A Level Geography trip to Berlin during half term

9 Nov 2023

Blog  by Barnaby and Ewan Y13

We started our exploration of East Berlin with a walking tour around two community parks (Gleisdreieck Park and Viktoria Park). Whilst on the tour we learned how Berlin is integrating sustainability into its plans for the future through the use of cycling and walking paths which dramatically reduce the journey time from Tempelhof district to Kreuzberg. We ended the tour by looking around a market place (Marheineke Markthalle) with a variety of stalls ranging from traditional meats to locally made jam. 

After this, we visited an interactive exhibition at the Humboldt Forum which nurtured our understanding of the changes in local culture spanning from the 1870s to the present day. It also touched on key geographical concepts such as gentrification. 

Throughout the day a common theme we noticed was the prevalence of graffiti covering the majority of buildings, some of which  contained strong political messages.

Saturday

To begin our second day, we embarked on a walking tour focusing on the culture surrounding graffiti, starting in East Berlin and finishing at the border between East and West Berlin. At the border, we learned about Osman Kalin, a man who created a treehouse on an unwanted plot of land directly in the middle of east and west Berlin.

Throughout the tour, we learned about the different forms of graffiti and how it differs from street art. The most common type of graffiti is tagging - where the artist spray paints or draws their name or a nickname as a means of claiming territory. Another type of graffiti is 2 block which involves 2D images being depicted with two colours. Finally, masterpieces are large 3D images with a variety of colour and can often take hours to complete. We observed the work of CMKY who is an artist who has travelled across Europe to spread his artwork and message. He has been so successful that he easily accomplished his target and extended another 500 pieces of artwork. However, he had to display his work high up, to ensure people would not steal it.

In the afternoon, we visited one of the most famous European landmarks: the Berlin Wall. We were fascinated by the combination of historical and geographical factors which have affected the Berlin Wall over time. For example, when the wall was first constructed in 1961, the surrounding area was not nearly as built up as it is now. Following on from this, we went to the Holocaust Memorial where we reflected on its significance as well as the different ways in which people interacted with the space. Finally, we saw the Brandenburg Gate where we saw another border between East and West Berlin. We also had a discussion about climate change protesters who had splashed paint onto the gate.

Sunday

In the morning we went to a sustainability and biodiversity workshop, where we focused upon the circular economy. This tied in to the current work we are doing in Year 13 focusing on Rostow’s model of development, particularly stage 5, the high consumer economy. We then had lunch from a locally sourced bakery and   walked to a flea market as it tied in with the sustainable theme of our trip. 

We then went on a historical walking tour around Mitte, in which we learnt about the Jewish history of the area. We learnt about stumble stones, which were dotted around the streets in order to commemorate the deaths of Jews. In the evening we went to a local rustic pizzeria and afterwards we walked back to our hostel to complete our final night of the quiz.

Monday

The Futurium opened in 2019 as a place for presentation and dialogue on science, research and development. The website says that at the Futurium:

'everything revolves around the question: how do we want to live? In the exhibition, visitors can discover many possible futures; in the Forum, they can participate in open discussions; and, in the Futurium Lab, they can try out their own ideas.'

Exploring how AI can analyse how you smile to see which way you vote, and how it will be used to interact with the urban environment in different possibly fairer ways. There were robots, swings, interactive models, and Lego - the teachers' favourite enabled you to build your own city and see the impacts on pollution and the lived experience. The multiple geographies that impact urban living were obvious throughout. On the roof, the skywalk should the solar panels that power the exhibitions.

Our guide Agata discussed the redevelopment of the area around the Futurium. The development of transport infrastructure, the use of brownfield sites, the attraction of TNCs, the proximity to the Reichstag. Culture is never too far away in Berlin, from the formal – with two of everything: opera houses, theatres, etc – to the informal.

After a stroll in the sun along the river Spree, we had our final ice cream of the trip.

After thanks to our guide and teachers, we had some final awards for the trip. The Geographer of the day and Geographer of the trip were popular choices.