Berlin in 7 days

Berlin was the focus of world attention for most of the twentieth century through two world wars, a depression, a cold war and reunification. Now, after centuries in the spotlight, perhaps Berlin’s and Germany’s greatest accomplishment is that the city’s international profile is much reduced and free of the conflict and trauma of the twentieth century. Germany’s largely successful and peaceful reunification is perhaps the most under-acknowledged accomplishment of the twentieth century. Berlin now personifies the cool modern city with friendly people, loads to do and one of the best buzzes in Europe.

In 1988, much of the attraction of a visit to Berlin was the day pass to the East. I was terribly excited about the idea of a quick sojourn behind the iron curtain and my memories of the visit remain vivid. One of the strongest impressions was that when the Russians marked out East Berlin as their patch in 1945, they took most of the city’s architectural gems - even if they were decidedly war ravaged in 1945 and rundown in 1988.

In 2010, the bulk of my time in Berlin was spent in the former East. The apartment I booked was coincidentally located in the downtown Mitte area on Rosa Luxemburg St - named after a post WWI Communist leader I had studied with affection at university.

Berlin doesn’t lend itself to a short stopover. There’s an incredible amount of stuff to see and do from formal tourist sights like some of the world’s most impressive museums, galleries and historic sights through to architecture, gardens, shopping, nightlife and outstanding restaurants.


Here’s a rough outline of our 7 days in Berlin. There was nothing terribly left field about this - that'll be next time. But we had a ball.

It’s worth noting that all of this was completed on foot excepting a single train journey to Kurfurstendamm. Berlin is a fantastic walking and cycling city and we estimate we were walking around 12 - 15 kilometres per day - not including time spent walking through museums and galleries.


Day 1 - Orientation afternoon - Unter Den Linden

We arrived at lunchtime and so spent the afternoon walking from our hotel along the Unter Den Linden, Berlin’s grand central boulevarde towards the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag building. The walk took us past many of the city’s most important sights so it was good to get a basic sense of the geography again. Fortunately, Berlin is an easy city to navigate. There are clear directions to most major landmarks and sights. Getting your bearings is straightforward - always a good thing for those who like to travel on foot.

Dinner - Com Viet - Great inexpensive Vietnamese restaurant on Munstrasse in Mitte. Berlin has a huge range of Vietnamese restaurants on account of the large north Vietnamese population that formerly lived and worked in the East when relations between the two communist states were tight.


Day 2 - The Neues Museum, Checkpoint Charlie, Jewish Museum, Postdamer Platz

We decided to commence our museum efforts at the Neues Museum on the “museum island” home to some of the world’s most important collections from antiquity to the present. We devoted a couple of hours to the Neues which only reopened in 2009 after massive renovations. Included in the collection is the mesmerising bust of Queen Nefertiti and an extraordinary amount of other treasure taken from Egypt in the nineteenth century.

From the Neus Museum we headed to Checkpoint Charlie  - the former border post between East and West where I entered East Berlin in 88. After a simple lunch we headed to the Jewish Museum - Judisches Museum - our first exploration of Berlin’s tragic Jewish history. The museum traces the centuries long history of Berlin’s Jewish community, Jewish traditions and the holocaust.

We then continued walking towards Potsdamer Platz for a look at the spectacular modern architecture that has replaced the irretrievable war ravaged structures that once stood at Berlin’s most famous plaza.

Dinner - Luchs Restaurant on Rosa Luxemburg St - Stylish space with contemporary western cuisine superbly done at good prices. 100 Euro for 3 people including wine.


Day 3 - Pergamon Museum, Old Jewish Quarter

The Pergamon is the absolute essential museum visit for a stay in Berlin. Its collection of colossally huge ancient ruins from Turkey and Iraq  is staggering and controversial. Highlights are the Pergamon Altar, the Market Gate of Miletus and the Babylonian Ishtar Gate. The Pergamon is also home to an impressive collection of Islamic art. We spent around three hours here. As with all Berlin's museums and galleries, you could easily do more.

From the Pergamon we decided to take some time out to wander around the great boutiques and independent galleries near our apartment. This included the old Jewish centre of Berlin, the Neue Synagogue and the former Jewish cemetery - all vandalised during the Nazi reign.

