Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Touring in Dresden - arrival in Berlin


We said good-bye to the Chezk Republic today and headed west and north to Berlin. 

Mid morning:  Stop at the Teresienstaldt Memorial, where our students had the opportunity to pay their respects to the thousands who lost their lives in this region during the Holocaust.  

Mid day:  Our primary touring stop today was Dresden.  Oh my, what a beautiful city!  I have studied the history of Dresden (specifically related to a composition by Daniel Bukivich: Symphony No. 1 - In Memoriam Dresden, which depicts the Allied bombing at the end of WWII and the firestorm that destroyed/leveled the city).  To see the reconstruction that has taken place in the past decade (since the reunification of Germany) was absolutely astounding.  

Evening:  Arrival and check-in at Hotel Kolumbus in Berlin.  Great dinner.  Looking forward to a final two days of sightseeing in Berlin - and our final concert in Wittenburg tomorrow evening.