Erin Reese’s Top Ten Berlin

Bold Berlin, cultural and political center of Germany, is my Euro-home and base for the “Dreiecke” (triangle) of nations in which I find myself moving about on the planet.

As my heart desires and the weather requires, I bop back and forth between Europe, India, and the U.S. After having spent the better part of four years in subtropical climes, I have thin skin and have developed sheer Angst toward cold. I run from plummeting temperatures. Frankly, I flee. When the thermometer wavers around 15 degrees C, it’s “Get me back to India, I decree!”

But in the warmer summer months, now in Olde Europa, I can break out the short skirts and t-shirts. When the sun’s out, I smile, hop on the bike, and explore and enjoy Germany’s cosmopolitan capital. Eine Amerikanerin in Berlin.

For visitors to Germany who are keen on moving beyond the beer garden, polka und kitsch Romantic Road route, consider the following “Top Ten Berlin” highlights von your Travel and Soul Writer – mein Liebsten discoveries of die deutsche Haupstadt.

I’m quite certain you won’t find half of these in any guidebook.

1. The smell of the subway (U-Bahn)

Yes, smell. Though I am usually found above-ground, riding the bike around, there is a completely unique odor to the Berlin U-Bahn (Underground subway) system. The scent stirs up tremendous associations through the emotional memory of the olfactory, this unique mix of grime, grease, sweat, steel, and pulsing humanity. I’ve never experienced anything like it. The scent waves waft up through the street grates – odiferous gusts of Monroe dress-blowing wind.

Immediately upon receiving an inadvertent blast up the nose, I am plunged back into the first years after the Berlin Wall fell, in the early 1990’s. Freshly-reunited Berlin had an aura of Mad Max Meets Past – the real Wild East. The smell of the U-Bahn conjures up the open frontier of the newly-accessible former Communist East beyond the Wall, with twisted tango nights under the moonlight, illegal squats, and bizarre prostitutes. The U-Bahn was a cultural necessity, a part of ‘getting there.’

Loud beats and house music, Love Parade, a new bar in a former fruit and vegetable stand. All-night parties, discos opening at 6 a.m. to clubbers. Funky gallery openings and entire buildings turned inside out into art installations. All of these were accessed via a night ride on the U-Bahn.

2. Fernsehturm – Television Tower

This spacy, shiny, towering disco ball is a perfect geographical reference point in the city. When you spot the silvery, ominous orb, Berlin’s tallest structure and the fourth highest in Europe, you always know in which direction and how far you are from Alexanderplatz.

When I took German in school studied a bit of deutsche Kultur, my teacher referred to the Fernsehturm as “The Pope’s Revenge.” Why would it have such a funny name?

First, you must understand that the Communists prided the Fernsehturm and promoted its presence to East Berlin residents as a sort of highlight of modernity – as long as the imprisoned citizens had their eye on the glamorous TV Tower – sexy, shining, gleaming and symbolic of ‘the future’ – well, then, they wouldn’t feel like rebelling or wall-jumping, would they? They had TV and they had a symbol of the future – all they needed.

As you know, the Communists destroyed many aspects of church and spirituality, labeling religion as “weak.” The Fernsehturm became “The Pope’s Revenge,” because when the sun shines on the big disco ball at just the right angle, it creates a perfect illuminated cross. East Berliners, deprived of freedom and soul, could look up on sunny days and be reminded, deep in their hearts, that religion and Christ (for those who still believed) were still very much alive despite Communism’s attempt to bury them.

3. Tiergarten

The “Golden Gate Park” or “Central Park” of Berlin, the Tiergarten is a huge expanse of nature in the middle of the city (630 invaluable green acres) with running, walking, and biking trails, lakes and trees galore. Breathe deep – ah – and inhale via the lungs of the city center at this former game reserve.

4. Falafel

Found at any most any streetcorner in the small cafés known as “Döner Kebab.” Berlin is the largest Turkish city outside of Turkey. And the Turks know falafel, schwarma, and all that’s fit to stuff inside a pita. Cheap and best.

5. Strolling Down Huge Broad Boulevards and Vast Skies with Big Puffy White Clouds

Verboten (forbidden), I walk like an Indian milking cow directly in the streets of Berlin. Strolling down the middle of the grand boulevards is such a delight.

See, coming from India – we simply don’t understand sidewalks. There is so much more space in the middle of the street – why not walk there? The cars can easily swerve around to miss us. We get a much better view of the sky, the horizon. And, in the middle of the big road, there’s no one to compete with for room, right?

I also have to remind myself to stay stopped at the red light. Just today, in fact, a scowling Frau yelled at me, “Rot!!” when I scooted past the crossing when the light had just turned red, to which I replied, “Es ist keine Katastrophe.”

