November 9th is the date of several important historic events in Germany. In 1918 the German emperor Wilhelm II was forced to abdicate in the November Revolution, after which the Weimar Republic was proclaimed. In 1923 Adolf Hitler declared himself the new leader of Munich, the so called Beer Hall Putsch, but he did not succeed, yet. And in 1938 during the Kristallnacht the Nazis demonstrated severe antisemitic violence by attacking and destroying many Jewish properties throughout the country.
And at November 9th 1989 the wall was torn down, an impressive and amazing event in recent world history. This sunday it will be 25 years since the the peaceful revolution of East German citizens finally ended in the opening of the Berlin Wall, which was the beginning of the end of the cold war and led to the reunification of Germany.
This 25th anniversary has been celebrated extensively during the past few months and will have its big final during the weekend of 7-9 November. The event will be attended by international guests such as the former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev.
Lichtgrenze
The celebrations start Friday at 17:00 with the opening of the light installation Lichtgrenze along the track of the inner Berlin wall. Along a 15 kilometer course, starting at the Bornholmer Strasse, through the city towards the Oberbaumbrücke, 8000 white illuminating Helium balloons will outline the former inner Berlin wall. This project by the Berlin artists Christopher and Marc Bauder enables visitors to imagine and feel the existence of the wall in a symbolic way. The illuminated balloons bring hope and happiness, and it reminds of the burning candles, which became symbol of the many peaceful demonstrations which finally led to the fall of the wall.
At points along the light installation, the exhibition 100 wall stories 100 times Berlin can be viewed, which tells 100 personal stories of people from the divided city.
On sunday at 19:00 the fall of the wall is celebrated when all the balloons will be released and sent into the sky.
The weekend is closed with the Mut zur Freiheit party at the Brandenburger Gate with Udo Lindenberg, Clueso, Peter Gabriel, Paul Kalkbrenner, and others.
Main Programme 7-9 November
- Lichtgrenze Fri 17:00 – Sun 19:00
- Wall Stories Fri 17:00 – Sun 24:00
- Guided Tours Fri hourly 18-20, Sat hourly 12-20, Sun hourly 12-16. Starting from the Mauerpark, Checkpoint Charlie and East Side Gallery.
- Balloon Release Sunday at 19:00
- Party Brandenburger Gate at Sunday, programme can be found here
An overview of all the photo exhibitions, readings, discussions, walking tours, etcetera, can be found at www.fallofthewall25.com.
