Photo. The author of this article, Stein Morten from Norway, stand outside the East site Gallery at the Wall.
They are like Pilgrimes on a journey to a "holy" place and practise their "spiritual activity". Actually it has nothing to do with faith, but the fall of the Wall had a huge effect on German people`s life. For some people these remebrance hurt their memories, and for others there is more like a healing process - a real balsam for the soul.
The first time I was in Berlin it was in 1993. It was good to be back again after so long time. It gave me more time to reflect over was happened when the Wall fell and how it was in the before that. To remember the day many exhibitions and events take place during this year. One of the main highlights will be happening on the weekend around 9th November 1989.
There are a number of sites across Berlin where remnants of the Wall still stand, most notably the Berlin Wall Memorial at Bernauer Strasse and the East Side Gallery at Mühlenstraße. Stretching for over a kilometer on the northern banks of the River Spree, the East Side Gallery is the longest remaining stretch of the Berlin wall, and thought to be the world’s largest open air gallery. People started decorating the Wall not long after the first pieces fell in 1989, and today the gallery features over 100 murals from international artists. The colourful artworks are based around themes of freedom, anti-oppression and political satire, bringing recent history to vivid life.
According to Berlin Tourismus & Kongress GmbH, a new temporary Berlin Wall will be built with thousands of illuminated balloons along the former course of the Berlin Wall. Border of Lights To the strains of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in the presence of guests of honour and eyewitnesses at the Brandenburg Gate and at six other locations, white balloons will be released into the skies on the night of 9 November to commemorate the peaceful revolution of 1989 and the fall of the Berlin Wall 25 years ago. Gathering Spots Berliners and visitors are invited to stroll along the course of the Wall to remember and visualise the extent of the former division.
At the Bornholmer Straße (9.11 only), Mauerpark, Berlin Wall Memorial and Documentation Centre, Brandenburg Gate, Potsdamer Platz, Checkpoint Charlie and East Side Gallery gathering spots, there will be information pavilions (open from 9.30am-10.00pm each day), guided tours, souvenirs, viewing platforms, catering and collages of historic images shown on giant screens. On 8 November between 5 and 9 pm, chamber ensembles consisting of members of the European Union Youth Orchestra will be performing brief concerts at the Mauerpark, East Side Gallery and Checkpoint Charlie gathering spots.
The chamber music programmes will include music from the past three centuries and reflect both the richness of European music history resist and the joy that erupted as German division came to an end 25 years ago. There will also be guided tours along the lighting installation each day of the weekend. Open-Air Exhibition The open-air exhibition "100 Wall Stories" will consist of a hundred informational exhibits along the lighting installation providing background on topics such as: stories of a divided city before the Wall, the construction of the Wall in 1961, protests against the Wall, escape attempts, deaths at the Wall, border installations and inspections, everyday life in the divided city, stories of the peaceful revolution of 1989, the fall of the Wall, opening the border crossings and souvenir hunters.
Stein Morten Lund, 14th November 2014
Additional information
Berlin Tourismus & Kongress GmbH
Am Karlsbad 11
D-10785 Berlin
Tel. 030/ 25 00 23 33
Fax: 030/ 25 00 24 24
E-mail: info@visitberlin.de
Website: Berlin Tourismus @ Kongress GmbH
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