Berlin: My Favourites

Hello! I’m back from Berlin and I had a great time. I got constantly mistaken for being German… I tried to play along with my AS level German skills (ahem!), but mostly I had to confess to my British-ness! Maybe I have some German roots and that is what they recognise in me.

It was quite chilly and grey whilst I was there, but there were glimpses of blue sky and it didn’t stop me enjoying myself and wandering around, it was dry after all.

I thought I would show you some of my favourite things about the city.  Would that be okay?

There are lots of depictions of bears all around Berlin. Brown bears have apparently been Berlin’s official mascot since 1280, there is one on the city’s flag.

The Brandenburg Gate is one of the most iconic Berlin sites, I think. The wall ran right behind it. It has been the centre of much of Berlin’s history. There is also a very well named ‘Victoria’ charging forward with her chariot atop the gate.

Always a sucker for splashes of colour; the yellow U-Bahn trains were my particular favourite.

Having enjoyed the London Olympics this year, I took a trip to the Olympic Stadium of the 1936 Berlin Olympics. I loved the architecture of the stadium, but very conscious that it was built to promote and impress the power of the Third Reich to the rest of the world.

Being a keen swimmer, the pool and diving pool were particularly interesting….

The beauty of gothic lettering on street signs….

Contrasted with the beauty of graffiti art along the river….

The Marx and Engels Forum was a must for me. I had to wait quite a while to get a good look as there was a Danish TV crew there filming. It was worth the wait.

The Reichstag, the home of German democracy. It was great that you can go almost right up to the building, all the way around. In London you don’t really get that kind of closeness to the Houses of Parliament.

 Berlin has many interestingly designed buildings. I would love to live at the top of the first building.

 The glowing golden dome of the Neue Synagogue was a definitely highlight for me. I really loved this whole area and spent a lot of time wandering around until it became dark.

 Across this wonderful red bridge and down the road one hundred paces…

 Is my MOST favourite place in all of Berlin, the Bauhaus Archiv.

From 1919 to 1933 Bauhaus revolutionised design. Bringing together function and form, which created clean and simple lines. Beauty. Basically.

They had a special exhibition at the Archiv, on Lou Scheper-Berkenkamp. This lady’s style is totally inspiring to me. She is not very well known, but she deserves to be.

You can’t take photos in the museum, because of copyright, etc., which is totally fair. So, if you are interested you can have a good look here.

The changing faces of the Fernsehturm were a constant fascination for me.

And finally (thank you for hanging in there!), Molecule Man by Jonathan Borofsky.

 Thank you Berlin. I enjoyed you, your people and your food.