BERLIN INFORMATION. GERMANY Sergi Reboredo access to Berlin
Germany, Berlin, the Oberbaumbrücke bridge that links Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain districts over the Spree river. The Oberbaum Bridge (German: Oberbaumbrücke) is a double-deck bridge crossing Berlin's River Spree, considered one of the city landmarks. It links Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg, former boroughs that were divided by the Berlin Wall, and has become an important symbol of Berlin’s unity. The lower deck of the bridge carries a roadway, which connects Oberbaum Straße to the south of the river with Warschauer Straße to the north. The upper deck of the bridge carries Berlin U-Bahn line U1, between Schlesisches Tor and Warschauer Straße stations. Germany, Berlin. A relaxing afternoon on the lawn of the East side gallery along the Spree. The East Side Gallery is an international memorial for freedom. It is a 1.3 km long section of the Berlin Wall located near the centre of Berlin on Mühlenstraße in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg. The actual border at this point was the river Spree. The gallery is located on the so-called "hinterland mauer", which closed the border to East Berlin. The Gallery consists of 105 paintings by artists from all over the world, painted in 1990 on the east side of the Berlin Wall. The East Side Gallery was founded following the successful merger of the two German artists' associations VBK and BBK. The founding members were the speche of the Federal Association of Artists BBK Bodo Sperling, Barbara Greul Aschanta, Jörg Kubitzki and David Monti. I love Berlin. East Side Hotel in front of East Side Gallery. The East Side Gallery is a 1.3 km-long painted stretch of the former Berlin Wall along the Mühlenstrasse in former East Berlin. It is the largest open-air gallery in the world with over one hundred original mural paintings. Galvanised by the extraordinary events which were changing the world, artists from all around the globe rushed to Berlin after the fall of the Wall, leaving a visual testimony of the joy and spirit of liberation which erupted at the time. Wall murals had previously been a highlight for visitors and a Berlin attraction for years but were only to be found on the western side of the Wall. The artists transformed the grey concrete rearticulating this into a lasting expression of freedom and reconciliation.
     
Prenzlauerberg District, garden around the former Wasserturm, 1873 brick water tower converted to an apartment. Wasserturm. Watertower in Berlin (Germany) was build up in 1877 and is the symbol for Prenzlauer Berg. The Wasserturm Prenzlauer Berg is Berlin's oldest water tower, completed in 1877 and in use until 1952. The structure was designed by Henry Gill and built by the English Waterworks Company. It is situated between Knaackstraße and Belforter Straße in Kollwitzkiez, in the Prenzlauer Berg locality of Berlin (part of Pankow district) and worked on the principle of using piped water to supply the rapidly growing population of workers. Germany, Berlin, the Oberbaumbrücke bridge that links Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain districts over the Spree river. The Oberbaum Bridge (German: Oberbaumbrücke) is a double-deck bridge crossing Berlin's River Spree, considered one of the city landmarks. It links Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg, former boroughs that were divided by the Berlin Wall, and has become an important symbol of Berlin’s unity. The lower deck of the bridge carries a roadway, which connects Oberbaum Straße to the south of the river with Warschauer Straße to the north. The upper deck of the bridge carries Berlin U-Bahn line U1, between Schlesisches Tor and Warschauer Straße stations. Germany, Berlin. Bycicles. A relaxing afternoon on the lawn of the East side gallery along the Spree. The East Side Gallery is an international memorial for freedom. It is a 1.3 km long section of the Berlin Wall located near the centre of Berlin on Mühlenstraße in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg. The actual border at this point was the river Spree. The gallery is located on the so-called "hinterland mauer", which closed the border to East Berlin. The Gallery consists of 105 paintings by artists from all over the world, painted in 1990 on the east side of the Berlin Wall.
     
Musicians. Buskers by the Wall in Mauerpark Berlin in evening light Germany. Mauerpark is a public linear park in Berlin's Prenzlauer Berg district. The name translates to "Wall Park", referring to its status as a former part of the Berlin Wall and its Death Strip. The park is located at the border of Prenzlauer Berg and Gesundbrunnen district of former West Berlin. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the Mauerpark area served as the location of the Old Nordbahnhof ("Northern Railway Station"), the southern terminus of the Prussian Northern Railway opened in 1877-78, which connected Berlin with the city of Stralsund and the Baltic Sea. Musicians. Buskers by the Wall in Mauerpark Berlin in evening light Germany. Mauerpark is a public linear park in Berlin's Prenzlauer Berg district. The name translates to "Wall Park", referring to its status as a former part of the Berlin Wall and its Death Strip. The park is located at the border of Prenzlauer Berg and Gesundbrunnen district of former West Berlin. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the Mauerpark area served as the location of the Old Nordbahnhof ("Northern Railway Station"), the southern terminus of the Prussian Northern Railway opened in 1877-78, which connected Berlin with the city of Stralsund and the Baltic Sea. Prenzlauerberg District, garden around the former Wasserturm, 1873 brick water tower converted to an apartment. Wasserturm. Watertower in Berlin (Germany) was build up in 1877 and is the symbol for Prenzlauer Berg. The Wasserturm Prenzlauer Berg is Berlin's oldest water tower, completed in 1877 and in use until 1952.
     
Museum der Verbotenen Kunst, Berlin, Germany. In 1990 a group of young artists created the Museum of the Forbidden Arts. This is an old watchtower border, which the Germans call Grenzwachturm created on the death strip, on the part of the wall that separated the western district of Kreuzberg. Inside this tower, various artists censored by the RDA exhibit their artwork. Mural art, graffiti, Kreuzberg, Berlin, Germany, Europe. Berlin “the graffiti Mecca of the urban art world.” While few people would argue with her, the Berlin street scene is not as radical as her statement suggests. Street art in Berlin is a big industry. It’s not exactly legal, but the city’s title of UNESCO’s City of Design has kept local authorities from doing much to change what observers call the most “bombed” city in Europe. From the authorities’ point of view, the graffiti attracts tourists, and the tourists bring money to a city deep in debt. Graffiti in a house near the Mauerpark, Berlin in evening light Germany. Wellcome to Belin, brazilian team. Joga bonito. Mauerpark is a public linear park in Berlin's Prenzlauer Berg district. The name translates to "Wall Park", referring to its status as a former part of the Berlin Wall and its Death Strip. The park is located at the border of Prenzlauer Berg and Gesundbrunnen district of former West Berlin. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the Mauerpark area served as the location of the Old Nordbahnhof ("Northern Railway Station"), the southern terminus of the Prussian Northern Railway opened in 1877-78, which connected Berlin with the city of Stralsund and the Baltic Sea.
     
Hos Geldiniz, Falckensteinstrasse 46 in Berlin, Germany, Europe. You can find this beautifully painted house at the western end of the Oberbaum Bridge on Kreuzberg territory. The Turkish inscription on the balcony reads "Ho? geldiniz" ... "Welcome!". Painting of Chairman Mao by Andy Warhol at Hamburger Bahnhof Museum of Contemporary Art in Berlin Germany. A canvas by the American pop artist Andy Warhol of the Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong has sold for £7.6 million - more than 18 times the price paid last time it went to auction. The artist was said to have been inspired to create the iconic series of Chairman Mao paintings by the historic visit of the then US president Richard Nixon to China in 1972. Warhol transformed the official portrait of the Chinese leader, in this case using the red and yellow colour scheme of the Cultural Revolution. It was last sold at auction in June 2000 for just £421,500. The paintings were excluded from a major show of Warhol's work exhibited in China last year. Berlin. Germany. Graffiti in Hackesche Höfe entrance. A modern woman catching a man passing. Berlin “the graffiti Mecca of the urban art world.” While few people would argue with her, the Berlin street scene is not as radical as her statement suggests. Street art in Berlin is a big industry. It’s not exactly legal, but the city’s title of UNESCO’s City of Design has kept local authorities from doing much to change what observers call the most “bombed” city in Europe.
     
Berlin, Germany, on a old bus in Arena Berlin. Oversized benches and cars covered in grass at Arena Berlin. Cultural events in a listed factory building along the former GDR border. Today, this 7,000 sqm venue at the edge of the Spree River is the site for countless concerts, fairs and parties – but the building complex in Berlin’s Treptow district was originally used quite differently: Designed by architect Franz Ahrens, the arena was built in 1927 as a bus hall for Berlin's public transport system. At the time, it was Europe's largest free-standing hall and could hold 240 buses. During the Nazi period, it was turned into a weapons arsenal. After the Berlin Wall was built in 1961, it was no longer accessible due to its location; after the German reunification, Berlin’s public transport services officially closed the building altogether. Berlin, Germany, on Garden of slowing fleet Arena Berlin. Oversized benches and cars covered in grass at Arena Berlin. Cultural events in a listed factory building along the former GDR border. Today, this 7,000 sqm venue at the edge of the Spree River is the site for countless concerts, fairs and parties – but the building complex in Berlin’s Treptow district was originally used quite differently: Designed by architect Franz Ahrens, the arena was built in 1927 as a bus hall for Berlin's public transport system. At the time, it was Europe's largest free-standing hall and could hold 240 buses. During the Nazi period, it was turned into a weapons arsenal. After the Berlin Wall was built in 1961, it was no longer accessible due to its location; after the German reunification, Berlin’s public transport services officially closed the building altogether. Berlin, Germany, on Garden of slowing fleet Arena Berlin. Oversized benches and cars covered in grass at Arena Berlin. Cultural events in a listed factory building along the former GDR border. Today, this 7,000 sqm venue at the edge of the Spree River is the site for countless concerts, fairs and parties – but the building complex in Berlin’s Treptow district was originally used quite differently: Designed by architect Franz Ahrens, the arena was built in 1927 as a bus hall for Berlin's public transport system. At the time, it was Europe's largest free-standing hall and could hold 240 buses. During the Nazi period, it was turned into a weapons arsenal. After the Berlin Wall was built in 1961, it was no longer accessible due to its location; after the German reunification, Berlin’s public transport services officially closed the building altogether.
     
