The best balcony in Berlin

Malcolm Frost
Aug 20, 2016
6 min read

A few days ago we were staying at an Airbnb homestay with what we think is the best balcony in Berlin.

For those of you unfamiliar with Airbnb it's a brilliant way for travellers to meet with locals, sometimes stay in their homes and get the inside information on the area. It's cheaper than a hotel or motel and more private and cleaner than a backpackers. Have a look at their website at www.airbnb.com for details.

Our host Oliver was taking off to his parents house for a few days so we had the use of his large room (double bed, L shaped sofa, big screen TV and desk and chair)....plus a lovely balcony with wrought iron railings overlooking the street below. It's a residential come retail area, all apartments with shops, cafes and bars below. The balcony has a table and 2 chairs plus a 2 seater sofa, coffee table and a bbq....what more could you want?

We also had full use of the bathroom and kitchen areas - shared with his 2 flat mates.

Oliver met us on our arrival and showed us where everything was and how it worked and provided us with maps and leaflets on things to see and do in Berlin, gave us a set of keys and was on his way.

To say that this was a flat shared by 3 male students it was immaculately clean and tidy. A real credit to the guys.

The U Bahn (train) was at the end of the street and the tram stop a block and a half away. All very convenient for our transport needs.

You can get a one way ticket for the transport network (trains, trams and buses) for 2.70 Euros and this will be valid for 120 minutes of transport. You can also get a day pass for 7 Euros which lasts for 24 hours of travel anywhere in Berlin. So if you are intending on using public transport to get around the various sights and museums, a day pass is the way to go. The tickets can be bought at the train station or on the tram its self from a coin only machine. Once the machine spits the ticket out, you then have to go to a another machine on board the tram....a yellow box which you slide your ticket into to get it stamped - or validated. Until this has been done, it's not a legal ticket and should a ticket inspector get on......which is a rarity from our experience....and you have not validated you ticket, you could get fined.

Oliver's place was a great base for us as we tended to eat out during the day and prepare our evening meals at the apartment. With a mini market next door and an organic supermarket just 2 minutes away Lizzie was very happy. The quality of food at the organic store (Bio Market) was very good and not at all over priced. They also have a bread and pastry counter with delicious cakes, tarts and pastries. And the staff were friendly and courteous.

(photo above shows the Reichstag Parliament building with the newly added glass domed roof - signifying transparency of government)

There's lots to see and do in Berlin. The usual must sees are the Reichstag (German Parliament), the Brandenburg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie and the enormous Tiergarten (park). The Tiergarten is criss-crossed by roads which cut it into manageable sections. If you use the top of the park where parliament is as your start point, way down in the bottom left hand corner you'll find the "Englisher Garten" or English garden. Here you'll find a formal garden area with bench seats and right next to it is a cafe/restaurant/Beer Hall. After walking the full length and width of the park a cold stein of beer was very welcoming and refreshing.

(Photo above shows the English Garden with beer hall behind - Tiergarten, Berlin)

At the top right of the park....or just outside the park is the Holocaust Memorial. This is a series of stone plinths or slabs laid out in a grid formation. There are usually one or two monitors there to stop the tourists from climbing all over the plinths. Come on .... have a bit of respect folks!

(Photo above - Holocaust Memorial, Berlin)

Add to this the various museums at Museum Island plus galleries, shopping complexes, interesting old and modern architecture and lots of public art on display - there's a lot to see in Berlin.

We did the Reichstag, Brandenburg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie and the Topography of Terror ( a monument to the Berlin Wall - detailing the history of the wall). Just around the corner from here is one of only 3 remaining look out towers that used to line the Berlin Wall. All are free to see and can be done in a half day. The Lookout tower can be climbed for a guards view, at a cost of 3 Euros. The man collecting the money also sells a range of WW2 postcards.

(Photo above - The Topography of Terror - Berlin Wall Story told in words and pictures - Free exhibit in Berlin)

(Photo above - East Side Gallery - Street art on the Berlin Wall)

Another day we took a ride on the tram to the East Side Art Gallery. This is a section of the Berlin Wall which is still standing but has been claimed by various "street artists" and decorated with graffiti. Some of it is just mindless scribble, but there are enough genuine art pieces here to make it a worth while visit. Again it's out in the street, so free to view.

We also took time out to visit the Jewish Cemetery and had a look at the nearby Synagogue. The Old Jewish Cemetery on Grosse Hamburger Strasse is the oldest cemetery for Berlin's Jewish community after the Judenkiewer in Spandau. In the area around the current entrance, a plaque marks the site of an old people's home from 1844. The cemetery contains the grave of Moses Mendelssohn (1729-1786), a philosopher and the forefather of Jewish Enlightenment. The cemetery was built in 1672 and destroyed during the Second World War. The site was used as a holding place for Jews before their deportation to concentration camps. The reopening of the cemetery was celebrated at the end of 2008. It is estimated that a total of around 12,000 Jewish citizens lie buried here.

It was a humbling experience to visit there. Out of respect for the dead, any males visiting the site must cover their heads. There is usually a cap left hanging from the notice board inside the gates for anyone to use. Unfortunately, the few tourists we saw there did not bother with this and wandered round with bare heads, their selfie sticks in hand, showing little respect for the dead.

(Photo above - Synagogue - Berlin)

We found a nice cafe just up the street from the cemetery for a cake and coffee and enjoyed it so much that we came back later for a beer.

Incidentally, just at the back of the cafe is a row of apartments dating back from before the war. There is a gap, one apartment wide, in this row - with unfinished stone work protruding from the homes at either side. This gap is known as the "Missing House" - it was bombed during the war and was left as a monument to the civilian casualties of Berlin. The names of the deceased are on plaques on the side of the remaining buildings.

Whist we were enjoying our coffee and cake a tour party arrived to take the obligatory photo of the missing house on their way to the cemetery. Other than that one tour party, it was a nice quiet area to visit, to sit and reflect and to enjoy the architecture and the atmosphere of this old part of Berlin.

(photo above - Cafe "you're welcome" in the Jewish quarter of Berlin - nice coffee and cold beer - opposite the old cemetery. The "missing house" is just behind these buildings.)

On Sunday mornings in Mauer Park is a huge market selling new and used items of every description, plus food stalls. We couldn't resist and ended up buying a hat and a scarf. Interestingly, the park is in an area that used to be the "death strip" marking a no go area between east and west Berlin. It's hard to imagine now, seeing all these stalls and people moving freely around all parts of the city, that the wall only came down in 1989 and trying to cross this strip of land would mean almost certain death.