Berlin - Berlin on Foot: The Eastern City Centre

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Most cities only have one centre - Berlin has two. Although East and West Berlin have successfully interwoven to form a more-or-less homogeneous city, city planners are still trying to cope with the "problem" of two centres. The building of a new centre around Potsdamer Platz is being touted as the solution, but it will take years if not decades for Potsdamer Platz to win over Berliners and attain the vibrancy of the existing city centres. Most would agree that the best way to explore the inner city is on foot, although you will have to take public transport between the eastern and western centres.

For those in Berlin for the first time, a stroll down Unter den Linden, Berlin's most prestigious boulevard, is a must. Beginning at the Brandenburg Gate, once the border of East and West Berlin but now Germany's most potent symbol of reunification, this broad, tree-lined avenue contains many of Berlin's historic landmarks and provides the perfect introduction to the city's fascinating past.

Once known as "the Emperor's reception salon", glorious Pariser Platz was destroyed during the War (only the Brandenburg Gate was left standing) and then thoroughly neglected during the East German epoch. In contrast to many other parts of Berlin, Pariser Platz is now being reconstructed largely according to pre-war plans. The legendary Hotel Adlon, once one of the world's grandest hotels, was recently rebuilt and is a shining example of how a new building can recapture the splendour of its predecessor. The hotel is frequented by a stream of famous people, so if you pop in for a drink at the bar, you may find yourself sitting next to the likes of Madonna, Bruce Willis or Mikhail Gorbachev!

One of the first buildings you'll come to as you head down Unter den Linden from Pariser Platz is the imposing Russian Embassy, a monumental Stalin-era edifice built in the so-called Zuckerbäckerstil or "wedding cake style" popular in Soviet Russia. Just around the corner is the Komische Oper, one of Berlin's leading opera houses which specialises in light-hearted operatic productions.







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Potsdamer Square


The heart of new Berlin
 Potsdamer Straße
Berlin, Berlin 10785
+49 (0)30 25 0025 (Touristen Information)
http://www.potsdamer-platz.net/
Potsdamer Square
Komische Oper


Small and beautiful opera house
 Behrenstraße 55-57
Berlin, Berlin 10117
+49 (0)30 20 2600
http://www.komische-oper-berlin.de
Komische Oper
Hotel Adlon


A legend reborn
 Unter den Linden 77
Berlin, Berlin 10117
+49 (0)30 2261 x0
http://www.hotel-adlon.de
Hotel Adlon
Paris Square


Berlin's reception room
 Pariser Platz
Berlin, 25657 10117
+49 (0)30 25 0025 (Touristen information)
Paris Square
Under the Lime Trees


Boulevard of treasures
 Schlossplatz
Brandenburger Tor
Berlin, Berlin 10117
+49 (0)30 25 0025 (Touristen Information)
Under the Lime Trees
Branden Gate


The Brandenburg Gate: symbol of freedom
 Am Pariser Platz
Berlin, Berlin 10117
+49 (0)30 25 0025 (Touristen Information)
Branden Gate
Berlin - Top Attractions
Berlin - Top Events
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Berlin - Berlin on Foot: The Western City Centre
Berlin - Berlin on Foot: Walking the Wall
Berlin - Berlin by Bus: Sightseeing Tours
Berlin - Berlin by Bike
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