Berlin Sculpture, in the background the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedachtniskirche, Tauentzienstrasse, Berlin, Germany, Europe Berlin is the name of a sculpture on the Tauentzienstraße in western Berlin, the capital of Germany. First conceived in 1985 and unveiled by the husband-and-wife sculpting team of Brigitte Matschinsky-Denninghoff and Martin Matschinsky in 1987, the sculpture's principal motif, a "broken chain", was meant to symbolize the severed connections between West and East Berlin due to the construction of the Berlin Wall. Even though the Wall has since been dismantled, the sculpture was bought by the city from Mrs. Matschinsky-Denninghoff to commemorate the unfortunate chapter in German history. Berlin. Germany. Breitscheidplatz and Europa Center, Berlin, Germany. Breitscheidplatz lies within the Charlottenburg district near the southwestern tip of the Tiergarten park and the Zoological Garden at the corner of Kurfürstendamm and its eastern continuation, Tauentzienstraße, leading to Schöneberg and the Kaufhaus des Westens on Wittenbergplatz. The Europa-Center mall and highrise closes off the Breitscheidplatz to the east. At its centre is the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church with its damaged spire. Berlin. Germany. Franziskaner Klosterkirche (Franciscan Friary Church) ruin, Berlin, Germany. In West Berlin, near Bahnhof Zoo, is the famous Kaiser Wihelm Memorial Church, a partially restored bombed out ruin that today stands as a reminder of the horrors of war. In the eastern part of the city lies another ruin of a much older church that today remains largely forgotten. Just across a busy six lane thoroughfare from Alexanderplatz lies a leafy oasis, a quiet spot away from the crush of the city. Construction on the original Franciscan Abbey began in 1250 and it was a fine example of early Gothic style until it was destroyed by Allied bombing on 3 April 1945. Today the ruin stands as another reminder of the war that left the city devastated. The space now stands as an open art exhibition space in a garden-like atmosphere. In summer theatre productions are also performed.
     
Berlin style factory shop for furniture and accessory at Kantstraße. Stilwerk, Kaufhaus fuer Moebel und Accessoires auf mehreren Etagen bestehend aus einzelnen Geschaeften. Stilwerk. Exquisite furniture in decorative surroundings. This could be called the Harrods of furniture stores. The Stilwerk on Kantstrasse appeals with its exquisite selections and a huge choice of furniture and living accessories by well-known designers. Berlin. Germany, People in a restaurant at the KaDeWe luxury department store Berlin Germany. Berlin’s most famous trademark department store is KaDeWe (Kaufhaus des Westens) – or department store of the West. It is Berlin’s shopping paradise, a favourite, easy to spot landmark on Wittenberg Platz. With 60,000sqm, the equivalent of nine football fields, 380,000 articles, 40,000 visitors a day, this is the legendary, largest department store on the continent. The department store, owned by Jewish retail entrepreneur Adolf Jandorf, first opened on Wittenberg Platz in 1907 with a 24,000sqm retail surface. Berlin. Germany. Golden Buddy Bear Quadriga in the courtyard of the Neues Kranzler Eck shopping centre, Kurfuerstendamm City West, Charlottenburg. 5 Golden Berlin Bear with Roman chariot against glass front, new Kranzlereck, Berlin. Germany. Berlin gained a new attraction. This year marks the 10th anniversary of Neues Kranzler Eck right next to the boulevard Kurfürstendamm. Unveiling the Buddy Bear Quadriga was the absolute highlight at the launch of the festivities. The Governing Mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit, attended the event: “I would like to welcome the Buddy Bear Quadriga in the City West. […]
     
Berlin. Germany. Mirrored cone inside the Reichstag Dome, in the german parlament (Reichstag), Berlin. The current Reichstag dome is an iconic glass dome constructed on top of the rebuilt Reichstag building in Berlin. It was designed by architect Norman Foster and built to symbolize the reunification of Germany. The distinctive appearance of the dome has made it a prominent landmark in Berlin. The Reichstag dome is a large glass dome with a 360 degree view of the surrounding Berlin cityscape. Berlin. Germany. Mirrored cone inside the Reichstag Dome, in the german parlament (Reichstag), Berlin. The current Reichstag dome is an iconic glass dome constructed on top of the rebuilt Reichstag building in Berlin. It was designed by architect Norman Foster and built to symbolize the reunification of Germany. The distinctive appearance of the dome has made it a prominent landmark in Berlin. The Reichstag dome is a large glass dome with a 360 degree view of the surrounding Berlin cityscape. The debating chamber of the Bundestag, the German parliament, can be seen down below. Germany, Berlin, the new Berlin, Hauptbahnhof (Berliner Hauptbahnhof) train station. Berlin Hauptbahnhof ("Berlin main station", sometimes translated as Berlin Central Station[2][3][4][5][6][7]) is the main railway station in Berlin, Germany.[8][9] It came into full operation two days after a ceremonial opening on 26 May 2006. It is located on the site of the historic Lehrter Bahnhof, and until it opened as a main line station, it was a stop on the Berlin S-Bahn suburban railway temporarily named Berlin Hauptbahnhof–Lehrter Bahnhof. The station is operated by DB Station&Service, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG, and is classified as a Category 1 station, one of twenty in Germany and four in Berlin, the others being Berlin Gesundbrunnen, Berlin Südkreuz and Berlin Ostbahnhof.
     
Shops behind glass facades, Neues Kranzler Eck, Berlin-Charlottenburg, Berlin, Germany, Europe. Neues Kranzler Eck Neues Kranzler Eck Linking tradition and modernity The architecture is daring: the glass wall towers sixty metres high behind the traditional Kranzler Eck, stretching all the way to Kurfürstendamm. The Neue Kranzler Eck, designed by brilliant architect Helmut Jahn, is one of the highlights of the western city district. Surrounding the well-preserved Café Kranzler with its striking awning from the 1950s, a modern shopping centre has been developed with branches of well-known brands, small boutiques and a BERLIN ‘Infostore’. Berlin. Germany. Potsdamerplatz. Haus Huth entrance 1879 in the Daimler Benz new quarter. Squaters doing a soap balloons. Haus Huth, 5 Alte Potsdamer Strasse, was built for the Huth family in 1912, by architects Conrad Heidenreich and Paul Michel. It is the only imperial German building in Potsdamer Platz to have survived both the war and Wall largely unscathed. The family wanted to store wine on the second and third floors, and so the architects recommended a steel skeleton structure that was well ahead of its time. This is why the building survived the air-raids. Turistic bus and Tourist Bicycle in Berlin, Germany. Berliner City Bus. If you decided to visit Berlin, a bike tour is the best way to get to know the city along with its beautiful sights and history.
     
Berlin. Germany. Luxury woman underwear on display in glass cabinets outside exclusive shops on Kurfurstendamm in Charlottenburg Berlin Germany. Walking west down Kurfürstendamm the stores become more elegant and exclusive. Set amongst the luxurious hotels, restaurants and cafés are displays windows for international designers and labels including Chanel at Kurfürstendamm 188, Yves Saint Laurent at 52, Luis Vuitton at 56, Cartier at 52, Dolce and Gabbana at 187, Bally at 52, Valentino at 57. Tauentzien Straße begins at Wittenbergplatz (Underground station) where the famous KaDeWe department store is located. Picture souvenirs display of Berlin images. Quite a number of street-sellers and shops, situated mostly around Checkpoint Charlie, offers "reliquia - reliquiorum" of what was once DDR (Deutche Demokratische Republik). It is nothing but worthless trash! Do not waste your time and money here. DDR was created for one reason only, to punnish Germans even more, I am really glad it finally disappeared, for good. I have described in my Local Customs tip how the East Berlin pedestrian crossing lights created a sort of cult enthusiasm for the little figure known as Ampelmann. Berlin. Germany. Theater Des Westens, Berlin, Germany. The Theater des Westens (Theatre of the West) is one of the most famous theatres for musicals and operettas in Berlin, Germany, located at Kantstraße 10–12 in Charlottenburg. It was founded in 1895 for plays. The present house was opened in 1896 and dedicated to opera and operetta. Enrico Caruso made his debut in Berlin here, and the Ballets Russes appeared with Anna Pavlova. In the 1930s it was run as the Volkstheater Berlin.
     
