Our Trips: United Kingdom and Germany Part I. May 15

This is our second trip to Europe to catch concert and opera performances in various cities. The cities we will be stopping at are Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig, and London. We came by this list with a few inputs: a high school friend of mine suggested Dresden is a good place to visit, both for its history, architecture, and the opera house; we were in Berlin September of last year and wondered what it would be like to listen to a concert inside the modern looking concert hall; we wanted to stop by London anyway to see some friends; the same September 2019 Reformation Tour skipped Leipzig, known for the Leipzig Disputation, and it was the home of Bach, Wagner, Schumann and other well-known composers.

CS and Shirley couldn’t come because of CS’s prior commitment to a Scotland tour. I had to do most of the planning, but also could make faster (not necessarily better) decisions as there was no opposing view.

Nearly all the concerts and operas are in the evening, so we do have some days we can use to get to know the cities better. To that end we bought, skimmed, and brought along Rick Steves’ rather heavy guidebook – I hope it’s worth the weight.

Wednesday 5/15. United has a day flight to London. I picked that flight thinking it would give us a good night’s sleep so we could arrive Berlin (our first city) refreshed. As I am typing this in a Hyatt Place hotel room, I realize it may not offer much benefit.

We vacillated between staying at an EWR local hotel the night before, but decided against it as Eric could pick us up at 6:30 am this morning for an 8:30 am flight. Being a night owl, that meant I got about 3 hours sleep last night. The plane was late coming in (from Dulles, of all places), so our departure – and arrival – was delayed by about an hour. The United Club was not all that crowded, so it was a pleasant wait.

The 767-400 was packed, but the 6:30 hours of flight time passed by quickly enough. We got to the gate at around 9:30 pm, and after a long walk from there to Customs, had to wait another 30 minutes to get through. It was about 10:15 pm that we got out. It took us a while to find out where Uber picks up at LHR T2, so it was close to 11 pm that we checked into our hotel. The Uber driver mentioned he had to wait 90 minutes, so the evening ended up not being too productive for him.

We last visited Heathrow about 10 years ago. Terminal 2 used to be this rather tired looking building, it's been completely modernized. Newark, I am talking to you ...

The Heathrow of today is very different from the Heathrow I last visited. And the immigration official told us a new automated system will be on line soon, perhaps in time for when we return here from Berlin. (We won’t be arriving in Terminal 2 though.)

At the hotel desk we were told there is a free bus that connects Heathrow to the hotel.

Accommodations: Hyatt Place Heathrow (1 night.)

Thursday 5/16. We had to wake up relatively early to catch the 10:50 am flight to Berlin. It turns out bus rides between the periphery of the airport and the terminals are free, and we caught one just across the street from the hotel. Terminal 5 is used by only British Airways, and the only non-BA lounge was Aspire, a Priority Pass lounge; and it had a reasonable breakfast spread which we took advantage of.

Heathrow Terminal 5 is (nearly) exclusively British Airways, and so are the lounges. Aspire keeps a couple of lounges, which is great for Priority Pass holders.

Rather limited hot breakfast selections at Aspire. They ran out of sausages when I took this photograph.

We learned a couple of things about British Airways, which I had not flown for quite a while. First, at least for this short haul flight, it had most – if not every – of the characteristics of a low-cost airline. The seats don’t recline, the armrests and the two restrooms are very small, our small bags were tagged with “no overhead bin” signs, and even coffee or tea is charged. On the other hand, we were allowed another “full-size” carryon (which they tagged and put in luggage hold), but to their great credit got us to Berlin safely, on time, with pleasant and polite flight attendants.

Berlin’s Tegel airport was close to town (reasonably as it was in the former West Berlin) but is quite dated. This trip made us realize immigration booths are right at the gate (causing a backup in the deplaning process) and not terribly efficient.

We took the Bus TXL to the main train station where our hotel is located. One would think a bus labeled “TXL” would be traveler-friendly, but this was just a long, articulated bus. So we had a full bus with luggage blocking the aisle and passengers in contorted positions. The upside was the ride wasn’t that long. We downed a quick snack at SF (Station Food) Fish and Chips before checking in the hotel.

We managed to get a hour of sleep before we headed to Konzerthaus for tonights concert, stopping by SF Cucina Nueva for a quick bite before, and SF Fatih Servet Doner for a late snack after. The hotel gives Travel Cards to its guests, and the transportation system in Berlin so far has proven quite straightforward.

Konzerthaus Berlin was built in 1821. It is located in Gendarmenmarkt, flanked by the French and the German cathedrals. Radio Symphony Berlin calls this their home.

Ornate interior of the Konzerthaus.

Accommodations: InterCity Hotel Berlin Hauptbahnhof (4 nights).

Friday 5/17. We both had a good night’s sleep – woke up after 9 am this morning. Breakfast was at SF, I from Burger King, Anne from Pret-a-Manger; these are international companies.

