from Musesum Island stands the Brandenburger Tor, or Brandenburg Gate. This is the only remaining city gate in Berlin, which opened in 1791.

Just on the other side of the gate stands the Reichstag.  The building has a modern glass dome on top, which boasts amazing views of the city.  Book online many days in advance to ensure you have a place!

Of course, there’s also the Berlin Wall, a symbolic boundary between democracy and Communism during the Cold War.  While there are pieces of the wall still standing, there is also the Berlin Wall Memorial which provides the detailed history of the wall that separated this city for 28 years.

Even when we were shopping or wandering around, we still managed to stumble upon historic sites, such as Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedachtnis-Kirche.  This church (built in 1895) was heavily damaged during WWII, but they have left the remains standing as a reminder of the horrors of the war.  Just built around it is a modern building, built of blue mosaic/glass blocks and providing beautiful lighting and a different take on what a church should look like.

In addition to seeing this church, walk around the area and along Kurfurstendamm.  We only visited this area to see the New Look store, but it’s a great shopping area with all of the major brands.  And not far from here, there are a number of great restaurants and bars.