Image by Ciarán Fahey

Apparently the Irish drink more tea per capita than any other people in the world. As soon as I moved here I had to find where I would get my tea.

The Berliner Teesalon on Invalidenstraße proudly states that it has “tea specialities from all over the world”. And it does! This charming old-style Laden is home to over 250 types of tea including a whole shelf devoted to my own beloved Barry’s Tea! (I’m sipping it now as I type.)

It was only after I left Ireland that I realised there was more than one type of tea and the Berliner Teesalon seems to have all of them under one roof: black teas from India, white teas from China, green teas from Japan… Oolong, Pu Erh, Darjeeling, Sikkim, rooibos, Jasmine and flower teas – they’re all in tins and boxes which line the shelves in this veritable treasure trove of tea. Of course there are all sorts of tea implements available too, from teapots of all shapes and sizes to strainers and sieves to ensure the perfect cup.

To help tea aficionados with their choices, once every month or so customers are invited to try a selection of teas over a couple of hours for €12 (check website for dates). House-mixed teas in colourful tins prove very popular as gifts. “Es gibt nicht den Tee,” replied the woman when I asked which was the best. It just seems I’ll just have to try them all.

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Berliner Teesalon | Coffee & tea, Shopping | Barry’s Gold Blend (80 bags) € 7.25
Invalidenstraße 160 | Mitte | +493028040660
Mon – Fri 12:00 – 19:00, Sat 10:00 – 16:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Ciarán Fahey

As city squares go, they don’t come much uglier than Alexanderplatz. Surrounded by a rash of imposing GDR-style unimaginative blocks, with perhaps Berlin’s ugliest fountain plonked in the middle, this is not the place to come for a romantic stroll. Much like the “Friendship Between Peoples Fountain” in fact, Alex looks terrible but means well.

Its real beauty engages on a more personal level thanks to the excitement of people milling around, the tourists and punks, the trams trundling through, and the tempting (even for vegetarians!) smell of roast Bratwurst which emanates thanks to the sausage sellers scattered around. Effectively the centre of a decentralised city, Alexanderplatz changes to suit the seasons and the whims of the people at any given time.

In November 1989, the largest demonstration before the fall of the Berlin Wall took place here and was pivotal to the fall of the East German regime. Its biggest gatherings these days occur at the various fairs and markets which call it home throughout the year. Glühwein-swilling at Christmas, chocolate-swilling at Easter, and beer-swilling any other time, there’s always something for swillers to swill!

Overlooked by the Fernsehturn, Alexanderplatz is also home to the funky World Time Clock, erected in 1969 and a popular meeting place for Berliners since. I presume this is so they know exactly how many minutes late you are. Germans don’t like to be left waiting as I’ve found out on numerous occasions, but thankfully for latecomers, Alex has plenty of distractions.

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Alexanderplatz | Art & culture, Relaxing, Shopping | Free
Alexanderplatz | Mitte
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Ciarán Fahey

A short tram ride east will bring you all the way to Asia. Well, not quite – Berlin’s public transport isn’t that good – but the M8 will bring you as far as the Dong Xuan Center where a thriving Vietnamese community is blossoming on what used to be decrepit industrial wasteland.

‘Little Vietnam’ consists of an untidy collection of huge hangers stuffed to the brim with shops upon shops selling all manner of stuff you never knew you needed. Tacky and flashy are the order of the day – this is the place to come for neon shop signs, plastic flowers, cheap wedding dresses, rubber reindeer or plastic figurines. Those friendly one-armed waving cats can of course be found here, as can porcelain pigs engaging in activities no decent porcelain pig would normally be found in.

Weird wares are scattered all around, sandwiched between karaoke bars, shoe shops, barbers, hair salons and nail salons. It’s another world. Old men play cards at a furious pace around tables under clouds of smoke, money changing hands quicker than the eye can see. Live carp patiently await purchase in huge tanks at the back of supermarkets crammed with tins of things I’d never heard of and crazy fruit I’d never seen before.

Browsing through the hustle and bustle is hungry work and a number of restaurants of questionable hygiene offer authentic Vietnamese cuisine. Again, you might have no idea what you’re eating but hey, it’s cheap, cheerful, and certainly an adventure!

