In a famous speech in Berlin in 1963, John F. Kennedy said "Ich bin ein Berliner," leading to decades of controversy over whether he gave the citizens of Berlin a good chuckle by calling himself a Berliner, which is a kind of jelly doughnut. In his
Dress to Kill sketch, Eddie Izzard, suggests that JFK did, in fact, call himself a jelly doughnut, while
David Emery swears that JFK, using perfect grammar, asserted that he stood with the people of Berlin. Of course, with my ridiculously rudimentary knowledge of German, I'm hardly able to weigh in on this debate. However, during my time in Berlin, I couldn't help but think--am I a jelly doughnut?
I only had 3 short days in Berlin, but I loved every minute--it is such a historically rich, unique city. From the Berliner Dom to the Reichstag, the people on the tram to Darth Vader at the Brandenburg Gate, the schnitzel to the doner, the whole city is such an interesting amalgamation of old and new, funky and classic, eastern and western. I had my camera in hand the whole time, but I feel as though I did not--could not--adequately capture the character of the city. I would love to visit again with a focus on shooting candid portraits; as this was my first time in Berlin, I was obviously caught up in the sites, and my photos were focused primarily on the architectural elements of the city, but I feel like so much of what makes Berlin interesting is its people. I can't call myself a Berliner (or a jelly doughnut) after one short trip, but I would love to spend some time photographing some true Berliners. Still, I managed to take a ton of photos. I hope you enjoy the one's I've shared below!
