Theater des Westens (Charlottenburg)

We already meet the name of Bernhard Sehring in different occasions. He's the architect of the Staatstheater Cottbus (that you can seen in some pictures here) and of the Inner Jewel: Künstlerhaus St. Lukas, but he's also the architect of The Theater des Westens (Theatre of the West), one of the most famous theatres for musicals and operettas in Berlin.

It was founded in 1895 for plays. The present house was opened in 1896 and dedicated to opera and operetta. Enrico Caruso made his debut in Berlin here, and the Ballets Russes appeared with Anna Pavlova.

In its history it has been opened and closed several times and in Nazi Germany, the theatre was reopened as the Volksoper, then closed after an air raid in 1944.

In 1978, the stage technology was improved. In 1981, a restoration of the interior was begun according to the architectural plans of Bernhard Sehring, the facade was restored in 1988.

More infos: WIKI

Map: http://goo.gl/maps/OfOd0

All images are under CC Creative Commons (Attribution, Noncommercial, No Derivative Works), please refer to " darioj laganà | www.norte.it "

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The Three Soviet Memorials - Ehrenmal

The Battle of Berlin was the final major offensive of the European Theatre of WII, with more then 2 millions Russians soldiers of the Red Army to capture the city.

At the end of this Battle the Red Army losts 80.000 soldiers and more then 200.000 reported wounded or sick during the operational period (more soldiers died for wounds till 1956).

In the beginning they were buried in local graves and mass graves all around the city, but then they've found final rest in bigger places.

This places are now full restored and they serve as burial place and as mausoleums for the Red Army. These places had a double meaning: celebrate the soldiers and the powerful of the Soviets. It was really important to them to give rest to the soldiers who have fighted against the Nazis and on the other side was really important to create cult places to celebrate the Motherland (they've been built in a period when all around the city was mostly destroyed and full of debris).

• Restored Soviet War Memorial in Schönholzer Heide (Pankow)
• Sowjetisches Ehrenmal - Soviet War Memorial (Treptower park)
• Tiergarten Memorial

Among these, there are also other smaller russian memorials in Berlin and also in Potsdam.

All images are under CC Creative Commons (Attribution, Noncommercial, No Derivative Works), please refer to " darioj laganà | www.norte.it "

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Restored Soviet War Memorial in Schönholzer Heide (Pankow)

Although my preferred war place in Berlin is still the Sowjetisches Ehrenmal - Soviet War Memorial (Treptower park), a couple of years ago i've discovered also this smaller one, but at that time it was under restoration. In May the works are finished and now it's possible to go there again.

This war memorial is very curated, a lot of small details and it's fantastic.

More infos: WIKI

Map: http://goo.gl/maps/VRmQ4

All images are under CC Creative Commons (Attribution, Noncommercial, No Derivative Works), please refer to " darioj laganà | www.norte.it "

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Charlottenburger Tor

Although Charlottenburg is more famous for its Schloss-Castle, there's still something else still remaing from the time were Charlottenburg was a city and not just a district of Berlin.

Charlottenburg Gate is a Neo-Baroque building erected in 1907 at the behest of the then independent City of Charlottenburg, it was meant as a counterpart to Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.

In the course of the Nazi plans for a new Berlin city (Germania), Adolf Hitler's chief architect Albert Speer in 1937 ordered the Charlottenburger Chaussee road widened to a "East-West-Axis". To enable a continuous view on street level, the bridge was flattened and broadened.

Charlottenburg Gate and its surrounds were heavily damaged during World War II and the final Battle of Berlin, when in April 1945 forces of the Polish 1st Infantry Division, pushing eastwards to the Berlin city centre, fought against retiring Wehrmacht troops.

In 1970, Charlottenburg Gate and its surrounds have been restored in their 1930s position.

More infos: WIKI
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Xe9Aq

All images are under CC Creative Commons (Attribution, Noncommercial, No Derivative Works), please refer to " darioj laganà | www.norte.it "

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