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Dong Xuan Center | Bars, Coffee & tea, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants (Vietnamese)
Herzbergstr. 128 | Outer – North&East | +493055152038
Mon – Sat 09:00 – 18:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Robby Block

Late summer and early autumn is mushroom picking time in Berlin, and if you don’t trust yourself to go tramping through the forest, the market is full of local favorites. Local diners look forward to Pfifferlingzeit or chanterelle season and now the local restaurants are full of specials featuring this seasonal delicacy.

One of the things you learn to appreciate here is finding things in season. So you may find Berliners turning their noses up at strawberries in February, but wait till you try a local one in the summer. It’s worth waiting for.

There are loads of fresh markets in the city, and it seems there are new ones springing up all the time, but every Thursday and Saturdays the streets around Kollwitzplatz in Prenzlauer Berg are given over to a large fresh market. You can find everything from fresh, locally grown, organic fruit and veg to homemade pasta, cheeses straight from the dairy, herbs and spices, fresh fish and even organic meats.

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Kollwitz Platz Market | Shopping
Knaackstr. 47 | Prenzlauer Berg
Thu 12:00 – 19:00, Sat 09:00 – 16:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Robby Block

The brand Zeha has actually been around for a while in Germany. Shoes were first produced under this name in the nineteenth century, and by the 1920s the most fashionable bohemians and artists in the Weimar Republic were strutting their Zehas.

In the 1950s, Zeha, now within East Germany, produced trainers for the GDR Olympic team, and by the 1960s even the Soviets were bringing home the gold in their Zehas with the two offset stripes. After the wall fell, the brand died and was forgotten about until two Berlin based designers remembered the Zeha trainers of their childhood and decided to resurrect the brand in 2002.

The shoes are available in a variety of colors and styles. The line of trainers bears their distinctive offset stripes in a funky, modern design. Their classic oxfords, with soft leather and a clean design, reflect their 1920s heritage.

Good design, quality Italian leather and that “made in Germany” logo come at a price and these shoes could leave your wallet a little lighter. But good news: in April 2011 they opened a Zeha outlet where you can buy last year’s collection and older stock at considerably discounted prices.

See their website for other locations.

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Zeha Berlin | Shopping | Shoes from € 49
Prenzlauer Allee 213 | Prenzlauer Berg | +493044034607
Mon – Fri 12:00 – 20:00, Sat 10:00 – 18:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Robby Block

In an unassuming basement shop on Torstrasse you’ll find a small family run workshop that’s been turning out handmade comfy house shoes for generations.

In Germany – as in most civilized countries – it is customary to take your street shoes off when entering a home. And those bare, altbau parquet floors might be beautiful, but they won’t keep your feet warm. So, while it might feel like a geriatric thing to do, this winter get yourself a warm pair of felt slippers and you’ll be two steps away from that integration disaster you were in danger of becoming. Just wait, stay here long enough and you might even start bringing them with you when you visit a friend’s home. Then you really are German.

They come in a variety of colors and styles, though the orange plaid, backless version is the classic. And the price – around 10 euro – for handmade workmanship is unbeatable! Pick up a couple of pairs for the folks back home, they don’t need to know how cheap you are. Well, they probably already do…

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Jünemann’s Pantoffeleck | Shopping | Slippers from € 10.20
Torstrasse 39 | Mitte | +49304425337
Mon – Fri 09:00 – 18:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Sharon Mertins

When my friends visit Berlin, a lot of the time when it comes to shopping, one of the first things they want to know is where they can find cheap good vintage clothing. I never have a good answer for that. There are a few second hand shops that I frequent but it is always a hit and miss sort of thing. But in the spirit of recycling, there are better options which I am happy to suggest.

Around my neighborhood there is a shop that specializes in re-designing old jumpers, trousers, and any old piece of clothing that provides enough material for a new item. They don’t like sizes there so most of their clothing will fit everyone in their own unique way. They have elegant dresses that have the mid section of an old shirt as the top and the top bit of a raincoat as the skirt, and mini summer dresses made out of cotton collared shirts with the sleaves acting as a trendy belt. They also have hoodies, skirts and trousers.

