November 9 is the day Berlin waiting has been waiting for all year long: It marks the 20th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall, which came down on November 9, 1989.
Berlin celebrates the anniversary of this significant day in German history with a gigantic Festival of Freedom; besides hundreds of thousand spectators, the German capital welcomes many international heads of states and governments such as Nicolas Sarkozy, Dmitry Medwedew, Gordon Brown, Hillary Clinton, as well as Angela Merkel and Berlin's Mayor Klaus Wowereit.
The center piece of the Festival of Freedom is a giant domino chain, which follows the route of the former wall through Berlin.
The 1000 domino pieces were created by Berlin students, and just like the real Berlin Wall, they are going to fall. With the last domino, a spectacular firework display will light up the night sky over the Brandenburg Gate, the symbol of a unified Germany.
Program of the Festival of Freedom
- 7:00 p.m. Concert of the Berlin state's orchestra under the conducter Daniel Barenboim (music from Wagner, Schoenberg, Beethoven, and Goldmann
- 7:30 p.m. International politicians and former GDR civil right activists walk through the Brandenburg Gate and give speeches
- between 7:45 - 8:30 p.m.
- The first domino will fall
- Performance of Jon Bon Jovi at the Brandenburg Gate
- Interview with Michael Gorbatschow and Hans Dietrich Genscher (former German Foreign Minister)
- 8:30 p.m. The last domino will fall, kicking off a spectacular firework display over the Brandenburg Gate
Where: Brandenburg Gate
When: November 9, 2009
Getting There: Metro Stop „Unter den Linden" (S1, S2) , or Bus #100
Cost: Free