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Staying with us at the Circus last week was a guest by the name of Phillip Neumark. Before Phillip arrived in Europe, he first travelled 4000 kilometres across the United States by bike.
The journey took two months, and as you might be able to imagine, he saw a lot of the country along the way. If you would like to learn more about his tour, and see photographs from the trip, then visit his blog: This is America By Bike.
A great trip, and a great story.
(The third book in Paul’s series of Books about Berlin is called simply “Berlin” and is a history of Berlin in the 20th Century by the American Professor, David Clay Large)
Many people who visit us at The Circus are interested in the history of the city, and there are a number of good books out there in English that tell the fascinating, dark and often troubling story of Berlin. One of the best is also a whopper – Berlin by David Clay Large is 700-odd large pages and covers the history of the city from the unification of Germany in 1871 to the re-unification of 1990. In between the story of Berlin comes alive on the pages, from the political manoeuvrings of great powers to the social and cultural changes and their impact on ordinary people.
The book is especially strong on culture and descriptions of the cultural landscapes of the city, from the role of theatre in Nazi Germany to the underground arts movement of the GDR, or how art was collected and showcased by the Kaiser and how the architects were chosen to re-build Potsdamer Platz in the years following the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Personalities are also to the fore, and not just famous politicians, artists and writers, but also Joseph Schmidt and his pals from the local corner Kneipe. Also worth a special mention is the section on literature in the 1920s, which provides a great guide to the novels and books of that era which played such a great part in developing the myth and the identity of Berlin far beyond the city limits.
Written by someone who manages to present a mountain of research in an accessible and readable way, Berlin is a solid guide to the main events and movements that shaped the 20th Century not only in Berlin but beyond, with absorbing anecdotes about everyday life in the city to keep you entertained along the way.
If you are looking for a good bookshop in Berlin, with a fine selection of second hand as well as new books, and a large selection of translated German literature, check out St George’s Bookshop in Prenzlauer Berg. Otherwise, you can find Berlin by David Clay Large here on Amazon.co.uk.
At the end of the Second World War, which brought countless bombing raids to the city and the destruction that accompanied the Red Army’s final assault, it is estimated that there were 12 million cubic metres of rubble in Berlin. Some of this rubble was used to create the Teufelsberg (”Devil’s Mountain”) which is to the west of the city centre and is actually higher than any of the “natural” points in the city.
From the top of the hill you get a great view over Berlin, a fact that those clever Americans recognised early-on in their occupation of the city. They promptly built a listeing station up there, so they could tap the party line of Soviet and East German communications during the Cold War. Those unusual-but-funky golf ball shaped roofs were set up to protect the various antennas from the elements, and of course, prying eyes.
Once communications were intercepted from the top of the Devil’s Mountain, they were sent down the hill to secret underground bunkers at Tempelhof Airport for analysis. The evesdropping continued up until the fall of the Berlin Wall (and who knows what kind of things they heard) but with the end of Communism the equipment was moved out and the building abandoned.
Officially it is trespassing to go in and take a look, and not a little dangerous, as the structure is unsecured so there is always the chance that some Cold War relic might fall on your head. Official Disclaimer-type-thingy: if you get in trouble, you are on your own.
Much safer is to take a look at this video that Digel found for the blog a while back.
The Teufelsberg and the area around is great for a stroll, especially on a cool, crisp autumn day, so go west and check it out…with no-one to listen to anymore, life is certainly peaceful there…
Little Big Berlin from pilpop on Vimeo.
This is an absolutely incredible film, made by a filmmaker called Pilpop. Absolutely wonderful. Here’s the description of the film by the maker:
I dedicate this film to Berlin where I have been living for 19 years now. While the architecture of Berlin is stunningly beautiful, only its inhabitants make Berlin the unique city that it is. In every corner there is something new to discover. And the best thing to do is to film it.
Filmed with my beloved Sony HC9. Edited with Sony Vegas Pro 9.The miniature effect is called tilt-shift, which originates from a particular lens that was used to photograph architecture. The miniature effect is a by-product of that. It can also be achieved by digital postprocessing.
Music: “Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2” by Franz Liszt
The sound you can hear is me standing up by my desk at the Circus and applauding. Thanks to Konny for finding it, and if you want to see more, check out Pilpop’s Vimeo page.
All the Berliners reading this will already know about the Sunday afternoon karaoke sessions in Mauerpark, but for those of you heading to Berlin for the first time it is a nice tip if you are visiting us over the weekend. The Mauerpark (”Wall Park”) is a short walk north of the Circus and occupies the space next to a sports stadium where the Berlin Wall and its “death strip” once ran – hence the name.
Every Sunday hundreds, if not thousands, of people gather in the park for an afternoon of karaoke, led by a very friendly and entertaining host, and if the quality of the singing is not always up to scratch, the entertainment value certainly is. Enterprising souls bring cold beers to tell (there was even one guy yesterday preparing falafal on a calor gas camping stove), and considering the volunteers are getting up to sing in front of such large crowds, everybody is very cheerful, relaxed and supportive…as one girl was attempting (and not quite making) the high notes of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” the crowd joined in to help her get there…
Go and check it out…it’s a lot of fun.
The Mauerpark is here.
More information on the karaoke party from the hosts: Bearpit Karaoke
Up on Landsberger Allee is a little of Russia still life and kicking in the form of a Russian supermarket. Here you buy all the products that your average Russian misses from the homeland. Outside the supermarket is an on going BBQ selling the most delicious Schaschlik you will find this side of the River Don. For those of you not acquainted with Schashlik, it is pork on a stick with a vinegar dressing. And for those of you that think that out door grilling is only for the summer think again, it is all year and there is a little tent to keep the elements away.
There is no better way to spend an afternoon or cheaper for that matter than to buy some Russian beer and sit outside the supermarket stuffing your self with meat and watching the Russian Diaspora living there lives. The only draw back is you have to be some what creative when it come to going to the toilet… there is none… well not an official one… but bears also wee in the woods…
A few months back, Jim created a very special podcast bus tour that can be downloaded onto your iPod (other portable audio listening devices are available) and then taken with you on bus 100 or 200 as they make their way through the heart of Berlin. For the price of a public transport ticket, Jim provides his very own commentary on the sights of the city, and he also sings.
The technical mastermind behind this audio extravaganza is Konny, who has now uploaded the bus tour onto soundcloud, which means that you can use the little widget below to have a listen before you decide to download.
Jimbo’s Cheap Man’s Bus Tour by The Circus
If you want to download the full bus tour, you can do it here. And don’t forget to pop into the reception of the hostel or the hotel for your special bus tour map which will show you where you are going and some of the things to look out for.
Both the bus 100 and 200 leave from Alexanderplatz.
Oh, and by the way, the music between the stations is provided by Minimal artist Pheek. He is a friend of Andreas Digel, the Circus Electro music guru. The music is taken from the Album Consortium, which was released on the thinner netlabel. You can download the full album here.
Potsdamer Platz 1989…
Potsdamer Platz 2009…
As you might remember, the media last year was absolutely full of the twenty year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, and there were many articles, films, discussions…you name it, about the changes that have taken place in Germany over the past twenty years. The photos above come from a cool interactive graphic on the Spiegel website, which comes from that time, but I think it is still fascinating to take another look at how the face of Berlin has changed in those years since the wall came down and Germany was reunited.
The photographs are from the Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung/Geoinformation/Karten.
Thanks to Digel for finding it.
Spiegel International
