KaDewe, a church, and a palace

Tuesday

This morning was my first day of rain, and it was quite heavy at times. I had been very lucky with the weather up until now. There are quite a few museums to see in Berlin, and many of them are free, but they weren’t within walking distance for me. So, I decided that there were one or two things close to my hotel that I still hadn’t seen and now seemed a good time to go and take a look. The first place I went to, which was the perfect place to go to in the wet weather, was the KaDeWe. The KaDeWe is a large department store that opened in 1907 and is on a par with London’s Harrods. This store has many floors and is a great place to have a wander round, although you may do more browsing than spending! The store sells everything you would expect to find in a large department store, from designer bags to gourmet food and drink. There is a lovely restaurant area on the top floor that has a glass roof, and the fish restaurant has a lovely outside balcony. I decided to stop for a coffee and there are literally so many exquisite coffee places to choose from - not forgetting all the wonderful choices of desserts and homemade chocolates to go with it.

Fortunately, by the afternoon, the rain went off and blue sky started to appear which resulted in a beautiful sunny afternoon - the morning’s rain soon became a distant memory. I then strolled up to the other couple of places nearby that I hadn’t yet seen. On the Taventzienstrabe, which is a major shopping street, stands the sculpture of the two links: “The Broken Chain” that was erected in 1987 to commemorate the city’s anniversary and symbolises the still divided yet united Berlin. The large silver sculpture stands out in the middle of the busy street and can easily be seen from either end of the street.

Walking on from the sculpture, you soon reach the beautiful Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial church. This church is deceptive as, although the outside boasts some lovely architecture, the inside is incredible with its beautifully decorated walls, floor, and ceiling with fabulous colourful paintings inlaid with gold. The church was damaged during WW11 and is now a memorial against war and destruction. It is free to enter the church but there is a little donation box at the front, and all donations are gratefully received.

After the church, I headed back into the main city area (Mitte district) for the last time since the weather had improved so much. I had a look round Berlin Palace which still has so much of its original character despite its major reconstruction after it was destroyed at the end of WW11. The building’s slick and modern interior is now a new space for culture, art and science, and worth a look round. So, another busy day, but not quite as busy as the previous one. The café inside the building is lovely, too, although not cheap, but a nice environment to sit in and relax and the apple cake comes recommended!