More than Weimar: Excursion to Dessau and Berlin

Weimar is amazing. From its beautiful buildings (literally every one looks like it could be in Disneyland) to its great food (doner kebab, Thuringian Bratwurst), Weimar is a charming small town with history of global fame. However, it was a great experience to be able to travel to other parts of Germany.

The Modernism and Design Global Seminar included a week-long excursion to Dessau and Berlin. These cities are very different, and each have unique things to offer.

We headed to Dessau on the regional high-speed rail train, the Erfurter Bahn, and travelled northeast for around two hours. Dessau, like Weimar, had a comprehensive bus system and a tram that connected its train station to the center of the city. One of this city’s main attractions is the Bauhaus School, built in 1926 when director Walter Gropius decided to locate in the industrial city of Dessau after political pressure made Weimar an unsuitable location for an avant garde art school. Our group attended a fascinating tour of the school. We learned about how every building and object within each building served a specific, functional purpose, from the way the windows opened, to the way stools fit underneath tables in the canteen. We also visited the many other Bauhaus-style buildings in Dessau, including the Masters Houses (where Wassily Kandinsky, Walter Gropius, and Paul Klee lived) and the Torten Estates (an example of how the Bauhaus style served Germany’s affordable housing needs in the 1920s). 

The Bauhaus School in Dessau

Our second day in Dessau included a short bus ride to Worlitz Garden, an incredible 18^th century English-style garden that looked like a landscape painting come to life. Here, we practiced perspective drawing and enjoyed a beautiful day in the park.

Landscape view in Worlitz Garden

Our next stop on the excursion was Berlin. Weimar and Dessau had inspiring historical locations, but Berlin offered the excitement of a global city. Here, we instantly marveled over iconic places like Brandenburg gate, the TV Tower, and the East Side Gallery. We kicked off our days in Berlin with a private tour of the Reichstag, the main federal government building in Germany, and were able to sit in the chambers of the Bundestag, or German parliament. The tour ended with a walk around the rooftop of the Reichstag during sunset, providing an amazing view of Berlin.

Reichstag rooftop during sunset

 The remainder of our days in Berlin included many rides on the U-Bahn, a bike tour of the city, a visit to the German History Museum, and the city models museum. It was very enjoyable to have free time in Berlin in order to choose which attractions to visit during our limited time in the city.

Riding around Tempelhof airfield (now used as a park by the public)

View from the TV Tower

Visiting a number of cities and places made this Global Seminar very interesting and unforgettable. I felt like I got to experience a larger portion of Germany by venturing out of Weimar for a few days. I definitely want to come back on my own to explore more of Berlin.

Vianney Ruvalcaba

Muir College, Class of 2018

Modernism and Design: The Bauhaus Experience

Weimar, Germany