Berlin's underworld
There are a few major European cities famous for their underground train and sewer systems dating back over a hundred years: London, Paris and Berlin amongst them. In Berlin there’s a society called Berliner Unterwelten which has restored a number of the cities major underground structures, including bomb shelters, fall-out bunkers and military sites.
From their main ticket office at Berlin’s Gesundbrunnen station, five different tours set out into the city beneath the city. The English speaking guide we had really did a great job in highlighting the (often ridiculous) background behind the bomb-shelters – they didn’t really provide that much protection and were built with shockingly low capacities.
Air would have been a big problem for anyone sheltering there. Three candles were placed in the rooms, one at floor level, one at waist level and one at shoulder height. When the lowest candle went out, parents would hoist their children onto their laps. As the second candle died they would stand and hold their children up. If the last candle extinguished, everyone would have to leave and take their chances outside – better to have a chance amongst the bombs than die of suffocation beneath ground.
•Berliner Unterwelten has collected objects and artefacts from all over the city. Touring their museum with a guide means that every item is illuminated and often the true, personal stories behind the objects are revealed. There are weapons, bomb shells, false teeth and even two (unused) military issue condoms in displays that fill a number of the shelter’s rooms.
It was definitely a side of a city that you don’t often get to see, and a way to gain an insight into the way some Germans experienced the Second and Cold Wars.