Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ic transportation hub, is home to the European corporate headquarters of several big-league
companies.
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Potsdamer Platz
The new Potsdamer Platz was a vision begun in 1991, when it was announced that Berlin
would resume its position as the capital of Germany. Sony, Daimler, and other major cor-
porations have turned the square once again into a center of Berlin. Like great Christian
churches built upon pagan holy grounds, Potsdamer Platz—with its corporate logos flying
high and shiny above what was the Wall—trumpets the triumph of capitalism.
While Potsdamer Platz tries to give Berlin a common center, the city has always
been—and remains—a collection of towns. Locals recognize 28 distinct neighborhoods that
may have grown together but still maintain their historic orientation. While Munich has
the single dominant Marienplatz, Berlin will always have Charlottenburg, Savignyplatz,
Kreuzberg, Prenzlauer Berg, and so on. In general, Berliners prefer these characteristic
neighborhoods to an official city center. They're unimpressed by the grandeur of Potsdamer
Platz, simply considering it a good place to go to the movies, with overpriced, touristy res-
taurants.
While most of the complex just feels big (the arcade is like any huge, modern, American
mall), theentrance tothecomplex andSonyCenter areworthavisit, andGerman-film buffs
will enjoy the Deutsche Kinemathek museum (described later).
For an overview of the new construction, and a scenic route to the Sony Center, start
at the Bahnhof Potsdamer Platz (east end of Potsdamer Strasse, S- and U-Bahn: Potsdamer
Platz,exitfollowing
LeipzigerPlatz
signstoseethebestviewofskyscrapersasyouemerge).
Find the green hexagonal
clock tower
with the traffic lights on top. This is a replica of the
first automatic traffic light in Europe, which once stood at the six-street intersection of Pots-
damer Platz. On either side of Potsdamer Strasse, you'll see enormous cubical entrances to
the underground Potsdamer Platz train station. Near these entrances, notice the slanted
glass
cylinders
sticking out of the ground. The mirrors on the tops of the tubes move with the sun
to collect light and send it underground (saving piles of euros in energy costs). A line in the
pavement indicates where the
Berlin Wall
once stood. On the right side of the street, notice
the re-erected slabs of the Wall. Imagine when the first piece was cut out (see photo and his-
tory on nearby panel). These hang like scalps at the gate of Fort Capitalism...look up at the
towering corporate headquarters: Market forces have won a clear victory. Now descend into
one of the train station entrances and follow signs to
Sony Center
. As you walk through the
passage, notice the wall panels with historical information.
You'll come up the escalator into the
Sony Center
under a grand canopy (designed to
evoke Mount Fuji). At night, multicolored floodlights play on the underside of this tent. Of-
fice workers and tourists eat here by the fountain, enjoying the parade of people. The mod-
