August 7, 2014
After flying from Fort Smith, AR to Frankfurt, Germany on July 9th - The 2014 Exchange Group traveled first to Bavaria to see Munich, Dachau, Augsburg, and Fuessen (Neuschwanstein) before heading north to Hannover to be with our exchange partners. From there, our amazing hosts took us on trips to Berlin, Hamburg, Hameln and even a Volkswagen factory! The following is a work in progress blog/picture journal which we will continue to update with more photos and descriptions. Thanks to everyone who helped make this year's exchange possible!
August 6, 2014
The hike to Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau castles near Fuessen
The Neuschwanstein Castle was commissioned by Ludwig II of Bavaria for use as his personal retreat. Ludwig paid for the palace out of his personal fortune and by means of extensive borrowing. At the time of his death the castle was still under construction. In the end, Ludwig II only lived in the palace for a total of 172 days! In this picture you see the Hohenschwangau castle. It was the childhood residence of King Ludwig II of Bavaria and was built by his father, King Maximilian II of Bavaria. It is located in the German village of Hohenschwangau near the town of Füssen.
August 5, 2014
July 28, 2014
A glimpse of Berlin - by Nikolas Castillo
Checkpoint Charlie- Checkpoint Charlie was a crossing point in the Berlin Wall located at the junction of Friedrichstraße with Zimmerstraße and Mauerstraße. The checkpoint was curiously asymmetrical. During its 28-year active life, the infrastructure on the Eastern side was expanded to include not only the wall, watchtower and zig-zag barriers, but a multi-lane shed where cars and their occupants were checked. However, the Allied authority never erected any permanent buildings, and made do with the well-known wooden shed, which was replaced during the 1980s by a larger metal structure, now displayed at the Allied Museum in western Berlin.
The Berlin Wall- The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the GDR (East Germany) starting on August 13th, 1961, that completely cut off west Berlin from surroundingEast Germany and from east Berlin The barrier included guard towers placed along larg concrete walls which circumscribed a wide area that contained anti-vehicle trenches, fakir beds and other defenses. The Eastern Bloc claimed that the wall was erected to protect its population from fascist elements conspiring to prevent the "will of the people" in building a socialist state in East Germany. In practice, the Wall served to prevent the massive emmigration and defection that marked East Germany and the communist Eastern Bloc during the post-World War II period.
The Siegessäule- The Victory Column is a monument in Berlin, Germany. Designed by Heinrich Strack, after 1864 to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Danish-Prussian War, by the time it was inaugurated on September 2nd, 1873, Prussia had also defeated Austria in the Austro-Prussian War and France in the Franco-Prussian War, giving the statue a new purpose. Different from the original plans, these later victories in the so-called unification wars inspired the addition of the bronze sculpture of Victoria, 8.3 metres high and weighing 35 tones, designed by Friedrich Drake. Berliners have given the statue the nickname Goldelse, meaning something like "Golden Lizzy".
The gate is the monumental entry to Unter den Linden, the renowned boulevard of linden trees, which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs.
It was commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791. Having suffered considerable damage in World War II, the Brandenburg Gate was fully restored from 2000 to 2002 by the Berlin Monument Conservation Foundation.
During the post-war Partition of Germany, the gate was isolated and inaccessible immediately next to the Berlin Wall, and the area around the gate featured most prominently in the media coverage of the opening of the wall in 1989.
Throughout its existence, the Brandenburg Gate was often a site for major historical events and is today considered a symbol of the tumultuous history of Europe and Germany, but also of European unity and peace.
Landmarks of Berlin - explained by Makayla McCarthy
Berlin Wall
1. Construction of the Berlin Wall began on August 13 1961 as a way of separating the three zones controlled by France, Britain and America from the zone controlled by the Soviet Union.
2. Official figures show that at least 136 people died trying to cross the border. People attempting to get from East to West were regarded as traitors and guards were instructed to shoot at them if they attempted to cross, although not to kill them.
