If you're going to watch, I recommend clicking the "fullscreen" icon for best effect. Some will find this boring and give up after a minute or two. I watched the full 30 minutes, with the video at fullscreen and my face close to the monitor, and felt like I was in a different world. I imagined what it would have been like to be one of these people on the street, and how radically their lives would be transformed in the following twelve years.
Addendum: The original embed is down - not sure if that is permanent. In the meantime you can use this link to access the same video (in I think a lower resolution), but it autostarts beyond the midpoint, so you would need to click the timeline to backtrack.
Absolutely fascinating and beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWhat a free for all, walkers and pedal pushers believing they're invincible.
ReplyDeleteBecause the street names are shown, I’m able to follow much of the path in a different Safari window on Google Earth, and it’s astounding how many building are still recognizable! So far, at least, I only just started; the turn onto Eisenbahnstrasse is amazingly similar.
ReplyDeleteIs the immense building at Georgiring Hauptbahnhof (today Willy-Brandt Platz) still standing?
DeleteYes! It now lacks the arcade, but all other features are there; it has a “Hotel Astoria” sign on the roof and appears to be vacant as of whatever date Google Earth last updated street view.
DeleteEisenbahnstrasse - maybe the allies forgot...
DeleteThe video appears to have been removed (at least on my side of the planet). This one still works for me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWKdPqGV_Pc
ReplyDeleteIf not, there's always this 7+ hour modern equivalent. :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xisVS_DKpJg
Fascinating to this student of history. Most people were afoot, with some on bicycles and motorcycles. No traffic lights. No traffic lines. Streetcars using overhead electrical lines.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. And surprisingly few horse-drawn vehicles. And very minimal on-street parking.
DeleteAll the jaywalkers!
ReplyDeleteRegarding "it autostarts beyond the midpoint": that's because Youtube remembers where you left off last time you viewed the clip, so it's different for each viewer. Apparently there is no way to circumvent this, other than by restarting the clip or skip to the end so it resets next time you watch it. (Deleting cookies would also work, I suppose.)
ReplyDeleteOh, that explains it. Thanks, Drabkikker.
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