Berliner Dom ist sehr groß und schön. We came here on our visit to Berlin. Walking from the Silent…read moreLibrary, on the Humboldt University campus, down Unter den Linden to the historical Cölln district of old Berlin. Given our family members who are clergy, we seem to visit churches wherever we go. But the Berliner Dom is special. It's to the former DDR credit that they allowed for its rebuilding in the 1950-60s. But for me, it's their music program and pipe organs that are most impressive. JS Bach also played here in the early 1700s and his sheet music was on display on our visit. See photos.

Beautiful and the biggest church in Berlin located on the museum island. It is very massive both…read moreoutside and inside...you have to pay for entrance and you can climb to the top to see 360 degree view of Berlin, worth it but it's 267 steps each way..no bathroom so go before climbing. Somehow I was there and there was a mass in German an I stayed 1/2 way and it was lovely. I'm not a church person but do appreciate the service. The building, the decor, the history itself is worth to check it out for sure. There are plenty of crypts within the church so you can check them outs along with shop and café upon exiting.

The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe is a memorial that opened in 2005 and remembers the six…read moremillion Jewish victims of the Holocaust. It consists of the Field of Stelae designed by Peter Eisenman and the underground Information Centre. Admission is free. I did not go into the underground information center, but as part of a self-arranged group tour, I did walk among some of the 2,710 concrete slabs. My tour guide explained that the concrete slabs were hollow in the center and that the precipitation and cold weather was causing cracks in some slabs. I appreciated walking through and viewing the thousands of concrete slabs, which were artistically staggered, and remembering the Jewish victims.

Yelp asks "How would I rate my experience here and how many Stars would I give it?" After a couple…read moreof thousand reviews, I find we were completely speechless here. Later in our Viking trip, we visited both Birkenau and Auschwitz. Those visits and here, are bookends to horrors of hate and the decent into humanities worst period of cannibalisms. I phrase it like that, because the people of that period, consumed and devoured the living nightmare of hate, as if it was to purge the world of group(s) of people they just didn't like, didn't understand and wanted to eradicate. So this place is a memorial of their memory, but also a reminder of what happens, when we allow Hate to devour our humanity and our souls. Five Stars and hopefully, never again! But I/we know better.... Seattle, Christopher Straße Tag...

Brandenburg Gate is a neo-classical city gate that was built from sandstone from 1788-1791. Twelve…read morecolumns support a roof that is topped with a sculpture of Victoria, the goddess of peace, riding a chariot pulled by four horses. Today the gate is a symbol of overcoming the East-West division and reunifying Germany. I visited Bradenburg Gate when I was on a tour. This gate is a large, gorgeous structure, and it has no admission fee, so I recommend visiting it.

I visited during January so it was a little bit cooler than I liked, but Still had a great time…read moreseeing all the history As a European and being well traveled, I was aware of the pickpocket issue. It's simple don't bring anything flashy keep your phone in your front pocket. I don't even carry a purse when I travel We stayed at Adlon Hotel so the walk was short I am looking forward to a visit in the warmer months.

Die Hackeschen Höfe is a building complex with eight courtyards located in the Scheunenviertel…read more(Barn Quarter*) between Rosenthaler Straße and Sophienstraße in the Mitte area of Berlin. The building was opened in 1906, with an Art Nouveau facade, and mixed use commercial and residential spaces. After a period of disuse and damage following WWII, a revitalization started in 1993 which included extensive restoration. Today about 40 businesses call this location home--with a similar blend of vendors, including cafes, a theater, residential apartments, and a variety of retailers (apparel, shoes and accessories, home goods and furniture, art galleries, toys, stationery and a salon). For food there are a few restaurants, a couple bakeries and confectioneries, a gourmet food store and a coffee shop. Although the hours on g-maps show 9-10am, opening times for individual stores varies, so check prior to arriving. Especially on weekends when some opening times start closer to noon. When I arrived at 9am on a Sunday morning most places were closed, with the exception of Maison de Souvenirs, which although geared towards tourists, I enjoyed perusing because of the local and regionally made souvenirs they carried. Around 9:30am a couple of other shops started stirring, including a cafe, apparel store and gallery though only the cafe had opened by 9:45am. The courtyards are worth wandering around for 10 minutes to appreciate their unique architecture, though I didn't stay longer since most stores opened later. No parking available close by, they recommend arriving via public transit as it's a very busy area. Hackesche Markt S+U-bahn station is a couple minutes by foot, and a number of trams and buses stop nearby too. No public restrooms unless patronizing the couple of restaurants (and maybe the cinema) in this complex. *apparently in the 17th century this used to be the part of town outside of Berlin city walls that stored hay for animals, kept separate from the rest of the city due to fire concerns.

The store is beautifully appointed. The quality of the product is clear. Alice was exceptional when…read moresharing information and answering questions. Highly recommend stopping in if you are out shopping.

We thoroughly enjoyed viewing the Fernsehturm from outside and seeing the views offered from the…read moreinside! Inside there are photos with points of interest numbered so you can look for specific Berlin landmarks from above. Going inside and up was very easy. We already had tickets we bought online, so we got in line for security as soon as we went in. Security was quick and kind, much like airport security. We were able to get on the elevator to go up almost immediately after security too. It was a bit busy up there, but there was more than enough room to walk around the entire viewing area and look for each point of interest we wanted to search for. We didn't have a long wait to get back into the elevator to go down when we were done either. There is a small store inside you can buy a souvenir from if you choose.

Although it's a complete tourist trap, when in Berlin, yes, I recommend visiting the Berliner…read moreFernsehturm. You cannot avoid seeing it from anywhere in Berlin. There is only one entrance, and you can purchase tickets on site. It cost $34.50 Euros for a standard ticket, which I felt is a little pricey. They search for weapons before you get in the elevator. If you look up while going up in the elevator, you get an interesting view of the interior. Once you get out of the elevator, you are allowed to roam all around and get a view of all of Berlin. There is also a bar, where I purchased a Latte Macchiato and Salzige Brezel. Even though my drink was machine made, it wasn't bad. The salted pretzel, however, was the driest pretzel I've ever eaten. The bartender was friendly, but a little slow. Seating is very limited. Only a handful of stools. After heading down in the elevator, I perused the gift shop. Didn't purchase anything though.