4
Berlin
In Your Pocket
FOREWORD
berlin.inyourpocket.com
5
June - July 2009
berlin.inyourpocket.com
Berlin is four times the size of Paris, and even though thecity consolidated its 23 districts into 12 in 2001, you’re stillleft with 23 self contained areas (Kieze) in which Berlinersoften find everything they need. Public transportation is far-reaching and effective though, and you’ll grow to love it as you shuttle between the four areas with the most sights:Charlottenburg, Tiergarten, Mitte and Kreuzberg.
Mitte (MI)
Since reunification, Mitte has rightly snatched back the titleof most-visited district from Charlottenburg. On and off theboulevard Unter den Linden, whose trees Marlene Dietrichonce extolled in song, are baroque and classical monumentsto Prussian culture. The proximity of state libraries, the StateOpera, Humboldt University, the old Arsenal (now the GermanHistory Museum), Gendarmenmarkt, Museum Island, Berliner Dom, and the abandoned East German Parliament building make for more talk, less walk tours. The architecturally humbler area of Mitte is the Scheunenviertel, whose layout looks as if 17th-century planners got interrupted during agame of pick-up sticks. It’s on these streets that the casually chic saunter from courtyard gallery to sidewalk café, pointing out directions to tourists seeking out the latest hotspots or traces of the Jewish community that lived here from the late17th-century until the mass deportations of the Nazi era.
Charlottenburg (CB)
If downtown to you means wide, traffic-filled streets,crowds of shoppers, five-star hotels and tall buildings, thenCharlottenburg comes closest to fitting the bill in Berlin.Much of what was here was bombed in the war and built anew in the 1950s. The nexus of activity is the knot whereKufürstendamm, Joachimsthaler Str, Bahnhof Zoo andTauentzienstr. come together. Follow what becomes anincreasingly silken ribbon down Kurfürstendamm (Ku’damm)and the setting becomes more genteel where you can’t see thebuildings for the trees. Nearby but isolated from the hoi polloi isSchloss Charlottenburg, the residence of King Friedrich I.
Tiergarten (TG)
Tiergarten is both a district and the name of the 255 hectarepark that began as the Great Elector’s hunting grounds inthe 1600s and became increasingly more civilised withlandscaping in the 1800s. Traffic passes through it, doing adosey-doe around the Siegessäule (Victory Column). Slicing though the park’s length is Str. des 17. Juni, which leads to theBrandenburg Gate at the eastern end. Just south of it are themuseums of the Kulturforum and Potsdamer Pl.
Kreuzberg (KB)
Thanks to a large Turkish community and more hippies,anarchists and alternative folks than you can shake adidgeridoo at, Kreuzberg feels neither East nor West. It was the black sheep of West Berlin, left alone in its far-off room to play loud music and draw on the walls (literally, it was parked in a dead-end, cornered by The Wall). In 1987 social and economic frustration exploded into violence andvandalism during the traditionally political demonstrationsof May Day. Every year since, the city prepares for a long night of stone-throwing and burning automobiles. May 1st isessentially Kreuzberg’s way of reliving its 15 minutes of fame.The rest of the days are marked by backgammon at the men’sclubs, café-sitting on the Landwehrkanal, and ambling downthe popular drags Oranienstr. and Bergmannstr. Two major museums, the House at Checkpoint Charlie and the JewishMuseum, are planted in the staid parts of the district.
BERLIN DISTRICTS
Prenzlauer Berg (PB)
On a low hill northeast of Mitte, ‘Prenzl’ Berg’ is an oldworking-class district in the former East Berlin that camethrough the war relatively unscathed. The best places tosoak up the atmosphere are Kollwitzpl, Helmholzpl. and along Kastanienallee (all near U-Bahn Eberswalderstr.). Prenzlauer Berg’s few attractions include the Vitra Design museum and a19th-century brewery complex that is now the Kulturbrauereiculture centre. A good time to visit is Saturday when the eco-market is open on Kollwitzplatz, or Sunday when everyonesits outside being cool and eating breakfast all day.
Further afield
Districts mostly known for their restaurant and nightlifescene are Schöneberg (SB), the centre of gay Berlin, andFriedrichshain (FH), filled with creatively tattered and tattooedstudents. Berlin has green spots galore, and after Tiergartenthe most popular getaways are the Grunewald forest and lakeWannsee, in the southwest district of Zehlendorf (ZD).
In Your Pocket
is Europe’s biggest publisher of locally produced travel guides, producing morethan 3.5 million guides per year. With print guidesto more than
50 cities
across the continent,travellers ask for
In Your Pocket
guides by name:they trust our content and our flawless levels of accuracy.
