Today, our second day of the Berlin program started with a walk along the wall from the districts of Kreuzberg and Friedrichhain or the East Side Gallery. We took a detour into a nice looking beach bar called Yaam and then went straight back to the wall.

In the present, the wall is magnificent as different kinds of artists come over from all parts of the world to paint on the walls. It is a contrast between the old (the wall itself) and the new (the contemporary art). The wall not only represents the history before the 90’s but the culture after.

Some of my favorite panels were the one with the high political figures making a symbolic statement as they are depicted making out. Another panel I thought was very creative was the famous vintage car busting through the wall.



While on the walk, I witnessed artists repainting the wall. A woman dissatisfied with her panel was redoing it. What was interesting thought was that she was going to paint something completely different, take a picture, and paint over it. To think that art is shown for a brief moment and is erased like it never existed.

I had another doner kebab, which seems to be my main staple food in Berlin because it is so cheap (about 2.50 Euros). And after, we went to see one of the two last standing watch towers and the Soviet War memorial and Military Cemetery in Treptower Park. The memorial was amazing as I stepped into a new world – somewhere outside of the city, secluded in serenity.

So it brings me to the theme of the day – the idea about connections lost and re-established. The wall first represented a physical barrier that severed the connection between West and East Berlin. It was the line that disconnected the bridge between the east and west. Yet now, the wall is a way to connect to the past and the bridges are once again connected. An analogy I thought of was the concept that through time, I forgot details about my childhood. This intangible wall is created by time and is reinforced by not refreshing my memories. However, photos are the things that bring the wall down as I am reconnected with the past. It acts as the fragments of the Berlin wall that constantly reminds me what has happened and that it wasn’t just a figment of my imagination.


It is also interesting to see how Berlin has changed overtime and how it will continue to change. We visit the beach bar, yet it could be easily be replaced by office buildings in the future. As the Berlin wall was easily put up within a day, and easily torn down within hours, it is interesting to consider that this swift change can happen for any contemporary structures. Will those stumble stones still be in the ground to remind us of the hardships of the Jews? Will there continue to be a war memorial or will it disappear and turn into ruins? Only time can tell.