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Cinestar Original

26.02.2011 //
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Spending some time in Germany and eagerly wanting to go to the movies? Seems like an easy enough thing to do, but sadly, many cinemas in Germany show German-dubbed versions of the movies. Perhaps good enough for those (German) kids who grew up with it, but I personally find it very annoying when sound and image are out of sync, and voices do not match the faces I see. You could go watch a movie in one of the independent movie theaters, such as Central Kino, which show original versions as dubbing is too expensive for them, but if you’re wanting to see a mainstream movie, there is a solution in Berlin.

Located inside the famous Sony Center on Potsdamer Platz is Cinestar Original, one of few mainstream cinemas showing original versions of movies. Subtitles are available in German only, so be sure to pick a movie originally spoken in a language you know, if you’re not good at reading German fluently. There’s not much of the charm found in smaller cinemas in Berlin here, it’s all modern and made to cater to as many people as possible. But then again, once the movie starts, all that’s around you doesn’t matter anyway, right? There’s even a room capable of showing movies in IMAX and 3D.

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Stasi-prison Hohenschönhausen

24.02.2011 //
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Although the Deutsche Demokratische Republik (or GDR) is not known for crimes against humanity with the scope in which the national socialist regime was up until the Second World War, the Stasi founded in 1950 is infamous. The organization systematically oppressed and scared the people whom did not comply to the standards as set by the party.

In carrying out their terror, prisons were an absolute necessity. In the borough of Hohenschönhausen, it took use of a Untersuchungsgefängnis, or research prison, previously used by the Soviet forces. The main focus of the prison was not so much, as the name would suggest, to do research towards the truth, but, rather, to force prisoners to comply and confess all what needed to be confessed. Tools towards that goal were absolute separation of prisoners, tiny cells in which one could do nothing but stand upright, as well as various methods of torture.

After the fall of the Berlin wall, the complex has shortly been used as a medical prison, but is now used as a ‘museum’ and reminder of the terrors the people have been subjected too here. Visiting is possible only in participating in one of the tours, most of which are in German. Much praised ‘feature’ of the tours is the fact that many of the tours are given by former inmates, although historians tend to take over as the years since the prison’s active use pass. English tours are available twice weekly, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The 13:00 tour on Thursday includes a visit of the Grotewohl-Express train carriage for the transport of prisoners.

Nevertheless, interest for the memorial rises and is now visited by over 300,000 people yearly. Especially during the summer time and on week-ends, many individual visitors as well as groups of tourists frequent the site, making it unable to avoid running into other groups, thus giving it the feel of a tourist factory. Still, that’s no reason to miss out.

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Fresh ‘n’ Friends

23.02.2011 //
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Most of the time, buying food and drinks in a city such as Berlin, does not prove to be a problem. There’s a kiosk on every street corner for a drink and supermarkets in every block. However, at night, supermarkets are closed and kiosks may not be able to offer you all that you need. On public holidays like Christmas, it gets even harder. When I’ve once arrived in Berlin late in the afternoon on Christmas Eve, I found most stores to be already closed. With two days of Christmas coming up, followed by a Sunday, prospects weren’t good in getting proper and healthy food.

Fresh ‘n’ Friends played a huge part in saving me from that, however. It’s a small store, with a variety of sustainable products, ranging from soda and chocolate, to vegetables and bread. Although prices are, in part due to the nature of their products, rather high, the best thing about the stores is the fact they’re open 24/7. All day, every week, all year long. Even during the christmas holidays, they stayed open for business at night and, back in 2009, even gave away free coffee during the cold winter month of December.

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Galeria Kaufhof (am Alex)

17.02.2011 //
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Galeria Kaufhof isn’t anything spectacular. It’s your average department store, ranging in size from small to extra large. This particular branch however, falls into that last category. It’s huge, with six floor of consumer heaven; ranging from expensive and exclusive to cheap and everyday use. It’s been built by the GDR in the late sixties to house the Centrum department store, where its inhabitants could look at stuff, most of them would never be able to afford.

Highlights of the store include their escalators located under the giant skylight, which makes for lovely pictures. Other than that -you can’t get around those- the superb in-store supermarket on the ground floor rivals the luxury of KaDeWe’s food department. On the top floor, you’ll find its restaurant, which, although not brilliant in terms of quality, provides you with spectacular views over the Alexanderplatz.
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Kilkenny Irish Pub

16.02.2011 //
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This is where you’ll find the Irish spirit after a few pints of Guinness, Kilkenny’s or whiskey. Located right in the underpassage of S-Bahn Hackescher Markt, it’s conveniently located, no matter where you’re coming from. Once you get in, you can pick a seat in any of the various rooms, each with a different feel to it. Be aware though, the mock cobblestones might prove to be an obstacle if you’re wearing heels. This really is a nice place to sit down and have a chat with a friend, or a group of friends.