My words won’t do the design any justice so I recommend paying it a visit and checking it out yourself. The prices range from about 80 to 150 euro. But considering that anything you buy there is one of a kind and very nicely finished, I find it reasonable. So if you’re looking for something unique, trust me, this is the place.

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Ting Ding Atelier | Art & culture, Shopping | Dresses € 80
Bürkner str. 11 | Neukölln | +491724217936
Mon – Sat 12:00 – 19:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Sharon Mertins

Ah Berlin! ‘Arm aber sexy’ (poor but sexy)! And sexy it is, in many different ways. Flea market culture has allowed many here to experiment and improvise ornaments and furniture. Berlin prides itself in its originality when it comes to home decoration and the price reduction you can achieve with a little bit of cleverness.

Of course not all of us are gifted with such dextrous hands to make our own kitchen cabinets out of wine boxes or hanging flower vases out of recycled bottles. But there are a lot of people here who are. And some of them have opened up lovely shops with ‘home made’ products with what they call a ‘Shabby Chic Style.’ One of my favorite of these places is Jean et Lili.

Here, you can find painted door knobs, soap holders, bottle lamps, vintage aluminium storage units, wooden kitchen mini cabinets, and all sorts of little bits from here and there, all really uniquely finished and really original. Most of their furniture items are hand made right here in this city, with love, and can be pre-ordered. Their prices are very friendly and even just a little peak in the colorful little shop is quite a treat.

The shop I frequent is the one in Kreuzberg, but they also have another one in Prenzlauerberg on Winnstr.9 (see website for details).

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Jean et Lili | Shopping
Dieffenbachstr. 38 | Kreuzberg | +493069001742
Mon – Fri 11:00 – 19:00, Sat 11:00 – 18:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Sharon Mertins

On one of my many walks through Neukölln, as I was looking for a place to eat, I stumbled into ManduTrap. It was initially the ribbon belt on the window that struck my fancy. When I wandered into the little Flagship store, the designer, Min-Wha Chung welcomed me with a big smile while she worked on new pieces of clothing on the sewing machine. And as I looked around, I realized that it was the combination of colors and fun/elegant design that attracted me.

There is no lack of independent clothing shops around Berlin, and of course they all suit many different tastes. But for me, it can be sometimes hard to find items that I can be….playful with. This is what I liked about ManduTrap. It’s a mix between summer comfort and urban elegance, or as it says on the website, ‘inspired by life on sea and Metropoiitan Berlin and Seoul.’ Most of the items lend themselves to many different combinations with the use of bright colors, colorful flower stamped textiles, and stripes.

She also sells lovely accessories like scarves, diadems with big colorful bows, earrings, and these wonderful colorful belts that you tie around with thick ribbon. It’s all lovingly handmade right there in the Pflügerstrasse store, and of course all the items are either part of a very small batch, or one of a kind.

Prices vary but range from about 10,00 Euros for smaller accessories to about 65,00 Euros for dresses.

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ManduTrap | Shopping | Dress € 65.00
Pflügerstr. 5 | Neukölln
Tue – Fri 12:00 – 19:00, Sat 13:00 – 19:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin

Image by Sharon Mertins

Resting quietly amongst the other colorful shops on Niederbarminstrasse in Friedrichshain, is ‘Schoene Schreibwaren’. It’s a quiet little ‘laden’ with a very tasteful selection of utensils for writers, sketchers, graphic designers, print art lovers , or anyone who likes to store photographs or doodle in style.

I stumbled upon this shop when I found myself drawn to the postcards on display outside. Everything they sell here comes from small or independent manufacturers and artists, mostly local. They sell lithographies, digital printwork, photo albums, journals, a variety of very nicely finished leather cases and wallets, and many different styles of elegant lead and color pencils.

The selection is not exactly huge but the minimalism is exactly what I like about this place. I get the sense everything is very carefully selected and I haven’t seen many of these items anywhere else. It’s not the typical art or office shop. The shop attendant was extremely friendly and happily told me about all the different artworks and artists, and went through the mechanical design of all the different pencils they sell. Sounds quite meticulous I know. But isn’t this really the way we should be shopping?

You can also find their products in certain markets like the Turkish market in Kreuzberg and Hackescher markt.

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Schoene Schreibwaren | Shopping
Niederbarminstr.6 | Friedrichshain
12:00 – 19:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Berlin