” The world is not a bad place after all” , these were the words that kept on ringing in my head when I was viewing ” The Story of Berlin” , a small exhibition depicting the history of Germany, showing us how many innocent lives were taken and how many beautiful wonders were destroyed. Yeah sure, I’d definitly say Berlin was beautiful if you had asked me about my trip, but getting to know the history of Germany in a lot more detail was a little depressing. Of course I did hear about the ” Jews getting murdered” , the setting up of the Berlin wall, world war 1 and 2 etc. before hand, but I guess it was the exhibition that actually made me realize how bad the condition of Germany was after the second world war. Then again one may compare this to the situation in Southern Asia , when India got independence or when millions of refugees were left homeless during the 1971 war ( birth of Bangladesh) and say that the situation in Germany was far better, to which even I agree. There was atleast complete employment ( or hidden unemployment rather) during the early 80’s and 70’s in Germany, but when you come to know the way , one man, expressed his hatred for a particular community by killing more than a million people , a million innocent people who were at fault only because of their religion, it does feel sickening. Yes, Hitler, that’s the evil-minded killing machine I was reffering to.
Unsurprisingly today’s generation in Germany dont like to talk about the war at all, they see it as a shameful thing and blame their parents for starting the World war on both the occasions.

The second world war ended , Germany had to pay a huge price and got divided amongst 4 countries. The Berlin wall was then erected to prevent people from the Eastern side of Germany to go to the west, which led to the development of Western Germany and created a void gap with their eastern compatriots. According to one of my Proffesors, in 1989 when the Berlin wall was finally broken down and Germany was officialy united, there were long lines at the grocery markets in W.Germany, showing how underdeveloped the Eastern side was as compared to the West. He also said that while the people from W. Germany could buy a car in 7 minutes, it took almost 7 years for a person in E. Germany to own a car. Because of all this, the unification in 1989 was not exactly a smooth one and lots of problems were faced by both sides. So yeah, at the end of it all this is the reason why I felt that the world presently isnt a bad place after all, which is however a very ironic thing to say considering all the wars that took place in the recent past

Apart from getting to know the history of Berlin, we also got to see a number of museums and many other monuments , including some very tall buildings. The view of the city was amazing from the top. Berlin is more of a recently developed city and is termed as a ” Mordern City” since it was bombed heavily during the second world war and is now building its way to a new future. There were around 4.5 million people before the war in Berlin, however after the war , that number went down to 3.5 million and as a result Berlin is an unusual metropolitan city with lots of empty spaces inbetween. We also got to see the ” reichstag” or the Parliament house, which I have to say was very cleverly designed. Its like a crystal ball with circular flights of stairs inside which could take you to the very top. The parliament room is situated below the spiral staircase, indicating that the people of Germany are higher than its Parliament.

We also got to see a monument which had no name and no meaning but was dedicated to the millions of Jews that got killed during Hitlers regime. According to the monument’s architect, one could perceive his own meaning and his own thoughts after viewing it. The monument had around 2700 blocks and below it a Jewish museum type thing was built. We were also taken underground into a nucleur protection chamber, which was built to protect the people of Berlin, incase of any nucleur bomb blast. It seemed pretty funny to me since only around 6 thousand people can be accomodated there , which is like just 1 % of the entire population. Basically all we did was walk , searched for monuments , explored the really beautiful city and most importantly took pictures.

So all in all, a great trip, something that I will remember for a lifetime and yeah for pictures please log on to my facebook profile.

Until next time,

best regards

Naim…

a —kms jogging track. A —-kms football ground, a sports complex with  ————–

is all that the Manipal university is boasting off at a ‘venue’ which was once a serene piece of barren land for peacocks to —– and cattle to graze upon. the end point has become a paradise for those like me who love to admire nature.

My last evening spent there was a feeling of eternal bliss, People jogging on the track, boys skating on the finished road, students playing football on the ground, old grandmothers sitting and chattering, babies in the prams breathing fresh air, the sun setting in all hues of  color and a background sound of more and more developments in the making. I have always dreamt of a calm place like this where one can spend time without realizing hours gone past and I think i have found it.

But what I don’t want to ponder upon is the effort which has gone in it because it does not help my purpose. I want to enjoy all the facilities MU can provide. After all I have paid a fortune for all this. And I certainly am enjoying the magnificent beauty of this serene venue. Something I don’t get to see in the bustling city which I live in nor in Manipal where saving your life from the rash autowallas is a major concern.

I think it was unproductive land anyway, how can such a vast expanse of land go waste!! If it can bring peace to a ——- no of students coping up with their curriculum it is an investment. And a profitable one!

It gave food to a good number of construction workers for whose rights I would fight with all my vigor whenever I get a chance. And I don’t understand why people confuse development with destruction of nature. To survive we have to grow. And as I have heard some people say that it’s not what you do that really matters but the way you do does.

I want to call it bigger Manipal, better Manipal, inspired by life….but whose life?

Of a thousand trees which got burnt down, or of those animals who once grazed on this beautiful land? That is another school of thought but I can’t deny its reality. Hundreds of trees have been burnt down to make this piece of land a lush green patch of grass for playing sports. More than six buildings are being built around the area because of its location. Development is happening at the cost of nature.

Well what my concern is that how long will all this beautiful scenery continue? Soon this will become a crowded place with shopkeepers selling refreshments to those who came to jog, planet sports showcasing all its new sports collection for those who played football and a grocery shop for those who grand moms who came to chat. Is this is a new beginning or the end of the END POINT?

by Aashika Jain

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