Ich bin ein Berliner
As you may know, TechE d 2009 EMEA is in Berlin this year. You may also know that this year is the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. I’m here in Berlin, which means that I’ll try to blog what’s going on at TechEd. However, this post is all about the really cool idea Berlin has for the celebrations!
We arrived on Saturday and went out to Potsdamer Platz, not far from the Brandenburg Gate and German Parliament. We hadn’t heard about the 1000 dominoes, so we were really surprised and impressed.
The line begins at Potsdamer Platz (where there’s a really cool sledding slope, too) and snakes it’s way past the Brandenburg Gate to the new government buildings. Each domino is about 7 feet tall, and is uniquely decorated. Next to every domino is a small plaque telling you who did the artwork and, if your german is up to is, which mine isn’t quite, their thoughts about the piece. Some are truly startling, and they have been painted by everyone, from schoolchildren to artists to local companies and charities. On the 9th of November, the day the wall came down, those dominoes will be toppled.
You can follow the line all the way to the end, and there are thousands of people doing just that – all day and night. There are also wurst stalls, bier stands and stands selling gluhwein to ward off the cold. The atmosphere is absolutely fantastic!
These pictures don’t really do it justice – I took them with my phone on Saturday night. I have more taken with my EOS but I’ve not sorted them yet, and I wanted to get this post up.
The TV crews must be having a field day. There is an incredible amount of technical gear here – cameras on tripods; cameras on cranes; and one really cool camera on a wire track ready to chase the falling dominoes.
The Brandenburg Gate is all lit up and has big grandstands around it, ready for the festivities.
The building where the line ends is this fabulous work of modern architecture housing the national library.
The big celebrations for Berlin Mauerfall are tonight. TechEd has carefully arranged it’s schedules so we have time to get there and join in. Here’s hoping the weather is good.