Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
5
Highlights of the Kulturforum include the Gemäldegalerie , with its internationally
renowned collection of European art; the twentieth-century art of the Neue
Nationalgalerie ; and the applied arts of the Kunstgewerbemuseum .
Adjacent to the Kulturforum is a diplomatic district , where the Bendlerblock , site
of several July Bomb Plot executions (see p.100), houses the interesting Gedenkstätte
Deutscher Widerstand , a museum of German resistance against the Nazis. Further west,
one architecturally impressive embassy flanks another as far as the Bauhaus Archive , a
homage to that influential art and design movement. his is as good a place as any to
begin an exploration of the Tiergarten park itself. Walk or cycle west to a couple of beer
gardens or take a bus a couple of quick stops north to the park's proud centrepiece: the
Siegessäule , a huge column that celebrates Prussian military victories and delivers fine
views over the park and the city. he northeastern corner of the Tiergarten is occupied
by the Reichstag (see p.37) and a host of other institutions that form Berlin's modern-
day Regierungsviertel, or government quarter, where various cutting-edge buildings
cling to a bend in the River Spree known as the Spreebogen . Surveying all this is the
monumental glass-and-steel Hauptbahnhof Lehrter Bahnhof , Berlin's new main train
station. It occupies a rather desolate, underdeveloped patch of town, though it's near
the Hamburger Bahnhof , a top-notch contemporary art museum.
GETTING AROUND
By train The Hauptbahnhof and Potsdamer Platz, with its
U- and S-Bahn station, are the main transport hubs for the
Tiergarten district.
By bus The extremely frequent #100 and #200 buses
between Bahnhof Zoo and Alexanderplatz are the best
options for getting around the area. The #200 stops at the
Kulturforum, while #100 stops at all the major points in
the Tiergarten.
By bike The most flexible way to explore the Tiergarten,
particularly the park itself, is by bike (see p.24), with
CallBikes (see p.24) in invariably good supply at Potsdamer
Platz.
Potsdamer Platz
Pulverized during the war, then forced into hibernation by the Berlin Wall, it is only
thanks to two decades of frantic building that the busy junction of Potsdamer Platz has
re-emerged as a temple of commercialism. he platz is worth visiting for its modern
architecture alone, and for the excellent Filmmuseum , which will appeal to anyone
with even a passing interest in German cinema.
The Sony Center
Potsdamer Platz • W sonycenter.de
Designed by Helmut Jahn, the Sony Center occupies several glass-sheathed buildings
grouped around a capacious, circular courtyard. Its rotunda, topped by a conical glass
roof, is easily the most impressive showpiece in the area, open to the elements but at
the same time providing a remove from the surrounding urban racket. Berliners have
adopted the courtyard as a place to congregate for major sporting events - particularly
football matches - when big screens are rolled out and the atmosphere rivals that of
many stadiums. If you want to join them, arrive early for a seat at one of the many
cafés, bars and restaurants.
Deutsche Kinemathek - Museum für Film und Fernsehen
Potsdamer Str. 2 • Tues, Wed & Fri-Sun 10am-6pm, Thurs 10am-8pm • €7 • W filmmuseum-berlin.de • U- & S-Potsdamer Platz
he Deutsche Kinemathek - Museum für Film und Fernsehen provides an excellent
introduction to the history of German cinema and television, with a free audio
guide that is especially useful to those with limited German. Using a bevy of clips,
reconstructions and artefacts, it plots the course of German cinema via various
technical innovations, stars and major releases, starting with clips from Berlin's first
public screening in 1895 (see p.275) - the first in the world - and highlighting early
 
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