Berlin

Well- I have finally made it back to Paris. First of all, I've got to say that my train ride back from Berlin was definitely one of those "never going to forget" moments. The rest of my group got on a two hour plane ride to Paris, but I was already had a train ticket- for 13 hours, by myself. The train itself dated back at least 40 years; stains were all over the floors, chairs, and the walls were painted hospital yellow. My seat was in a compartment with 6 chairs, three facing three, with just enough leg room for my own legs, let alone the person sitting across from me. So I arrive in my compartment with four other strangers, already sitting, in the most awkward and uncomfortable setting. I just put my IPod on and tried to drown everything out when out of nowhere, two of my friends from class just walk by my door. They were on their way to Luxemberg and happened to be in the compartment right next to mine. I truly lucked out, now having travel buddies, and moved into their compartment. For a while, we walked around the train and saw the sleeping cars and first class (it looked just like a hotel). We came back to the compartment, where I finally fell asleep, but my one friend decided to try and sneek into one of the beds. Eight hours later, the other guy and I wake up just 15 minutes before their stop, and the other guy was nowhere to be found. We called, but his phone and all of his belongings were in the compartment with us. We walked up and down the train cars, but it was pretty much impossible to find him anywhere. The train stopped at their destination, with the one still not to be found, and the other deciding just to take the train the rest of the way back to Paris. An hour later, we finally recieved a call from our friend- how, I still don't know. But somehow, the train car he had fallen asleep on got detached between Berlin and Paris and he woke up in the middle of Zurich, Switzerland! Long story short- we had to carry all of his belongings home with us in Paris.

Anways, Berlin itself was amazing. The city is even more modern than Munich- due to the fact that even more of the city was destroyed during the war than had been in Munich. We had class Tuesday through Thursday and each day took a different walk through the city. The last day, Friday, was considered a travel day, but we took it as an opportunity to go on our own trip out to Dessau, Germany (a little less than 2 hours south of Berlin) to see the orgins of IIT at the Bauhaus. The Bauhaus started in the late 20s as a design school- it was where everything from teapots to chairs to windows to buildings were designed by famous architects, artists, and students. Walter Gropius was the head of the school until WWII when the Nazis began saying the school was a threat. Mies Van der Rohe was the last head of the architecture department before the Nazis completely dismantled the school and took over the buildings. Mies flew to Chicago when the Nazis kicked him out- and it was in Chicago that he attempted to continue the Bauhaus in the form of IIT. Because we did see a lot of buildings, monuments, and culture; to make this easiest; I'll give you a brief rundown of each day of the trip.

TUESDAY:

We started the day at the Memorial for Mudered Jews in the heart of the city where hundreds of tomb looking structures sit on a sloping site to produce an aura of grief and unease.

Next we took a walk to the Topography of Terrors where a piece of the Berlin wall still sits. There is a museum designed by Walter Gropius's nephew that was happened to have a display of the history of the Bauhaus. Bullet holes covered the exterior of the building- this was the central location of the Nazi underground prisons. There is a construction site there today that will house a museum for the Topography of Terrors giving a history of the war and of Berlin.

Check Point Charlie. This was one of four checkpoints in Berlin until 1989. It is where the American sector faced the Soviet- today its one of the biggest tourist sites with everything "Charlie"; including 'Snack Point Charlie'.

We passed by the GSW Headquarters designed by English architects. This building has been published numerous times for its energy efficient double skin facade designed back in '99. The architects were given the site with the bottom buildings at awkward angles, the slight curve in this building tied everything together.

Last stop was the Jewish History Museum. Designed by Libeskind in '07, this modern building housed some really creep exhibits. One space contained over 10,000 iron disks, all with faces, in which you walk across and feel how little power and massive amounts of power there were during the war. One space contained absolutely nothing in a three story room, all there was was a small light from outside- otherwise pitch dark. There was also a garden in which the ground was sloped, but the 20-14 foot tall planters were positioned completely verticle. While walking through, you become sick just with your brain trying to wrap itself around the imperfect perfection.

