Gumbo’s Pic of the Day, June 29, 2014: Berlin’s Fernsehturm

Two landmarks for the price of one: Berlin’s Fernsehturm, or TV Tower, is reflected on the facade of the Park Inn, near Alexanderplatz.

The Fernsehturm is the tallest building in Germany, at a bit over 1200 feet. It and the Brandenburg Gate are easily the two most recognizable symbols of Berlin. The Park Inn was originally the Hotel Stadt Berlin; both were built in the 1960s by the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) to promote its economic development. The hotel is the tallest in Germany.

The large globe on the tower includes a rotating restaurant just above it, control rooms for the broadcasters, and a large viewing platform for visitors, with a partially see-through floor that allows great shots of the city below. It’s also the first place we ran into a system where we bought tickets, and were told we’d be texted 20 minutes before our turn in the elevators.

The pictures below include Berlin’s City Hall, whose nickname of Rotes Rathaus (Red City Hall) came from contrast with its stone predecessor, not from politics; the ruins of the Franciscan Monastery church, and new buildings going up among the old.