GERMANY - Best of Europe 2014 - page 714

war, some Berliners wanted to tear down the ruins and build it anew. Instead, it was decided
to keep what was left of the old church as a memorial and stage a competition to design a
modern, add-on section. The winning entry—the short, modern church (1961) next to the
MemorialHall—offersameditative worldof11,000littlebluewindows.Theblueglasswas
given to the church by the French as a reconciliation gift. For more information on both
churches, pick up the English flier (€0.50).
As youenter the church, a peaceful blue oasis in the middle ofthe busy city,turn imme-
diately right to find a simple charcoal sketch of the Virgin Mary wrapped in a shawl. During
the Battle of Stalingrad, German combat surgeon Kurt Reuber rendered the Virgin on the
backofastolenSovietmaptocomfortthemeninhiscare.Ontherightarethewords“Light,
Life, Love” from the gospel of John; on the left, “Christmas in the cauldron 1942”; and at
the bottom, “Fortress Stalingrad.” Though Reuber died in captivity a year later, his sketch
hadbeenflownoutofStalingradonthelastmedicalevacuationflight,andpostwarGermany
embraced it as a symbol of the wish for peace. Copies of the drawing, now known as the
Stalingrad Madonna, hang in the Berlin Cathedral, in England's Coventry, and in Russia's
Volgograd(formerlyStalingrad)asasignofpeacefulunderstandingbetweenthenations.As
anotheractofreconciliation,everyFridayat13:00a“PrayersforPeace”serviceisheldsim-
ultaneously with the cathedral in Coventry.
Nearby: ThelivelysquarebetweenthechurchesandtheEuropaCenter(aonce-impress-
ive, shiny high-rise shopping center built as a showcase of Western capitalism during the
Cold War) usually attracts street musicians and performers—especially in the summer. Ber-
liners call the funky fountain “the wet meatball.”
The Story of Berlin
Filling most ofwhat seems like adepartment store right onKu'damm (at #207),this sprawl-
ing history exhibit tells the stormy 800-year story of Berlin in a creative way. While there
are almost no real historic artifacts, the exhibit does a good job of cobbling together many
dimensions of the life and tumultuous times of this great city. It's particularly strong on the
story of the city from World War I through the Cold War. However, for similar information,
and more artifacts, the German History Museum on Unter den Linden is a far better use of
your time and money (see here ) .
Cost and Hours: €10, daily 10:00-20:00, last entry 2 hours before closing, tel. 030/
8872-0100, www.story-of-berlin.de . Times for the 30-minute bunker tour are posted at the
entry.
▲ Käthe Kollwitz Museum
This local artist (1867-1945), who experienced much of Berlin's stormiest century, conveys
some powerful and mostly sad feelings about motherhood, war, and suffering through the