3. The west side of the Berlin wall was covered in graffiti. The East side was not.
importance- The Berlin Wall came to show the different ideologies between the different systems of governments, how they worked and what the people thought about them.
Check Point Charlie
1. Currently a tourist attraction. It is now located in the Allied Museum in the Dahlem neighborhood of Berlin.
2. The standoff began as a dispute over whether or not East German border guards are authorized to check U.S. diplomats.
3. Initially it was only a gate so one person crashed with a car right through it. A pole was put in place at least two people came in convertibles, simply took the windscreen down and slipped right underneath it. As a result the barrier was lowered uprights were added. Checkpoint Charlie was secured.
importance- symbol of the Cold War, representing the separation of East and West.
Jewish Museum
1. The museum was opened in 2001 and is one of Berlin’s most frequented museums.
2. The empty new building by architect Daniel Libeskind was an unexpected visitor attraction.
3. One of the largest Jewish Museums in Europe.
importance- teaching Germany's Jewish history
Victory Column
1. Designed by Heinrich Strack, after 1864 to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Danish-Prussian War.
2. Major tourist attraction in the city of Berlin. The column is anchored on a solid fundament of polished red granite and basically sits on a hall of pillars. The base of the column is decorated with bas-reliefs of battles. The mosaic frieze made by Anton von Werner depicts the founding of the German Empire in 1871.
3. Next to Brandenburg Gate, German Parliament, Television Tower and Berlin Cathedral one of the most significant monuments in Berlin.
importance- victories in the so called unification wars
The Brandenburg Gate
1. located in the western part of the city centre of Berlin. One block to the north stands the Reichstag building. The gate is the monumental entry to Unter den Linden.
2. commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791.
3. During the post-war Partition of Germany, the gate was isolated and inaccessible immediately next to the Berlin Wall.
importance- site for major historical events and is today considered a symbol of the tumultuous history of Europe and Germany, but also of European unity and peace.
1. Construction of the Berlin Wall began on August 13 1961 as a way of separating the three zones controlled by France, Britain and America from the zone controlled by the Soviet Union.
2. Official figures show that at least 136 people died trying to cross the border. People attempting to get from East to West were regarded as traitors and guards were instructed to shoot at them if they attempted to cross, although not to kill them.
3. The west side of the Berlin wall was covered in graffiti. The East side was not.
importance- The Berlin Wall came to show the different ideologies between the different systems of governments, how they worked and what the people thought about them.
Check Point Charlie
1. Currently a tourist attraction. It is now located in the Allied Museum in the Dahlem neighborhood of Berlin.
2. The standoff began as a dispute over whether or not East German border guards are authorized to check U.S. diplomats.
3. Initially it was only a gate so one person crashed with a car right through it. A pole was put in place at least two people came in convertibles, simply took the windscreen down and slipped right underneath it. As a result the barrier was lowered uprights were added. Checkpoint Charlie was secured.
importance- symbol of the Cold War, representing the separation of East and West.
Jewish Museum
1. The museum was opened in 2001 and is one of Berlin’s most frequented museums.
2. The empty new building by architect Daniel Libeskind was an unexpected visitor attraction.
3. One of the largest Jewish Museums in Europe.
importance- teaching Germany's Jewish history
Victory Column
1. Designed by Heinrich Strack, after 1864 to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Danish-Prussian War.
2. Major tourist attraction in the city of Berlin. The column is anchored on a solid fundament of polished red granite and basically sits on a hall of pillars. The base of the column is decorated with bas-reliefs of battles. The mosaic frieze made by Anton von Werner depicts the founding of the German Empire in 1871.
3. Next to Brandenburg Gate, German Parliament, Television Tower and Berlin Cathedral one of the most significant monuments in Berlin.
importance- victories in the so called unification wars
The Brandenburg Gate
1. located in the western part of the city centre of Berlin. One block to the north stands the Reichstag building. The gate is the monumental entry to Unter den Linden.
2. commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791.
3. During the post-war Partition of Germany, the gate was isolated and inaccessible immediately next to the Berlin Wall.
importance- site for major historical events and is today considered a symbol of the tumultuous history of Europe and Germany, but also of European unity and peace.
July 27, 2014
The River Elbe
 |
The Elbe is one of the major rivers in Central Europe. It starts in the mountains in northern Czech Republic, then flows through Germany, to the North Sea at Cuxhaven, northwest of Hamburg. Its total length is 1,094 kilometers. |
Berlin-Reichstag Building
With the reunification of Germany and the decision to move the capital from Bonn back to Berlin, it was also decided that the original Reichstag building be rebuilt along with a new dome that emphasized a unified Germany. Below is a picture of us before entering the building.
July 24, 2014
VW
We went to the VW factory today in Hannover. Volkswagon ranks first in spending the most money of any auto maker on research and development as of 2011. We got to see this first hand. We were not allowed to take photos in the facility. Too bad it is really interesting to see how things work. The place is so big employees ride bikes across the building :-)
Hamburg
Hamburg is on the river Elbe. It is the second largest port in Europe after the Port of Rotterdam and the 10th largest port worldwide.
Hamburg
Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany.
It is home to 1.8 million people, while the the whole metro region has more than 5 million.
July 21, 2014
Johnathan-5
This is the parliament building in Berlin Germany.
3facts.
1. It is huge!!! And has a big dome
2.It was constructed on 9-June-1984
3. The building was renovated throughout the years in 1961-64 and 1992
Following Germanys national unity this building in 1984 was built
Johnathan -4
The Victory column
Three facts
1. Designed by Heinrich Strack
2.was built in 1864
3.it is bronze.
The victory Column is in berling Germany it has been used in several movies this is a huge tourist attraction I'm Berlin and is open to go through certian times of the year.. This monument was built to show the victory of Purisian victory over the Purisian Denmark war. Not sure why it is blue (x
Johnathan-3
The Jüisches museum(Jewish museum ) in Berlin.
Three facts
1. This is one of the biggest museums in Europe
2. 2 parts of Jewish history are displayed in this museum.
3.the museum opened in 2001
This museum was opened in 2001 and is one of the biggest museums in Europe . They had competitions for the museums designs it is set up with three different parts thought the building they all are significant to the German-Jewish history. They have something I thought was interesting which was called the memory void this had 10,000 faces it was dedicated to all the innocent victims of the war. This museum had. Some very interesting exhibits. The memory void just happened to be one of the most interesting .
Johnathan-2
Check point Charlie .
Three facts.
1. Was the crossing point in Berlin
2. It still stands today we got to see it
3. Is extremely historical
Check point Charlie's is a huge piece of history that lies in the Berlin. This was the passing point for non Germany visitors who used to be able to be allowed in Berlin with a one day visa. This also has a very famous sign and it reads on it you are now leaving the American sector . Until the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989, it was the border between West and East, Capitalism and Communism, freedom and confinement.seeing this piece of history in person was something else.😊 defiantly will remember it and the wall
July 20, 2014
Johnathan-1
The BERLIN WALL😊
Three facts
1.one of the only pieces left
2. It diveded Germany
3. It was destroyed!
4. The length of the wall was around 96miles.
It was built august 13th 1961 it completely seperated east and West Berlin it was used as a barrier . The wall was often referred to as the Protection Rampart". The wall was also referred to as the wall of shame in some parts.
The wall was built mainly because Germany was being divided among different powers, so they blockaded Berlin city which was deep inside East Germany which came under their control. in military power USA in consultation with the its non communist allies airlifted for years supplies to western part of Berlin which was under their military. control.Berlin wall was a symbol of this blocking by communist East and defending West
July 19, 2014
Prison we visited yesterday
This man was one of the only 4 to escape the prison Germany is making a movie about his life next October 😊
July 18, 2014
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