The October Travel Book
The Rough Guide to Berlin
Seemingly in a perpetual state of transformation, Berlin is an extraordinary city. For over a century, events here have either mirrored or determined what has happened in the rest of Europe, and, fifteen years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the city is on the move again, working furiously to re-create itself as the capital of Europe's most powerful country and as an international metropolis on a level with London, Paris or New York.
No one would come to Berlin for light-hearted sightseeing: this is a profoundly scarred city. Even in its flashiest sections it can still seem half-built, many of its modern buildings – on both sides of the former divide – somehow making it look less finished and more ugly. Unlike Paris, Amsterdam or Munich, Berlin isn't a city where you can simply stroll and absorb the atmosphere. You need to plan your trips and target your points of interest, using the city's excellent transport system to cover what can be longish distances. Those points of interest are, almost without exception, sombre: the Reichstag, looming symbol of the war years; the remains of the Wall; and several museums that openly and intelligently try to make sense of twentieth-century German history.
Given the range and severity of the events Berlin endured, it's no wonder it emerged far differently from anywhere else in Germany. West Berlin's unorthodox character made it a magnet for those seeking alternative lifestyles – hippies and punks, gays and lesbians, artists and musicians all flocked there. Vital to this migration were the huge subsidies pouring in from the West German government to keep that portion of the city alive, and with money available for just about everything, Berlin developed a cutting edge arts scene and a vibrant nightlife that continue to this day, long after the grants have dried up. Non-Germans came too, attracted by the city's tolerance. The large numbers of Turks, Greeks and Italians, who originally came as “guest workers” in the 1960s, make Berlin Germany's most cosmopolitan city by far – a fact reflected in the excellent variety of cuisine on offer in the city's restaurants.
Berlin really is a twenty-four-hour city, and you'll never be short of something to do
Though cut off by the Wall for thirty years, the eastern part of the city has always been Berlin's real centre and it only took a decade or so for this to reassert itself in this role. The area east of the Brandenburg Gate, focussed around Unter den Linden and the adjoining eastern district of Prenzlauer Berg, have emerged as the city's prime magnets for shopping and entertainment. Sleek chrome and glass has replaced crumbling brick, yanking them out of a fifty-year slumber, while Potsdamer Platz, nothing but a barren field until a few years ago, is now a bustling entertainment quarter. It's an exciting, infectious scene and, for anyone familiar with the forlorn and unkempt eastern streets of the GDR, a slightly unbelievable one. Here especially, the rapid transformation of Berlin into capital city and economic and cultural powerhouse, is evident.
Nowhere in the city is more than a stone's throw from a bar, be it a corner Kneipe or a slick upscale café – indeed, the variety of bars and restaurants is one of the city's great strengths. Its legendary, pretty much non-stop nightlife is another: Berlin really is a twenty-four-hour city, and you'll never be short of something to do. But beware, the pace of change in Berlin, particularly in the eastern part of the city, is such that new cafés and restaurants open (and close) daily and traffic is frequently re-routed around building sites; one of the upsides, however, is that the city's state museums are undergoing radical revamping.
The Rough Guide to Berlin is published by Rough Guides (paperback: £11.99). It is also available through roughguides.com and all good booksellers.
