Was sagst du? 樣樣都德

Many of you will have some knowledge of the many historical events that have taken place in Berlin, but you may not be aware that Berlin is also a place where one can have a peek into the ancient worlds. The Museuminsel (Museum Island) in the city centre is home to 5 famous museums that house many ancient collections gathered by German archaeologists at the turn of the 20th century. Among them, the Altes Museum (Old Museum) keeps an extensive collection of ancient Greek and Egyptian artefacts. The Pergamon Museum, on the other hand, keeps many artefacts from ancient civilisations such as Babylon and Islamic countries. More impressively, Pergamon also houses quite a few reconstructed architectural highlights like the Pergamon Altar, Market Gate of Miletus and the Ishtar Gate of Babylon. I was rather impressed by these displays as I have not thought about ancient history for a long time and have never realised how advanced ancient art and architecture are. There are 3 other museums o

I was fortunate enough to spend a weekend (29 to 30 July) ‘sponsored by UNESCO’ in Switzerland, thanks in no small part to my Swiss hosts who took me to those famous places. On the first day, we visited the capital Bern whose Old Town district has been listed as a UNESCO cultural heritage. The shopping area of the Old Town contains a series of undercover walkways that look a bit like cloisters of monasteries or older buildings. There were also basement shops and restaurants that were connected to the ground level by stairs; in residential areas those stairs led to the basement of people’s houses. Another place with picturesque sights can be found along the river Aare which runs through the city. My friends took me to the other side of the river, where we started strolling from the Bärengraben (the Bear Pit which rears several bears, the symbol of Bern) and along the bank until we reached a café/bar by the river. The bar was built out into the waters and had a stage with a glass cover.