A few weekends ago on a rainy Saturday, we spontaneously decided to go to the German History Museum here in Berlin. Although we have lived here for ages, we had somehow never made it there. Much to our surprise there was a festival going on that weekend.
And we got to play dress-up - something you never get too old for . . .
Never mind that all of our costumes are from different time periods . . .
The collection of knights and medieval artifacts paint a vivid picture of what life is Germany was really like at that time. It definitely rivals the exhibition at the Tower of London, and may even be better!
We were lucky enough to take part in a children's tour about the knights and their times.
I even learned a few things from Laura, our amazing tour guide. For instance, there is a saying in German, "Du hast Schwein gehabt!" - "You've just got a pig!" - which means you had good luck. I've always wondered why in the world pigs meant good luck in the German-speaking world, whereas it means anything but in the English-speaking world. Well, the answer lies in the medieval knights' tournaments. The knight in very last place would receive a pig as a consolation prize, which meant that he and his family would have something to eat in the winter. Who knew?
After the tour, each child got to hold a real knight's sword and feel how heavy it was.
And after the tour, my oldest sat drawing the knights and taking it all in.
If you're ever in Berlin, don't miss this museum! In German and English, it's a great place for the whole family.
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