Found Woody and thought he would love to take some pictures in the nearby city of Potsdam - espacially the bridge of spies and the historic inner city are very nice.
On three days of its history of over three hundred years Glienicke Bridge was the scene of exchanges of secret agents. It was one of the few places in the world where the United States and the Soviet Union stood directly opposite each other. And so “deals” could be made here without any of their allies having any say in the matter.
The border between the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic ran through the middle of the bridge. The border fortifications were perfected and the “Bridge of Unity” became a symbol of the division of Germany.
In 1988 three citizens of Potsdam spectactularly broke through the border in a lorry. Many more tried and failed.
At 6 p.m. on 10th November 1989, one day after the “opening of the Wall”, Glienicke Bridge was reopened for pedestrians; the border fortifications and barricades were dismantled following the unification of Germany on 3rd October 1990. Since then Glienicke Bridge has - leaving aside ist eventful history - been a bridge like any other.
After this we visited the inner city of Potsdam. Without any doubt, Potsdam is one of the most beautiful cities in Germany. Here, at the site of Potsdam's oldest Havel river crossing, there already stood a castle in early medieval times in order to safeguard the important trade route. Woody is impressed.
Have a nice trip here in germany...
[This entry was edited by Haschawann on Saturday, July 29, 2006 at 6:59:05 AM.]