Saturday, 19 June in Berlin was spent exploring the "next wave" of banking. We visited a branch of Deutsche Bank on Friedrichstrasse and found not just a bank but a design center, a cafe, children's play area, access to the internet, oh, and financial transactions and advice. It seems that Deutsche Bank did research and decided to add value to the banking experience. It had a vibe that made you want to look around at all the features of the space long before I checked out the "tellers." No counter divides clients from the bank employees, and that was a big difference. Also attractive was the cafe area with full time baristas and comfortable chairs. They even provide dog food and water for clients with pets!
We toured the Checkpoint Charlie area of Friedrichstrasse and the sidewalk history displays are well done and most informative. This city speaks its history on every block, and they have done an excellent job of putting it all on display for passersby to take in.
We also walked to the Reichstag building for our tour, and the sun was shining brightly. They had forecasted rain, and we were glad to have the warm sunshine as we toured Berlin. Our guided tour was led by a thorough leader who took us to see places in the building I had not seen on the last tour. We even explored the area right outside Angele Merkel's office!
The evening's program was the Philharmonic Symphony concert, and during the time between the Reichstag tour and the concert, I visited the Holocaust Memorial again. The exhibit is below the stones of the memorial, and it is very well conceived and presented. I appreciated the time to reflect and remember.
The concert was great, and the performers were wonderful. I know why they have to remain seated - when they are swept up by the music and move to the flow, they would end up hitting each other!
Sunday morning, I visited with Grit, my partner teacher form the German Fulbright visit of 2008. We had a wonderful time catching up and making plans for the student-to-student online communications for next school year. The weather was sunny, but cooler, and being able to catch up was a blessing. As we returned to Alexanderplatz, we took Rosenstrasse and I was very happy to have found another history-filled street. (check out the movie too!)...
Our group headed off to Essen on the train, and arrived safely. Our guides took us to a lovely Turkish restaurant and everyone enjoyed the food and company.
Today, we head to the Museum for Archaeology and then the Zech Zollverein, a former coal mining plant that has been transformed into a cultural exhibit space. The industrial region of the Ruhr Valley has taken its economic past and facilities and transformed them into the European Capital of Cultural.
We have been fed very well, and I must avoid being induced to have more and many!
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