If you are going to visit Berlin or only thinking of it, you must continue reading.
* A summary of what I think you need or not to visit if you travel to this fantastic city.
The whole city is a must because you can see the communist and the current period in the same place.
The Museum Island (museuminsel) is a good value for money and time if you like museums, but you need two things to visit this place:
- First money, because the museum rates are a bit overpriced, so remember to take with you any reduction card like a student card.
- Second, plan your time because this visit will take you a few days (four or five) it depends in how many museums you’d like to visit.
On the contrary, the Alexanderplatz is not all it’s cracked up to be. You‘ve read a bit of it, and imagine it to be more amazing that what you find there. In addition, I found that the Brandenburger Gate (Brandenburger Tor) is a bit touristy. Although you get up very early to visit it, you find lot of groups of tourists visiting it.
Well, if I were you, I’d go to the Hackesche Höfe. It’s an amazing place consisting of 8 intercommunicated buildings that create beautiful courtyards. In these courtyards you can find shops, cinema, theatre, bars, clubs and so on.
If you like books or only have curiosity in them, please don’t miss the Berlin State Library (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin). It’s an incredible and marvellous library that I think has any book you can imagen. An emotional and staggering place is the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. I don’t have words to explain it.
Finally, make sure you go to Potsdamer Platz. It’s a surprising and wonderful space that includes the futurist Sony Center building.
* A bit more information of the places that I’ve recommended.
- Museum Island
The consort of museums found on the Museum Island is a unique cultural inheritance which unites five important museum buildings into a heterogeneous but harmonic ensemble on the River Spree.
It is form by the Old museum, the New museum, the National Gallery, the Bode museum and the final building on the island is the Pergamon museum, which was only completed in 1930.
Ishtar gate
Aleppo Zimmer
- Alexanderplatz.
It is the most famous square in Berlin. This included the former Centrum department store, the Alex Passages which connected with it, the 123m-high hotel building, and the Fernsehturm (TV Tower) which dominates the square. The square is also home to the World Time Clock, and the Fountain of International Friendship, both of which were erected in 1969.
- Brandenburg gate.
The Brandenburg Gate, Berlin’s only remaining city gate, is the true symbol of the city. Because it was situated in the no-man’s land just behind the wall, it also became symbolic of the division of the city. After the fall of the Wall, the Gate was reopened on December 22, 1989.
After the decision of Berlin’s senate on October, 22 2002 the Brandenburg Gate remains closed for cars, cabs and buses. Berliners and their guests can enjoy now the renewed beauty of the Pariser Platz.
- The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.
Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas is the central place for remembrance and a place of warning. Situated in Berlin’s city centre, the memorial was built near the Reichstag and the Brandenburger Tor.
Eisenmans design envisages a Field of Stelae, 2,711 concrete blocks of different heights, structured in a grid pattern and covering nearly 19,000 m2 of gently sloping ground. Since it is entirely open to all sides, the Memorial can be entered anywhere but as visitors move through it, the blocks seem to form different wave-like patterns.
The memorial has a complementary underground Information Centre, similarly designed by Eisenman in an equally impressive style, providing around 800 sq. meters of exhibition space giving background information on the victims and detailing other historical memorial sites.
*Food: a recommendation
A delicious fast food restaurant is named “Nord-See” is located in the Hackesche Höfe.
*Weather
Berlin has a temperate climate, with Atlantic influences from the North West as well as continental influences from the East.
During summer, the average temperature lies around 22-23°C (72°F), in winter around 2-3°C (35°F). Extreme heat in summer does not occur as often as in the South of Germany. Sometimes during winter, temperatures may fall down to -15°C at night. Anyway, you should not forget to take a pair of warm walking shoes if you plan to visit Berlin in winter, which is the ideal season to explore its diverse museums and cultural life.
In summer, you will appreciate the many green oases in the city and the lakes inviting you for a swim. The average rainfall is 580 mm per year, well balanced between the months.
* Sites that contain interesting information about Berlin.
http://www.visitberlin.de/english/berlin-infos/index.php
http://www.latlon-berlin.de/en/index_en.htm
http://www.berlinstadtrundfahrt.de/en/index.php
Filed under: IT'S YOUR TURN!
