The Wall

Guten Tag,
I wanted a relatively easy day today given yesterday's exertions, and Berlin has plenty of history on offer.  There are some things everyone knows about the city.  One thing may be currywurst.  The other thing is definitely the Berlin Wall.  I went to the remains and memorial today.
It took some doing at least for me to get there.  I had to take the S bahn and change lines.  Once the traveler finds the correct line the stops are listed on the display.  Finding the correct line is the trick!  But I did it.
My city map shows the border between East and West created by the wall.  Almost immediately after the city was divided into occupation zones, population began to bleed from the Soviet Sector to the French, British, and American Sectors.  The barrier evolved to control the population and culminated in the construction of the Wall in 1961.  The Eastern German authorities, desperate to prevent people from leaving, had continuously to improve the Wall in the face of ever more daring attempts by the people to escape the Communist "utopia."  Streets were closed and apartment buildings evacuated.  Watch towers, barbed wire, guard dogs, machine gun emplacements could not stop an estimated 100,000 people from breaking for freedom.  Some five thousand made it; about a hundred and thirty-six died in the attempt.
From the station it's a short and sign posted walk to the memorial which stretches along Bernauer Strasse.  A few remaining sections of the Wall were left standing.  The site, while informative, is refreshingly untouristy and remarkably moving.
Markers and multi media stations tell the story of the Wall's construction and the reaction of the inhabitants of the district on both sides.  A "Window of Remembrance" pays tribute to those who lost their lives trying to escape.  A flower wreath is placed before it daily.  There is also a small Chapel of Reconciliation.  Markers indicate the site of tunnels, successful and unsuccessful escapes.  A couple of information centers offer the visitor videos and books about the Wall.
It's a popular destination as you can imagine.  I saw a lot of coach and bike tours going around, but the independent traveler can also get guided tours from the information center.  I walked along Bernauer Strasse until I came to the end of the memorial and then walked back in a somber mood.  I remember the Wall's construction, and, of course, I remember the stunning and unexpected (to me) news of its fall in 1989.  The demolition of the Wall was a genuine grass roots movement as the population of both East and West Berlin worked together to eradicate the barrier that had divided the city.
I will celebrate the Fall of the Wall with a nice aperitif of sour cherry wine.  My understanding is that sour cherries are a natural source of melatonin, so maybe this will help me sleep better?  Yesterday I was so hungry once I got back in my room, I just had bread and cheese.  I'll be very carb heavy today.  I have some pasta I need to use up, but since I don't have much left, I'll also cook up some of those Kartofelnudlen and wash them down with some nice Berliner Bockbier--very refreshing on a warm late summer's day.