Leipzig

For the second half of the trip we woke up early and took the train to Leipzig. Although in Germany, Liepzig has a lot of influence from Eastern Europe and it definitely shows through the architecture of the buildings. Our first stop was Nikoliakirche (or St. Nicholas Church). It is nationally famous for the "Monday Demonstration" which was a peaceful revolt against Communist rule. Civilians would gather at the church for a peaceful march throughout the city holding candles. The chandoleir in the middle of the church is representative of the candles held during the revolt which symbolized peace.



Our next stop was Thomaskirche, the final resting place of famous composer Sebastian Bach. The church was reconstructed numerous times inside and out. One of the most popular pieces that was reconstructed was the "Romantic Organ" into the "Bach Organ" because the old organ was considered unsuitable for Back's music. I was able to go inside the church during a service, but was unable to take any pictures. It was cool to see a church service conducted in German (and hear all of the songs in German as well).

One of our last stops was the Stassi museum. It was originally the Soviet headquarters and eventually turned into a museum filled with old photos, equipment and office rooms that were preserved. The most interesting thing about this museum was the second section they had where most of the Soviet archives were still kept.

People who were around during that era could actually come to this museum to check if their names were on file in the archives. This museum definitely brought to life just how much control and intel the Soviets had because we were able to see all of the photos and intel they collected over the years.

Shortly after we headed back to beautiful Berlin and I now this week I am in London for a week-long field trip with my program. We are given a lot of opportunities to see Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, Oxford University and all of the main attractions in London so I will have a lot to talk about (pictures included) in my next entry.

Bis Dann!