Berlin Highlights & Sachsenhausen
Last year we had the opportunity to visit Berlin, Germany as part of our 2022 Baltic Sea cruise. We knew this was going to be one of the best days of the trip, and it delivered! Nathan has always loved Germany, so to be able to finally visit was a dream come true.
We knew the culture and history would be plentiful, though we could never have planned for just how much there was. This is one of the few cities that we realized that one day was nowhere near enough time. You would need a solid week to truly see and experience everything, and we were a little disappointed our trip couldn’t do it more justice. However, that didn’t stop us and we had a packed day!
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Arrival/Train
From the beginning, our visit to Germany was unlike any other port we had been to. It was by far the longest day spent in port, besides a multi-day stay. We arrived at 6:00 a.m. and didn’t leave until 9:00 p.m.! In addition, our excursion was the longest we had ever been on at 12 hours long!
For those interested, the excursion we booked was a slight variation of the NCL excursion: Sachsenhausen & Berlin Overview (website here). Excursions regularly change, so these are all the same places, just in a different order.
Our cruise ship technically docked in Warnemünde, Germany which is about 2.5-3 hours from Berlin by train.
The port had a beautiful modern building for arrivals, though I don’t think there are departures from here as the building didn’t seem nearly large enough.
Otherwise, it felt like we had arrived at an everyday town you would find in the USA, surrounded by farmland. Definitely not a normal busy downtown or industrial port like we are used to.
We boarded the train, which was charted for the cruise ship to take several excursions from Warnemünde to Berlin. This meant we got a real EU train experience, without having to stop at each station for additional passengers.
Even better than a normal train ride, we got snacks on our way out and coming back home! Nan was surprised that the iced coffee was pretty good and enjoyed both of our treats. I happily ate the peanuts and pretzels on our return.
The train ride was smooth and quick, all things considered. We passed plenty of farms, and it was extremely foggy for most of our drive so we couldn’t see much and the pictures were even worse.
Our arrival at Berlin Hauptbahnhof was a different story, it was amazing!
First, the interior looked incredible! It felt like it was a brand-new building and so beautifully modern. The exterior is even more so!
Second, the moment we were outside it was clear that Berlin was going to have an amazing and fascinating mixture of new and old. Buildings gave a modern leading edge look, or they looked hundreds of years old. I loved the new modern but it was also fascinating to see the mixture.
Third, as we got outside we saw these massive tents which felt unusual given the business of this main station. After a little bit of digging, we learned that they were for Ukraine refugees entering Germany! Just like other cities on this trip, the support of Ukraine was so much closer to home for these countries and was wonderful to see.
Berlin Sights
After the train station, we boarded our touring bus and started the drive around the city. There was history and stories down every road. This is where we first started to feel that overwhelming excitement, and we knew that this visit was just going to give us a taste and we needed to come back for more!
Honestly, I don’t even remember what the majority of the buildings and we were driving so pictures and stories were limited but we did get to stop at the major sights.
When we stopped for our first photo op, we had a little bit of a walk first. Once again some of my favorite things about a city are the little quirks, and Berlin was no exception.
These are their walk/stop signs for pedestrians, and they were so unique!
After a little research after our trip, we learned they have a name for them because they were different for East vs. West Berlin. For those of you curious they are Berlin’s Ampelmann.
As we walked to our destination we passed by an area that reminded me of New York Central Park. Not that I have a lot of experience there, but a huge park/forest in the middle of the city is so unique and that is basically what it was.
That walk put us right in front of Brandenburg Gate!
There was a little bit of construction and a ton of people it was relatively quick but impressive nonetheless!
After that, we started our short walk to the next destination.
Along the way, we learned that when they took down the Berlin wall they replaced the entire thing with pavers!
Throughout the city, you can see the pavers crossroads, sidewalks, and anywhere there used to be a wall.
Look at the middle of the road to see the pavers.
It felt like a great way to respect history while moving forward!
History is really not my favorite, and when I do learn it, it is often something I forget pretty quickly. Good or bad, I really had no knowledge of the historical significance of Berlin. Seeing and hearing from our guide what it was like growing up with the separation brought a whole new light on things.
This isn’t history from hundreds of years ago that no one remembers. The Berlin Wall fell in 1989 and what the city has been able to do since is incredible!
After the gate and the wall pavers, we continued our walk to the Holocaust Memorial.
