16 Juni 2012

Started the day off at a place I never thought I would get to see in person-the Bauhaus. As soon as we pulled up, all the architecture majors ran off the bus and up to the building. The Bauhaus was begun in 1919 in Weimar by Walter Gropius as a school that combined arts and crafts with the fine arts. This was unusual because those two subjects were typically taught separately. In 1925 the school moved the Dessau, which is where we visited. The Bauhaus went through many changes and lot of turmoil during the second world war. The Nazis shut down the Bauhaus because they saw it as controversial and communist. They used the building as many different things and they damaged much of the building's original glass. It has since been restored as close to its original condition. The Bauhaus is full of interesting details, like the way the windows open and how the doors stay open. During our tour of the Bauhaus, we were encouraged to touch and interact with the building. We got to open all the windows and sit in the chairs and stand on the stage, which made the tour and the building seem so much more interesting. The founders and students of the Bauhaus continued working and inspired generations of designers even when the Nazi regime tried to shut them down. The Bauhaus is inspiring because it tells all of us to keep going even when faced with opposition. Definitely one of my favorite stops so far.

After our morning at the Bauhaus, we got on the bus and drove for what seemed like forever to Nuremburg. We spent the evening wandering the city and checking out what we would be visiting the next morning. Even though we only spent one night in Nuremburg, I enjoyed it so much. That city seemed so much more European than Berlin. Berlin is a very modern city in comparison to the medieval feel of Nuremburg. I hope one day I get to return there!