So much to see and so little time… revisiting some of the spots we didn’t spend enough time during our tour yesterday.

Yet another profound statement for Berlin with the above pictures of East German propaganda showing people laughing who are happy and prosperous. And below is the reality of East Germans who were unhappy, compromised suffering entrenched poverty.

Back to the Topography of Terror which is an outdoor and indoor museum. Part of this museum is a section of the Berlin Wall – amazing, with the inside part of the museum being on the site of the SS Reich Main security office. It is confronting and astonishing at the same time. The question you are forced to ask is how could this happen, why did people ignore the early indicators that there was something going on here that was inhuman and for me how can we make sure this never happens again?

These museums are free of charge with a great introductory video that sets the scene.

Whilst you are in Berlin you are reminded of the World Wars but also that confusing time (for some of us ) when a wall that was 168 kilometres long divided Berlin up until 1989. We heard at least one romantic (because it was a success) story about a family escape across the wall, but many more stories about families torn apart and never reconciled, so so sad.

Then onto the fabulous Zeughaus museum where I could have spent a full day . The Berlin Zeughaus is one of the most important Baroque buildings in northern Germany and had its foundation stone laid in 1695. The building was designed to demonstrate the aspiring electorate’s claim to sovereignty. Inside the history of Germany going back to the 1200’s and is jam packed with artifices, paintings, sculptures and clothing and has another excellent audio guide.

To finish a day spent walking around this city a stroll past Lustgarten where in 1933 200,000 people demonstrated against the new Nazi Party … shortly following this public opposition was banned. Shortly afterwards Lustgarten became the site for mass Nazi rallies, with up to 1,000,000 people attending.