Today started out wet and dreary, but that didn’t deter us from walking through the Tiergarten park in the rain (that’s what those nifty little travel umbrellas are for) to the Victory Column. This tower is a famous tourist attraction in the center of the park and is reached via tunnels under the surrounding street ( a welcomed respite from the rain). There’s a viewing platform at the top of the column, under the statue of Victoria, Goddess of Victory. The platform is reached via 285 stair steps that we opted not to climb.

From the Tiergarten we made our way to Museum Island and the Pergamon 360º Panorama exhibit. The panorama depicts the ancient city of Pergamon and is viewed from three platforms at different levels of the rotunda where it is housed. It’s a stunning display, and my photo above does not do it justice. The lighting constantly cycles through dawn, daylight, dusk, and darkness and the changing light and different levels allow you to see the acropolis of Pergamon from varying perspectives. This is a temporary exhibit while the actual Pergamon Museum undergoes a restoration that will take many years.

From the Pergamon Panorama, we made our way to Berliner Dom, the Berlin Cathedral. This church was built during the reign of Kaiser Wilhelm II in the Italian High Renaissance style. It’s an amazing cathedral with a 360º viewing platform in the dome. We decided not to attempt the 270-step ascent to the top.

After dinner we went to the Deutsch Oper Berlin for the first opera in the Ring Cycle, Das Rheingold. We have seen recordings of the Met production of this opera a few times, but this production was very different. There’s a piano center stage throughout that serves as a trapdoor for entrances and exits and seems to serve as a symbol of something. (I’m not sure what, but maybe I’ll figure it out by the end of the week.) Although some of the staging was mystifying, the singing and the orchestra were splendid. We were seated next to a gentleman from Scotland, and it was nice to have a conversation in English that we can continue in the next three operas.

Tomorrow we will return to Museum Island to make use of our Museum Pass and then attend an afternoon concert and an evening performance of Die Walküre.