I wanted to write about Berlin’s DDR museum for a while, and not only did a post on Berlin Bites trigger my memory, but has described the place so well that I needn’t bother. If you want to know what it is all about, head over there and have a read. Oh, and I only discovered that blog thanks to another post on the museum at Zis German Life. So well done fellas.
As for my personal view on the museum – it is small but well-formed, and the concentration on the “everyday life” side of East German is what makes it interesting. School books, the reconstructed flat, the trabant and the television shows were all nice touches. The only thing that was disappointing for me was the shop. Now, I am a great fan of museum shops, especially when something you have seen piques your interest and you would like more information. And I am sure there will be numerous tourists visiting the DDR museum over the course of the year that maybe don’t know all that much about East Germany but having seen the exhibition would like to find out more. There were very few books available, and nearly none in English or other non-German languages. This is surprising, because there are books out there…even the souvenir-tastic Berlin Story further down Unter den Linden has a good number of books on the period in which Berlin was divided.
The DDR Museum won’t tell you the whole story about life in East Germany, and there will be some that argue that not enough emphasis is placed on surveillance, the Stasi and the more unsavoury aspects of the regime in the DDR (although there is a reconstructed listening post), but there are other places for that – such as the Stasi Museum here in Berlin, or the Museum at the Runde Ecke in Leipzig, which I have written about before. Ultimately the DDR Museum is a great addition for visitors interested in understanding the history of the city as it covers the more mundane parts of life, or should I say normal, such as going to school, to work, on holiday…which are all parts of the East German experience that many people, including many West Germans, don’t have an appreciation before. There was a cultural difference between the two societies, and one which still has an impact on German life today, so anything that aides understanding should be applauded. Check it out.
On the Atari DJ Tapedeck: ‘Hurra’, Die Ärzte
3 Comments
February 16, 2007 at 3:30 pm
really? are you just next door?
February 16, 2007 at 3:48 pm
Indeed I am. And if anyone wants to know where that is, there is a nice picture on William’s flickr page.
(if that’s not too much info William ?)
February 16, 2007 at 8:44 pm
the allies are warming up the Liberators as we speak…better head down into the Luftschutz cellar!