BERLIN: ARCHITECTURE

We embarked on a Bauhaus and Architecture tour led by a woman named Nina, whom we hired through Context Tours. For this trip, we booked all our Berlin tours with Context and used ToursByLocals for the other cities. A notable difference is that with Context, we met our guides at the starting point of the tour, whereas with ToursByLocals, they picked us up at the hotel before proceeding. Both organizations provide knowledgeable and informative guides. Nina is a sculptor originally from Poland. Our first stop was the Bauhaus archives, which are currently under renovation, as is much of Berlin.

The Bauhaus style existed from 1919 to 1933, with Mies van der Rohe being perhaps its most famous architect. He left Berlin for Chicago before WWII and contributed significantly to its skyline. However, he did design the Neue National Gallery between 1965 and 1968, which remains a beautiful museum with an impressive collection of contemporary art, including extensive works by Gerhard Richter. Many embassies have been rebuilt since WWII, with the Scandinavian embassy being particularly notable.

It houses all the countries within a collective of buildings, each unique to the nation it represents. A bluish copper metal wall defines the water surrounding these embassies, symbolizing the North Sea. Throughout Berlin, you can see the scars of WWII, with bullet and shrapnel marks on buildings, or large sections missing; these are the structures that survived, as many more were destroyed. One example seen here is the Italian Embassy:

The rebuilding of Berlin adds to its complexity, as some might prefer the removal of all Nazi-built buildings, while others view them as important reminders of history and its lessons. The city has enough older buildings that have been rebuilt, showcasing its 750-year history. It also features stark reminders of communism with plain, functional block buildings, and many new gleaming structures that began appearing in the 1990s after the Berlin Wall fell.