memorial

Berlin is a city rich in history, with its vibrant present often built on the remnants of a complex and, at times, troubling past. While iconic landmarks like the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag attract millions of visitors, there are quieter sites that hold equally profound stories. One such site is the memorial dedicated to the former Columbia-Haus, situated on Columbiadamm near the expansive grounds of the former Tempelhof Airport.

Echoes of Terror: Visiting the Memorial to Berlin’s Columbia-Haus

Berlin
9 min read
07/04/202510/04/2025

Located in the western outskirts of Berlin, the Berlin-Grunewald station was used to deport Jews to ghettos and extermination camps in the east. Today, where all of this happened, there is the Platform 17 Memorial inaugurated in January 1998 to commemorate the deportation done by Deutsche Reichsbahn during the years of Nazi Germany.

A Journey Through Time: Discovering Five Essential Jewish Historical Sites in Berlin

Berlin
5 min read
28/03/202528/03/2025

Located in the vibrant district of Moabit is the Levetzowstraße Deportation Memorial, a poignant reminder of one of the darkest chapters in the city's history. This memorial marks the site of the former Levetzowstraße Synagogue, which tragically changed from a place of worship to a transit camp for deportation during the Nazi regime.

Moabit’s Memorial: A Stark Reminder of Berlin’s Deportations

Berlin
5 min read
18/03/202531/03/2025

London's rich history is etched in its countless monuments, many honoring heroes and pioneers. But tucked away in a peaceful corner of Islington, a unique statue celebrates a different kind of legend: Street Cat Bob.

Feline Fame: Paying Tribute at the Street Cat Bob Memorial

London
4 min read
24/07/202405/08/2024

Born in the 1350s, Richard Whittington was a real historical figure who rose from humble origins to become a wealthy merchant and three-time Lord Mayor of London. However, the tale of his loyal feline companion, Dick Whittington's Cat, blurs the lines between fact and folklore. And I love this story exactly because of that. In a concentrated way, this is the story.

The Magical Story of Dick Whittington’s Cat in London

London
6 min read
08/07/202422/07/2024

Visiting London’s Covid Memorial Wall: A Reflection on Loss and Remembrance

London
5 min read
06/03/202429/08/2024

The bustling district around Potsdamer Platz is home to Marlene-Dietrich-Platz, a modern square paying homage to her lasting impact. After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification, Berlin immortalized Dietrich here, in what was once 'no man's land' between East and West.

Marlene Dietrich Berlin: Exploring the Berlin Legacy of an Enigma

Berlin
5 min read
20/02/202414/03/2025

The Tragic End of Rosa Luxemburg: A Berlin Memorial in the Tiergarten

Berlin
5 min read
15/01/202415/01/2024

The Seelow Heights Memorial is a solemn tribute to the ferocious Battle of Berlin during the Second World War, where more than one million men clashed at the opening phase. Perched some 90 kilometers east of the city, this historic site played a pivotal role in shaping the war's course. As the Soviet forces clashed with the Nazi defenders, the Seelow Heights became a formidable obstacle.

Exploring the Seelow Heights Memorial: The Battle for the ‘Gates of Berlin’

Germany
5 min read
19/06/202316/04/2025

If you're interested in politics and history, visiting the Marx Memorial Library in London should be on your list of must-see destinations. The library is dedicated to studying and preserving the works of Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx, two of the most influential philosophers of the 19th century.

The Marx Memorial Library: Exploring the History of Marxism in London

London, United Kingdom
6 min read
21/03/202315/01/2024

While most people will be familiar with the Soviet War Memorial at Treptow and Tiergarten, hardly any tourists find themselves visiting the Soviet War Memorial in the Schönholzer Heide. This is such a pity because the memorial is beautiful.

Soviet War Memorial on Schönholzer Heide

Berlin
5 min read
06/12/202101/12/2023

The Berlin Wall Memorial, also known in German as Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer, is a mix of monuments and museums commemorating the city's division by the Berlin Wall and the people who died because of it. And we consider it to be the best place to learn about the wall and how it affected the city and the entire continent.

