It was a reunion of sorts.
Tim and Candice, friends from Denver, were in Berlin to facilitate a book of letters written by Tim's father, an OSS officer involved in de-Nazification at the end of the war. They share many interests with us; birding, conservation, volunteer work and as it turns out, an interest in art.
Tim and Candice, our reason to visit Berlin
Ashleigh drove up from Vilsek where Brett is stationed just to see us. The poor girl was hijacked by us old fogies and had to endure our pedantic proselytizing for centuries of art history at the Gemalde Gallerie and millennia of world history at the Pergamon Museum.
Art Appreciation 101, Ashleigh and Connie
To be honest, even I found the Gemalde to be unremarkable. All the great European artists were represented but it wasn't their best work. The Pergamon, on the other hand, was pretty spectacular. German archeologists rank just behind the English when it comes to absconding with ancient treasures and it was nice to see what they had removed from Pergamon in Turkey. Even better were the artifacts from Babylon, one of those places we are unlikely to visit due to world politics. Peace in that part of the world doesn't seem to be in the cards.
Checkpoint Charlie, near our hotel
After Ash left for home, the four of us explored Berlin on foot. I was finally able to see where the infamous Berlin Wall ran. As it turns out it ran right in front of our hotel which would have been just inside the American sector. How different the world would be if only America was as proactive then as it is now.