Ach, the rule-bearing nation. Everything functions perfectly. Which is nice. Except when when you’re waiting for the light to change with no car for kilometers in sight and it’s perfectly safe to take my life into my own hands and cross the damned street. Like an Indian. (Traffic light? What’s that?)

6. German Brot (Bread)

Fantastisch for the palate, Scheisse for my waistline. What to do? Enjoy. We don’t get bakers’ delights like this in India by any stretch of the imagination. When you’re completely burnt on chapatti and naan, it’s hard to resist. Kartoffelbrot, Sonnenblumenbrot, Bauerbrot. German bread is the best. Load it with Tomaten, Senf (mustard) and a chunk of Käse (cheese) and you’ve got a cheap eat picnic to drool for.

7. Birkenstocks

Oh… my… God… I have never known tootsies to be so happy. My first pair of Birkenstocks after all these years walking, walking, walking. It’s as if my feet have discovered arches for the first time. I’ve never felt so held in a pair of shoes. Not only that, but Birks are cheaper here in Germany where they are manufactured - almost half the U.S. price.

I highly recommend every man, woman, and child to try a pair. I know now why they are considered “hippie shoes.” Clearly, it is because there would absolutely be World Peace if every one wore them. We’d all be so comfortable, we’d never fight.

The first few weeks of my Birk-ownership, I actually couldn’t wait to go on a walk for any reason, just to feel the mini-orgasmic squeals of delight my feet would emit at every step. Who cares if you’re lookin’ Crunchy Granola Feet on the street when you're so darn happy?

8. Bicycle Bonanza

Berlin is all about the bike – when it’s not raining or snowing. Totally flat, with a bike-friendly awareness of car drivers – there’s no better way to get around the city, to a park, to a lake, to work. You can lug the bike on the subway or the S-bahn, no problem. Stay fit, save money, be happy.

Most every day I cycle symbolically back and forth between my central Mitte neighborhood located in the former East to the former West, crossing over the River Spree and over the rubble of the ruined Wall, and back again.

Berlin has been a terrific transition from the wild east of India, to the modern west. It’s a perfect, slow, symbolic reintegration, and a necessary one at that. I’ve found over the years that the ‘in your face’ and fast pace of Americana is a rough reentry. Berlin is a great buffer, and getting around on the bike is the way to love it.

9. Free Art!

Every Thursday night, from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m., Berlin’s best museums are FREE. This is a huge savings as the entry fee is usually about $15-20.00. I’ve soaked in the sights of western masters – quality art-food for my eyes, eyes that have only feasted on temples, gods and goddesses of Hinduism over the past years in India.

My favorite Berlin museum is the Neue Nationalgalerie (New National Gallery) of modern paintings and sculpture, with works from approximately 1900-1945. Breathtaking. I turned the corner to come upon the wood carving of Max Ernst’s sculpture, “Capricorn” (see image) and literally let out a loud, spontaneous guffaw of awe.

I love masterful modern art!

10. The Reichstag (Bundestag) and Cupola Dome – German Federal Parliament & National Capitol Building

Chock full of world-changing moments, this mammoth structure is more than the national capitol. It is an historic landmark.

On Tuesdays at 12 noon, there is a free English lecture and Q&A session in the actual chambers of Parliament – super! And, as a reward for attending poly-sci class and observing Ms. Merkel’s stomping grounds, you get to bypass standing in the usual 2-hr Schlange ("snake" - that’s German for ‘queue’) to visit the modern, transparent Cupola dome at the top of the Bundestag.

The controversial Cupola was designed by renowned British architect, Lord Norman Foster and was completed in 1999. Many felt the modern glass dome detracted from the historical tone of the Reichstag building; however, in the end, it was decided that Germany needed a new image for its main government building – that of embracing the future, seeing clearly, and – perhaps most importantly – a symbol of transparency, so that the public would always have access to the proceedings of decision-makers inside parliament.

No secrets – that is the intended message.

The Roof Terrace of the Reichstag boasts panoramic views of all of Berlin. Take a spin around and see all the monuments, landmarks and highlights of Germany’s capital. There’s even a free audio-guide tour for every visitor in every language. The ecological consciousness with which Lord Foster designed the cupola is touching.

My favorite aspect of the Bundestag cupola is the totally open dome – welcoming the rain, snow, fresh air, starlight and white puffy clouds. One feels they could fly to heaven out the top of the national dome – open, light and liberated. Perhaps that is how politics could be.

Chapeaux! to Lord Foster.

BONUS: Take a Little Trip with Me...

Now, turn up your sound, sit back, relax, and take a virtual trip via my mini-film, "Wanderlust am Bundestag,” and enjoy the Reichstag terrace, cupola, and Foster's architecture right here.

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