The Berlin Wall Memorial: A Visit to the Border Control on Bernauer Strasse

Berlin
7 min read
15/09/202108/03/2025

The Soviet Memorial in the Tiergarten is one of the many war memorials that can be found around Berlin. From the prominent memorials erected by the Soviet Union after the end of the Second World War, this is the most famous and most visited since it lies close to Berlin's leading tourist destinations.

Soviet Memorial in the Tiergarten

Berlin
6 min read
17/11/202008/12/2020

The Berlin Soviet War Memorial in Treptower Park is the biggest of the three war memorials the USSR left in Berlin after the end of the Second World War. It was built to the design of the Soviet architect Yakov Belopolsky as a memorial for 5,000 of the 80,000 Soviet soldiers who died in the Battle of Berlin between April and May 1945. It opened four years after World War II on May 8, 1949, and it used to serve as the central war memorial in East Berlin.

Berlin Soviet Memorial: Treptower Park

Berlin
5 min read
08/05/202021/12/2023

These Budapest Bullet Holes are how I called them before I realised what do they mean. I first saw them when I was walking around the Parliament Building, and I thought it was a little bit weird to have small iron balls over a wall. For a moment I thought it was some kind of abstract art and then I remembered the scars of the Second World War in Berlin and everything connected.

Budapest Bullet Holes: A Memorial to the 1956 Hungarian Revolution

Budapest
3 min read
27/05/201902/04/2025

When you walk along the Danube Promenade, next to the Hungarian Parliament Building, you will find a memorial called Shoes on the Danube Bank. The monument was conceived by Can Togay, with the help from sculptor Gyula Pauer, to remember and honor the Jews that were murdered by Arrow Cross, a fascist militia, during the last months of the Second World War in Budapest.

Steps to the River’s Edge: Budapest’s Shoes on the Danube Bank

Budapest
4 min read
24/04/201912/03/2024

The House where the Wannsee Conference happened during the Second World War belonged to Reinhard Heydrich, who got the house as an entertainment center for those who belonged to the SS and their families. And Reinhard Heydrich was an essential man inside the Nazi Party. Above him, only Adolf Hitler, Hermann Göring and Heinrich Himmler. He used the house as a meeting place for 15 other officials that got together to decide something that was described in a bureaucratic way. But, without any euphemistic terminology, those people had lunch while they talked about how the Holocaust would happen.

A Visit to the House of the Wannsee Conference in Berlin

Berlin
6 min read
04/01/201920/01/2025

Located in the western outskirts of Berlin, the Berlin-Grunewald station was used to deport Jews to ghettos and extermination camps in the east. Today, where all of this happened, there is the Platform 17 Memorial inaugurated in January 1998 to commemorate the deportation done by Deutsche Reichsbahn during the years of Nazi Germany.

Platform 17 Memorial Berlin: A Site of Holocaust Remembrance

Berlin
5 min read
30/10/201812/03/2024

Hidden along the streets of Alt-Hohenschönhausen there is a memorial that seems to be long forgotten by people. This Soviet War Memorial is a grim reminder of the pain and struggles that the Red Army went through when it liberated Berlin from Nazism.

The Soviet War Memorial in Alt-Hohenschönhausen

Berlin
4 min read
21/09/201811/04/2024

The original Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church is known in German as Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche. It was built in the 1890s by a Kaiser Wilhelm II and his consort Augusta Victoria as an initiative to counter the German socialist movement by a return to traditional religious values.

Understanding the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in the Heart of West Berlin

Berlin
6 min read
17/08/201827/04/2024

You can still see the tall gothic tower of St. Nicholas Church from almost anywhere in Hamburg. But this Gothic Revival church doesn’t mark the skyline of the city like it used to when it was the tallest construction on Earth, from 1874 to 1876. Nowadays, the church is the second-tallest structure in Hamburg and a memorial to everything that happened during the Second World War.

The View from St. Nicholas Church in Hamburg

Germany, Hamburg
8 min read
14/12/201712/05/2024