Es ist dem drei Tage im Deutschland (It is the third day in Germany)

We began our third day in Germany with a guided bus tour throughout Berlin.   Itay Lotem, our Israeli born, British raised, & Berlin resident, was our tour guide.  Itay speaks 9 languages – English, Hebrew, German, French, Polish, Russian, Czech, Swedish, and Norwegian (although he claims his Norwegian isn’t that good). This was our first opportunity to learn about and see Berlin outside of our Mitte neighborhood.  Highlights of our tour include:

·      Berlin Wall (now a canvas for various artists called the East Side Gallery)

·      Museum Island

·      The first ever traffic light (It has four lights, the fourth of which is blue so that the operator could indicate when he was away using the restroom)

·      Hotel Adlon (site of Michael Jackson hanging his son “Blanket” over his balcony)

·      Brandenburg Gate

·      Tiergarten (Berlin’s large central park)

We ended our tour at the Federal Foreign Office where we had a 5-star lunch at the International Club where many diplomats dined.  The highlight of the meal included a dessert and palette cleanser of basil lemon sorbet.  We then met with Dr. Ralf Mathias Reusch who discussed the three pillars of German foreign policy: Diplomatic relations, Economic relations, and Cultural relations – the focus of the session.  Dr. Reusch talked about how cultural relations build international relationships, prevent conflict, and create positive economic effects for Germany.

Our next stop was Parliament, where we met with Dietmar Nietan, a member of the Socialist Democratic Party (Historically this was the only party to vote against Hitler and the Nazi policies (excluding the Communists)).  He deals with external issues with the European Union as well the United States and Israel.   Mr. Nietan is active with the Slave Labor Compensation Fund which pays reparations to Holocaust survivors and ensures the future of Holocaust education.  He also discussed a range of other subjects including Hamas, Iran’s nuclear ambitions and the Armenian genocide. 

After this discussion, we went up to the glass dome of the Reichstag which provided a captivating 360 degree view of Berlin. 

The final session of our day was led by our very own program participant Danny Cohen, who is pursuing his PhD at Northwestern in Learning Sciences, and specifically focuses on Holocaust education. Danny’s workshop took a look at the ways various groups were discriminated against during WWII and how they are remembered and recognized today as Holocaust victims. Although the majority of Holocaust victims were Jewish, we discussed how the other targeted groups (homosexuals, Scinti, Roma, Catholics, Jehovas Witnesses, political dissidents, and several others) and survivors from this group, should be represented as well in Holocaust education efforts.  

The day ended at Restaurant Oranium where we had the chance to dine, drink, and talk with German peers.