Television tower and world clock at Alexanderplatz in Berlin. Everyone is supposed to remember that Berlin’s Fernsehturm (TV Tower) is 365m high and is the tallest building in Berlin. As urban legend has it, the tower’s height was a deliberate decision taken by Walter Ulbricht, Leader of the SED, so that every child would be able to remember it, just like the days of the year. In fact the tower’s summit today is 368m. Berlin. Germany. Neptunbrunnen Fountain, Marienkirche Church in the back, Alexanderplatz Square, Berlin-Mitte, Germany, Europe. The Neptune Fountain in Berlin was built in 1891 and was designed by Reinhold Begas. The Roman god Neptune is in the center. The four women around him represent the four main rivers of Prussia: Elbe, Rhine, Vistula, and Oder. Berlin. Germany. Neptunbrunnen Fountain, Marienkirche Church in the back, Alexanderplatz Square, Berlin-Mitte, Germany, Europe. The Neptune Fountain in Berlin was built in 1891 and was designed by Reinhold Begas. The Roman god Neptune is in the center. The four women around him represent the four main rivers of Prussia: Elbe, Rhine, Vistula, and Oder. The fountain was removed from its original location at the Schlossplatz in 1951, when the former Berliner Stadtschloss (Berlin City Palace) there was demolished. Eventually, after being restored, the fountain was moved in 1969 to its present location between the St Mary's Church and the Rotes Rathaus. Coordinates
     
Berlin Cathedral, aerial landscape viewed from the TV tower, Berlin. The Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral), completed in 1905, is Berlin’s largest and most important Protestant church as well as the sepulchre of the Prussian Hohenzollern dynasty. This outstanding high-renaissance baroque monument has linked the Hohenzollerns to German Protestantism for centuries and undergone renewed phases of architectural renovation since the Middle Ages. First built in 1465 as a parish church on the Spree River it was only finally completed in 1905 under the last German Kaiser -Wilhelm II. Damaged during the Second World War it remained closed during the GDR years and reopened after restoration in 1993. Boat excursion in the Spree river, Berlin. Spree, Landwehrkanal and Havel – Berlin is crossed by a multitude of rivers and canals. Did you know that Berlin, with its 1,700 bridges, has more bridges than Venice? A discovery of the city on water creates unusual outlooks on the capital. When the weather is good, you can relax on the boat decks and marvel at the sights, as well as at unknown corners of the metropolis. From March to October, the shipping companies of Berlin offer various tours of the city as well as its surrounding areas, including competent explanations and stories from the ship crew. Spree River from atop the Berlin Cathedral or Berliner Dom, an Evangelical church built in 1905 by King Frederick William IV. Berlin has two large rivers- Spree and Havel- as well as lots of lakes and canals where ships and riverboats cruise. The Spree river flows in arches through Berlin, south of it runs the Landwehr canal. Therefore, all boat tours through the city follow the same route over the Spree river and the Landwehr canal, only length and duration of the boat tours vary, depending on start and finish points.
     
Berlin. Germany. Spree river, aerial landscape viewed from the TV tower, Berlin. River Spree, Berlin, view from TV tower. Spree, Landwehrkanal and Havel – Berlin is crossed by a multitude of rivers and canals. Did you know that Berlin, with its 1,700 bridges, has more bridges than Venice? A discovery of the city on water creates unusual outlooks on the capital. When the weather is good, you can relax on the boat decks and marvel at the sights, as well as at unknown corners of the metropolis. Berlin. Germany. A tourist boat on the Spree river alongside The Nikolaiviertel or St. Nicholas Quarter on a sunny day. Nicholas quarter with the berliner dom or cathedral in the background on a sunny day. The area contained some of the oldest building. The area got its name from the parish church in its centre, dating back to the 13th century. This district is just about the only part of Berlin that has a medieval look to it, with small gabled houses and narrow alleyways. Once the home of artists and writers, the Nicolaiviertel is nowadays filled with tourists visiting the souvenir shops and popular restaurants. Berlin Panorama from the Fernsehturm with the shadow of the tower, Berlin, Germany. Diferents trains. View across Berlin from the observation deck of the Fernsehturm TV Tower in East Berlin. Buildings and trains. Close to Alexanderplatz in Mitte, the tower was constructed between 1965 and 1969 by the administration of the German Democratic Republic. It was intended as a symbol of Berlin, which it remains today, as it is easily visible throughout the central and some suburban districts of Berlin. With its height of 368 meters, it is the tallest structure in Germany.
     
Berlin. Germany. Views of Wittenbergplatz in Kurfürstendamm from KaDeWe, Tauentzienstrasse. Wittenbergplatz (after the city of the same name) is a square in the western part of Berlin, Germany, within the district of Schöneberg near the border with Charlottenburg. It was laid out between 1889 and 1892 and named after the storming of the town of Wittenberg on 14 February 1814 by Prussian troops under General Bogislav Friedrich Emanuel von Tauentzien in the course of the War of the Sixth Coalition. Berlin. Germany. Old Harbour from Inselbruecke, Berlin, Germany. The banks of the Spree in Friedrichshain and the East Harbour offer one of the liveliest and most pleasant ways down to the river to be found in the central city area. The docks are a narrow ribbon, extending one or two kilometres between the river and the six-lane traffic route that accompanies the Spree from the Jannowitzbrücke (Jannowitz Bridge) to the Stralauer Halbinsel (peninsula). Although there are still gatehouses, visitors can make their way, undisturbed, to the railway tracks, warehouses, loading ramps and huge travelling cranes which load the freight boats with scrap or building materials. In one of the two brick buildings used for management and administration, there was a light friendly canteen with a small summer garden going down to the Spree. Boat excursion in the Spree river, Berlin. Spree, Landwehrkanal and Havel – Berlin is crossed by a multitude of rivers and canals. Did you know that Berlin, with its 1,700 bridges, has more bridges than Venice? A discovery of the city on water creates unusual outlooks on the capital. When the weather is good, you can relax on the boat decks and marvel at the sights, as well as at unknown corners of the metropolis. From March to October, the shipping companies of Berlin offer various tours of the city as well as its surrounding areas, including competent explanations and stories from the ship crew.
     
Berlin. Germany. Relax at Schloss Charlottenburg gardens, Berlin, Germany. The Palace Garden, with an area ot 33 hectares, is an important monument of Garden architecture. The grounds were laid out beginning in 1697 following the plans of Siméon Godeau, a pupil of the famous French landscape architect André Le Notre. it is thus the earliest garden in Germany which was influenced by Le Notre's style. Characteristic for the Baroque garden of Charlottenburg were the lanes which extended from the middle hail of the palace towards Spandau, Tegel, and Niederschönhausen, the parterre of ornamentally shaped boxwood trees, and the system of tree-lined avenues which are directed towards the north. Berlin. Germany. Sunlit foliage in Tiergarten ('Animal Garden'), Berlin, Germany. The Großer Tiergarten, simply known as Tiergarten, is an urban public park of Germany located in the middle of Berlin, completely in the homonymous locality. The park is of 210 hectares (520 acres); and among urban gardens of Germany, only the Englischer Garten of Munich (417 ha or 1,030 acres) is larger. The beginnings of the Tiergarten can be traced back to 1527. It was founded as a hunting area for the king, and was situated to the west of the Coelln city wall, which was the sister town of Old Berlin. It also sat in the same vicinity as the Berlin Stadtschloss. In 1530 the expansion began; acres of land were purchased and the garden began to expand towards the north and west. The total area extended beyond the current Tiergarten, and the forests were perfect for hunting deer and other wild animals. Berlin. Germany. Apartment building Hansaviertel Berlin Germany. Apartment building at Altonaer Strasse 3-9 in Hansaviertel modernist housing estate in Berlin Germany. Flats at Hansaviertel. Built as part of the Interbau Exhibition rehabilitation program, in which Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius, and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe also participated.
     
Berlin Homeless people. Most visitors to Berlin want to get the know the city's hippest haunts, but a new tour offers insights into the lives of its homeless people. The program aims to bring people at the margins back into contact with the center of society. According to estimates, there are up to 4,000 homeless people in Berlin. Some can be easily spotted. But with many others, there's no way of telling they live on the streets, because they don't fulfill the stereotype of a shabby hobo. Most citizens or tourists don't even notice, or they don't pay attention to them. Berlin. Germany. Bar and restaurant Caramello Eis & Pizza Prenzlauer Berg. Typical Prenzlauer Berg street scene: café / bar Elis caramello, Berlin, Germany, Europe. Prenzlauer Berg is a locality of Berlin, forming the southern part of the borough of Pankow. Until 2001, Prenzlauer Berg was itself a borough of Berlin; in that year it was merged (together with the former borough Weißensee) into the borough of Pankow. After German reunification in 1990 Prenzlauer Berg became a centre for more bohemian Berlin youth, while more recently it has experienced gentrification. Berlin. Germany. A mother carries her child bicycle through the streets of Prenzlauer Berg. Prenzlauer Berg is a locality of Berlin, forming the southern part of the borough of Pankow. Until 2001, Prenzlauer Berg was itself a borough of Berlin; in that year it was merged (together with the former borough Weißensee) into the borough of Pankow. After German reunification in 1990 Prenzlauer Berg became a centre for more bohemian Berlin youth, while more recently it has experienced gentrification.
     
