Berliner f

[Bryaxis Hecatee]

Hello everyone. End of the week I shall take the ICE high speed train to Berlin, a 7h long ride that will deliver me to the place of a full week of vacations... Yet I have taken my decision rather late and have no definitive plans outside of visiting the museums of the "museums island". Do you have any advises on things to do or to visit there ? Any practical advise en public transportations, taxi cheats, or good places to eat ?

Of course any romano- and antiquity-centric advises that are most looked after, but don't hesitate to suggest anything (decent ) else

[Viggen]

Berlin, really a hip town,

 

have you considered Berlin Below?

http://berliner-unterwelten.de/files/buev-flyer-engl-span_2011_web.pdf

 

and of course a visit to the

 

DDR Museum

http://www.ddr-museum.de/en/

 

if you havent discovered their tourism website, here it is

http://www.berlin.de/international/index.en.php

[GhostOfClayton]

Please let me know how you get on, Bryaxis. I realised I haven't worked in a German speaking country since Vienna in 2008, and my German is getting very rusty, so I put my name down for Berlin in December. It's likely to go to a guide who has done it before, but I'd be interested in your experiences in case I'm chosen.

[Maladict]

The prehistory museum in Charlottenburg is quite decent, and there's the palace and gardens to explore to make it a worthwhile trip in any case. Lots of WW2 related archaeology, obviously, but you need to do your homework as next to none of it is signposted.

Don't forget the interesting places outside the city, Sanssouci, the Wannsee mansion etc.

As for food and drinks, beer and schnitzel/bratwurst is everywhere, and what else do you really need?

[GhostOfClayton]

. . . and I like the ironic way you used 'Berliner' in the title of this thread!

Edited July 11, 2011 by GhostOfClayton

[Medusa]

You should check out the museums at the "Museumsinsel":

 

http://www.museumsinsel-berlin.de/index.php?lang=en&page=1_1

 

At the Neues Museum (New Museum) you will find the bust of Nofretete as well as the Roman/Provincial Roman section with the gladiator helmet and greave on display (which was my personal highlight at that museum, when I visited it last year, since I'd seen Nofretete many years before at the museum in Charlottenburg (West Berlin)).

 

The Pergamon Museum houses the Ishtar gate as well as some Roman and Greek parts of temples etc. so basically the "large" things.

 

When you need a snack after all that culture go for a Currywurst (curry sausage). Some good places you could find here:

 

http://www.currywurst-berlin.com/kultimbisse_berlins

 

I recommend Dom Curry (the first one on that list) because even I ate a Currywurst there, made out of fish (I don't eat meat but fish).

 

And here's the tube map to download:

 

http://www.s-bahn-berlin.de/pdf/VBB-Liniennetz.PDF

 

You could also take a doubledecker bus or in the Eastern part also the tram.

 

Have a nice trip.

Edited July 11, 2011 by Medusa

[Bryaxis Hecatee]

Thanks all for this first round of advises. I've already bought the french Routard's Guide (+/- Lonely planet) and Michelin Green Guide (more cultural than the Routard, but less than a Blue guide would have been) and I'm currently going through their pages. I've also made sure that my copies of the Metro phone apps and of my phone's Garmin GPS maps are up to date for navigating the city.

 

I'm mainly interested in ancient (=antiquity) and art nouveau/jugenstil art, but much less about DDR or underground places which, from what your sites show, has no special interest for me (especially as I've already visited WW2 command bunkers in the past). The Museuminsel is next to my hotel (or, rather, I chose an hotel on Booking.com that was next to the island) so those are definitively on my list.

 

What I've also added to my list up to now :

 

- Brohan Museum ( 1890 - 1940 art)

- Schloss Charlottenburg

- Reichstag

- Film museum (mainly for Leni Rifenstahl)

- Olympic stadium

- Gemaldgalerie (Ancient painting - M-A and Renaissance masters)

- Kunstgewerke museum (M-A to Jugenstil)

- Deutsche Historische Museum

- IIIrd Reich Air Ministry

- Deutsche Techniek Museum Berlin

- Spandau

- Museum Dalhem

- Potsdam : Sans-Soucis and other palaces

 

As for food, I must say that I don't drink beer, only wine, and that I dont like sauerkraut nor Curry Thus I shall see what I'll eat, lucky for me I got nothing against kartoffels !

[Medusa]

As for the Reichstag, you have to stand in line for a very long time, approx. 2 hours before you get admission. My boyfriend and I decided against it because we were only one weekend in Berlin (I have been there many times before, even when it was still East and West) because we didn't want to waste time waiting in line.

[Bryaxis Hecatee]

Thanks Medusa. I'll try to go there in the early evening, at the time most peoples go to supper...

[Bryaxis Hecatee]

I had a true Antiquity orgy today with the Alte Museum and the Pergamon museum, some 600 pictures are availlables (although not yet commented obviously...) on https://picasaweb.google.com/bryaxis

[Damien Tournay]

Nice pictures ^^ You are very lucky to visit Berlin. For me, it will be my next destination, after Lyon this year.