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20 years after the Berlin Wall - An events overview
| 2009-10-19 The fall of the Berlin Wall united millions of people and led to the re-invented Germany. It symbolized a new beginning and hope for the future. Berlin will stage numerous events and exhibitions to tell the story of what happened, of those affected and how they fared. It's a story about people and freedom.  © Friedliche Revolution Open-Air-Ausstellung A Celebration of Freedom: On November 9th dominos will fall as the Wall once didIt’s being billed as a celebration of freedom for the people of Berlin. At the Brandenburg Gate, for so long a symbol of German division, a thousand oversized dominos, created by Berlin schoolchildren, will be used to create a historic Domino Gallery. Running from the Reichstag to Potsdamer Platz, a course of two kilometres to signify the trail of the wall. Along with guests from across the world, witnesses from the day the Wall fell and public figures will come together on the evening of November 9th to bring the symbolic domino pieces down. One piece tilting to knock over the next to demonstrate the ‘Domino’ effect of history. Just one of the many events being organized to encourage Berliners, and the rest of the world, to remember how the Wall came to fall so suddenly on that historic night. For further details visit: www.mauerfall09.de/kalender  © The Story of Berlin Words that made history: The borders will open immediately and unhesitatinglyDuring the live broadcast of a press conference on the evening of November 9th, Günter Schabowski, an official of the East Berlin SED party, announced that the citizens of the GDR were free to leave with immediate effect. A short time later, crowds flocked to the border crossings to demand their immediate opening. An interactive exhibition "The Story of Berlin" will allow visitors to experience this historic event once again. The exhibition will open every day and, on the 9th November, the admission fee will be reduced to 20 cents. The exhibition will include information and original documents relating to Berliners and the fall of the Wall, with added authenticity in the form of a backdrop of visual images and audio recordings of Berliners cheering jubilantly, as well as original uniformed Border guards to monitor proceedings.  © Friedliche Revolution Open-Air-Ausstellung The Peaceful Revolution - An Open-Air-Exhibition: The people’s Uprising!On the 14th of November, Berlin’s Alexanderplatz (‘Alex’) will provide the setting for an open-air exhibition of fascinating pictures that detail the dramatic unfolding of events at this time. It was 1989 when so many East Germans awoke from an enforced slumber, overcoming their personal fears to take charge of their own destinies. From the actions of just a few people, the level of opposition activity swelled into a widespread grass-roots movement. Popular movements and parties were established. Hundreds of thousands courageously took to the streets. The outcome is well documented but far from a foregone conclusion. The bilingual exhibition is open 24 hrs a day and is based next to the World Time Clock. Entrance is free.  © Friedliche Revolution Open-Air-Ausstellung Pictures of the new era: An Exhibition at the Berlin Museum of Film and TelevisionAn exhibition entitled We were so free ... Snapshots 1989-90 asks us questions about German film and images. What are the private memories of the Revolution and the fall of the Wall? What images from November 9th 1989 were relayed in television coverage around the world? The Berlin Museum for Film and Television unveils a wealth of images that depict this historic point between May 1989 and December 1990. Following the exhibition, the unique collection of private films and photos will be posted on-line permanently. The Filmmuseum in Potsdam will offer an insight into the level of state control and interference that Eastern Bloc film and cinema was subject to. Many Eastern Bloc filmmakers used the medium to criticize. The Potsdam Museum will revisit this fascinating aspect of cultural history and draw comparisons between East and West cinema.  © Friedliche Revolution Open-Air-Ausstellung The Berlin Wall Trail: 160 kilometers that tells a story of divisionAt 160 kilometers in length, the Berlin Wall Trail traces the cross-country course of the border that once encircled West Berlin, where East German border guards were stationed to patrol the death strip. Traces of the Wall can still be found and the trail is clearly laid out, with printed guides available to direct visitors. More than 40 multilingual information points describe the former division of Germany and detail the construction and eventual fall of the Wall. The Berlin Wall Trail is divided into 14 separate legs, ranging between 7 and 21 kilometres in length and ideal for cycle and hiking tours. Multimedia Berlin Wall guides (MauerGuides) offer GPS navigation towards the Wall’s central memorial and supply historical facts, scientific background data and contemporary eyewitness reports. MauerGuides can be loaned from various points along the Trail (checkpoint Charlie, the Brandenburg gate, Bernauer Straße, Niederkirchener Straße and the Eastside Gallery). Once barbed wire and steel: Potsdam is now a World Heritage siteIt’s barely conceivable. Just 20 years ago, a country divided by barbed wire, steel barriers and a 3.6 metre-high wall designed to ensure that East and West Germans led separate lives. By 1990, the Potsdam area was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. Sanssouci Palace, The New Palace Gardens, Babelsberg and Glienicke with its bridge, Peacock Island (Pfaueninsel), the Sacrow Palace and Park and Sacrow Church of the Saviour: Guides reveal the stories behind the historic gardens, the buildings and, above all, the people who have lived in the area. It was always a favourite with the stars and key political figures such as Truman and Churchill were also residents. More experienced visitors will take the guided tours to the Neubabelsberg villa colony and the Gleinicker Bridge (the bridge of spies) that links Potsdam and Berlin and where the Soviet Union and the US would once meet to exchange captured spies. Useful Sites20th Anniversary Events Schedule: www.mauerfall09.de/kalender The centre of federal government for the post-Wall era. www.berlin.de Visiting the German capital: www.visitBerlin.de The domino effect of history: www.mauerfall09.de/dominoaktion Images of the Revolution: www.mauerfall09.de/portal/friedliche-revolution Remembering November 9th 20 years ago: www.story-of-berlin.de Archived images of Germany during and after the Revolution: www.wir-waren-so-frei.de Film & Television Museum: www.deutsche-kinemathek.de The Trabi and life in the East: www.ddr-museum.de Along the former German border: www.mauerweg.com A guided tour of the Wall: www.mauerguide.com State-controlled cinema: www.filmmuseum-potsdam.de Potsdam Unesco World Heritage Site: www.spsg.de |