Berlin. Germany. Woman in bicycle in front of Chaos in form shop in Kreuzberg. Falkenstein Street near Oberbaum Bridge, Design Store, Club Scene, Kreuzberg, Berlin. The streets of east Kreuzberg are littered with cool boutiques, usually owned by, or stocking items from, local labels and designers. It’s not just clothes on offer: there are books, handmade crafts, second hand furniture and, of course, some good old fashioned vinyl. Wander around and you’ll undoubtedly come across little gems. Here are our favourite local shops for unique shopping in Kreuzberg: Chaos in form. Designed by architect of the moment, is 300 square metres of post-industrial minimalist shopping heaven. Formerly a locksmiths’ workshop, the space is full of chic bare wood and lonely looking rails that house high quality clothes and accessories from street to high fashion. Berlin. Germany. Prenzlauerberg District, building around the former Wasserturm, 1873 brick water tower converted to an apartment. Tower TV. Wasserturm. Watertower in Berlin (Germany) was build up in 1877 and is the symbol for Prenzlauer Berg. The Wasserturm Prenzlauer Berg is Berlin's oldest water tower, completed in 1877 and in use until 1952. The structure was designed by Henry Gill and built by the English Waterworks Company. Prenzlauerberg District, building around the former Wasserturm, 1873 brick water tower converted to an apartment. Tower TV. Wasserturm. Watertower in Berlin (Germany) was build up in 1877 and is the symbol for Prenzlauer Berg. The Wasserturm Prenzlauer Berg is Berlin's oldest water tower, completed in 1877 and in use until 1952. The structure was designed by Henry Gill and built by the English Waterworks Company. Prenzlauerberg District, building around the former Wasserturm, 1873 brick water tower converted to an apartment. Tower TV. Wasserturm. Watertower in Berlin (Germany) was build up in 1877 and is the symbol for Prenzlauer Berg. The Wasserturm Prenzlauer Berg is Berlin's oldest water tower, completed in 1877 and in use until 1952. The structure was designed by Henry Gill and built by the English Waterworks Company. Berlin. Germany. Seller postscard. Horizontal view of a traditional old toy and postcards shop selling teddy bears and souvenirs in the historic district of Nikolaiviertel. This is a most fantastic shop in Nikolaiviertel. Even if you do not intend to buy a doll, just browse through the shop like through a museum. The dolls are simply wonderful, from historic editions to the most modern girls, plus a big selection of dolls’ clothes and prams.
     
Berlin. Germany. Memorial with an eternal flame and the words Freiheit Recht Friede, German for Freedom Law Peace, Monument to the German. The Theodor-Heuss-Platz (by residents simply called Theo) is a large city square in Berlin. It is located in the locality of Westend in the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf district. The following streets lead into Theodor-Heuss-Platz. The square was constructed between 1904 and 1908 and was named Reichskanzlerplatz. At the beginning the square was still without houses. Berlin. Germany. One of the Statue of war hero Otto von Bismarck stands at Grober Stern in Berlin Germany. Berlin’s Siegessäule - Victory Column - is another of Berlin’s monuments that has reinvented itself through the ages - from symbol of Prussian military victory in the 19th century to a favourite tourist spot today. As US Presidential candidate, Barack Obama chose the Siegessäule as the alternative spot to the Brandenburg Gate for his speech to 200,000 Berliners on July 24, 2008. Berlin Alexanderplatz Brunnen Well. Memory never stands still says Young. How can a square be part of a collective memory? Because of the characteristics of the square defined by its activities and its architectures with its symbolism, it certainly plays a roll in shaping the identity of the city and its people. Alexanderplatz has changed during the years but somewhat reluctantly. Still there have been changes with relation to the society and the political situation. I have noticed that the policymakers have had some difficulties in modelling the site and that the character of the square has remained more or less the same during time.
     
The Berliner Philharmonie, Berlin, Germany. The Berlin Philharmonic (German: Berliner Philharmoniker, formerly Berliner Philharmonisches Orchester; BPO) is an orchestra based in Berlin, Germany. In 2006, a group of ten European media outlets voted the Berlin Philharmonic number three on a list of "top ten European Orchestras", after the Vienna Philharmonic and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra,[1] while in 2008 it was voted the world's number two orchestra in a survey among leading international music critics organized by the British magazine Gramophone (behind the Concertgebouw).[2] Its primary concert venue is the Philharmonie, located in the Kulturforum area of the city. Since 2002, its principal conductor has been Sir Simon Rattle. Botanical Garden Berlin, with more than 43 ha the greatest botanical garden in Europe. The main tropical greenhouse. The Berlin-Dahlem Botanical Garden and Botanical Museum (German: Botanischer Garten und Botanisches Museum Berlin-Dahlem) is a botanical garden in the German capital city of Berlin, with an area of 43 hectares and around 22,000 different plant species. The garden is located in the Dahlem neighborhood of the borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf. It was constructed between 1897 and 1910, under the guidance of architect Adolf Engler, in order to present exotic plants returned from German colonies. Berlin. Germany. Botanical Garden Berlin, with more than 43 ha the greatest botanical garden in Europe. The main tropical greenhouse. The Berlin-Dahlem Botanical Garden and Botanical Museum (German: Botanischer Garten und Botanisches Museum Berlin-Dahlem) is a botanical garden in the German capital city of Berlin, with an area of 43 hectares and around 22,000 different plant species. The garden is located in the Dahlem neighborhood of the borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf. It was constructed between 1897 and 1910, under the guidance of architect Adolf Engler, in order to present exotic plants returned from German colonies.
     
Berlin. Germany. Museum fuer Naturkunde, Berlin Museum of Natural History. Paleontological Museum in Berlin Ancient skeletons of dinosaurs. Berlin's Natural History Museum (Museum für Naturkunde) is home to a vast array of zoological, paleontological and mineralogical specimens. The popular Berlin museum also boasts that it houses the largest mounted dinosaur in the world. It is so large in fact, that it was impossible for me to get a full photo of it! The main entrance to the museum has a number of steps, but there is a side entrance that is better accessible for wheelchair and pram users. You need to ring the bell and then you will be allowed inside to take a quick lift ride to the ticket area (thank you Jenni for this tip). Berlin. Germany. Museum fuer Naturkunde, Berlin Museum of Natural History. Paleontological Museum in Berlin Ancient skeletons of tortoises and dolphins. Berlin's Natural History Museum (Museum für Naturkunde) is home to a vast array of zoological, paleontological and mineralogical specimens. The popular Berlin museum also boasts that it houses the largest mounted dinosaur in the world. It is so large in fact, that it was impossible for me to get a full photo of it! The main entrance to the museum has a number of steps, but there is a side entrance that is better accessible for wheelchair and pram users. You need to ring the bell and then you will be allowed inside to take a quick lift ride to the ticket area (thank you Jenni for this tip). Berlin. Germany. Museum fuer Naturkunde, Berlin Museum of Natural History. Paleontological Museum in Berlin Ancient skeletons of dinosaurs. Berlin's Natural History Museum (Museum für Naturkunde) is home to a vast array of zoological, paleontological and mineralogical specimens. The popular Berlin museum also boasts that it houses the largest mounted dinosaur in the world. It is so large in fact, that it was impossible for me to get a full photo of it! The main entrance to the museum has a number of steps, but there is a side entrance that is better accessible for wheelchair and pram users. You need to ring the bell and then you will be allowed inside to take a quick lift ride to the ticket area (thank you Jenni for this tip).
     
Berlin. Germany. Schloss Charlottenburg Berlin originally built 1695-1699 expanded for Friedrich I by Johann Eosander von Goethe. Charlottenburg Palace (German: Schloss Charlottenburg) is the largest palace in Berlin, Germany, and the only surviving royal residence in the city dating back to the time of the Hohenzollern family. It is located in the Charlottenburg district of the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf borough. The palace was built at the end of the 17th century and was greatly expanded during the 18th century. It includes much exotic internal decoration in baroque and rococo styles. Golden Gallery, Charlottenburg Palace. Germany, Berlin, Charlottenburg Palace, Goldene Galerie (Golden Gallery) with Rococo Style was a former dancing and music room. The interior was just as beautifully reconstructed. The royal rooms are open to visitors, such as the Oak Gallery, paneled with oak and lined with oil paintings. The porcelain gallery, decorated with mirrors, has a fine display of Chinese porcelain. Other interesting rooms include the White Hall, the rococo style Golden Gallery and The Gallery of the Romantics, which has a collection of paintings from the German Romantic period. Also noteworthy is the Schlosskapelle, the completely reconstructed palace chapel. Berlin. Germany. Dome inside Berlin Schloßstraße Museum Berggruen. The Berggruen Museum (also known as the Berggruen Collection) is a collection of modern art classics in Berlin, which the collector and dealer Heinz Berggruen, in a "gesture of reconciliation", gave to his native city for a price well below its actual value. The most notable artists on display include Pablo Picasso, Alberto Giacometti, Georges Braque, Paul Klee and Henri Matisse. The Berggruen Collection is part of the National Gallery of Berlin. The collection arrived in Berlin in 1996, with Berggruen's return to his native city after six decades in exile. In 1988 he had given about 90 Klees to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and in 1990, he had agreed to make a five-year loan (renewable by mutual agreement) to the National Gallery in London of 72 paintings and drawings by Paul Cézanne, Georges Seurat, Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and Joan Miró. Also in 1990, negotiations with Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía for the Berggruen collection to be shown in Madrid fell through.
     