In Your Pocket
remains committedto its founding aim of covering the world withwell researched, well written and informative city guides. This year we will be launching new guidesin
Glasgow
,
Sarajevo
and
Vienna
. If you think that you can contribute to helping us realise our dream, and think you have what it takes to publishyour own
In Your Pocket
guide, get in touch withus at pocketmycity@inyourpocket.com.
Europe In Your Pocket
ESSENTIAL CITY GUIDES
EditorialEditor-in-Chief
Jeroen van Marle
Editorial Contributors
Wendy Wrangham, Christina Knight,Catherine Lejtenyi
Frankfurt
Abigail Paul
Research
Monika Kierewicz
Layout & Design
Tomáš Haman
Photos
Ansgar Meemken (AM),Jeroen van Marle (JvM)
Maps
Kartographie Eichner,kaeichner@online.de, www.ellomap.de
Cover:
© iStockphoto.com
Sales & CirculationGeneral Manager
Stephan Krämer
Production Manager
Philippe Krueger
Accounting
Martin Wollenhaupt
Advertising Manager
Philippe Krüger, Corina Alt,Thomas Sauer
Before the big festivities celebrating the 20thanniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall start in autumn, we have a long, lazy, luscioussummer ahead of us. Even though the theatreand concert season will soon wind down,there’s a multitude of activities in the city. TheSandsation sand sculpting festival has parkedits huge sandbox beside the Hauptbahnhof again, the tour boats are zipping up and downthe river Spree in full force again, and themuseums have been dusted off for the annualonslaught of summer tourists. The culturalsummer at the Jewish Museum Berlin has somegreat concerts, plus the famed ‘Jazz in thegarden’ picnics on Sunday.Berlin’s a great place to simply wander aroundtoo, as each Bezirk, or neighbourhood, has itsown quirky characteristics, characters, shops andsights.Wherever you spread your towel this summer, stay cool and enjoy Berlin. Comments about the guideare always welcome at berlin@inyourpocket.com.
Copyright notice
Text and photos copyright In Your Pocket GmbH 2009. Maps copyright cartographer. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproducedin any form, except brief extracts for the purpose of review, without writtenpermission from the publisher andcopyright owner. The brand name In Your Pocket is used under license from UABIn Your Pocket (Vokieciu 10-15, Vilnius,Lithuania tel. (+370-5) 212 29 76).
Editor’s note
The editorial content of In Your Pocket guides is independent from paid-for advertising. Sponsored listings areclearly marked as such. We welcome allreaders‘ comments and suggestions.We have made every effort to ensurethe accuracy of the information at thetime of going to press and assume noresponsibility for changes and errors.
In Your Pocket GmbH
Axel-Springer-Str. 3910969 BerlinTel: (+49)(0)30 27 90 79 81 Fax: (+49)(0)30 24 04 73 50germany@inyourpocket.comwww.inyourpocket.comISSN 1611-9037 © In Your Pocket GmbH, a company of UAB In Your Pocket Vokieciu 10-15Vilnius, Lithuaniatel. (+370-5) 212 29 76Printed by Druckteam GbR Berlin.Circulation: 20,000 copies bimonthly Since the fall of theBerlin Wall around 20years ago, Berlin hasexperienced breakneck change: its infrastructurewas modernized fromthe ground up, whileentire city districts wereeither created fromscratch or thoroughly remodeled. Moreover,Berlin has become acapital not only in thepolitical sense, but culturally and intellectually as well.As a result, it is now considered one of the most exciting and diverse cities in all of Europe.Berlin finds its positive image reflected in its tourist industry statistics: more and more people are visiting our city to see its countless attractions for themselves.These include, for example, the ubiquitous traces of aturbulent and emotional history and the city’s compelling museums, which invite you to browse the world’s cultures.The contemporary art scene, too, has long since found ahome in Berlin, proof of which can be seen in the city’shundreds of galleries, many stellar collections – oftenexhibited in innovative settings – and, most recently, thenew temporary art gallery in the heart of the city.Great art can of course also be experienced in Berlin’sopera houses and its many renowned theaters. Itswide range of orchestras – including the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Staatskapelle, the DeutschesSymphonie Orchester, the Rundfunksinfonie Orchester,and countless others – is unmatched in its quality anddiversity. And let’s not forget Berlin’s exciting club sceneand the many different restaurants, pubs, and barsthat make the city the place to be for anyone looking for cosmopolitan flair and the latest trends.In this spirit, I would like to wish you an eventful stay in Germany’s capital city –welcome to Berlin!
Greeting
Berlin’s famous Fernsehturm TVTower, nicknamed the Telespargelor tele-asparagus locally, towersover the central Mitte district as an S-Bahn suburban trainzips over the river Spree. At 368-metres high, 70m higher thanthe Eiffel tower, it’s a real giant,and is equipped with a rotating restaurant. Photos circling theenclosed observation level point out the landmarks for you.
Cover story
Leave a Comment