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Kunsthaus Tacheles

15.02.2011 //
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Possible one of the best known artists’ collectives in Berlin, Kunsthaus Tacheles attracts many visitors every year with their huge range of activitites. From the Zapata café, via shops selling art from independent artists to artists with their workshop in the garden behind the house. There’s a vast amount of things to see here at any time of day: it’s open throughout the night, too. For now.

It might however become the victim of rising rents and renovation projects. As the lease with the owner of the property ended back in 2008, the future of the complex is far from certain. On April 4th, 2011, the property will be sold on auction. Whom the owner will be after that, let alone what its plans with the property are, are not known. It can only be hoped that the future owner will recognize the values of the collective, which bases its activities on a non-profit system, relying on donations and sales to keep things going.

The property itself was built as a department store back in 1909, with entrances at both Oranienburger Straße as well as Friedrichstraße. From 1928 on, the complex was used for exhibitions by German producer AEG to showcase their technical appliances and was host of the first television broadcast worldwide in the 30s. With the rise of the Nazi-party, the building was put to use by some of its institutions, including the SS, whom used the upper floor as a prison. By the end of the Second World War, the building was heavily damaged from air raids.

Although large parts of the building remained standing, the complex was largely unused due to the political division of the city, with its owner, AEG, being in the west and the complex in East-Berlin. During the years, some shops, a travel agency as well as a cinema took residence in the complex, but in the 80s large parts of the building were demolished in favor of a new road connecting the two streets, with the current building left standing, to be demolished as well on a later stage.

The artist’s collective ‘Tacheles’ occupied the building two months prior to the planned demolition of the remaining section in April 1990 and slowly developed the complex to what is now one of Berlin’s most famous centers for independent art. Although it has been marked as a historical landmark in 1992, the future now is perhaps more uncertain than ever and we can only hope in the years to come, more visitors will be able to visit this unique complex.

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Park Inn panorama terrace

02.02.2011 //
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So you’ve been queueing up at the Fernsehturm to enjoy a view from behind glass? Why not take a different approach and go up to the roof of the nearby Park Inn hotel on Alexanderplatz! It will offer you a spectacular, though ‘just’ 180 degree, view over Berlin’s Mitte area. Not having to stand behind glass, you enjoy the view over Unter den Linden, up to Tiergarten, across the Museuminsel. You can watch trains meander through the city over the Stadtbahn train tracks from Hauptbahnhof to Ostbahnhof. And while doing so, you can rest in one of their beach chairs while enjoying a drink from the small stand at the entrance.

And the best thing of all, it’s much cheaper than the Fernsehturm, but you will not be as high up, nor do you have a chance for a view across the trendy Prenzlauer Berg district. To get there, just hop on one of the hotel’s elevators to the top floor, from where signs will guide you to the stairs to the roof, or ask directions at the reception. For non-hotel guests an entrance fee is payable upon entering the terrace.

The Park Inn also offers rooms with a view, if you want a view all through the day and night, or you can sign up for a bungee jump from the panorama terrace, which leaves you screaming and the crowd on Alexanderplatz cheering at your bravery.

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Museum der Dinge

31.01.2011 //
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The Museum der Dinge is quite literally what its name says it is: the museum of things. It has a huge collection of everyday appliances, utensils and other things, taking you on a tour through years past. On more than once occasion you’ll find yourself bringing back memories you didn’t know you still had, sparked by objects you’ve used everyday for years. Walking the line between applied arts and functional design, the Museum der Dinge was one of my best finds from the Berlin museum night in 2010. But the usual four euro entry fee shouldn’t hold you back either.

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Bekir’s Kebaphaus

27.01.2011 //
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This place is a 30-minute train ride from Berlin’s centre, so you are very unlikely to ever wind up here. But, as this website is not about useful, ‘tour-guide’ tips, but about my personal tips on Berlin, I can’t leave this one out. According to my girlfriend, they sell the best döner kebap ever here. We haven’t written down any prices, opening hours or its exact address, but as soon as you exit the train station you’ll see it directly opposite the main street. It’s got a biergarten and looks a bit tacky. But after the long train ride, you’ll be very happy to sit down and taste the delicious meat.

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