Berlin, Germany
Berlin is Germany’s largest city and is full of sights to see and things to do. When Berlin opened the Berlin Hauptbahnof, Europe’s largest central station, people have been traveling more and more to the big city. The central station is symbolic to the people because it offically connects east and west Berlin. Something that has not been done since World War II.
If your mental image of the German capital derives from war films or spy stories, prepare to be pleasantly surprised by one of the greenest cities in Europe. And if you’re looking to release the inner hedonist, you’ll find nightlife that carries on through until morning and a gay scene that’s unusually shameless. While the city has always been a bolthole for the unconventional, today it’s also a major cultural centre, combining top-flight museums, galleries and concert halls with thriving alternative arts and music scenes.
Most unmissable sights are in and around central Mitte. The east-west axis of Unter den Linden is a good place to start. Frequent buses run the length of the tree-flanked boulevard, linking it with Bahnhof Zoo in the west. The western end is marked by the iconic Brandenburg Gate, once closed off between East and West Berlin, which leads on to the huge Tiergarten park.
North- west of the Gate is the government quarter and the revamped Reichstag, crowned by Norman Foster’s magnificent glass cupola. Trips to the top are free, and the view is magnificent, but expect to queue. To the south side of the Brandenburg Gate is the recently completed Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. The controversial design by Peter Eisenmann has 2,700 columns of varying heights in an undulating space the size of a city block.
The Berlin night offers everything from grungy dives to ultra-chic discos. The Sage-Club is a complex beneath Heinrich-Heine-Strasse U-Bahn station, with an assortment of club nights. Kaffee Burger hosts a varied programme of live music and other events. Berghain, is Berlin’s new techno temple.