School Trips to Germany

The Holocaust Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe is an extensive monument located between the Brandenburg Gate and Potsdamer Platz. Opened in 2005 it is both striking in appearance and controversial in conception. It resembles an installation artwork and consists of numerous concrete blocks and slabs of irregular size and position. No sign or inscription tells the visitor the purpose of this monument and although there is a document centre beneath the stelae, it is not obvious or integral to the site. Whilst it is undoubtedly a unique feature of Berlin’s landscape, its existence has been fraught with controversy.

Auschwitz was the largest of the Nazi extermination camps and during a period of three years following the Wannsee Conference of January 1942 over 1.1 million mainly Jews went to the gas chambers here. The camp is located about on hour outside of Krakow on two sites - at Auschwitz itself and at nearby Birkenau, known as Auschwitz II.  At Auschwitz I many of the camp barracks, which were built of brick, are in a good state of preservation, with watch towers and barber wire encompassing the site.  At Birkenau most of the structures were built of wood and apart from a few reconstructed buildings the great expanse of the site is empty with just the foundations remaining to show what a vast site this was. The railway lines which are associated with the mass transport of prisoners end their journey at Birkenau.

Take a tour of the iconic Olympic Stadium which was used for the 1936 Berlin Olympics when American sprinter Jesse Owens won four gold medals in front of Adolf Hitler. It was subsequently refurbished and hosted the 2006 World Cup Final between France and Italy. Today the stadium is the home of Berlin football club Hertha Berlin.

Take a trip to the top of the Berlin TV Tower, the Fernsehturm, for a sensational panoramic view of the city. The tower was built in the days when Berlin was a divided city and was intended to be a symbol of East German Communist power.

The Berlin Wall Memorial is set out across a large site where the Wall used to separate the two halves of Berlin. You can see the marked routes of the tunnels dug by those trying to escape from East Berlin, and also those dug by the Stasi to get into West Berlin to kidnap people. There is a preserved section of Wall with lookout tower, and a very informative museum and exhibition which, among other things, documents the individual stories of those escapees. There is also a memorial to the many East Berliners who were shot whilst trying to escape to the West.

Visit the spectacular Dome of the Reichstag Building which was designed by the British architect Norman Foster. A huge lift takes you up to the roof of the Reichstag where you collect your audio guides and ascend the double helix stair case which rises inside the spectacular glass dome with ever expanding views across the city. The tour allows you to access the roof of the Reichstag for views across the city. (NB. Visits to the actual Parliament chamber are possible but subject to request and Parliamentary business scheduling so if you would like to do this, please let us know and we will try to arrange it).

At the end of World War 2, the city of Berlin was divided into four zones, each administered by one of the four victorious powers. Checkpoint Charlie was the main crossing between the American zone and the Russian zone and was a scene of intrigue and spy swaps. After the fall of the Berlin Wall and German reunification, the area was re-designed, and nothing now remains of the original American check post. Today just a small replica hut stands on the site. There are also various exhibits which document the ever-changing appearance of the former border area.

The König Galerie was founded by Johann König in 2002 and is situated within the Brutalist concrete former church of St. Agnes. There are a variety of media on display including sculpture, video, sound, painting, printmaking, photography and performance. The gallery represents around 30 emerging and established artists from the younger generation.