WEDNESDAY:
In east central Berlin, where bombs completely destroyed everything in the area, competitons were held for architects in the early 90s. Each architect was given an area do design a group of buildings. We started in Helmut Jahn's Sony Center. The buildings comprise offices, shops, hotel, and residential. He designed a courtyard in the center of all the buildings and built a massive sunscreen covering the entire courtyard. It is all designed with suspension cables, glass, and canvas. Just amazing architecture.

Next was Renzo Piano's buildings. Again, mostly offices within a theater district. We were lucky enough to get a tour of one of the main theaters. They took us backstage, on the stage, and all throughout the building. The entire structure was based on floating- everything from the seats in the auditorium, to the stairs leading to it, to the roof structure apear to be floating. The details were superb.

Then there was a little bit of home. Mies designed an art gallery in central Berlin very similar to Crown Hall. Small differences include a cantelivered roof over all four sides and crusified columns. Other than that- it was Crown. The best part about this building was that Mies thought the building itself was the piece of art and expected visitors to come see his building first, and the art second. So the entire first floor is completely open with nothing inside- the basement is where the gallery is.

THURSDAY:

We started the day at the Reichstag- the parliament building. Before the war, there was a massive dome in the center of the building, but the majority of the Reichstag was destroyed during the war. Foster desgined the addition with a massive glass, inhabitable dome in which visitors can walk through and up to the top of the dome and look straight down into parliament taking place below. They are very much about open goverment today. There is a large mirrored structure in the center which brings light all the way from the top into the parliament below.

Next we walked by the train station. This was the biggest undertaking of all buildings in Berlin. It is all glass with a glass tube protruding through. There are light trusses that go from the outside, to inside, to outside again supporting the tube allowing for more interior space and make the tube appear floating with grace.

Hotel Adlon. This is the hotel Michael Jackson held his son, Blanket, out of the balcony from.

Frank Gerhy- before he was really Gehry. This is a bank that looks completely normal on the outside. It is very minimal and clean, but when we enter, the lobby of the bank is filled with Gehry as a sculpture. I always thought of Gehry first as an artist, and second as an architect- and because of this, I think this is the best building I have seen designed by him. The entire structure wasn't a piece of art, instead it was controlled and he was able to create sculpture and program together. Inside that massive piece of art are conference rooms and cafeteria.

I.M. Pei's museum. Very simple, low budget building. It had a beautiful exterior staircase, but the interior concrete was amazing. The formwork was hardwood flooring- giving the concrete a clean and expensive look.

Rem Koolhaas's Dutch Embassy. This building's just ok. There was a lot of un-inhabitable spaces that were basically just wastes of money. But the facade was made of punched aluminum with a concrete struction behind- it gave it a very light and airy feeling I haven't seen before in a facade.

FRIDAY:

Bauhaus day. We saw took a train out to Dessau and saw the original building designed by Walter Gropius. During the war the Nazi's had taken over the building, and in the height of the war, the building was attacked and in bad condition in teh 50's. Today, it is all fixed up and appears just as it did when it was first built. Much different from Crown Hall, yet similar ideas and similar academic intentions. It was just amazing to be at the birthplace of my school and know that so many amazing architects had worked here, such as Mies, Le Corbusier, Gropius, Meyers, and more. It's a very important building in terms of modern architecture- and it was just an experience to see it in person.

1946

And that's about it! We saw and did A LOT in Berlin- and overall it was a great time. I was able to see a lot of architecture and see a different culture. But, I must say, it's nice to be back in Paris. We all grabbed a bottle of wine and bread and cheese and headed over to the Eiffel Tower tonight just to hang out. It's weird to say, but it almost felt like home- a home away from home. But, of course, nothing is more home than Chicago. I miss all of you sooo much! I hope you're all doing well- keep me posted with what's going on in your life too. Miss you tons!