The Brandenburg Gate (German： Brandenburger Tor) is a triumphal arch， the symbol of Berlin， Germany. Located on the Pariser Platz， it is the only remaining one of the series of gates through which one entered Berlin. One block to its north lies the Reichstag. It constitutes the monumentalmonumental adj.纪念碑的， 纪念物的， 不朽的， 非常的 terminationtermination n.终止 of Unter den Linden， the renowned boulevard of linden trees which led directly to the royal residence. It was commissioned by Friedrich Wilhelm II as a sign of peace and built by Karl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791.
The Brandenburg Gate consists of twelve Greek Doric columns， six on each side. This allows for five roadways， although originally ordinary citizens were only allowed to use the outer two. Above the gate is the Quadriga， consisting of the goddess of peace， driving a fourhorse chariot in triumphtriumph n.胜利， 成功 v.获得胜利. The gate stands 26 m (65 ft) high， (65.5 m) 213 ft wide and 11 m（ 36 ft) thick.
The design of the gate was based on the Propylea， the gateway to the Acropolis in Athens， Greece. Berlin had a long history of classicism： first classicist Baroque and then a neoPalladian， but this was the first Greek revival neoclassical structure in Berlin， which would become the Spreeathen (“Athens on the River Spree”) by the 1830s， shaped by the severe neoclassicismneoclassicism n.新古典主义 of architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel.
While the main design of the Brandenburg Gate has remained the same since it was completed， the gate has played varying roles in Germany，s history. First， Napoleon took the Quadriga to Paris in 1806 after conqueringconquer vt.征服， 战胜， 占领， 克服(困难等)， 破(坏习惯等) Berlin. When it returned to Berlin in 1814， the statue exchanged her olive wreath for the Iron Cross and became the goddess of victory. When the Nazis rose to power， they used the gate to symbolize their power. The only structure left standing in the ruins of Pariser Platz in 1945， apart from the ruined Academy of Fine Arts， the gate was restored by the East Berlin and West Berlin governments. However， in 1961， the gate was closed when the Berlin Wall was built. “The German question will remain open as long as the Brandenburg Gate is closed” was how the Mayor of West Berlin， Richard von Weizscker， described the situation in the early 1980s.
The Quadriga statue on top of the Gate - designed by sculptor Gottfried Schadow - represents Victoria， the Goddess of Peace， riding a fourhorse chariotchariot n.战车. This was one of Berlin，s original 14 city gates， yet the only remaining evidence of the other gates are the names of underground stations such as Kottbusser Tor and Schlesisches Tor. The Brandenburg Gate and Pariser Platz have played centre stage to numerous turbulentturbulent adj.狂暴的， 吵闹的 historical events. In 1806 Napoleonic troops took the Quadriga statue back to Paris as a war trophy， only to have it returned to Berlin when the French lost the war. And during the Nazi era Pariser Platz was the Nazis， favourite backdrop for torchlit processions and military parades. The Gate sustained heavy damage during World War II and was restored in the 1950s. After the Berlin Wall was erected in 1961， the Brandenburg Gate became inaccessible to the citizens of both Germanys and came to be regarded as the symbol of Cold War divisions. When the Wall fell on November 9，1989， hundreds of thousands flocked here to celebrate the end of the Cold War and the beginning of a new world order. The north wing of the Gate houses a “quiet room” where visitors are invited to sit and contemplatecontemplate v.凝视， 沉思， 预期， 企图 in peace. The south wing houses a tourist information office.
Finally， when the Berlin Wall fell in 1989， the gate symbolized freedom and the unity of the city. It reopened on 22 December that year when the West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl walked through to be greeted by the East German Prime Minister， Hans Modrow.
Potsdamer Platz
波茨坦广场
波茨坦广场是新柏林最有魅力的场所。其引人注目的建筑集餐馆、购物中心、剧院及电影院等于一身，使它不仅吸引着观光的游客，也吸引着柏林人经常到此一游。而以前的波茨坦广场只成为现在广场中的一小部分。
最初的波茨坦广场只有一个十字路口。之后，在这里建起了波茨坦火车站，从而发展成交通最繁华的地区之一，也成了首都生机勃勃的都市生活的代名词。二次大战中，广场遭到严重毁坏。由于它地处美、英、法、苏管辖区的交界处，并有柏林墙横穿广场，使这繁华一时的城市中心，在战后被沦为没有人烟的隔离区。柏林墙倒塌之后，波茨坦广场曾是欧洲最大的建筑工地。1993年至1998年间，这里建起了戴姆勒·克莱斯勒区，其中有办公楼、商店、饭店、居民住房、餐馆以及Stella-音乐剧院和一个卡西诺赌场。22层高的德比斯大楼(debisHaus)由累措·皮亚诺(Renzo Piano)设计，其巨大宽阔的正厅内设有Jean Tinguely的机械雕塑“MetaMaxi”。与其相连的是一家全景电影院和购物中心阿卡丹(Arkaden)，内有各式商店，商品种类繁多。
不仅是游客，连柏林人也总是被波茨坦广场的魅力吸引，这里，从真正的不毛之地上诞生了一个新的城区。这个城区的一半已经遍布宾馆、赌场、音乐厅和购物中心。
Potsdamer Platz is an important square and traffic intersection in central Berlin， Germany. It is named after the nearby city of Potsdam.
Potsdamer Platz is a vibrant， modern district of central Berlin， the product of a major ＄3 billion redevelopment of an area that was almost completely destroyed by Allied bombingbombing 轰炸， 投弹 during the Second World War (1939~1945)， then neglected as part of “noman，s land” between East and West during the period of the Berlin Wall (1961~1989). A discrete selfcontained area but with good connections to district around it， Potsdamer Platz is situated between the Mitte and Tiergarten districts， being easily accessible from both.
In the 1920s and 1930s， the Potsdamer platz was the busiest and one of the liveliest squares in Europe. It was a major public transport hub， and the area contained numerous bars， cafés and cinemas. This all came to an abrupt end in 1943 when the Potsdamer platz was left to ruins by allied bombing. After the second world war， the square located between the American， British and Russian sectors， became a noman，s land. It was completely flattened with the construction of the wall in 1961 when the demolished buildings were pulled down.