When we got to the platform for U55, we discovered that it was under repair. We didn’t see any trains there, so concluded (erroneously) that the train would not stop at the platform, and took Bus TXL instead. It was crowded, but got us to the Brandenburg Gate. We followed Rick Steves’ audio guide for a bit, stopping by the Jewish Memorial, the site of Hitler’s bunker, and walked by a few other landmarks; we had seen most of these on our Fall 2018 trip, although today was very pleasant, and there were lots of tourists about.

Rick Steves suggested using the Academy of Arts as a shortcut, and the washroom in the basement was free (although there are machines, so I imagine that can change). The coffee house also offers a quiet respite. The atrium of the regular-looking DZ Bank Building has a “sculpture” (for lack of a better term) designed by Frank Gehry that looked uncommon but grotesque.

We took U55 back to Hbf, turns out they do use the platform. U55 appears to be a shuttle between Hbf and the Brandenburg Gate, with a stop at the Bundestag.

Unter den Linden leads east from the Brandenburg Gate. During the Soviet era the original Linden trees that lined the Boulevard were cut down. These small trees were planted after the re-unification.

Many embassies are located in the Brandenburg area, including the British and American ones. Many streets have vehicle access blocked off.

The atrium of the DZ Bank building is dominated by this huge Frank Gehry designed object (a fish?). Not to everyone's taset.

Brandenburg Gate. It was raining hard when we were here in September 2018, and there were many fewer tourists.

This "Bicycle Rack" is a memorial to those German politicians killed by the Nazis because they objected to Hitler's policies.

The last in a row of white crosses pays tribute to the last German killed trying to cross into West Berlin.

We first saw these "Beer Gardens on Wheels" in Nashville. Makes more sense in Germany.

Hitler supposedly like statues like this (Prometheus in this case) as indication of strength.

A tour guide standing where Hitler's bunker used to be. This is now a parking lot. The guide was speaking in Hebrew.

Most of the trains are modern-looking. These cars used for U55 seem to be from a much older era.

We went to Philharmonie to listen to a Berlin Philharmonic concert in the evening. Dinner was at Asian Gourmet in the train station where most dishes are priced a around 7 or 8 euros.

We were slightly confused by M85, at first thinking it was a tram. Turns out it was a bus. Once we figure that out, getting to and from the concert hall was quite straightforward. M85 runs every 20 minutes after 10 pm, so it was close to 11 pm when we got back to the hotel.

Berlin Philharmoie was built in the 60s. Other complexes from the same period are the Sydney Opera House and Lincoln Center.

This design is found throughout the Berlin Philharmonie.

There is a large organ to the left of the stage. Having the musicians surrounded by the audience was pioneered at this location.

Herbert Blomstedt conducted the Berlin Philharmonic at our concert.

Night view (around 10:15 pm) from bus stop outside Berlin Philharmonie.

Saturday 5/18. With concerts in the evening, and time spent writing up about the day and the concert, I have been going to bed quite late. It wasn’t until about 11 am that we left our hotel room. The train station was bustling with activities, this being a weekend.

Today was Museum Island day. A day ticket at 18 euros allows one to visit all five museums on the island, but we decided to hit the two most popular ones (per Rick Steves): Pergamon and Neues. Pergamon centers around the altar some German archaeologist dug up at the turn of the 20^th century, and contains three main exhibits: Islamic art, classical antiquities, and ancient near east. Where is Pergamon? When we got to the Island we found out the gallery containing Pergamon Altar is closed, the guest is invited to visit a Panorama built to reproduce what life was like around that time (for 6 euro each). Pergamon is one of the seven churches mentioned in Revelation 2-3. While we couldn’t find any reference to the Christian aspects of the city, we did learn a few things. Pergamom was a city-state formed after Alexander the Great was defeated; the city had a large amphitheater, most likely for plays; the palace was naturally located at the top of the hill; it worshipped Athena; and it was a center of mosaic art. Interesting to the historian, I suppose. The Gate of Ishtar was certainly impressive, so is the Miletus market place. Western Turkey was of great important during those tumultuous years. Aleppo is the oldest continuously occupied city in the world, and some early Christian residents were quite rich as evidenced by “The Aleppo Room.”

The Pergamon Altar display of the Pergamon Museum is closed for renovations. Tourists can pay additional fee to visit the Pergamon Panorama showing what the city could have looked like at that time.

The Pergamon Altar (this is part of the panorama) was dug up by German archaeologists and shipped to Berlin. The altar was built around 150 BC.

Nyx or Persephone in battle.

This is what scholars think the frieze looked like.

A panoramic view of the Gate of Ishtar, built around 575 BC by order of Nebuchadnezzar II.

These are the stone fragments dug up by the expedition teams. Experts at jigsaw puzzles too.

Miletus market place.

The most famous display in the Neues Museum was the bust of Queen Nefertiti. It had broken ears, and one of the eyes wasn’t completed. Perhaps like Mona Lisa, people in the know make all kinds of claims and excuses for her. As far as I can tell, the “new” in the museum’s name is in reference to other museums on the island, there is nothing new about the objects on display. The skeleton of a giant elk talk about how the ice age killed them off in the northern part of Germany, and the display wonders if the warming climate will bring them back (they are around in Poland). A fancy golden hat (first century BC) and a statue of a young man drenched up from the Rhine (first century AD) point to the civilization that existed in the area at that time.

