Where is the final destination of Berlin?
The answers are many. It could be Alexanderplatz, Branden Burger Tor, Berliner
Dom, Checkpoint Charlie, Museumsinsel Berlin, Kurfüstendamm, and The Wall. Except
missing Anne-Sophie Mutter’s performance at Berliner Philharmoniker, and
Branden Bruger Tor due to President Obama’s November visit, during my solo
travelling, I experience the amazement of Berlin and I truly having loads of
inspirations.
The late autumn of Berlin is filled with
cloudy raining days, it gives a nostalgic touch of this historical city hence,
it makes me spending more afternoons getting lost between the museums and
gallery halls. On Museumsinsel (Museum Island), purchasing 72-hour museum pass
allows travellers visit and revisit, so again I conquer Neues Museum to visit
Nefertiti (ca 1340 BCE, Amarna Egypt) and Golden Hat (1000-800 BCE, South
Germany), Pergamon Museum for Ishtar Gate of Babylon (6th Century
BC, Indeed I visited twice) and Alte Mationalgalerie for those colourful
Neo-classicism, Romanticism and Impressionism paintings. The whole museum Island
was certified by UNESCO World Heritage in 1999.
The most amazing panorama of the museum
group of all is Pergamon, which houses three collections, present arte facts
from ancient Greek, Roman Empire, Near Eastern cultural history from over 6
millennia, primarily in the regions of Mesopotamia, Syria and Anatolia, and
mainly focus of Babylon, Assur Uruk and Tell Halaf. I visit Pergamon twice
since the large collections are very difficult to complete within only single
day, and I am so intrigued into those Egyptian mummies and coffins, any genre
about live and death.
Das Neue Museum stands as a monument to 19th
century art appreciation, museum design and technological innovation. Built
between 1843-1855, the complex suffered severe damage during WWII.
Nevertheless, Neue Museum provides insights into the evolution of ancient
cultures stretching from the Middle East to the Atlantic, from North Africa to
Scandinavia. Alas that in 210, Bust of Queen Nefertiti in the Nofretete Room,
the guards are preventing any photo shooting, still, the minutes to enjoy the
ancient beauty lasts rather longer and quieter beyond my expectation. I
appreciate the most is at The Roman Provinces Room, the interactive table allow
the readers to push the button and read the letters about mathematics,
education, scientific theory or poetry. Those descriptions on document attract
me much time linger around.
Paintings are always my major focus while
visiting the National Gallery, wherever I am travelling to. Die Alte
Nationalgalerie in the heart of Berlin between palace, cathedral and university
dates back to Friedrich Wilhelm IV. The Gallery holds the collections of
paintings by Edouard Manet, Claude Monet and the largest by Adolph Menzel in
existence. One of my favourites among all is by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (1794-1872),
the lady in the centre of the painting playing banjo, wearing poppy red dress
and significant berets, as if she is half wondering her path of musician
career.
The shops and boutiques close at 6 PM in
Berlin, especially Hotel Haubach, the 2-star hotel I stay, near U-Bahn Richard
Wagner Platz, resides in West Berlin, definitely an early bird district.
Therefore, having a Vietnamese takeaway at Wittenberg Platz (the wonderful
shopping department store KaDeWe is only 3-min walk) is the convenient dinner choices,
and I also enjoy bubble tea for my sweet tooth pleasure. For my last supper
before next morning departure, I must try out Eisbein. Recommended by my Finnish-German
friend who now works in Stuttgart, Gasthaus Mutter Hoppe in Mitte is one of the
best in city. I successfully order the huge plate of German Knuckle-stew and
Weisse in German as my evening drink and luckily, share a table with a New
Yorker who now studies in Italy. Berlin is a friendly and interesting adventure
to go, my next challenge shall be a retrial for Berliner Philharmoniker as a
fan!
www.smb.museum/veranstaltungen
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