Berlin. Germany. A father and daughter look frescoes from the Casa Bartholdy in Rome at the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin Germany. Children in the museum. The Alte Nationalgalerie is the original home of the Nationalgalerie, whose collections today are divided between the Neue Nationalgalerie, the Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart – Berlin, the Friedrichswerdersche Kirche, Museum Berggruen and the Sammlung Scharf-Gerstenberg. Staircase in the French Cathedral, a church at the Gendarmenmarkt square, Berlin Mitte, Germany, Europe. The Französischer Dom was built between 1780 and 1785 wall to wall next to the Französische Friedrichstadtkirche (French Church of Friedrichstadt). Both buildings are often collectively referred to as the Französischer Dom. The sanctuary was designed by the architect Cayart as a haven for the Huguenots, French Protestants seeking refuge in Berlin. The building continues to serve the congregation and is regularly used for worship, organ meditations, various concerts, lectures, exhibits and events. Berlin. Germany. Berlin, Germany. Interior of Pergamon Museum showing Gate of Miletus. Newly restored Market Gate of Miletus at the Pergamon Museum on Museumsinsel in Berlin. The Market Gate of Miletus (German: das Markttor von Milet) is a large marble monument in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, Germany. It was built in Miletus in the 2nd century AD and destroyed in an earthquake in the 10th or 11th century. In the early 1900s, it was excavated, rebuilt, and placed on display in the museum. Only fragments had survived and reconstruction involved significant new material, a practice which generated criticism of the museum. The gate was damaged in World War II and underwent restoration in the 1950s. Further restoration work took place in the first decade of the 21st century.
     
Berlinische Galerie modern art museum in Mitte Berlin Germany. The Berlinische Galerie is a museum of modern art, photography and architecture in Berlin. It is located in Kreuzberg, on Alte Jakobstraße, not far from the Jewish Museum. The Berlinische Galerie was founded in 1975 as a society devoted to exhibiting art from Berlin. For the first few years it was based in an office in Charlottenburg, and its exhibitions were displayed at the Akademie der Künste and the New National Gallery among others. In 1978 the Galerie moved into a former landwehr officers' mess (now the Museum of Photography) on Jebensstraße, near Zoo Station. Berlin. Germany. Exhibit inside the Jewish museum Judisches Museum in Lindenstrasse street Berlin Germany. The Jewish Museum Berlin (Jüdisches Museum Berlin) is one of the largest Jewish Museums in Europe. In two buildings, one of which is a new addition specifically built for the museum by architect Daniel Libeskind, two millennia of German Jewish history are on display in the permanent exhibition as well as in various changing exhibitions. German-Jewish history is documented in the collections, the library and the archive, in the computer terminals at the museum's Rafael Roth Learning Center, and is reflected in the museum's program of events. The museum opened to the public in 2001. Cembalos on display at Musikinstrumenten Museum or Museum of Musical Instruments in Mitte Berlin Germanydly, the already crowded city became even more congested. The Berlin Musical Instrument Museum (German: Musikinstrumenten-Museum Berlin) is located at the Kulturforum on Tiergartenstraße in Berlin, Germany. The Museum holds over 3,500 musical instruments from the 16th century onward and is one of the largest and most representative musical instrument collections in Germany. Objects include a portable harpsichord once owned by Prussia’s Queen Sophie Charlotte, flutes from the collection of Frederick the Great, and Benjamin Franklin’s glass harmonica. The Museum was founded in 1888 at the Royal Academy of Music in Berlin from a collection assembled by Philipp Spitta and Joseph Joachim.
     
Rotunda in Old Museum, sculptures in atrium of Altes Museum on Museumsinsel, Museum Island in Berlin, Germany. The Altes Museum (German for Old Museum) is one of several internationally renowned museums on Museum Island in Berlin, Germany. Since restoration work in 1966, it houses the Antikensammlung (antique collection) of the Berlin State Museums.The museum was built between 1823 and 1830 by the architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel in the neoclassical style to house the Prussian royal family's art collection. The historic, protected building counts among the most distinguished in neoclassicism and is a high point of Schinkel's career.Until 1845, it was called the Königliches Museum (Royal Museum). Along with the other museums and historic buildings on Museum Island, the Altes Museum was designated an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999. In the early nineteenth century, Germany's bourgeoisie had become increasingly self-aware and self-confident. Berlin. Germany. Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, Deutschland. The Haus der Kulturen der Welt ("House of the Cultures of the World") in Berlin is Germany's national centre for the presentation and discussion of international contemporary arts, with a special focus on non-European cultures and societies. It presents art exhibitions, theater and dance performances, concerts, author readings, films and academic conferences on Visual Art and culture. It is one of the few institutions which, due to their national and international standing and the quality of their work, receive funding from the federal government as so-called "lighthouses of culture." The building is located in the Tiergarten park and a direct neighbour of the Carillon and the new German Chancellery. It was formerly known as the Kongresshalle conference hall, a gift from the United States, designed in 1957 by the American architect Hugh Stubbins as a part of the Interbau exhibition. John F. Kennedy spoke here during his June 1963 visit to West Berlin. On May 21, 1980 the roof collapsed killing one and injuring numerous people. The hall was rebuilt in its original style and reopened in 1987 in time for the 750 year anniversary of the founding of Berlin. To Berliners it is also known as the Schwangere Auster ("pregnant oyster"). Berlin Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe. Holocaust memorial. The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, one of the most evocative and controversial monuments to the Holocaust, was designed by the American architect Peter Eisenmann. The Holocaust Memorial is located in the center of Berlin, laid out on a 4.7 acre site between Potsdamer Platz and the Brandenburg Gate. The centerpiece of the Holocaust memorial is the “Field of Stelae”, covered with more than 2,500 geometrically arranged concrete pillars. You can enter and walk through the unevenly sloping field from all four sides. The strong columns, all slightly different in size, evoke a disorienting, wave-like feeling that you can only experience when you make your way through this gray forest of concrete.
     
Berlin. Germany. Eduardo Chillida's sculpture at the Office of the Federal Chancellor in Berlin. Chancellor's Office. Art in architecture in Germany has a long history behind it. The public sector has played a key role in the commissioning of artworks since 1950, and art in architecture can tell us a great deal about the changing identity of the state. On January 25th 1950, the German Bundestag adopted a decision to allocate one percent of the contract volume of all construction projects (...) for spending on public artworks“. In doing so, members of the West German parliament laid the basis for one of the world’s foremost art-in-architecture collections. As a result of this move, more than 1000 works of art have since been commissioned on behalf of the state. Over this 62-year period art in architecture has developed not only in government and parliament buildings, but also in research institutes, offices, military bases and motorway service stations. Berlin, Germany, rowboat, canoe and sailing boat on the Spree. Experience Berlin from a kayak. See Tierpark and Zoologischer Garten from the water, and learn about the capital's impressive water lock system. Explore the length of the U1 line, suspended above the canal, then go for a trip on the Spree. Set off on an exciting, unique trip. The tour begins in the Berlin Kreuzberg district at the docks of the van Loom boat restaurant. For the trip you'll have an expert on hand to greet you before the tour beings. The guide will then help you to deploy. While you warm up for the trip, you will have the opportunity to learn a little about the interesting history of the Landwehr Canal. Berlin. Germany. Metallic sculpture called Molecule Man by Jonathan Borofsky in Spree River Berlin. Molecule Man is a series of aluminium sculptures, designed by American artist Jonathan Borofsky, installed at various locations in the world, including Berlin, Germany, and Council Bluffs, Iowa, USA. The first Molecule Man sculptures were made in 1977 and 1978 in Los Angeles, USA. The sculptures consist of three humans leaning towards each other, the bodies of which are filled with hundreds of holes, the holes representative of "the molecules of all human beings coming together to create our existence". A related sculpture is the Hammering Man
     
Berlin. Germany. inside Sony Center at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. Potsdamer Platz (German: [?p?tsdam? plats] ( listen), literally Potsdam Square) is an important public square and traffic intersection in the centre of Berlin, Germany, lying about 1 km (1,100 yd) south of the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag (German Parliament Building), and close to the southeast corner of the Tiergarten park. It is named after the city of Potsdam, some 25 km (16 mi) to the south west, and marks the point where the old road from Potsdam passed through the city wall of Berlin at the Potsdam Gate. After developing within the space of little over a century from an intersection of rural thoroughfares into the most bustling traffic intersection in Europe, it was totally laid waste during World War II and then left desolate during the Cold War era when the Berlin Wall bisected its former location. Since German reunification, Potsdamer Platz has been the site of major redevelopment projects. Paul Loebe House, Germany, Berlin. The glass-and-concrete Paul-Löbe-Haus houses offices for the Bundestag’s parliamentary committees. From above it looks like a double-sided comb and on the inside there’s an atrium long enough to be a bowling alley for giants. It’s linked by a double footbridge to the Marie-Elisabeth-Lüders-Haus across the Spree in a visual symbol of reunification. Opening hours vary, depending on parliamentary use. The building named after Paul Löbe, President of Germany’s Reichstag from 1924 - 32, is one of the most impressive federal government buildings on Berlin‘s Spreebogen riverbank. inside Sony Center at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. Potsdamer Platz (German: [?p?tsdam? plats] ( listen), literally Potsdam Square) is an important public square and traffic intersection in the centre of Berlin, Germany, lying about 1 km (1,100 yd) south of the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag (German Parliament Building), and close to the southeast corner of the Tiergarten park. It is named after the city of Potsdam, some 25 km (16 mi) to the south west, and marks the point where the old road from Potsdam passed through the city wall of Berlin at the Potsdam Gate. After developing within the space of little over a century from an intersection of rural thoroughfares into the most bustling traffic intersection in Europe, it was totally laid waste during World War II and then left desolate during the Cold War era when the Berlin Wall bisected its former location. Since German reunification, Potsdamer Platz has been the site of major redevelopment projects. Potsdamer Platz began as a trading post where several country roads converged just outside Berlin's old customs wall.
     
