Having spent several days in Leipzig, West Germany, with the uber cool, 20 plus set, I decided it was time to have an urban adventure of my own and head for Berlin, on the very fast, silver, express, train. It turned out most of Germany was in shut down mode, as it was the holiday for unification between East and West Germany, but I managed to purchase a ticket from a very harried, fraulein. The train was fast, smooth and comfortable and got me to Berlin quickly, despite there being  a minor misunderstanding when it was discovered I was sitting in the first class section of the train.


Wolf Pack
Wolf Pack

Alighting in Berlin, the sun was out, many Germans were bustling around enjoying the rare, public holiday and all the museums were open. Armed with a multi pass ticket, directions and euros I headed off. First stop was the Hamburger Bahnof  Museum for the Present.  It had a multi discipline sculpture exhibition, that was stimulating and slightly surreal, as the human figures exhibited looked so life like that is was hard to tell if they were indeed, human.

The natural history museum was next, with many ethereal animal embryo on display, preserved in formaldehyde. Gigantic reconstructions of dinosaurs were in the main hall, and insects pinned to boards were viewed under glass.


Close to the station were the science museum, worth a quick look, as was the river cruise to check out the check point charlie relic of the famous Berlin Wall. Lunch was had on the river bank, but alas, the Bauhaus Museum, proved elusive as it was located too far out of town.

The train ride back was fraught with difficulty as I stayed too long on the train at Leipzig, and travelled back into the countryside and had to wait to dismount and come back again. Eventually I made it to Leipzig airport, and bade farewell to Germany, with the help of an efficient public transport system and english speaking commuters . The wind farms, and the picturesque, rolling green fields showed a bucolic side to Germany, not normally seen from the urban environment



Published by

Denise Honan