After lunch we continued our walk to the Dorotheenstädtischer Cemetery where Hegel, Bertolt Brecht and other Berlin luminaries are buried.

Lunch    Keyser Soze - Great little cafe nearby the Neue Synagogue on Tucholsky St 33
Dinner     Hasir -  A great Turkish Restaurant on Oranienburger St


Day 4 - Holocaust memorial, Topography of Terror, Hitler bunker

A profound day exploring Berlin’s Nazi past and the Holocaust. The Holocaust Memorial nearby the Brandenberg Gate is chillingly simple with its 2711 evocative “stelae”. Nearby is the former centre of Nazi power - the cleared space now turned over to the Topography of Terror. The area is also bordered by the former Nazi Air Ministry Building (now the Ministry of Finance) and remaining sections of the Berlin Wall.

Dinner - Goko Japanese Neue Schönhauser St - The only disappointing restaurant of our entire stay. Mediocre cuisine and poor value for money by Berlin standards.



Day 5 - Tiergarten, Kaiser Friedrich’s Church, Kurfurstendamm, Tiergarten

After some pretty intense days of walking, museums and some distressing history as well, we took it easy with a very relaxed brunch in Weinerei Forum on Veteranen St 14 - a very inexpensive artsy cafe about 10 minutes walk from our base on Rosa Luxemburg St.

Despite Berlin’s excellent public transport system we sampled it for the first time and only time when we travelled to Kurfurstendamm  in the old West Berlin. For the rest of the journey we preferred to travel on foot though cycling is also an excellent option. Bicycles for rent are everywhere.

The centre of the old West Berlin is now an upscale district of boutiques, fashion labels and posh cafes. We also visited an old landmark of the former West Berlin, the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial church. The broken spire of the bombed out church remains a symbol of the city’s war torn past.

Brunch - Weinerei Forum Vetergnen St 14 - Great little Bohemian Cafe
Dinner - Frida's Schwester - Excellent food, great ambience and friendly staff - perfect combination and good value for money too. Contemporary Western cuisine.


Day 6 - German History Museum, Kulturforum, The New National Gallery

Just as you could spend many full days wandering around Berlin’s museums, so you could spend days exploring the city’s collection of centuries of art. In our six days, we only made it to the New National Gallery - one of several National Galleries. The New National Gallery focuses on painting and sculpture from 1900 to 1945. And the art of that period is every bit as poignant as the history.

We also visited the German History Museum - a fantastic collection of art, documents, weapons, technology, costume and more depicting critical eras of German history.

Wrapped up the sojourn with an afternoon stroll through the vast and beautiful Tiergarten - the former hunting grounds that make up Berlin's central park. Great for walking and riding.



Getting around

We walked for nearly all of the above itinerary taking only one train ride. We were probably covering around 15 kilometres on foot each day. Cycling is another very attractive option. Bicycles are available everywhere and Berlin has one of the best systems of cycle paths of any city. Berlin's drivers show amazing regard both for cyclists and pedestrians. I even had one stop so as not to pass through a photo I was setting up - true!



Eating

Berlin’s restaurants and cafes are excellent and great value for money. One of the drivers of the city’s cool factor has been the explosion in great cafes, restaurants and bars. We found loads of good spots around August St, Tucholsky St and Oranienburger St - all in the old East Berlin.



Drinking

We found loads of great bars around August St, Tucholsky St and Oranienburger St. Most were busy with locals and travellers.



Accommodation

Berlin has loads of accommodations and the city centre is compact enough that providing you are staying in one of the main areas - Mitte, Brandenburg, Prenzlauer, Potsdamer, Tiergarten - you'll have great access to the city sights. We opted for two excellent spacious 2 bedroom apartments from the early twentieth century on Rosa Luxemburg St (no 19 and 43) in the Mitte / Prenzlauer area. We booked online at http://www.all-berlin-apartments.com/ You can also go direct to an apartment owner Agustin at acv2berlin@gmx.de

The apartments were clean, superbly located and made you feel like a local. The bedding in both apartments wasn’t great but everything else was excellent - including the value for money.