Berlin amazes every time

Every time we are surprised by the 'modern zeitgeist' of Berlin.

Berlin is perhaps one of the hippest cities in the world. It is an old and historic city that has become modern again since the fall of the Berlin Wall and has therefore seen the arrival of trendy, artistic, young people from all over the world.

There is a nice atmosphere especially in some districts such as Friedrichshain, Kreuzberg, Neukölln and even some parts of Mitte. The mix of the public, a hipster café on every corner, concept stores and the beautiful graffiti makes Berlin very authentic.

We visited Berlin countless times and wrote a blog about our 'all time favorite' well-known and lesser-known places.

We stayed at sly Berlin - an urban city hotel that reflects the diversity of the city while still having its own look and feel of timeless design and innovative cuisine. The renovated old building in former East Berlin, has a beautiful, typical Berlin courtyard and is close to the center (see 'H' on map). 

The Bear: the symbol of Berlin

1. The Berlin Wall

Our adventure in Berlin started at the Berlin Wall. It's one of those world events where you always know where you were when it happened. The day of November 9, 1989, it was all over the news. It has since been described as the final end of the Cold War. And with that, world history was written again in Berlin.
Berlin still breathes this (recent) past. Traces of the Berlin Wall can be found everywhere, for example in the paving stones of the road surface that indicate how the Berlin Wall separated the city into two parts for almost 30 years. Only two parts of the Wall are still standing as a chilling reminder of the city's years of division. The wall is an important symbol of Berlin's history. We went to see the wall at the 'East Side Gallery' on Mühlenstrasse (near the Oberbaumbrucke). At this point the longest section of the wall is still standing. From here, we walked west along the wall to Checkpoint Charlie, which was about 3 kilometers.

2. Checkpoint Charlie & Berlin Wall Museum

Checkpoint Charlie was an important border crossing between East and West Berlin during the Cold War. The checkpoint is located on Friedrichstrasse in Berlin. We visited the Berlin Wall Museum at Checkpoint Charlie, which has many photos, documents and other artefacts showing how difficult life was in the divided city during the Berlin Wall. We thought it was a very impressive experience; the feeling of being around this legendary place, where so much suffering took place, is indescribable.

3. Brandenburger Tor

We walked on to the 'Brandenburger Tor' that was once the entrance to the city. The building was severely damaged during the war, but was restored to its former glory after the war. At the time of the wall, the Brandenburger Tor belonged to East Berlin and it was not possible to walk under the gate for 30 years. With the 4 horses on top, the building looks very stately. Brandenburger Tor stands for freedom and unity for the German people. 

4. Reichstag

Then we visited the Reichstag. After the Second World War, the building was located in West Berlin, and the Berlin Wall literally ran three meters behind the building. This placed the building just in the West, but actually exactly on the border between the GDR and FRG. As a result, the Reichstag remained as an abandoned building for a long time and no longer played a significant role. Moreover, due to the fact that the building was so close to the wall, it became a symbol of the division of Berlin.

Since the reunification of Germany on October 3, 1990, the Reichstag has once again been the proud home of the German parliament. Moreover, the building symbolizes freedom. The Unity Flag, a large version of the flag of Germany, flies in front of the west entrance of the building. From the glass dome you have a beautiful view of the city.

5. Holocaust Monument

6. Potsdamer Platz

Potsdamer Platz symbolizes the new Berlin; a lively square with innovative architecture surrounding the square and bursting with theaters, shops, cinemas and restaurants. We did some shopping here and grabbed a sundowner later in the day. Big fans of Uniqlo, so we had to go here. What a joy, this store!

7. Berlin Story Museum

There are still quite a few bunkers and tunnels underground in Berlin, they date from the period of the Second World War and the period afterward: the Cold War. Hitler's headquarters was located in Berlin. He had his own bunker, also called 'Fuhrer's Bunker', which he moved into on January 16, 1945; this bunker was largely destroyed during and after the war. The place can still be visited: coordinates: 52.5125, 13.3815.

A reconstruction of this period can be seen in Berlin Story Museum in the Anhalter Bunker. This bunker of 6500 m2 was built in 1940 and is partly above ground (3 floors) and partly underground (2 floors). Ultimately, this bunker provided shelter for 12,000 Berliners during WWII. When the Second World War ended and the Berlin Wall was built, the bunker was located on West Berlin territory. From then on, the bunker was given the function of a storage facility. If the supply of goods to West Berlin was blocked during the Cold War, reserves were kept in the Anhalter Bunker. For example, millions of packages of canned fish were stored here.

A major attraction on the Berlin Story Bunker tour is a viewing of the reconstruction of Hitler's personal study. Visitors are guided through the bunker, where each scene is accented with stills from films such as 2004's "Downfall," which chronicles the dictator's final days in the Führer's bunker.

Also recommended is this tour: Third Reich and Cold War Walking Tour

8. Alexanderplatz

Near Alexanderplatz, is the Berliner Fernsehturm and the Berliner Dom, the most impressive church in the city.

9. Berliner Fernsehturm

This 368 meter tower is the tallest building in the German capital. Striking because of the large sphere under the pointed tower. Extra fun: from the same sphere you can enjoy a beautiful view and a delicious dinner if you fancy this.

10. Berlin Underground Tour

We wanted to find out a little more about the Cold War era - The Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain. Therefore, we booked this tour with a local tour guide: Berlin Wall Tour - Tears, Tunnels and Triumphs, where we experienced not only the remains of the Berlin Wall, but also the profound stories that shaped an era. Our personal highlight of the tour was getting a glimpse of escape tunnel 57, which was built and successfully used during the Cold War.

The most successful tunnel – later named Tunnel 57, was dug in 1964. It began in the cellar of a disused bakery and ended, by accident, in a disused outhouse in the garden of an East Berlin apartment building. It is one hundred and forty-five metres long and goes as deep as 12 metres below the earth. It has taken half a year to dig this escape tunnel and it is the longest, deepest and most successful to date, enabling 57 people to escape from East to West.

Tunnel 57 was a tunnel under the Berlin Wall that on 3 and 4 October 1964 was the location of a mass escape by 57 East Berlin citizens to West Berlin. The tunnel got this name because of the number of people who escaped through it. Very impressive story. And it is the only real escape tunnel which can still be visited today.

Interesting detail in the tour: Wall Monument in Bernauerstraße. In this street the wall was built straight through the houses. In the first days of the wall, people could still escape through these houses from east to west, but soon the front doors to the west side were closed, so that the houses were only open from the east side. In the early days, this resulted in scenes of people jumping through the three-storey windows to the open west.