54. Berlin Wall

The opening credits of The Big Bang Theory (our main go-to show at the moment) comprise 121 images that encapsulate the history of the planet Earth. We like to play the game of pausing, randomly, on one of those snapshots and marveling at its significance. Tonight, we hit one we'd never seen before—which is striking, since we're on our second go-round of this 279-episode show. You'd think we'd've seen them all.  

The image we landed on: the graffiti'd Berlin Wall:  

Which got me thinking: of course I've seen images of the Berlin Wall. Haven't I? In spy movies, for example. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. No?

I did a little research. My first good find was a list of the "top 11 films about the Berlin Wall," which includes Wings of Desire 

at the number 1 spot, as well as a bunch more films I perhaps need to see.

And then I searched for photos of the wall generally. And found these.

Today, 36 years later, the wall is mostly gone. One remnant that remains is the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Strasse:

It was never a big wall, but it—together with the police state that created it—was certainly formidable. I of course think of the stupid wall on my country's southern border, and the Great Wall of China, and the insanity of trying to keep any territory unchanging, any people from mingling.

I saw a piece of the wall not too long ago on a visit to Seattle, and felt content that the wall was busted down and spread far and wide, no longer a barrier:

But really, I think a visit to Berlin proper is called for. I've never been there. It's a world-class city. Ich spreche deutsch. Warum nicht? Jawohl! Geh ma! I will have to include Bernauerstr. on my sightseeing itinerary.