Berlin | Checkpoint Charlie - YOU ARE LEAVING THE AMERICAN SECTOR

These pictures has been taken from Checkpoint Charlie Freedom Park located at the junction of Friedrichstraße with Zimmerstraße and Mauerstraße in the Friedrichstadt district of Berlin.

The two pictures shown above and below this text show a fragment of the Berlin wall, the idea behind the imagery is explained below, the text has been taken from the Peter von Freiheit Facebook page. 

 "mij.k.do.´s artwork "insideOut. outsideIn." was created for the 50th anniversary of the construction of the Berlin Wall.  The figure Peter von Freiheit who is shown on the fragments serves as a reminder of the past and symbolizes the hope and freedom for the future.

.since 5th April 2012.. Berlin-Mitte - Checkpoint Charlie Freedom Park
(corner of the Friedrichstraße and Zimmerstraße)

At the historic site Berlin Checkpoint Charlie, Peter von Freiheit refers to the freedom and its limits as a memorial and tribute to Peter Fechter."

And in case you were wondering, 

"Peter Fechter was a German bricklayer from Berlin in what became East Germany in 1945. He was 18 when he became one of the first victims of the Berlin Wall's border guards while trying to cross over to what was then West Berlin."

At Checkpoint Charlie you can pose for a picture with the 'guards' for €2 and then get 5 stamps on your passport for €10. It is a massive tourist trap and a complete rip off just for 5 stamps, but hey it is a nice keepsake. 

There is an example of the stamps below, which I have taken from here. 

Plus a little History lesson, from oh so reliable Wikipedia...

"Checkpoint Charlie (or "Checkpoint C") was the name given by the Western Allies to the best-known Berlin Wall crossing point between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War.

GDR leader Walter Ulbricht agitated and manoeuvred to get the Soviet Union's permission for the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961 to stop Eastern Bloc emigration westward through the Soviet border system, preventing escape across the city sector border from East Berlin to West Berlin. Checkpoint Charlie became a symbol of the Cold War, representing the separation of east and west. Soviet and American tanks briefly faced each other at the location during the Berlin Crisis of 1961.

After the dissolution of the Eastern Bloc and the reunification of Germany, the building at Checkpoint Charlie became a tourist attraction."

Here is an interesting picture I found on Wikipedia showing Checkpoint Charlie after the Berlin Wall fell, you can also see the text which was on the opposite side of the famous sign which would have been seen by people entering West Berlin, reading 

YOU ARE ENTERING THE AMERICAN SECTOR

CARRYING WEAPONS OFF DUTY FORBIDDEN 

OBEY TRAFFIC RULES