T H EB E S TA N DT H EWURST

E D I T O R I A L

EDITOR Jason Bosworthick

SECTION EDITORS

HISTORY AND LANDMARKS Chris Meigh

ACCOMMODATION Victoria Brown

THE ARTS Anna Paul & Lucy Richardson

FOOD AND DRINK Ben Kendall

MUSEUM ISLAND Kate Martin

BARS AND NIGHTLIFE Ben Kendall

LEISURE AND OUTDOORS Jason Bosworthick

SHOPPING Victoria Brown

LANGUAGE Rosalind Lakka

SURVIVAL GUIDE Natalie Perry & Laura Phelan

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Jess Astbury, Hannah Dowds, Sarah Slater, Louise Gill, Hera Sparnon

ART DIRECTOR Hannah Dowds

LAYOUT Hannah Dowds, Sarah Slater & Hera Sparnon

PHOTO EDITOR Louise Gill

When asked about the great cultural cities of the world it would come as no surprise to hear London, New York, Paris or Rome amongst the immediate answers. Somehow though, none of these places deliver quite the same vibe of creativity, of history and of sheer adrenaline fuelled, outrageous and insurmountable night-life that Berlin does.Home to more museums, more art galleries, open-air exhibitions and in-genious street-art pieces, Berlin offers an eclectic mix to sate any artistic or historical thirst you might have.The cultural plethora that makes up Berlin amounts to an incredible range of cuisine. Anything from Turkish kebabs to Korean speed-fried chicken, from fine dining in pitch darkness to a simple Kaffee und Kuchen (coffee and cake) on a summer’s day is sure to satisfy any hunger pang. As the founding city for techno music it comes as no surprise that Ber-liners party harder than anywhere else. Refurbished factories house some of the world’s greatest clubs; pumping knee-shaking bass nightly and hosting infamous all-weekend raves. As well as this there is no end to bars and clubs blasting out almost every music genre that’s out there; some even inventing new ones.This guide aims to highlight some of the many must see places in Berlin. Whether you are visiting to remain in an alcohol induced haze, to blow your mind with some incredible street-art, to sample foods from around the world, to enjoy the history of a great city and of ancient worlds or just to enjoy a leisurely break from the usual hustle and bustle; Berlin is the one city that will fulfil every desire.

Jason Bosworthick

INTRODUCTION

C O N T E N T S

5 Map of Berlin

7 History of Berlin

10 Survival Guide

11 Transport

14 Shopping

15 Internet Access

17 Language

19 Berlin on a Shoestring

THE BEST AND THE WURST

22 HISTORY AND LAND MARKS

46 ACCOMMODATION

54 THE ARTS

69 A Recycled City

72 FOOD AND DRINK

73 Flavours of Berlin

94 BARS AND NIGHT LIFE

95 Berghain

111 Clarchens Ballhaus

114 MUSEUM ISLAND

120 LEISURE AND OUTDOORS

121 Sanssouci Park

138 SHOPPING

151 Writers Profiles

THE BEST AND THE WURST

M A P O F B E R L I N

THE BEST AND THE WURST

5

CHARLOTTENBERG

Home to both the Tiergarten and the Hauptstadt Zoo, any tourist has more than enough reasons to venture into the district of Charlottenburg. This affluent locality is mostly famous for it’s shops due to the Savignyplatz and it’s stones-throw distance from the Ku’damm; both fine shopping sites and a true shopaholics mecca. It should be noted that the prices here will gener-ally prove higher than elsewhere in Berlin, so it is probably not the most ideal of places to go if you’re spending on a budget. But hey, a little window shopping never hurt anybody.

MITTE

Aptly named Mitte (which translates into English as middle or centre) is the very heart of the city. As Berlin’s his-torical core, it encompasses dynamic landmarks from former East and West Berlin areas such as the Brandenburg Gate, the Holocaust Memorial and the Reichstag. It also includes key areas such as Potsdamer Platz, Alexander-platz and Unter den Linden. Mitte is the home of the famous Museuminsel or Museum Island, the site of five of

Berlin’s most prestigious museums for ancient antiquities and art. Burst-ing with shops and eateries, Mitte is a hotspot for tourists and locals alike.

