GERMANY - DAY 5

We traveled towards Berlin with Paul sharing insight into German history and the lead up to the Second World War. It was fascinating finding out more about Hitler. He really had some serious problems. It was interesting to find out that six of his seven girlfriends committed suicide, or so the reports go. There is a lot of speculation that his political party had several of them killed to protect Hitler's reputation.

We arrived at our hotel and after a quick lunch boarded the bus for an excursion into Berlin's Secret Past. Our first stop was the 'WALL'. Four metres high, and painted by famous artists to reflect the joining of Germany back into one country. It was amazing. We never realised that there were two walls with a gap between which had an assortment of surprises for anyone brave enough to try to cross. In some parts of the city the gap between the two walls was only the width of a street. It must have been terrible living here during this time. It's hard to imagine something like this.

Next we visited the Holocaust Memorial. This was really erie. It was cement blocks of varying sizes all in rows with gaps between them. As you walked between them, there was a feeling of oppression. You could feel the somber feelings the area evoked.

After that we went to the Bendler Block, the Memorial to the Resistance Movement. There we learnt more about the plot by Graf von Stauffenberg and the other four men involved in a quest to assassinate Hitler. We never realised that there had been forty attempts to assassinate him and none had been successful.

Our final stop was the Topography of Terror. This was an outdoor documentary located on the former site of the Gestapo HQ. It gave us insight into the rise of the Nazi party and Hitler. We purchased a book there that weighs an absolute ton about this time.

Once back at the hotel, we wandered off into the city looking for somewhere to eat. Along the way we found 'Checkpoint Charlie', the barrier that separated the communists from the American section of West Berlin. We also spotted along the road two rows of pavers which show where the wall previously ran before being pulled down.

On our way back to the hotel we came across the largest chocolaterie in the world, Fassbender & Rausch. We wandered in and was blown away with the various chocolate showpieces such as the Brandenburg Gate and the Berlin Reichstag to name a few. Of course we had to purchase some and enjoyed these as we waddled back to the hotel. We are going to have to purchase new clothes soon if we keep eating this way, but it is so hard to resist.