It is as beautiful inside as it is outside.
The building suffered considerable damage during the Second World War, so it is really amazing how beautiful it is now.
We were lucky to be able to hear a wonderful choral group perform while we were there. The acoustics are incredible in the cathedral. The crypt of the Berliner Dom contains the remains of many influential people from Germany's history, including King Friedrich I (the King of Prussia!) and his wife, Queen Sophie Charlotte. We also learned that the title of Elector (Kurfürst) was a very prestigious one. It refers to the election of the Holy Roman Emperor, and therefore, the title of elector was second only to the Emperor. However, it was not a title of nobility, so electors generally had other titles as well.
Anyway, here's a picture of the Dom that Keith took from the top of the Humboldt Box later that night:
Keith and I have been wondering what the Humboldt Box is since we first saw it. It's a strange cubic origami looking building on the edge of a large expanse of grass that was the site of the Berliner Stadtschloss (Berlin City Palace) until it was torn down by the DDR in 1950 to make way for parade grounds and in 1973 the Palast der Republik, the seat of parliament for the DDR. The Palast der Republik was demolished 2006-2008 (it took so long after reunification to demolish it because of all of the asbestos). The Humboldt box outlines this history as well as the future for the location. The facade of the palace will be reconstructed on three sides (the fourth side facing the river will have a streamlined modern feel) and the building will be used as a cultural-political forum. The Humboldt Box itself had a number of exhibitions on sound and Eastern medicine and citrus and anthropology and some other stuff, plus a DJ spinning techno beats. Kind of a strange place, but interesting nevertheless.
Overall, a very enjoyable evening.
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