Berlin, Germany, advertising and passengers of a bus. Berlin buses are operated by BVG, the public bus service network of Berlin, Germany. Opened in 1846, it is the oldest public transport service of the city. Its fleet consists of some 1,300 vehicles, which cover 300,000 kilometres per day. 30 October 1846 saw the first bus services from the Concessionierte Berliner Omnibus-Compagnie. In 1868, a new company was created, the ABOAG (Allgemeinen Berliner Omnibus Actien Gesellschaft) which on 1 January 1929 merged with other Berlin public transport companies to create the BVG. Berlin. Germany. Boat excursion in the Spree river, Berlin. At back Berlin Hauptbahnhof train station. Spree, Landwehrkanal and Havel – Berlin is crossed by a multitude of rivers and canals. Did you know that Berlin, with its 1,700 bridges, has more bridges than Venice? A discovery of the city on water creates unusual outlooks on the capital. When the weather is good, you can relax on the boat decks and marvel at the sights, as well as at unknown corners of the metropolis. From March to October, the shipping companies of Berlin offer various tours of the city as well as its surrounding areas, including competent explanations and stories from the ship crew. Berlin. Germany. Berlin O2 World Spree Hostel Eastern Comfort. The hostel boats 'Eastern Comfort & Western Comfort', looks forward to welcoming you onboard with its unusual atmosphere which is unique to Berlin! The 'Eastern Comfort' is composed with 1st and 2nd class cabins all of them ensuite. Choose between the spacious 1st class cabins, with large windows, natural lighting and thus spectacular views of the Berlin Wall or the river Spree. Minibar and Tv available on request. Or view Berlin through the portholes of our 2nd class cabins, smaller but cosy. Also equipped with 3 and 4 beds.
     
Berlin. Germany. The Berlin Wall at Bernauerstrasse. The Berlin wall memorial in the Bernauerstraße. The Berlin Wall Memorial is the central memorial site of German division, located in the middle of the capital. Situated at the historic site on Bernauer Strasse, it will eventually extend along 1.4 kilometers of the former border strip. The memorial contains the last piece of Berlin Wall with the preserved grounds behind it and is thus able to convey an impression of how the border fortifications developed until the end of the 1980s. Exterior of new Topographie of Terror historical museum on site of former Gestapo headquarters in Berlin Germany. Between 1933 and 1945, the central institutions of Nazi persecution and terror – the Secret State Police Office with its own “house prison,” the leadership of the SS and, during the Second World War, the Reich Security Main Office – were located on the present-day grounds of the “Topography of Terror” that are next to the Martin Gropius Building and close to Potsdamer Platz. After the war the grounds were leveled and initially used for commercial purposes. Later, in 1987, as part of Berlin’s 750th anniversary celebration, the terrain was made accessible to the public under the name “Topography of Terror.” An exhibition hall and the exposed building remains on the former Prinz-Albrecht-Straße (today’s Niederkirchnerstraße) and Wilhelmstraße were used to document the history of the site. Jewish cemetery, 1827, Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin, Germany, Europe. Friedhöfe vor dem Halleschen Tor. Jewish Cementeries in Berlin. Citadel Spandau. The oldest Jewish gravestones were discovered in 1955 while restoring the citadel in Spandau (one of Berlin’s districts). They date between 1244 and 1474. Altogether 65 stones were found. They probably stem from several cemeteries. They can be seen by appointment only: 030/354944-212 (gatekeeper) or 030/354944-297 (administration). Citadel Spandau (Zitadelle Spandau), Am Juliusturm, U 7 Zitadelle Spandau Jewish Cemetery Grosse Hamburger Strasse
     
Mehringdamm, Kreuzberg, Berlin, Deutschland. The Mehringdamm is a street in southern Kreuzberg, Berlin. In the north it starts at Mehringbrücke and ends - with its southern most houses already belonging to Tempelhof locality - on Platz der Luftbrücke. It is the historical southbound Berlin-Halle highway, now forming the federal route 96. The main junction of Mehringdamm is with the 19th-century ring road around Berlin's inner city, named Yorckstraße west, and Gneisenaustraße east of Mehringdamm. Famous Curry 36 sausage restaurant Kreuzberg west Berlin Germany Europe. If you want to eat currywurst the Berlin way, order yours here boiled and naked ("ohne darm", without skin), looking a little pale in comparison with the ones in pink skins. The sausage at this particular snack bar is so popular that they've started a range of merchandise sporting their daft logo. Besides the currywurst there's bockwurst, krakauers and several other types of sausage as well as proletarian Berlin specialities such as fried burgers and bouletten (meatballs/patties). Take it away or wolf it all down at one of the outdoor stand-up tables. WURST, SAUSAGES AND BEER IN A BIERGARTEN, TIERGARTEN, BERLIN, GERMANY. Beer gardens are most common in Munich, where you can visit the granddaddy of all beer gardens during Oktoberfest. But by now the beer garden has become part of the cultural landscape throughout Germany. If you travel to Berlin during the summer, when the days are long and the city is ripe with action, you won't want to miss a trip to one of its many beer gardens.
     
Berlin. Germany. A man selling Pretzels on a street in Berlin, Germany. Everybody loves pretzels. In Germany, for some reason they’re called “brezels”, and the best ones come from the South (Bavaria in particular). But that doesn’t mean the Teutonic capital has been slouching off when it comes to knot-baking -- and these places are the proof. Neukölln As their name explains, this place takes pretzel baking to a co.-level regime, meaning you can find tons and tons of variety here, including pretzels covered with toppings like sesame, cheese, poppy seed, and pumpkin seed. For variety and chewy flavor, it’s the best option in the city, and they also have a pretty great menu of Bavarian breakfast and lunch options. Kreuzberg Ferris wheel and currywurst at the Christmas market in front of the Neptunbrunnen fountain, Alexanderplatz, Berlin. Snack Bar at Alexanderplatz . Bells, tinsel, carols, decorated trees… Christmas has definitely arrived. This special moment of the year starts to be felt in every corner of the capital. There aren’t many cities in the world that know how to welcome Christmas quite like Berlin. It is a well-known fact that the German people love to celebrate Christmas. Berlin does not want to be overshadowed by cities such as Munich or Dresden, which are more widely known for their Christmas celebrations. It boasts sixty Christmas markets spread throughout the city: traditional or alternative, specialized in handcrafts or food, free or paid, there is a market for every taste. Berlin. Germany. Black African participant of the Berlin Marathon at kilometer 40, Berlin, Germany, Europe. The Berlin Marathon (branded BMW Berlin Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is a major running and sporting event held annually in Berlin, Germany. The official marathon distance of 42.195 kilometers (26 miles 385 yards) is set up as a city-wide road race where professional athletes and amateur runners jointly participate. First initiated in 1974, the event traditionally takes place on the last weekend in September. The Berlin marathon is one of the largest and most popular road races in the world. In 2008 alone the race had 40,827 enrolled starters from 107 countries, 35,913 official finishers and more than one million spectators. Along with five other races, it forms the World Marathon Majors, a series offering a $1 million prize purse to be split equally between the top male and female marathoners.
     
Lafayette Gallery in Berlin. The Galeries Lafayette (French pronunciation: ?[?al?i lafaj?t]) is an upmarket French department store company located on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. In 2009, Galeries Lafayette recorded earnings of over one billion euro. It is a part of the company Groupe Galeries Lafayette. In 1895, Théophile Bader and his cousin Alphonse Kahn opened a fashion store in a small haberdasher's shop at the corner of rue La Fayette and the Chaussée d'Antin, in Paris.[1] In 1896, their company purchased the entire building at n°1 rue La Fayette; in 1905 they acquired the buildings at n°38, 40 and 42, boulevard Haussmann and n°15 rue de la Chaussée d'Antin. Bader commissioned the architect Georges Chedanne and his pupil Ferdinand Chanut to design the store at the Haussmann location, where a glass and steel dome and Art Nouveau staircases were finished in 1912. Berlin. Germany. Quartier 205, luxury shopping mall in Berlin. Friedrichstrasse is one of the most legendary streets in the whole city, combining the tradition of the ‘Golden Twenties’ with the architecture of Berlin beyond 1989. In the ’20s, the 3.5 km long street was the place to be with cafés, theaters and Vaudevilles, such as the famous Wintergarten. By 1997 Friedrichstraße was still an unattractive building site in the east part of Berlin. The traders of ‘City West’ were against the eastern development. Similar to the politics of the West-Side-Story gangs, this West vs. East story clashed until a German investor shockingly built a luxury shopping mall on this historic ground. The building, Quartier 206, created by New York based architect, I.M. Pei, was different, disgusting for the old-school-Berliners and (almost) impossible to rent at the time. Berlin. Germany. Confluence of fasanenstrasse and kurfürstenstrasse streets. Tommy Hilfiger. Berlin is a shopping paradise. From traditional and new department stores, modern shopping malls, luxury designer shops to small handcraft manufactures, flea and antique markets and bargain stores - you'll find it all. This page introduces the most popular department stores, shopping malls and shopping areas in Berlin, listed by district. Also we do introduce the most popular flea markets in various Berlin districts. The shopping area known as Kurfürstendamm includes Tauentzien Straße, as its eastern extension. Together they comprise an almost five kilometer long boulevard where strolling, shopping and sitting in cafés have been a pleasure for decades. Between KaDeWe and Europacenter Tauentzien Straße begins at Wittenbergplatz (Underground station) where the famous KaDeWe department store is located. The street runs west towards Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church where the street name changes into Kurfürstendamm.
     
