Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
exterior almost mockingly follows the exacting building codes - it's only just fifty
percent stone, its windows only slightly taller than wide - inside, beyond the huge
blocks of Portuguese marble in the entrance, thousands of individually formed metal
panels give the conference rooms at its heart an aquatic, undulating curvaceousness.
he structure is also unusual in that it moves from a height of five storeys at the front
to ten at the rear. hough owned by a bank, the building is mostly used as o
ces and
event space; one of the thirty luxurious private apartments at the back is owned by
Gerhard Schröder, the former German Chancellor (1998-2005).
1
Akadamie der Künste
Pariser Platz 4 • Daily 10am-10pm • Prices depend on exhibition; usually around €5 •
W
adk.de • U- & S-Brandenburger Tor
Shoulder-to-shoulder with the DZ Bank and every bit as eye-catching is the glassy
Akadamie der Künste
(Academy of Art). he building somehow slithered around local
building codes by ostensibly copying the design of the prewar building that was here -
though reconstructing it in glass and steel. Naturally a storm raged over how the
building had been approved, but sensibly the courts upheld permission for it to stay.
Inside you can see the last original structure from prewar Pariser Platz, tucked away at
the back of building, and wander across sweeping concrete expanses for first-floor views
of the platz. he building holds six temporary contemporary art exhibitions per year;
the rest of the building includes o
ces, a café and a private club.
Hotel Adlon
On the southeast corner of the platz, the legendary
Hotel Adlon
(see p.177), once one
of Europe's grandest hotels, has been rebuilt. he original was host to luminaries from
Charlie Chaplin to Lawrence of Arabia and Kaiser Wilhelm II, and was regarded
throughout the continent as the acme of luxury and style. he building was destroyed
in the closing days of the war, and this new version, modelled loosely on its predecessor -
the lobby fountain, for example, was salvaged from the original - attempts to scale the
same heights of opulence. Even if you can't afford a drink here, let alone a room, have a
look at the lobby and imagine the late eighteenth century when Berlin was the cultural
capital of Europe. Culture of a very different sort graced the building in 2002, when
Michael Jackson, who was staying in the bulletproof presidential suite, dangled his
youngest child over the balcony in front of the world's press.
The Reichstag
Daily 8am-midnight; last admission 10pm • Free; entry requires advance booking (at least a day in advance in summer) for a particular
time slot, which can be done online or at a booth on the opposite side of Scheidemannstrasse - the road that separates the Reichstag
from the Tiergarten •
T
030 22 73 21 52,
W
bundestag.de • U-Bundestag
Directly behind the Brandenburg Gate a line of cobbles marks the course of the Berlin
Wall where for 28 years it separated the Gate from the other great emblem of national
unity, the
Reichstag
- now once again the seat of Germany's parliament. he imposing
nineteenth-century Neoclassical Reichstag immediately impresses, its stolid, bombastic
form wholly in keeping with its pivotal role in history.
However, designed by British architect Sir Norman Foster in 1999, the
Reichstag's giant glass
dome
, supported by a soaring mirrored column, has become
the building's main visitor attraction. A circular ramp spirals up the inside to a
viewing deck
with stunning 360-degree views of the city. In the foreground the
Regierungsviertel buildings (see p.104) and the massive Tiergarten park dominate,
but the Sony Center (see p.92), the Fernsehturm (see p.62) and the shimmering
golden roof of the Synagogue on Orianienburgerstrasse (see p.77) are other obvious
landmarks. If you haven't booked in advance, reserve a table at the
Käfer Dachgarten
restaurant (see p.188), which has fairly good views itself, but, crucially, also gives
you access to the dome.
