I booked mine about 3 weeks prior to arriving in Berlin and at that time, there were still quite a few dates available. The process was very simple - fill in a form online, and choose 3 preferred dates and times.
I got my confirmation within 1 day, with my 1st preferred time slot. I remember looking at the site again about 1 week later and many of the dates were already booked out.
My visit time was scheduled for 5pm, and we were advised to arrive about 30 mins in advance for registration.
I showed my vaccination cert from Singapore, which was not readable by the QR code reader used by the staff that can only read QR codes issued from within EU. They initially denied my entry, saying that I need to go to a pharmacy to get an EU vaccine cert, but I explained that my vaccines were done in Singapore and I am here on a holiday, and I won't be able to get one because I do not live in Germany. They still refused and I asked them to ask someone else higher up.
Some 10 mins later, they allowed me to enter using my Singapore vaccination cert. Phew! I was given a piece of paper with "1" written on it, denoting that I will be taking the tour in Group 1.
I had to go through a security check before being allowed in the building foyer to wait for the rest of the group and the tour guide to arrive. I don't know how many people are allowed in each group, possibly up to 5? But apparently none in my original assigned group showed up.
I asked if it was normal they get so many drop outs, and they said it happens, especially when the weather isn't the best. As I was the only one in my group, they asked that I joined another group instead for the tour.
The tour went underway and was really informative. They allowed pics on the tour, which I thought was quite surprising. The 1st hour was spent with the guide explaining about the Bundestag and Reichstag, the plenary chamber with the huge Eagle crest and the blue seats where different members of different parties seat when the parliament is in session.
My visit is of good timing because they were going to close possibility of visits from tomorrow for the rest of the week as there will be a few days of parliament seating over the next few days.
We were also given a brief history of the building and how it had undergone a few renovations over time.
I found it interesting that the earlier architect had originally chose to cover up the original building walls with plastered walls, and the latest architect (Norman Foster) chose to use the original architecture, which requires the removal of the plastered walls. When they did so, they found numerous walls with graffiti on them.
These were written in Russian by soldiers that had walked through different areas of Germany during WWII and had left their mark with their names and the dates they came through - many were marked in different periods of May 1945.
The decision to keep them intact as it was, was to remind Germany of its history over time.
We were also shown art installations in the building, particularly the Archive of German Members of Parliament.
The boxes are stacked ceiling high in two long rows; the narrow passageway between them is dimly lit by carbon filament lamps.
This was designed by French artist Christian Boltanski’s. Located in the basement on the east side of the Reichstag Building, some 5,000 copper coloured tin boxes bear the names of all the democratically elected Members of Germany’s parliaments from 1919: the National Assembly (the constitutional convention of 1919 – 1920), the Reichstag during the Weimar Republic, and the German Bundestag.
The period covered in the installation ends with 1999, the year in which parliamentary business resumed in the Reichstag Building after its remodelling. A single black box recalls the years when the German people were not represented by a democratically elected assembly. They are, as it were, the ‘black years’ for German democracy (an oblique reference to ‘les années noires’, as the French call the years of German occupation).
We were even shown the name of Adolf Hitler on one of the boxes, and even Angela Merkel!
It shows even though the impact one had made in history (both good and bad), each individual gets the same weightage in this display and the German history is transparent to everyone - no hiding of the past or highlighting of significant moments.
We were then allowed to visit the roof and the glass dome.
Audio guides are provided here, which was quite useful. Unfortunately, as it was already dark, references to buildings mentioned on the audio guides aren't too impactful, as it was quite hard to identify the buildings in the dark.
It was however really nice to see the Brandeburg Gate lighted up from above.
Strongly recommended as an activity to do while in Berlin.
No comments:
Post a Comment