While the memorial was more art than direct significance, it definitely had a reverence that I didn’t expect. It wasn’t intended to look like a cemetery, but that is the feeling you get. Plus in the heart of it with the tallest pillars, it was almost maze-like to try and get out, take that significance for what you want.
After another short bus ride, we were dropped off near Berlin Potsdamer Platz where there is an outdoor museum for the wall’s history as well as the only remaining portion of the wall left.
We only had about 10 minutes here, so it would be nice to come back and go through all the detailed history provided here. Another item for next time!
Also, Doing some research for this article I found a very interesting trail that you can take and see a lot of the same key sights that we did. See here for the Berlin Wall Trail.
Back on the bus, we had another short ride and we arrived at Checkpoint Charlie.
Sadly, we didn’t stop so all we were able to get was a couple of quick photos out the bus window but it was still interesting to see.
Also, there were pedestrians everywhere! Clearly a major tourist spot and navigating the bus through this area was no joke.
As our tour continued we past a number of historical buildings that we didn’t get nearly enough time at to provide names or any details, but as I have said we will absolutely be back!
After the bus tour and sightseeing, it was time for lunch! What better way to enjoy a German meal than at the Hofbrau Munchen!
They had family-style platters ready for us including all the classics: potatoes, sauerkraut, sausage, and pork tenderloin with gravy. While not my favorite cuisine it was still great and Nathan loved it along with his beer! For dessert, they had something that reminded us of an apple crisp that was a little odd but we were full from lunch so we didn’t mind.
Sachsenhausen
With our stomachs full we headed back to the bus and tried not to fall asleep as we made our way out of Berlin to our next destination.
We were both intrigued and apprehensive about visiting the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Talking about our visit since then, Nathan and I anticipated something intense, like once you were close you would just know that something horrific happened here and there would be this dark cloud surrounding you.
Maybe a bit dramatic, but the reality was even more surprising.
Warning! The following content may be traumatic to some readers. If information regarding a concentration camp is not something you are interested in, please feel free to stop reading here and feel free to check out our other adventures on the Baltic Sea cruise.
As the bus drove through a residential area we pulled over to a small direct parking lot. Once we were off the bus and started walking down a cobblestone path we realized the camp was right there.
The trees on the right-hand side of this image are literally in someone’s backyard!
Nathan made a reference later in the day that still holds true, it felt like we had arrived at a schoolyard and this entrance fits perfectly with that description.
Through our tour, we learned that the housing was built at the same time as the camp. They housed the officers with other larger buildings to house any of the soldiers who worked at the samp.
The perimeter and entry building remain standing, so to enter the camp you walk through the same gates as too many before us, reading the same words… “Arbeit macht frei”.
Once inside, there were a few buildings standing and preserved as museums but the majority of the camp was an open field.
For anyone interested, Sachsenhausen has a really educational website including a layout of the entire area which can be helpful to orient yourself through some of these stories (website here).
We learned that this camp had a unique history after WW2 and continued to be used by the Soviet military as a special camp for prisoners and inmates. It wasn’t until 1956 that the Socialist (SED) party decided to convert this camp into a memorial and removed the majority of structures. In addition, they added the obelisk as a statue and meeting area in the middle of the camp.
Oblesik on the right, and the gravel outlines are the locations of prior buildings.
Here is the housing that was preserved, including bunks and lavatories.
Unfortunately, this was a concentration camp and the remnants of horrendous actions can be found including hanging poles, an execution trench, and cremation rooms. This camp did have gas chambers, disguised as shower rooms, near the cremation area but the rooms were destroyed.
This area was probably the most impactful. Seeing the physical space where so many murders occurred is sobering. While there still wasn’t a heavy feeling in the environment like we expected it was still impactful to read and see the images of the area before it was removed.
It was also unfortunate that this was the end of the tour, as well as the end of our excursion. While you want to respect the people and history of this area it is a little difficult to wrap your mind around heading back to a cruise ship after seeing an area like this.
I am so grateful we were able to visit this historical location and learn a bit more about the realities of our past. You learn about these events and places in history books but being here in person has a completely different perspective.
Our day in Berlin was overwhelming but amazing! As I have said, we feel like we only got a small taste of everything there is to see, do, learn, and experience. This will absolutely be an area we want to revisit and spend at least a week to fully immerse ourselves and enjoy everything we can!
If you would like to read more about this cruise or the other stops we made along the way, here are some quick links for you!
Self-Guided Tour of Klaipeda
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