Train Warsaw → Berlin

City that saw war, emerges peacefully and beautifully The bombs dropped. The city was destroyed. A wall went up and Warsaw was bathed in Red for decades. Wall comes down, capitalism floods the streets and voila – Warsaw, uprising. And there's a very (very) short history of the capital of Poland. It's amazing how after such a short period of time, a city can recover with grace, beauty and modernity. This is evident even in Warsaw's Centralna train station. When you arrive, take the escalator two levels up to the main hall for your choice of transport to the city center. Whether you take a bus, tram or train, prepare to be surprised. Learn more about Warsaw

At the gates of modernity Berlin 2012. To get from east to west you need not dig a tunnel, hide in a car trunk or hop on a hot air balloon. Simply take S bahn from Friedrichstrasse (the border station) or just walk through the Brandenburg gate. Today’s Berlin is a city of contrasts. Bullet scarred buildings from WWII provide a juxtaposition against an ultramodern metropolis. The four-year-old Berlin Hauptbahnhof (main train station) is one such example. Combining striking architecture with the mobility requirements of 21st century travelers, the station is one of the largest and most contemporary in Europe. And speaking of contemporary, Berlin’s modern art scene is truly thriving. Set in an old train station, the Hamburger Bahnhof may have an old façade, but inside holds a collection of works from the 1960s to the present. Past exhibitions have included Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg and Cy Twombly. And there lies one of the many contrasts. You can see modernity flourish in art and architecture, but it’s hard to ignore the city’s solemn history. You can step back in time at the Mauer Museum on the same site as the former checkpoint Charlie. The DDR museum featuring artifacts from the former East Germany. The Jewish museum contains a history of German Jews. The Berlin Holocaust Memorial, located one block south of the Brandenburg gate, provides a grim, emotional reminder of a time that no one can, nor should, forget. Learn more about Berlin