Prague Journal

Sunday, February 27, 2005.

Veena and I had arranged to meet Sarah, Andrea, and Rick on the noon train to Berlin, so we had time for a leisurely breakfast at a small deli/café across from the hotel, and a walk through the square. Despite the cold, snowy weather, there were more people around this morning than there had been at 10pm the (Saturday) evening before. We had no trouble getting to the train station in plenty of time to find a perfect compartment in a non-smoking car that would accommodate the five of us (there was only one young man in the car). We were able to find the three others, and gathered for a leisurely 2 ½ hour ride to Berlin. The trains are so smooth and quiet that the time passes quickly, helped, of course, by the conversation with our Prague friends.
We arrived in Berlin at 2:45, took the S-bahn to the Park Hotel to check in, and had time to freshen up and have tea (or coffee) before the official evening ceremonies at 6pm. The Park Hotel is very nice, and our room was very modern but a bit strange. There was ample closet space, but no drawers. The shower was heavenly, with a hand-held shower head as well as a large (optional) spigot at the top, but the stall is clear glass, facing the bed. Rick particularly enjoyed the voyeuristic opportunities afforded by this arrangement. The separate toilet was less pleasant; its translucent glass revealed a shadowy outline of anyone inside the stall, even though the occupant could not see out.
It’s interesting to be in Berlin, a bustling city of many contrasts. Until the seventeenth century it was a small town of little importance, surrounded by unproductive sandy heath. But by dint of ruthless and energetic rule, backed by military prowess for which it became a byword, the unimportant state of Brandenburg-Prussia became one of the most powerful in Germany. By the middle of the eighteenth century, with Frederick the Great at the helm, it was successfully challenging the great powers of Europe. Ambitious campaigns were instituted to endow the capital with a grandeur appropriate to its new status. Palaces, public buildings, and new districts were constructed. At nearby Potsdam, Frederick’s second capital, he created the park of Sanssouci, among the finest ensembles of gardens, palaces and pavilions to be found anywhere. At the beginning of the nineteenth century Berlin took on international importance architecturally with the works of Karl Friedrich Schinkel, the greatest of Neo-Classical architects. Since historical Berlin was virtually levelled in WWII, most of the existing city is either restored or built on rubble. Even now, construction cranes are everywhere in evidence. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the re-united city has been struggling with cultural and economic problems, as it works to knit together the two halves of the city and to rebuild and restore monuments which had been neglected for decades.
This week’s Berlin Conference falls on the 100th birthday of former senator J. William Fulbright, who died only five years ago. It is the 51st Fulbright conference in Berlin, which has the largest program in Europe. There are over 400 attendees, 311 of whom are current Fulbright grantees. The official kickoff activities began with a lavish dinner in the hotel, followed by an explanation of the week’s schedule and tour options. We congregated at the lobby bar for after-dinner drinks and conversation.

posted by JWinn @ 10:00 PM