Categories: uncategorized
Date: 14 November 2005 12:12:19
Its wonderful to be back after the weekend in Berlin. Back to the dirty streets, drunken revellers and traffic hell.
How can a country like the UK be so dirty compared to its European neighbours? Why can't we have a sustainable public transport system with government and local authorities working together?
Having visited Berlin 4 years ago I couldn't get over the changes that have taken place in that time. Used to the slow pace of change in Wales it is surprising to see what can be done, when the will's there. Of course, the Berlin authorities aren't completely without criticism.
They have managed to bankrupt themselves. They also make promises that they can't/won't keep. They waste taxpayers money.
An example is the former Palace of the People. This was a combination of theatre, bowling alley and parliament for the former GDR (East Germany). Since 1990 it has lain empty and unused. It was found to be riddled with asbestos.
After years of indecision, the Berlin authority decided to reuse the building. They removed the asbestos and emptied it of its former fittings and held them in storage ready to reinstall after completion of the work. Then they decided not to proceed but to demolish the building.
Now they've found that the weight of the building is ensuring that the ground beneath does not rise upwards. Should this happen then the neighbouring Berliner Dom, the Hohenzollern family's private chapel (roughly half the size of St Paul's Cathedral), would collapse.
So every six months they decide to demolish or not demolish. Then they find they have insufficient money. Now they need to find something to replace this monument to Communism. They want to rebuild the former Schoss Berlin - the castle residence of the Hohenzollern family. Unfortunately, no one knows how they'd fund this or how much it would cost. In addition, it was one ugly piece of real estate.
Fior me the highlight of any trip is a visit to the Brandenburg Gate. During my first visit it was under hoardings as it was being renovated. On this ocasion the work was finished but inexcessible, due to the visit of the Chinese President.
However we were prevented from getting near it, after eating in a nearby pastry shop, by 2 Security Service personnel, as the President was due to arrive for his stay in the nearby Adlon Hotel. Not something most tourists encounter.