No photographs allowed inside the room where Queen Nerfertiti's bust is displayed. Okay if one shoots from the next room.

The inscription in the Museum says the Berlin Gold Hat was made in first century BC. Wikipedia article says it was made in the Late Bronze Age, about 1000 to 800 BC.

Roman bronze statue of youth dug up from River Rhine.

It was close to 5 pm when we got back to the hotel. We rested a bit and headed for Deutsche Oper Berlin to see Turnadot. On our way back we stopped by McDonald’s for a quick snack.

Deutsche Oper Berlin has a rather austere appearance.

Interesting structure (clam shells?) inside.

The auditorium is functional, no elaborate baroque or other decorations.

The Train Station for the Opera House.

Tiles painted with different composers' names and some representative symbols.

Sunday 5/19. We found out to our amusement, and chagrin, that the Spree River is only steps away from our side of the Train Station. We bought tickets for the noon 1-hour cruise, and enjoyed the sights along the way. It was sunny, not too hot, perfect weather. There were quite a few boats and we often had to wait for oncoming traffic as bridge clearance would allow only one boat to get under it at a time. The ride reminded me of a similar ride on the Brisbane river: things look better from the water.

Starting the day with wursts bought at Curry 360 in the Berlin Hbf.

Many river boats offer tours on the River Spree.

The Bode Museum marks where the Museum Island splits the Spree River. The branches will rejoin at the other end.

The boat ride takes us past the Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral).

View of Cathedral from the front.

Specifications of the boat we rode in.

We grabbed a light lunch at SF Pret-a-Manger, and then proceeded towards Museum Island again. We had to walk about a kilometer from the S-stop as many roads were blocked off for some demonstration (we didn’t see any). The German History Museum describes the country’s history from about AD 500 to the present. This is a complicated country. I did spend sometime digesting what the displays say about Martin Luther; different historians have different takes on what exactly happened – no surprise there. How the Nazi’s came to power is always sobering.

German History Museum. Today was museum day and admission was free.

Portraits of Martin Luther and Katharina von Bora painted by Cranach Sr.

We decided not to enter the Berliner Dom, and instead had coffee at the Dom Café.

In walking towards Alexanderplatz we got to pass by St. Mary’s Church and a statue of Martin Luther. During East German times, the statue was removed and Marx and Engels statues placed in the square. It was returned after Reunification.

St. Mary Church, with radio tower in the background. During the East Germany era the statue of Martin Luther was moved so statues of Marx and Engel could be placed in this square.

The lighter side of Berlin. Here these young people enjoying themselves along the river.

Berlin is associated with bears. Once you see one you can't help but seeing them all over ...

like this one ...

or this one right outside our hotel.

We passed by this interesting fountain on our way to Alexanderplatz.

It was close to 7 pm when we got back to the train station, so we ate at Asia Gourmet before we headed back to the hotel.

My after-dinner walk took me to northern bank of the river, and there it was: two rows of bricks marking where the Berlin Wall was.

This part of Berlin has a very modern look to it. In the center is the Hbf.

Two rows of bricks mark the Berlin Wall location.

Monday 5/20. Jetlag finally hit. I woke up at 6 am and couldn’t get back to sleep. Anne and I went to the train station where I had a bagel from Dunkin Donut, and Anne had some fruit. We walked along the river bank so Anne could look at the bricks marking the Berlin Wall. It was then a bus (TXL) to Unter den Linden. We walked by Humboldt University where the Grimm brothers studied and Einstein taught, Bebelplatz where books forbidden by the Nazis were burned in 1933, a statue on horseback of Frederick the Great, the Berlin State Opera, the Comic Opera, and Gendarmenmarkt where two cathedrals (French and German) and Konzerthaus are located.

Deutsche Staatsoper is another major opera houses in Berlin. They also seem to put on an impressive program of operas.

Bebelplatz of Humboldt University.

Location where Nazi's had about 20,000 books burned.

Plaque describing what happened on that day of May 11, 1933.

This used to be a guard house. The architecture (Greek Temple) of the building is quite different from the others along this Unter den Linden.

Komische Oper tends to put on more modern operas.

Panoramic view of Gendarmenmarkt. Konzerthaus flanked by the German Cathedral on the left, and the French Cathedral on the right.

Train to Prague that would make a stop at Dresden.

It was then back to the hotel to pack up and check out. I am typing this on the 2-hour ride to Dresden. The transportation passes given to us by the hotel were most useful, we could just jump on and off buses, trains, and trams without having to worry about anything. And no one stopped us to check our tickets.

Train got to Neustadt a few minutes after 3 pm. It was raining on and off during the last half hour or so of our trip, but by the time we disembarked it stopped raining. The walk from the station to the hotel was over somewhat uneven pavement. As I type this Monday evening, I must say Dresden has what I would consider an East Germany feeling, somewhat like the towns we visited during our late September 2018 trip. Things look a bit old, and a bit unkempt.

Westin Bellevue is across the river from the main city sights, about a fifteen minute walk to Semperoper. The one restaurant nearby is Nordsee, and we had a quick meal there before the opera.