Checkpoint charlie

After coming to Germany, I've read (tried to, am reading) about its history. The first time I went to Berlin, I ended up buying "The Berlin Wall" by Frederick Taylor. A very interesting read and suggested for anyone trying to find out more about the politics behind one of the most dramatic stand-offs in 20th century. The historic events that shaped Germany after war are described in a style that makes you feel as if the events are unfolding right in front of your eyes.
However, I feel that the author's bitterness about abolition of Deutschemark in exchange for Euro after unification is misplaced. (I won't claim to know too much about Economics, but I doubt a more stable currency is bad for the economy under any conditions).

I visited Checkpoint Charlie today- the most famous/infamous crossing point between East and West Berlin that saw many cat and mouse games between the Allies (now England, France and US) and the Soviet.

The walls from the blockade time are converted to a memorial with history behind this iron curtain posted for all to see and ... remember.


Also check out some of these pics taken from the Berlin TV tower(203m high which the elevator takes you about 40 sec)


In the "Memorial for fallen Jews of Europe", I bought a book called "Five Germanys that I have known" by Fritz Stern. I didn't know who the hell this guy was, just bought it on a whim after reading the preface.
An interruption due to "The undercover economist" in addition to the amount of time I'm reading these days(~40 min a day, mostly on the tram) means it took a long time getting this off the blocks, but the story has become quite interesting, and I hope to finish it soon.