Checkpoint Charlie is the famous Berlin wall crossing between the two parts of Berlin- the east and the west when the Cold War was on its way. The point holds a great fame in Berlin as it has deeply connected history and emotional vibrations. The town is a mark of the boundary between the east and the west which ironically marks the political separation as well as the territorial boundary. Until the Berlin Wall fell on 9th of November 1989, it was spelled for Capitalism, freedom, Communism and confinement between the East and the West.
Checkpoint Charlie or we may even call it as Checkpoint C, read like an extreme warning to those who wanted to cross the wall – “YOU ARE LEAVING THE AMERICAN SECTOR” in the languages German, English, Russian and French at the junction of Zimmerstraße and Friedrichstraße. The real guardhouse is open to see for the people in the famous Allied Museum on Clayallee. Before the days in 1989, there was a lot of debating going on for deciding over the elements to be kept for Berliners and visitors to see in future.
Initially, Checkpoint C was the one, and only border crossing stood between East and West of Berlin, which allowed passage for foreigners. The local people on both the sides were forbidden to use the point. This played a part in giving Checkpoint Charlie a mythological status and regarded as a meeting point for spies and other mysterious people. Today, the remains are moved to allow the building and construction of American Business Center.
Location and checkpoint:
Checkpoint Charlie, the name gifted by the Western allies is located at the intersection of Friedrichstraße and Zimmerstraße and Mauerstraße – which coincidently means Wall Street for ancient historical reasons. The location to be precise is the point which separates the East Berlin from the West and has the address, Friedrichstraße 43-45, 10117 Berlin, Germany.
The checkpoint is extraordinarily asymmetrical to look at. Being active for about 28 years, the eastern side of the point saw the expansion of infrastructure which had not only the Wall but also watch over barriers in a zig-zag shape. The checkpoint is very much famous for spy novels and movies. Café Alder or Eagle Café as is the place right on the checkpoint which was also an outstanding place to look at East Berlin while munching food.
The name Checkpoint Charlie was actually taken from the NATO phonetic alphabet. The atmosphere did not show any signs of improvement during 27th October 1961 when the superpowers in Cold War decided to face each other down for a day. The situation was made even worse when the American and Soviet tanks faced approximately with 200 meters of distance remaining.
Weather:
The weather in near the checkpoint is same as that of Berlin sustains as it has the Maritime temperature climate which goes by the Köppen climate classification system. A mellow continental climate is felt due to the inland position at times and frosts are observed in winters. The contradiction in temperatures is typical for many oceanic climates. A person from warmer parts of the world might want to avoid visiting this place in the winters, due to the shivering temperatures. An ideal time to visit this place is during the summers, when the temperatures are back to normal.
As the place is 111 meters above the sea level, the sunshine is warm to humid having the average temperature between 22 and 25 degrees Celsius. The cold and spine-chilling winters have the average temperatures between 3 and -2 degrees Celsius. With the usual changing seasons, downpours are often observed with moderate 570 millimeters annually. The snow blankets the point from December to March.
History
The checkpoint which was an important crossing in Berlin wall having its value for separation of East and West Berlin longed from 1961 to 1989. During the start of 1950, the method for restriction of emigration was imitated by numerous people of the Eastern Bloc along with East Germany. But still, in 1952 the East and West zones were easily crossed by the people in many places. Thus, the inner German Border had to put to closure, and barbed wire fences came into the picture.
Still, the city sector border between the East and West of Berlin were easily accessible even after the inner German borders were officially closed because of the administration of the four occupying powers. Thus, Berlin became a wild loophole for the East Berliners (which was controlled by Soviet) to escape to the West (controlled by Americans, French and British Forces). The ones who fled the East Berlin were in substantial numbers until 1961 and most of them were professionals like physicians, teachers, lawyers, engineers, artisans and technicians. Due to the 20% (approx 2.5 million) people escaping, the economic and political credibility was dripping down and suffered a huge loss.
To stop the brain drain of professionals, the East Berliners came up with the plan of barbed-wire barrier on 13th August 1961, which would become a Berlin wall. After two days, the police and army officers of the East began working on more permanent and long lasting concrete wall. Leading onto the wall, 830 miles of the zonal border had become 3.5 miles wider having a huge steel mesh fence and a “death strip”. This step taken by the Soviets was helping them stop people from fleeing away and reveal the prints of people trying to escape.
Modern Checkpoint Charlie
The line of bricks shows the path where the Berlin wall stood once upon a time and the imitation of the Checkpoint Charlie booth and sign at the very same place. The original is placed in Allied Museum in Zehlendorf. The watch tower which was the part of the original checkpoint was put down in 200 for making way for stores and offices, but currently, there are no commercial buildings for the place to occupy.
The Haus am Checkpoint Charlie which is also famously called Mauermuseum is few meters away from original booth stand; one can learn more about the history there. The museum was built right after the erection of Berlin wall, which expanded in the 1990s and one can find the history of attempts of escape and other interesting aspects of the wall. If you are an avid history lover, a visit to this place is highly recommended. Even if you’re not a fan of history, this place still has a lot on offer and you would definitely enjoy visiting this place with your family and friends.
Area
Checkpoint Charlie lies in the area of Friedrichstraße or Friedrichstrasse, which is the most legendary street in the entire city combining the tradition of Golden Twenties with New Berlin architecture. The best-decorated buildings, classy offices and coffee shops, posh boutiques, one can almost feel the New York spirit in Berlin’s heart.
The flair and elegant town is traditional shopping street with the historic heart of gray government quarter until 1945. The people traveling here enjoy shopping and spending time in the famous museums learning more and more about the history of Checkpoint Charlie and spend the leisure time strolling around the street and enjoying the food and drinks in the famous Cafes and hotels around. The Gendarmenmarkt in the area is one of the most beautiful plazas in the whole Europe which is located few kilometers away from Checkpoint Charlie. It is a major theater winged by two significant churches-German and French Cathedrals.
Traveling the area:
You can explore Checkpoint Charlie in a number of ways. There are numerous tour buses one can take and guides explain the whole booth and displaying the remains around. One can also walk around or hire cars in the area to visit the place on our own. However, it is preferred to take the buses if you’re really tight on your budget.
Other than the excellent on-road accommodations, the railway stations are also in the heart of Berlin for traveling to various other places and locations. The city of Berlin has trains assisted by ICE, Intercity, and EuroCity by the national German train cooperation which connects Germany to other important European cities. Thus, people traveling all over the Europe can hop into the trains to reach here with connecting trains.
Major attractions:
As the Checkpoint C, which is a major attraction in itself, it falls in the beautiful traditional streets of Friedrichstraße. There is Gendarmenmarkt, which are the excellent and most charming plazas in Europe. There is a theater in the middle of the plaza and is flanked by two influential churches, the Deutscher and Franzosischer Dom (German and French Cathedrals).
Other than these infamous elements in the area, one can also find the Mauermuseum i.e. Museum Haus am Checkpoint Charlie. It is an interesting museum and a must place to the people that want to learn more about the history of the area. The Hi-flyer is the penned balloon at Checkpoint Charlie also forming one of the interesting stuff to do and witness.
You can experience the historic moment when you are taking a look at the watch towers. The towers are now a part of the museum. Café Adler or Eagle Café, which is right at the checkpoint, has also taken its place as an attractive spot, and there is Free Street display, which contains books of photos and stories about the wall which is just intriguing.
What else around:
- Black Box Kalter Krieg Museum
- Currywurst Museum
- Charlie’s Beach
- Trabi
- Vielfach Berlin-DasKreativkaufhaus
- Frau Tonis Parfum
- Game Science Center