Museum

As part of our regular programme of Tuesday morning free History Tours, hosted by Andrew and Jim, we are heading off tomorrow morning to the DDR Museum, followed by a trip to Karl-Marx-Allee in the company of one of the museum team. The DDR Museum is the place to learn about “everyday life” in the old East Germany, whether it is trying out the front seat of a Trabant for size, getting comfy in the replica of an classic Plattenbau apartmanet, or learning through the many hands on and multimedia exhibits about what exactly was a Pioneer, who Jurgen Sparwasser was, and what on earth

doe Subotnik mean.

Afterwards we will be heading to Karl-Marx-Allee, the showpiece boulevard built by the communist regime as “Palaces for the People” as well as being the main route for those red-flag-waving military parades the leaders of the workers’ and peasants’ republic loved so much.

So join us for a tour back in time to when East was East, and get a greater sense of how it was to live in the German Democratic Republic in the forty-odd years of its existence. The tour is free for Circus guests, but please note you will need a public transport ticket.

Tomorrow is Tuesday, which can mean only one thing… yep, it’s time for another one of Jimbo’s Crazy Tours, this time out to the Allied Museum.  The museum is located on the former base of the US Military HQ in Berlin and in the building

that was once a cinema for the soldiers. The American presence in the city lasted from the end of the Second World War until 1994, and the exhibition contained in the museum tells the story of the 50 years of occupation by the Americans, the British, the French and the Soviets, through the tensions of the Cold War to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of communism, and the reunification of Germany.

We will see the original guard cabin from the Checkpoint Charlie border crossing, as well as GDR guard tower that once overlooked the wall’s perimeter. We will also have the chance to check out one of the Candy Bomber planes, that not only supplied West Berliners during the siege and airlift of 1948/9, but won the hearts of children in the city as the pilots dropped goodies as they flew in low over the city.

The tour leaves the reception at 9am and is open to all Circus guests, but places are limited so you will need to register at reception in advance. The tour itself is free, but you will need a public transport ticket to get you out there and back.

(Image Copyright: AlliiertenMuseum/Chodan)

(photo copyright: German Historical Museum)

The German Historical Museum on Unter den Linden is one of Berlin’s finest, and is a must for anyone who is interested in this city and country’s past. The permanent exhibition is well worth a visit in its own right, but right now there is an exhibition you should go and check out if you have any interest in the history of the German Democratic Republic – often known as “East Germany.”

Here’s the blurb from the museum:

The exhibition “Focus GDR” presents unique objects from the German Historical Museum’s collections that vividly illustrate many of the official GDR abbreviations. Objects like the highly decorated uniform of the Minister of National Defence, Heinz Hoffmann, or the official apparel of the 1968 Olympic Games march along as if in a parade, showing how the GDR displayed itself in public. At the same time the exhibition presents aspects of work and everyday life in the GDR, such as the impressive model of a strip

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mining excavator.

Many of the exhibits were taken over from the Museum für Deutsche Geschichte, the national historical museum of the GDR. Others, such as objects from the Palast der Republik, first came into the German Historical Museum’s collections after reunification.

The exhibition is running until the 25^th November, is open daily from 10am – 6pm and admission to the museum costs €8 (€4 concessions).