Bravo, Berlin!

The photos above are two pictures I took with my phone on the first night that we, the group, spent together in Berlin. It was a funny and an almost Breakfast-Club-like experience. We all seem to come from completely different backgrounds and places, but somewhere we all meet in the middle. That’s so wonderful to me. Through my journalism classes, this seems to be the norm now. It’s about connecting and globalizing the world. I've got to admit that I was a little disappointed with how comfortable I was when I first got to Germany. Most everyone speaks English, they’re all very nice if you need direction, and none of the buildings are too intimidating. I don’t feel threatened here at all. The food is diverse, just like home (Bloomington, more specifically), and the ethnicity is very similar to the Midwest of the states. But, what strikes my interest the most is the concept underlying in the two pictures I have shown above. With the exclusion of the space needle in the distance behind the Berliner Dom, the two photos seem to be from not only two different places, but also from different time periods entirely. When, in fact, these two structures are right across the street from one another. I sat on the sidewalk in awe of these two different worlds coming together – and in coherence! The city itself functions with all these historical landmarks, yet it is Americanized and very modern. The city has all sorts of stumbling blocks that remind one of the past and hardships, and simultaneously lunges toward the future. It is simply awe-inspiring. I literally sat between these two buildings, both museums. Berliner Dom was to my left, and the Humboldt Box to my right. I could see a rich history and futuristic lights with the hustle of a taxi in the same sitting. The more I’m in this city, the more interested I become. There are SO many elements to this city that you can walk past every single day, for many days, and never realize it’s there. Like some of the memorials – they are small, but they have such an impact on the Berlin community and the German communities so many years after these historical moments are gone. Not only that, but they continue to bring people from all over the world to this place. They freeze these crucial moments to always remember, and it seems they have found such a balance between remembrance and forward motion. That is an art within itself, and it’s truly incredible. Bravo, Berlin! 

Everything is relative in this world; every perception, every thought, and every movement. These concepts and views of this one city are very much in the control of the one perceiving the ideas... as the possibilities are endless. I am challenged and intrigued to see the past, present, and future in our further endeavors.