The last time we stayed at this hotel in Berlin we came back to find a large crowd of journalists standing outside on the pavement. They were all pointing towards the top floor penthouse where Michael Jackson , in a red jumpsuit, was nonchalantly dangling a baby over the edge of the balcony with one hand while waving cheerfully with the other. This time it was quieter.
'The font' sees a porcelain rhinoceros in the Meissen showroom on the Unter den Linden. €20,000. The font leaves empty handed.
Most tourists go to museums. 'The font ' by contrast is determined to find the final resting place of Bertolt Brecht and his wife in a back street East Berlin cemetery. A literary pilgrimage. We find it. We look at it. Angus thinks that grave tourism lacks the wow factor and will never take off.
The Deportation Monument . Not a great success architecturally. Masses of laughing teenagers leaping from one stone to the other - a kind of high rise hopscotch. It's right that the monument should have been built on the site of the Propaganda Ministers house . An optimistic , uplifting, reminder that " the moral arc of the universe bends slowly, but it bends towards justice " .
Where were the grave weeders?
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ReplyDeleteWe think it is an asian rhino...we have a real one at our zoo. Hope the heat has abated while you were gone.
XXXOOO Daisy, Bella & Roxy
Glad you are back home safely, and that you enjoyed your trip.
ReplyDeleteHope the heat has abated a bit, and that the temperature is more favourable at the ROF.
Love the Font, I had a very good picture of her determined to go on her literary pilgrimage, with poor Angus tagging along.
Grave tourism? Angus you are too much.
That must have been an interesting hotel stay! I'm guessing there were no random meetings with the King of Pop in the hallway?
ReplyDeleteI enjoy seeing the things off the beaten path, too, but the grave site could have been a little more...visually interesting.
Fantastic post and pictures. The writing had me and Mr. O chuckling... the Font left empty handed............
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ReplyDeleteWonder if the rhino has poor eyesight. His head his down, is he using his sense of smell to guide him?
I am sure the font would say that it isn't everyday one can visit the final resting place of Bertolt Brecht.
Grave tourism used to be sort of fun. We always looked for the funky epitath like Hilare Belloc's
ReplyDelete"When I am dead, I hope it may be said: His sins were scarlet, but his books were read."
Cheers,
Jo
Cemetery tourism is quite popular with L.A.Tourists.
ReplyDeleteA failed monument, to be sure. Have you been to the deportation memorial in Paris? Simple, moving. No leaping teenagers there.
I'd like to believe the quote paraphrased by MLK is true but I despair.
I rather like the Holocaust memorial; or to give it it's Sunday name, The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. It didn't have teenagers jumping on it when I went, mind you.
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