Berlin cold war Checkpoint Charlie Friedrichstrasse notorious border crossing American Soviet sectors east west wall. Checkpoint Charlie was the name given by the Western Allies to a crossing point between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War. Other Allied checkpoints on the Autobahn to the West were Checkpoint Alpha at Helmstedt and Checkpoint Bravo at Dreilinden, southeast of Wannsee, named from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's phonetic alphabet. Many other sector crossing points existed in Berlin. Some of these were designated for residents of West Berlin and West German citizens. Checkpoint Charlie was designated as the single crossing point (by foot or by car) for foreigners and members of the Allied forces. (Members of the Allied forces were not allowed to use the other sector crossing point designated for use by foreigners, the Friedrichstraße railway station. ) Checkpoint Charlie was located at the junction of Friedrichstraße with Zimmerstraße and Mauerstraße (which coincidentally means 'Wall Street') in the Friedrichstadt neighborhood, which was divided by the Berlin Wall. Berlin. Germany. Berlin Major Klaus Wowereit (C), accompanies the Emir of Qatar, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani (L), and his wife Mozah Binti Nasser Al Missned (R), to the landmark Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany. Qatar celebrates its National Day in commemoration of the historic day in 1878 when Shaikh Jasim succeeded his father, Shaikh Muhammad Bin Thani, as a ruler and led the country towards unity. The event on December 18 is considered as an opportunity for all Qatari nationals and expatriates to recognise and celebrate what it means to live in modem day Qatar. Berlin. Germany. Actors dressed as American and Soviet soldiers pose for photos with tourists in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, one of the Cold War's most iconic landmarks. The Brandenburg Gate is the trademark of Berlin. The main entrance to the city, surrounded by the wall for thirty years, was known throughout the world as a symbol for the division of the city and for the division of the world into two power blocs. Today's international visitors to Pariser Platz come to re-experience this first gateway to the city, and to enjoy the long-denied freedom to walk through this magnificent work of art and look at it up close.
     
Berlin, Germany, a two-man take a beer in Zapata the Kunsthaus Tacheles. The Kunsthaus Tacheles (Art House Tacheles) was an art center in Berlin, Germany, a large (9000 square meter) building and sculpture park on Oranienburger Straße in the district known as Mitte. Huge, colorful graffiti-style murals are painted on the exterior walls, and modern art sculptures are featured inside. The building houses an artists collective which is threatened with eviction. Originally called "Friedrichsstadtpassagen", it was built as a department store in the Jewish quarter (Scheunenviertel) of Berlin, next to the synagogue. Serving as a Nazi prison for a short while, it was later partially demolished. After the Berlin Wall had come down, it was taken over by artists, who called it Tacheles, Yiddish for "straight talking." Berlin. Germany. Knofi Street Cafe Restaurant Berlin Kreuzberg Bergmann Street. Connected to the Mediterranean speciality store across the street, Knofi is cosy and not much larger than an Imbiss, but it boasts a cheap and delicious speciality in the form of crêpe-like gosses - both vegetarian or filled with schwarma - and generous portions of soup. It's also a top-notch bakery. I have written about Knofi before, in the seven most suitable and different Valentine’s day restaurants in Berlin. But now I have finally gotten around to writing a full-blown review on Knofi, a little restaurant/ place that I love. Let me start it off with the basics. Knofi is a small food shop and restaurant that can be found on the Bergmannstraße and the Oranienstraße in Kreuzberg. It serves oriental Turkish food, delicacy-style. You can shop at Knofi for small bites, nibbles, bread and even pie that you want to take home. Berlin. Germany. Ubahn Station at Schlesisches Tor, Kreuzberg, Berlin. Railway station Berlin Warschauer Strafle station Berlin Germany. Warschauer Strasse Oberbaumcity street light lights lamp lamps lamppost transport underground train trains subway subways line lines underground station stations tube geography Europe western europe central europe Germany Eastern Germany Berlin capital city Friedrichshain person background people people in the background city view cityscape cityscapes city views street scene urban scene urban townscape street scenes day building exterior exterior exterior view external outdoor outside outdoor shots outdoor shot outdoors horizontal horizontal format color coloured colored colors colours photograph photo images image photographs photos public transport public local traffic Lampposts railcar railcars train station continent continents Europa FRG human humans people persons days dayshot dayshots colour.
     
Berlin. Germany. Kitchen of Das Stuen. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez in Das Stue Restaurant. Occupying a 1930s building that originally was Berlin's Royal Danish Embassy, Das Stue's unique heritage is reflected in its name, the Danish term for "living room." The hotel incorporates the prominence of its classicist facade and the natural beauty of its leafy Tiergarten address, formerly the city's royal hunting grounds. The owners have created a sophisticated urban retreat with personalized comforts – much like the living room of someone who is well connected in Berlin and has immediate access to the city's countless attractions. Patricia Urquiola, the acclaimed Spanish architect and designer, brings her signature sleek and elegant touch to the hotel’s interiors. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez helms Das Stue’s food concept, serving avant-garde Mediterranean cuisine combined with local accents. Sincere, honest, flavor-driven, creative, surprising… Berlin. Germany. Kitchen of Das Stuen. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez in Das Stue Restaurant. Occupying a 1930s building that originally was Berlin's Royal Danish Embassy, Das Stue's unique heritage is reflected in its name, the Danish term for "living room." The hotel incorporates the prominence of its classicist facade and the natural beauty of its leafy Tiergarten address, formerly the city's royal hunting grounds. The owners have created a sophisticated urban retreat with personalized comforts – much like the living room of someone who is well connected in Berlin and has immediate access to the city's countless attractions. Patricia Urquiola, the acclaimed Spanish architect and designer, brings her signature sleek and elegant touch to the hotel’s interiors. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez helms Das Stue’s food concept, serving avant-garde Mediterranean cuisine combined with local accents. Sincere, honest, flavor-driven, creative, surprising….: that just about sums up Paco Pérez’s style of cooking. Backed up by his tenet that “everyone should do what he knows in his heart he really ought to be doing, and not deny his principles”, it has earned him five Michelin stars: two for the Miramar, his trademark restaurant in Llançá (Girona, eastern Spain), two for the Enoteca, located within the Hotel Arts in Barcelona and one in his venue in Berlin. His laid-back manner belies a packed schedule, which also includes running the restaurant of the Hotel Mirror, again in Barcelona. Berlin. Germany. Restaurant of Das Sute. Berlin. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez in Das Stue Restaurant. Occupying a 1930s building that originally was Berlin's Royal Danish Embassy, Das Stue's unique heritage is reflected in its name, the Danish term for "living room." The hotel incorporates the prominence of its classicist facade and the natural beauty of its leafy Tiergarten address, formerly the city's royal hunting grounds. The owners have created a sophisticated urban retreat with personalized comforts – much like the living room of someone who is well connected in Berlin and has immediate access to the city's countless attractions. Patricia Urquiola, the acclaimed Spanish architect and designer, brings her signature sleek and elegant touch to the hotel’s interiors. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez helms Das Stue’s food concept, serving avant-garde Mediterranean cuisine combined with local accents. Sincere, honest, flavor-driven, creative, surprising….: that just about sums up Paco Pérez’s style of cooking. Backed up by his tenet that “everyone should do what he knows in his heart he really ought to be doing, and not deny his principles”, it has earned him five Michelin stars: two for the Miramar, his trademark restaurant in Llançá (Girona, eastern Spain), two for the Enoteca, located within the Hotel Arts in Barcelona and one in his venue in Berlin.
     
