Beesleys in Berlin: Downtown & Neues Museum

Mar 9, 2013

It was a cold late winter day, but as the Germans say "there is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropiate clothing". So we put on our warm clothes, jumped on the train and headed down town.

Probably the most recognizable site in all of Berlin is the Brandenburger Tor or as we say in English the Brandenburg Gate. It is the former city gate, rebuilt in the late 18th century. It is located west of the city center of Berlin at the junction of Unter den Linden and Ebertstraße. The gate is the monumental entry to the renowned boulevard of linden trees, which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs. It was commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791. Having suffered considerable damage in World War II, the Brandenburg Gate was fully restored from 2000 to 2002. During the post-war period when Berlin was divided the gate was isolated and inaccessible immediately next to the Berlin Wall. It was very impressive to be able to see it and walk through it to which is essentially walking from West to East Berlin or visa versa.

As you arive on the other side you can still see the bricks in the highway that were once part of the Berlin wall.

Above and on the right, the trees are part of Tiergarten, a famous wooded park in downtown Berlin. All of the trees were cut down immediately after WWII and used by the poor as firewood, so all the trees are new growth over the past 50-60 years.

The East Germans/Russians built their own version of a very practical car, the Trabant. It has no frills, none. The seats were barely custioned benches, but is was simple enough mechanically that almost anyone could repair it.

Now they have a stretch Trabant limo for the tourists at the Brandenburg Gate.

Other tourist traps by the Gate include the "American Soldier" and the "Russion Soldier" will to stand and let you take your picture with the for a price. Der Herr mit dem Top Hat drives one of the many horse carriages that roam the streets downtown.

Later we will feature other of the downtown highlights but the main reason for the trip was to visit "museum island" and specifically the Neues Museum which is the home of Nefertiti. Museum Island is a complex of five very large museums all located on one city block. Neues Museum or New Museum was opened in 1999 specifically to feature Nefertiti and the other Egyptian aritifacts. We saw her with our own eyes from as close as a couple of feet.

The total bust is only what you can see here and is life size or about 18" total height. For a bust that was made 1340 BC, the color and features are very impressive. Note that her left eye is missing. Actually it is white, but either was never completed or was destroyed before it was discovered by archeologists. The reason it is in Berlin and not in Egypt where Nefertiti lived was because it was German archeologists that discovered here while working and studying in Egypt. They convinced the Egyptian government that she was not a significant find and somehow got her to Berlin. The Egyptians have tried unsuccessfully for years to get her back.

The Neues Museum is huge with many other exhibits but obviously she is the main attraction. Some pictures around and inside the museum.