PRENZLAUR BERG

A beacon of by-gone bohemianism, Prenzlauer Berg is now an elegantly decked-out haven popular with artists, gays, young families and creative types. Whether you want to calmly caffein-ate amid the sparrows, blond babies and ‘macchiato mothers’, indulge in a spot of relaxed shopping or party in the myriad cool bars and Berlin’s on-line central sound-proofed club, it’s the perfect district.

FRIEDRICHSHAIN

Freidrichshain could be perceived as the ‘chameleon district’ as it assumes a number of different guises. It proudly assimilates itself with squatters and has an exciting vibe with it’s funky bars and clubs offering space for the young, poor and sexy to rub shoulders in reckless abandon. It’s boundaries also house the famous East Side Gal-lery which serves as a busy tourist trap, especially in the height of the summer

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INTRODUCTION

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SCHON-EBERG

CHARLOTTENBERG MITTE

KREUZBERG

TIERG-ARTEN

PRENZ-LAUERBERG

NEUKOLLN

FRIED-RICH-SHAIN

months. However, venture into the quieter back streets such as Koperni-kusstrasse and you will stumble across edgy urban designer boutiques and a host of subdued coffee shops where you can do as the daydreamers do and wistfully relax, whiling away the hours in a state of cool calm.

SCHONEBERG

Famously once home to none other than Christopher Isherwood, Mar-lene Dietrich, Iggy Pop and David Bowie, Schöneberg has maintained its renown for unbridled hedonism since the 1920s. Accommodating the largest gay district of Berlin, it is never short of a good party. Not to be outdone in other respects though, the district is a bustling multi-cultural microcosm of

the city itself, with abundant elegant streets and edifices.

TREPTOW

Formerly a district belonging to East Berlin this leafy area is dominated by the beautiful Treptower Park which occupies several kilometres and merges into the Planterwald forest. The park offers a leafy haven from the livelier party street, Schlesische Strasse, which links Treptow to the district of Kreuzberg.

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CHRIS MEIGHThough graduated in Journalism and Criminology, Chris is our resident his-tory, literature and film buff. A long-term Berlin-lover, he is never short of some factual titbit, quirky suggestion or information of an otherwise use-lessly fascinating type – particularly when fuelled by his new-found fond-ness for a good, chilled Riesling.

KATE MARTINKate is a Journalism and Creative Writing student who enjoys sampling German cuisine and historical sites. She has managed to last a month in Berlin unscathed, despite her pen-chant for impersonating german ac-cents. When she’s not nearly being robbed by fake deaf people or acciden-tally gate crashing legalize marijuana demonstrations, she likes a ‘gid’ night out, which usually ends by jumping in a rivers, or with a kebab or burger (no salad).

BEN KENDALLBen has a passion for all things Ital-

ian having spent the last year living there. He studies classics and is unable to function without his morning coffee fix. Ben is a self-proclaimed café enthu-siast and the only thing more extensive than his vocabulary is his cardigan and blazer collection.

JASON BOSWORTHICKMeet our editor Jason: Creative writ-er, dodgy joke teller, and one half of CTR’s very own super couple, “Jackie” (Jason and Vickie). With a damn fine taste in music and an extensive knowl-edge of film, Jason is an all-round cool kid. Having been assigned the role of editor by his fellow team members, he had the mammoth task of sifting through all 150 reviews in this guide, and for this we thank and applaud him.

VICTORIA BROWNAdding comedy value to even the dull-est of subjects, Vickie belongs on a stage. Her hilarious impressions and animated utterances would regularly leave the group in stitches, and spiced up some grueling hours spent in the

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WRITERS PROFILES

project rooms. When’s she’s not im-personating, Vickie is an avid napper and claims she’s still catching up on lost sleep from her childhood. But de-spite this, she still manages to keep su-per organised and always stays on top of every task at hand.

