Urban Nation is a contemporary museum housed in a two storey building situated in the corner of Bülowstraße and Zietenstraße that is painted with large murals and paintings on the outside. With its ever-growing collection of contemporary and street art, Urban Nation has bought about a revolution in the local art scene and has built an establishment where the artists and art enthusiasts in the city can connect. Various exhibitions organized here feature artwork curated by the expert panel of international artists that choose only the best artwork from across the globe keeping the quality of exhibits always high.
Berlin has its fair share of weird but wonderful tourist attractions, Designpanoptikum is a less known example of this. The exhibits here are bizarre and outlandish in the best possible ways and immediately transport you to a world caught between dreams and Willy Wonka's workshop. The whimsical collection is privately owned by Vlad Korneev, an artist in his own right. He is usually around to assist you with explanations, view points and sometimes, to help you draw your own conclusions. Step in, give that imagination of yours a thorough workout.
The garden Volkspark Friedrichshain lends its name to Friedrichshain and is situated at the northern end of this prominent Berlin neighborhood. Friedrichshain is bordered by other city districts like Lichtenberg, Kreuzberg, Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg, and the River Spree in the south. It was initially known for its low real estate prices and attracted numerous youngsters looking for inexpensive accommodation. Today, it has seen a rapid increase in housing rates and is known as one of the trendiest districts in the city. It is the hub of fashionable boutiques, design studios and media houses and its streets are dotted with bars, restaurants and cafés. This borough is especially known for its happening nightlife. Popular tourist attractions in the area include East Side Gallery, Frankfurter Tor and the Molecule Man sculpture.
Ce symbole le plus emblématique de l’Allemagne n’est pas aussi grand que ce à quoi on peut s’attendre, mais son histoire et riche et fascinante. Construite en 1791, la porte de Brandebourg fut inspirée par l’entrée de l’Acropole à Athènes. À son sommet, la statue du Quadrige, conçue par le sculpteur Gottfried Schadow, représente Victoire, la déesse de la paix, chevauchant un char attelé de quatre chevaux. C’était l’une des 14 portes originales de la ville de Berlin, bien qu’il ne reste plus des autres portes que des noms de station de métro comme Kottbusser Tor et Schlesisches Tor. La porte de Brandebourg et la Pariser Platz jouèrent un rôle central dans de nombreux événements historiques turbulents. L’aile Sud abrite un centre d’information touristique.
Au fil des siècles, de nombreuses églises se sont élevées sur le site de l’actuelle Berliner Dom. La première fut érigée en 1465 pour la famille royale régnante, les Hohenzollern, et n’était à l’époque pas plus qu’une petite chapelle. En 1747, elle fut remplacée par une cathédrale baroque créée par Johann Boumann, avant d’être à nouveau transformée en 1822 par Karl Friedrich Schinkel. La cathédrale de Berlin telle que nous la connaissons aujourd’hui fut construite entre 1894 et 1905 pendant le règne du roi Guillaume II. Presque entièrement détruite pendant la Seconde guerre mondiale, la Berliner Dom demeura en ruines jusqu’au début de ses travaux de restauration en 1973. Ces éléments les plus caractéristiques incluent les mosaïques couvrant la coupole, la crypte, l’autel et les vitraux de l’autel. La cathédrale abrite également les tombes de plus de 80 membres de la famille Hohenzollern. Vous pourrez y admirer son orgue Sauer, l’un des plus grands d’Allemagne, et profiter des vues depuis la promenade sur le toit.
L’île aux Musées est située sur la moitié Nord d’une île historiquement importante de la rivière Spree, qui traverse Berlin. Elle tire son nom des cinq musée d’État de Berlin qu’elle abrite : l’Altes Museum, le Bode Museum, l’Alte Nationalgalerie, le Neues Museum et le Pergamon Museum. L’île aux Musées est devenue un site inscrit au patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO en 1999. Le premier musée de l’île fut érigé en 1797, et l’ensemble de la zone fut conçu spécifiquement pour l’art et les sciences par le roi Frédéric-Guillaume IV de Prusse en 1841. Série de monuments historiques spectaculaires, l’île aux Musée est un magnifique centre patrimonial.
Contrary to other big cities, Berlin does not have one big, city cemetery, but several smaller graveyards, scattered all over the city. The Französischer Friedhof is a particularly special place, as many of the graves originate from the 18th and 19th centuries. It is also the resting place of the great German writer Theodor Fontane (1819-1898), author of such classics as Effi Briest and Walks Through the Mark Brandenburg. His French-sounding name reflects his ancestry from the Huguenots, French protestants who were persecuted in their homeland and fled en masse to Berlin in the 16th century. And as this cemetery bares the name French Cemetery, you'll find plenty of similar names scattered everywhere. Fontane's grave lies opposite the resting place of the inventor of stenography. And if you look closely, you may well come across other famous names.
Raab Galerie opened a decade before the fall of the Berlin Wall, close to the border crossing at Heinrich-Heine Straße. The group of young artists who exhibited here in the gallery's formative years (the Moritzplatzbewegung) were inspired by the vicinity to the Wall. Others were influenced by the Holocaust or by the student movement of the 1960's. The gallery exhibits works by world-famous artists like Francis Bacon, Jim Dine, Michael Tracy, as well as complete "unknowns". Definitely worth a look.
Bucher Forst is a forest in the northernmost part of Berlin, ideal for long, relaxing walks. Forty per cent of the 435 hectare forest is coniferous, sixty percent deciduous. There are also two fish farms where carp are bred. The forest is dotted with tables and benches for picnics.
The huge orthodox synagogue on Fraenkelufer used to be the centre of orthodox Jewish life in Berlin. While liberal Jews frequented the New Synagogue on Oranienburger Straße, orthodox Jews celebrated the sabbath here from 1913-1938. That was until members of Hitler's SA stormed the building and burnt the torah scrolls. The complex was then confiscated by the Gestapo and used as a garage. Although completely destroyed during a wartime bombing raid, neither the bombs nor the Gestapo succeeded in putting an end to Jewish life on Fraenkelufer. Nowadays, there is a community centre and a smaller synagogue in an adjacent building. On the bank of the canal, one of the most beautiful spots in Berlin, a commemorative plaque recounts the synagogue's turbulent history.
Kreuzberg has two different faces. During the 1970s, innumerable run-down 19th century buildings around Hallesches Tor and Kottbusser Tor were pulled down to make way for modern tower blocks. The result—An anonymous concrete jungle. However, in the area around the Landwehrkanal—the canal which divides southern Berlin in two—residents successfully demonstrated against the demolition of their beloved old city quarter. It is here that you'll discover the other side of Kreuzberg. Careful renovation and subtle innovation have helped preserve one of Berlin's traditional working-class quarters. The best example is to be found on Fraenkelufer, a road which runs parallel to the canal. Alongside traditional houses painted in warm Mediterranean colours, futuristic modern constructions rise up from slim concrete pillars. Space has been left between the houses for flower-beds and trees. A round of applause for the architects please!
This small, tranquil and leafy cemetery is the resting place of a number of personalities who have had a great influence on the development of modern Germany. Those buried here include Helmut Gollwitzer, an important Lutheran theologian; Edwin Redslob, founder of the Free University of Berlin; and Wertheim, founder of the Wertheim department store chain. The most visited grave here, however, is that of the charismatic leader of the 1967/8 student revolt, Rudi Dutschke. Dutschke died in 1979, ten years after an assasination attempt which had left him crippled.