Day Two

Well day two was supposed to start out with me taking a jog through the park before going to a local coffee shop to update my blog. However, I was a little too ambitious. Instead, it started with me waking up 30 minutes before we were supposed to meet the group and frantically getting dressed and running to the Dunkin Doughnuts for a quick cup of Joe. The first place we went was PariserPlatz where the BrandenBurg Gate (above) and several embassies are located.

The first major stop was inside the DG Bank (above) where Frank Gehry's Conference Room is located. For you architectural readers, I know exactly what you are thinking, "nothing like some Gehry to get the blood flowing in the morning." For you non architectural readers, Frank Gehry is the architect who designed the Disney Concert Hall in L.A. which can be seen in The Soloist as well as Get Smart. Next, we went next door to the Academy of Art by Behnisch Partners (for pictures refer to my facebook page as pictures off a 12 megapixel camera take way too long to post). The Academy of Art is very typical of Behnisch's work as it is a collision of basic geometries in plan along with beautiful tectonics and well thought out details.

After passing through the Academy we came out in Peter Eisenman's Holocaust Memorial (above). From afar (our apartment window for example) the Memorial is sort of depressing as it looks like a bulky graveyard. However, once one is amongst the "stelae" it is really quite powerful as one is filled with a feeling of claustrophobia accompanied with limited avenues of sight. Once we cleared the field, we finished off our morning with a tour of Berlin's Philharmonie (concert hall).

After lunch we wondered around PotsdamerPlatz (above) and viewed buildings by Renzo Piano, Richard Rogers, etc... before venturing over to the Neue Nationalgalerie by Mies Van der Rohe (below). For those of you who are not familiar with Modern architecture or failed your architectural history class, Mies is pretty much Babe Ruth of early Modern architecture. The gallery itself was not too terribly impressive, however, just the idea of being in a Mies building was kind of awe inspiring.

After returning to the apartment, me and the roomies grabbed bite and went out bar hopping for the evening. First we walked along the River Spree where locals were kicked back in beach chairs and dancing to American 80s Music, which is great for doing "Guido Fist Pumps" by the way. Finally, we settled down at an Urban Beach/Bar and enjoyed watching Yo MTV Raps on the big screen.