LAURA PHELANOh Laura, Laura, Laura. There is far too much to say about this bubbly blonde from London/ Brighton to be able to condense into so few words, so I’m not going to try. I could talk about her adoration for concoctions of Vietnamese food, but I won’t. I could discuss how wholeheartedly she has thrown herself into the programme, particularly exploring the outdoor activities available in Berlin, and how much she has developed as a result of her passion, but I shall not. I could ex-postulate at length about how she is undoubtedly the messiest, most hilari-ous and nicest roommate a girl could wish for, but to be honest, I really can’t be bothered!

LUCY RICHARDSONWithin minutes of meeting Lucy you’ll feel like you’re best friends. Holding claim to a delightfully, bubbly person-ality this Oxford girl will effortlessly charm you. A lover of music; rock, in-die and electro, and adorned with the music aficionado’s obligatory pierc-ing you’ll be sure to find her happily tapping her foot as her laptop pumps tunes or dancing the night away like it’s 1984. Lucy is also a keen shopper and whether it’s venturing through stalls at the local flea market, diving through the high-street stores or just window shopping at the more expen-sive luxury department stores a good bargain is something that can rarely evade her keen eyes.

HERA SPARNONIf she’s not singing her heart out at some Kareoke bar, or bartering for a second hand guitar at the local flea market, Hera can normally be found frequenting one of the many pubs or clubs that Berlin has to offer. Keen to talk about anything from obscure

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bands to graffiti and street art, Hera’s a girl who has seen it all and still isn’t finished exploring. It’s probably worth making an ap-pointment with her though – between late nights and her globe trotting tendencies, this punk-haired rocker is constantly on the move. Blink, and you’ll probably miss her.

SARAH SLATERIf ‘Little Miss Sunshine’ swallowed a Thesaurus, you would get Sarah Slater! The English teacher’s won-derful way with words, combined with her contagious positive energy certify her status as a creative catalyst within the group. Though incompetent with directions, the modest Miss Slater’s multi-talents have unofficially secured her the positions as layout team, proof reader and editor.

JESS ASTBURYSinglehandedly tracking down the weird and wonderful curiosities of

Berlin, Jess has red hair bondage spiked shoes and a love of all things bizarre. Spending her free time exploring aban-doned and transformed buildings and vehicles, catch her either in a bunker or eating ice cream on an old school bus. She provides a refreshing outlook on what to do in Berlin if you’re just a little bit weird. She has sacrificed both of her legs in her mostly by-foot pur-suit of kookiness, and although now a near cripple, she has successfully guid-ed other group members towards many new and exciting experiences.

NATALIE PARRYWith her incredible encyclopaedic knowledge of film, music and more recently the kebabs of Berlin, there is never a dull (or quiet) moment with Natalie around. Natalie is the queen of look-a-like spotting and a night out won’t feel complete without her 80’s dance moves and glass of Absinth. With her amazingly creative reviews, you may even pick up a new word or

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two.

ROSALIND LAKKAAs the most proficient German speak-er, Rosalind came in particularly useful when asking for directions and fend-ing off creepy guys for the rest of the group. Her writing isn’t too shabby either, particularly when it comes to food. From gummy bears to potatoes, Rosalind did her best to eat up Berlin. Buffets everywhere, look at this face, and beware. Apart from eating and translating, Rosalind has spent her time coaxing terrified full-grown men out of labyrinths, attracting probing looks from passersby with her short shorts and playing Harvest Moon.

ANNA PAULWhen she isn’t losing her posses-sions, or getting lost herself, Glasgow gal Anna can usually be found wan-dering one of Berlin’s art galleries. A dab hand at photography, English Literature and Film student Anna is

a healthy-eater who is seemingly im-mune to spicy food, and loves meeting new mates on the underground.

LOUISE GILLA fun, happy go lucky girl to say the least. With her vivacious smile and endless amounts of energy it’s hard not to warm to this eccentric lady, even when she rolls in at 6 am with a cheeky smile on her face, ready to throw her-self into the next challenge (bar) she comes across.