Berlin. Germany. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez helms Das Stue’s food concept, serving avant-garde Mediterranean cuisine combined with local accents. Sincere, honest, flavor-driven, creative, surprising….: that just about sums up Paco Pérez’s style of cooking. Backed up by his tenet that “everyone should do what he knows in his heart he really ought to be doing, and not deny his principles”, it has earned him five Michelin stars: two for the Miramar, his trademark restaurant in Llançá (Girona, eastern Spain), two for the Enoteca, located within the Hotel Arts in Barcelona and one in his venue in Berlin. His laid-back manner belies a packed schedule, which also includes running the restaurant of the Hotel Mirror, again in Barcelona. The tramontana strikes again. I seem to be doomed. It’s enough for me to go anywhere near the Ampurdan coast for this dismal north wind to start blowing. My visit to the Hotel Restaurante Miramar in Llançá (Girona, eastern Spain) is no exception. I’m here to discover the key features of the Paco Pérez approach to cooking, but the tramontana is no respecter of such missions, and the bout of bad weather that this unpleasant inland wind typically carries along with it is stirring up the waters of this stretch of the Mediterranean. Against this backdrop, Paco Pérez’s affability beams out in contrast. A ‘self-made’ chef with a low-key approach to life, he avoids the circuit of media events, conferences, and hoo-ha generally. We sit on the covered terrace of his restaurant looking out over the sea, and chat about his (nearly) twenty years at the helm of a gastronomic enterprise (running the Miramar, and acting as advisor to two restaurants-within-hotels in Barcelona – Enoteca in the Arts, and the Mirror) that has earned him three Michelin stars, two for the Miramar and one for Enoteca. Paco not only directs the teams; he cooks, too. ”I’m a cook. I cook every day”, he says. His passionate interest in food and cooking dates back to early childhood; while still at primary school he used to love slipping into the kitchen to watch what was going on and then try to imitate what he saw. Later, his pursuit of what was clearly a vocation began withtaking a job in a little tapas bar owned by his family, starting off as a waiter and then graduating to the kitchen: “That experience of dealing with the public was key. Being in direct contact with the customers means that you can observe how they react to various tastes and smells - vital information that doesn’t reach you when you’re behind the scenes in the kitchen”. His schooldays over, he set about becoming a member of the food world, spending several training periods in France on placements with Michel Guérard (one of the progenitors of Nouvelle Cuisine) until he was called up to do his (then obligatory) military service back in Spain. This was when Montse appeared on the scene, turning what would have been just a temporary interruption into a permanent one. “While I was doing the mili in Madrid , a friend told me that his parents, who ran a little hostal (boarding house) near the beach in Llançà, needed help over the Easter period. I decided to give them a hand and spend my holidays there”. And there he stayed. The original plan return to France to continue his training dissolved in the face of his desire to remain with Montse, sister of the friend who had introduced him to the Miramar, for whom he had fallen in a big way. However, he continued studying and acquiring skills and know-how, and soon after made contact with Ferrán Adriá . Indeed, it was at elBulli that he came to understand the nature of his attitude to cooking, “….an approach to food that involves the senses – you take in the look of it, the smell, the feel, then you eat it, taste it, experience the pleasure of it and retain it in your memory”. Many have described his style of cooking as ‘elBulliesque’, which he takes as a compliment: “To me, cooking in the style of elBulli involves being consistent, creative, humble and hard-working, so I’m delighted if it’s true”. Berlin. Germany. Recipe of Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez in Das Stue Restaurant. Occupying a 1930s building that originally was Berlin's Royal Danish Embassy, Das Stue's unique heritage is reflected in its name, the Danish term for "living room." The hotel incorporates the prominence of its classicist facade and the natural beauty of its leafy Tiergarten address, formerly the city's royal hunting grounds. The owners have created a sophisticated urban retreat with personalized comforts – much like the living room of someone who is well connected in Berlin and has immediate access to the city's countless attractions. Patricia Urquiola, the acclaimed Spanish architect and designer, brings her signature sleek and elegant touch to the hotel’s interiors. Michelin-starred Catalan chef Paco Pérez helms Das Stue’s food concept, serving avant-garde Mediterranean cuisine combined with local accents. Sincere, honest, flavor-driven, creative, surprising….: that just about sums up Paco Pérez’s style of cooking. Backed up by his tenet that “everyone should do what he knows in his heart he really ought to be doing, and not deny his principles”, it has earned him five Michelin stars: two for the Miramar, his trademark restaurant in Llançá (Girona, eastern Spain), two for the Enoteca, located within the Hotel Arts in Barcelona and one in his venue in Berlin. His laid-back manner belies a packed schedule, which also includes running the restaurant of the Hotel Mirror, again in Barcelona. The tramontana strikes again. I seem to be doomed. It’s enough for me to go anywhere near the Ampurdan coast for this dismal north wind to start blowing. My visit to the Hotel Restaurante Miramar in Llançá (Girona, eastern Spain) is no exception. I’m here to discover the key features of the Paco Pérez approach to cooking, but the tramontana is no respecter of such missions, and the bout of bad weather that this unpleasant inland wind typically carries along with it is stirring up the waters of this stretch of the Mediterranean. Against this backdrop, Paco Pérez’s affability beams out in contrast. A ‘self-made’ chef with a low-key approach to life, he avoids the circuit of media events, conferences, and hoo-ha generally. We sit on the covered terrace of his restaurant looking out over the sea, and chat about his (nearly) twenty years at the helm of a gastronomic enterprise (running the Miramar, and acting as advisor to two restaurants-within-hotels in Barcelona – Enoteca in the Arts, and the Mirror) that has earned him three Michelin stars, two for the Miramar and one for Enoteca. Paco not only directs the teams; he cooks, too. ”I’m a cook. I cook every day”, he says. His passionate interest in food and cooking dates back to early childhood; while still at primary school he used to love slipping into the kitchen to watch what was going on and then try to imitate what he saw. Later, his pursuit of what was clearly a vocation began withtaking a job in a little tapas bar owned by his family, starting off as a waiter and then graduating to the kitchen: “That experience of dealing with the public was key. Being in direct contact with the customers means that you can observe how they react to various tastes and smells - vital information that doesn’t reach you when you’re behind the scenes in the kitchen”. His schooldays over, he set about becoming a member of the food world, spending several training periods in France on placements with Michel Guérard (one of the progenitors of Nouvelle Cuisine) until he was called up to do his (then obligatory) military service back in Spain. This was when Montse appeared on the scene, turning what would have been just a temporary interruption into a permanent one. “While I was doing the mili in Madrid , a friend told me that his parents, who ran a little hostal (boarding house) near the beach in Llançà, needed help over the Easter period. I decided to give them a hand and spend my holidays there”. And there he stayed. The original plan return to France to continue his training dissolved in the face of his desire to remain with Montse, sister of the friend who had introduced him to the Miramar, for whom he had fallen in a big way. However, he continued studying and acquiring skills and know-how, and soon after made contact with Ferrán Adriá . Indeed, it was at elBulli that he came to understand the nature of his attitude to cooking, “….an approach to food that involves the senses – you take in the look of it, the smell, the feel, then you eat it, taste it, experience the pleasure of it and retain it in your memory”. Many have described his style of cooking as ‘elBulliesque’, which he takes as a compliment: “To me, cooking in the style of elBulli involves being consistent, creative, humble and hard-working, so I’m delighted if it’s true”. Chaparro restaurant, the best Mexican food in Berlin, Germany. Chaparro Berlin offers all-natural, authentic Mexican street food and more. Chef Raul Oliver. For me the kitchen is the center of culture, my style is rooted in oldskool authentic Mexican tradtions but often reinterpreted. My Mother comes from Guadalahara and my Grandmother from Pueblo but I was born and brought up in Mexico City. I always admired them both for their cooking skills in our family kitchen, both had pride in their regional cuisines, they only ever used the freshest ingredients and exploited the most traditional of techniques.
     
Chaparro restaurant, the best Mexican food in Berlin, Germany. Chaparro Berlin offers all-natural, authentic Mexican street food and more. Chef Raul Oliver. For me the kitchen is the center of culture, my style is rooted in oldskool authentic Mexican tradtions but often reinterpreted. My Mother comes from Guadalahara and my Grandmother from Pueblo but I was born and brought up in Mexico City. I always admired them both for their cooking skills in our family kitchen, both had pride in their regional cuisines, they only ever used the freshest ingredients and exploited the most traditional of techniques. It was when I was 12yrs old that i experienced the first culinary transition, after a trip to India my father decided to become a vegetarian and the rest of my family followed his footsteps. My Gradmother & Mother were forced to change the approach to food, thank god they had good cooking skills because the instilled creativtiy in the dishes and the food they served our family was outstanding. Berliner Dom or Berlin Cathedral at night in central (mitte) Berlin in Germany. The first church Berliner Dom. The first church was built here in 1465. This rather modest building later served as the court church for the Hohenzollern family. The church was replaced by a cathedral, built between 1745 and 1747 in a Baroque design from Johann Boumann. It was remodeled into a classicist building from 1816 to 1822 following a design by the Berlin architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel. The East Side Tour focuses on the best-known sights along the river Spree in the eastern part of Berlin and includes some highlights in the government quarter as well. Germany, Berlin, Kaiser Wilhelm memorial Church at twilight. The Protestant Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (in German: Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche, but mostly just known as Gedächtniskirche [???d?çtn?s?k??ç?]) is located in Berlin on the Kurfürstendamm in the centre of the Breitscheidplatz. The original church on the site was built in the 1890s. It was badly damaged in a bombing raid in 1943. The present building, which consists of a church with an attached foyer and a separate belfry with an attached chapel, was built between 1959 and 1963. The damaged spire of the old church has been retained and its ground floor has been made into a memorial hall. The Memorial Church today is a famous landmark of western Berlin. Inside the church, opposite the entrance, is a figure of Christ which is suspended above the altar. This is made from tombak and was designed by Karl Hemmeter. The cross on the altar, by Peter Tauchnitz, is of gilt silver with 37 rock crystals.
     
  Quadriga on Brandenburg Gate at night, Berlin, Germany. The Brandenburg Gate (German: Brandenburger Tor) is a former city gate, rebuilt in the late 18th century as a neoclassical triumphal arch, and now one of the most well-known landmarks of Germany. It is located in the western part of the city centre of Berlin, at the junction of Unter den Linden and Ebertstraße, immediately west of the Pariser Platz. One block to the north stands the Reichstag building. The gate is the monumental entry to Unter den Linden, the renowned boulevard of linden trees, which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs.  
  Germany: Berlin photos