There’s nothing like Berlin
By CARE
A visitor in the Pergamon Museum (photo: Channy Chheng)Going to Berlin is what I was looking forward to since I arrived in Germany. I come from Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia with over one million inhabitants. I always wanted to know the differences between the cities in Asia and Europe. Berlin is perfect to find out. It is very huge compared to Phnom Penh both in population and surface.
I almost found no time to sit and work in the office as I was supposed to. Besides visiting the historical places, I really enjoyed sightseeing in the early night at the city center. Moreover, I liked to do window shopping in the modern department stores that I have never seen in Cambodia. Every night I always stayed up in front of my computer after midnight checking out the places I was going to see on the following days. Moreover, as I stayed with a German guy, we usually spent some time after dinner discussing everything from the daily life to the economy and politics. This way, I got to know a lot about German life.
Relaxing after six hours on the train
Having a drink with my colleague by the river next to the Museums Island www.museumsinsel-berlin.de was the first thing I did in Berlin shortly after I got off the train. I was a bit tired after sitting on the train for nearly six hours. I am not used to it. The weather felt quite cold to me while as we sat near the river, but the astonishing view of the old buildings, the voices of people from different countries talking and the beautiful decorated tourist boats passing every minute made me forget the cold and exhaustion. “That is the first place from where you should start your journey,” my colleague told me pointing at a huge building on the other side of the river in front of us. Later, I found out that it was the Pergamon Museum. And there were other places that I should not miss, he continued to advise me.
Time travel in the museum
It was Sunday, my second day in Berlin. There were a lot of international tourists doing sightseeing; the young people enjoyed taking photos, while the elders were curiously listening to their tour guide. Big open-air buses driving the tourists passed me every few minutes while I was walking down the street heading to the Museum Island. In Cambodia, tourists normally take tuk-tuks or motor taxi, no double-decker buses. In front of the Pergamon Museum, hundreds of people were waiting; my friend and I had to queue for nearly an hour in the rain. “It is great, I used to see them only in the books,” I told him when I saw a lot of statues on the wall. The architecture of the building in roman style and the explanation from the audio guide of its history made me feel as if I was back in ancient times. I really liked the Pergamon museum. It is one of the best museums I have ever seen.
Two Countries that share a similar history
The Holocaust Memorial in Berlin – a new type of memorial (photo: Channy Chheng)Cambodia is also a country that has experienced genocide, just as Germany during World War II. A few months ago I went to see the big memorial site in Cambodia, Beung Choeung Ek, 17 km south of Phnom Penh. It is also known as “The Killing Fields”. I was very shocked to see thousands of human skulls piling up in a big stupa – that is a mound or monument built to commemorate the Dead. As Cambodia is a Buddhist country, most of the memorials were built as stupas. Those skulls belonged to people who were brutally killed during the Khmer Rouge regime. According to DC Cam, the independent and nonpartisan institute in Cambodia researching and compiling documentation on the Khmer Rouge regime, more than 1,7 million people died during that time. Here in Berlin, I went to see the Holocaust Memorial, twice. I always tried to figure out the meaning behind the architecture. But I couldn’t, because it was built in a very abstract way. The hundreds of columns in the memorial do not represent anything to me. Do the columns symbolize something for German people?
Up close with the political life
The governmental buildings were my other favourite places. It took me a whole evening to walk around those constructions. I also wanted to see the whole city from the top since my friend had told me that Berlin was the biggest city in Europe. Luckily, I could fulfil my desire when I came to see Bundestag, the Parliamentary House. Once again, I had to queue among hundreds of visitors. Finally, I climbed up the top of the building where I had a wonderful panoramic view of the German capital. In Cambodia, we also have the national assembly, the newly-built seat of the parliament, in Khmer architecture style. It is the biggest one among the government houses. But unfortunately, I can see this building only from outside since it is not opened for the public.
One week has passed very quickly for me. I did not want to leave Berlin. I did a lot of things, saw a lot of places and got to know a lot of people, but I still feel that it was not enough for me. There are many Asian restaurants and I could have all kinds of Asian food anytime I wanted. I could hang out until midnight everywhere in Berlin without worrying. In Phnom Penh, I dare not to stay out late at night. Most parents do not allow their children to go out at night because the security remains a big concern.
Tags: Asia, Cambodia, Cambodian Diary
