Berlin- General Information

The City

Though it has been reunified for more than a decade now, Berlin still bears the signs of its divided past. Many of its key landmarks seem to come in pairs: two zoos, two television towers – not to mention three opera houses, three airports and no fewer than six railway stations. It isn’t an outstandingly beautiful city by any means. But it is a phenomenally vibrant one. Everywhere you look, especially in the East, there are stylish new buildings rearing skywards, intent upon erasing the drab legacy of the Communist past. All these regeneration projects – along with the cost of absorbing East Berlin’s disaffected, low-paid workforce – have meant that the city teeters constantly on the verge of bankruptcy. But it’s a living city, where history is still happening, and this is what makes it such a fascinating destination.

Berlin sits in a wide valley of relatively flat countryside, bisected by the Spree River. On both sides of the river there are numerous lakes, surrounded by trees. Although it has existed since the 12th century, the city came into its own in 1701, when it was made capital of Prussia by Frederick the Great. This created an economic and cultural flowering, with such institutions as the Academy of Arts and the Academy of Sciences being created. Expansion and prosperity continued apace throughout the 19th century, as "Iron Chancellor," Count Otto von Bismarck, unified the many independent German states into an Empire. But this progress was halted by the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

In spite of the scars of war, city's golden years were the 1920s. Under the Weimer Republic, Berlin – the energetic, modern, and sinful counterpart to Paris – became a centre for the cultural avant-garde. This renaissance came to an abrupt end, once again, when hyperinflation and related economic ills allowed Hitler to become Chancellor in 1933, inaugurating the Third Reich (1933–1945)

Post World War Two

At the end of World War II Berlin was the most bombed city in Europe, but the Cold War began in the rubble. The city had been partitioned into American, British, and French zones in the west, and a Soviet zone to the east. In 1949, however, the three western-occupied zones were merged, becoming West Berlin, while the Soviet-controlled eastern zone was established as the capital of a new puppet state, the German Democratic Republic (DDR). In August 1961 the Communists built the notorious Berlin Wall, solidifying this division. The city remained the symbol of the global ideological conflict between West and East until the "Peaceful Revolution" of 1989.

Modern Berlin

Since then Berlin has become the greatest experiment in urban planning in modern times. For the most succinct picture of its constant evolution, visit the gallery of Norman Foster’s amazing new glass dome in the Reichstag. From here you’ll see a panorama of modernist architecture standing side by side with re-clad relics from the collapsed East. Cranes on the far side of the river mark the new Lehrter Bahnhof, a railway station on four levels, which will form a major transport hub. In the opposite direction you can make out the stunning new glass and brick towers of the Potsdamer Platz (featuring architecture by some of the most celebrated names in the world.)

In the middle ground, flanked by banks and embassies, is the Brandenburg Gate. There’s also Friedrichstrasse in the East, rebuilt almost from scratch and now a rival to the west’s Kurfürstendamn with its shopping centres, offices and luxury hotels. And, nestling in the midst of all this, there’s Berlin’s “green lung”: Tiergarten Park.

Before World War II, the Eastern part of the city was the cultural and political heart of Germany, where the best museums, the finest churches, and the most prestigious Universities lay. Since reunification East Berliners have concentrated on proudly restoring this patrimony (especially in the Berlin-Mitte section), while West Berlin has built entirely new museums and cultural centres. As a result, the city is now at the forefront of the European arts scene, with – incredibly enough – more than over 175 museums and some 300 galleries. Several international collectors are moving their treasures there permanently. The entire Helmut Newton Collection will be housed in the former art library at Bahnhof Zoo, and the Flick Collection, with its outstanding modernist and contemporary works, will be based in the Rieck Hall at Hamburger Bahnhof.

Complementing this artistic renaissance is Berlin’s legendary nightlife. New clubs open all the time. There are no fixed closing times, and some places don't open until midnight. Many operate in temporary spaces, their existence passed on by word of mouth at bars or by text message. Licensing laws are liberal so the bars are also open till the early hours. On weekends, things are loud and heaving until 05.00. There are seldom dress codes and door tariffs are negligible or non-existent.

A vibrant nightlife, a profusion of cultural riches and a sense of history happening all around you: all of these factors combine to make Berlin the fourth most popular city destination in Europe after London, Paris and Rome.