This tour of Berlin, Germany was led by Professor of Biology Andreas Madlung. Participants spent 10 days exploring how the city's history—from its days at the center of the Prussian monarchy through the Nazi reign and the city's division during the Cold War—has shaped the cultural and ecological landscape of this fascinating European metropolis.
Travel Dates: May 12–23, 2025
Group Size: 14 travelers
Cost: $4,700 single occupancy
$8,000 double occupancy
Cost includes accommodations, excursions, transportation, and some meals. Does not include airfare or travel arrangements to and from Berlin.
When you book an experience with Puget Sound Alumni Tours, you get to explore interesting regions of the globe with expert faculty members, enabling you to gain a new perspective and deeply immerse yourself in the places you visit. See the world and expand your knowledge with our Alumni Tours program.
We stayed at the Hotel Oderberger, located in the Prenzlauer Berg neighborhood in the heart of the city. The Hotel Oderberger features comfortable rooms, a historic pool and spa, a bar and lounge, an onsite restaurant, and an exquisite, complimentary breakfast buffet every morning. Occupying a part of Berlin that was in the Soviet Zone during the Cold War, this hotel is surrounded by bars, restaurants, shops, and entertainment and is a perfect base from which to experience the city’s history and revitalization.
We spent 10 days exploring the city of Berlin, learning about its imperial roots, its time under Nazi rule, the division of the city at the height of the Cold War, and its later reunification. Along the way, we visited historic sites, took in some of the city’s many museums and cultural attractions, and gained an understanding of how the flow of history continues to shape its environment.
Breakfast included every morning at the hotel.
As both the capital of Germany and its largest city, Berlin has spent centuries at the crossroads of Western European history. Known for its arts and culture, architecture, parks and museums, nightlife, and vibrant culinary scene, Berlin is one of the continent’s top destinations. The city is easy to navigate on foot, bike, or public transportation and its central location makes it the perfect jumping-off point for further travel in Europe.
Andreas Madlung is professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Puget Sound. A plant biologist by training, for the past three decades Professor Madlung’s work has focused on how plants respond to their surroundings, their behavior in stressful conditions, and in particular their use of light receptors to orient themselves in time and space.
Born in Hamburg in what was formerly West Germany, Madlung grew up in a family that was divided between east and west by the Cold War. He witnessed first-hand the difficulties of maintaining family ties across the Iron Curtain and traveled extensively in Germany before, during, and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. During the 2023–2024 academic year Madlung lived in Berlin, where he conducted research.
His longstanding scholarly pursuits explore how organisms, particularly plants, deal with changing environments both on the cellular as well as the whole organism level. Living in Berlin inspired Madlung to take a closer look at the intertwined nature of plants, animals, and humans in a modern city that is uniquely shaped by its Cold War past, and in which the city’s inhabitants take an extraordinarily active part in shaping its ecology.
Madlung has published extensively with undergraduate researchers, postdocs, and technicians from his laboratory at Puget Sound. His research has been funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the Murdock Charitable Trust.
