Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
stairs multimedia information pillars document the fate of individuals, both from the
point of view of the helpers and of the persecuted.
Hauptbahnhof & Oranienburger Tor
MUSEUM
BERLINER MEDIZINHISTORISCHES MUSEUM
€7/3.50; 10am-5pm Tue, Thu, Fri & Sun, to 7pm Wed & Sat; Hauptbahnhof, Hauptbahnhof)
This Charité Hospital-run museum chronicles 300 years of medical history in an anatomical
theatre, a pathologist's dissection room, a laboratory and a historical patients' ward. The
heart of the exhibit, though, is a grisly pathology collection that's essentially a 3D medical
textbook on human disease and deformities.
Those under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. This is not surprising, for those mon-
strous tumours, a colon the size of an elephant's trunk and two-headed foetuses - all pickled
in jars filled with formaldehyde and neatly displayed in glass cases - are definitely not for
the squeamish. The basis of the specimen collection was assembled by Rudolf Virchow
(1821-1902), a famous doctor, researcher and professor. Also have a look at his lecture hall
- a preserved ruin - that is used for special events.
MEMORIAL
BRECHT-WEIGEL GEDENKSTÄTTE
Chausseestrasse 125; tours adult/concession €5/2.50; tours half-hourly 10-11.30am Tue-Fri &
2-3.30pm Tue, 5-6.30pm Thu, 10am-3.30pm Sat, hourly 11am-6pm Sun;
Oranienburger Tor,
Naturkundemuseum)
Playwright Bertolt Brecht lived in this house from 1953 until his death in 1956. Guides take
you inside his office, a large library and the tiny bedroom where he died. Decorated with
Chinese artwork, it's been left as though he'd briefly stepped out, leaving his hat and wool-
len cap hanging on the door. Downstairs are the cluttered quarters of his actress wife,
Helene Weigel.
The couple are buried on the adjacent
Dorotheenstädtischer Friedhof
. Tours are in Ger-
man and limited to eight people. The basement restaurant,
Brechtkeller
, serves Austrian
