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

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

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

Berlin offers flea markets for every taste. One of my favorites is the quite young flea market at the RAW-Tempel, which used to be a garage area for trains until 1994. Since last year everyone is welcome here to sell and buy stuff.

The Raw flea market is the best alternative to the big and crowded markets at Boxhagener Platz and Mauerpark. Here mostly private sellers try to get rid of clothes, books, games, jewellery, art and decoration. Not only used things but also handmade clothes and jewellery is waiting for a new owner. And there is something for every style: girly, punky, chic, grungy, with flowers or without…

Thanks to the warm and intimate atmosphere this flea market is the place to be for me on Sundays – even in winter. The sellers are open for a chat and always willing to bargain. So I definitely make one or more snips! Don’t forget to bring small change.

After heavy shopping and bargaining there are live music, coffee and Waffles waiting for you.

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RAW flea market | Music, Shopping, Snacks | Free
Revaler Straße 99 | Friedrichshain
Sun 09:00 – 17:00

Fashion for Nerds, fashion for brave hearts and fashion for fashion victims – there is no limit for craziness, colorfulness and extravagance.

The shop in the stylish heart of Mitte answers the question where all the clothes from the last 3 decades went. Made in Berlin is one of three secondhand shops (Colours: Bergmannstr. 102; Garage (see the Garage article): Ahornstr. 2) which offers selected and definitely trend-setting clothes for girls and boys. On two floors you will find fancy accessories like hats and shoes, strange dresses, cute shirts and blouses and many more things letting hearts of fashion addicted bloom.

As a special for bargain hunters: Every Tuesday from 12:00 – 15:00 you get 20 % discount on everything.

By the way don’t be put off by the shop’s fusty smell. I don’t know why secondhand always has the same unpleasant smell. But be sure in this fashion paradise the visual will detract your nose!

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Made in Berlin | Shopping | Shirts from € 5.00
Neue Schönhauser Straße 19 | Mitte | +493021230601
Mon – Sat 12:00 – 20:00

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, get yourself a  pair of felt house shoes 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 have become German.

They come in a variety of colors and styles, though the orange plaid, backless version is the classic. And the price – around € 10 – 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

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

Located next to the New Jewish Synagogue, the trio of backyards (see the Backyard article) “Heckmannhoefe” are really worth discovering.

Entering from Oranienburger Strasse, the first backyard contains a little bookshop and a candy-making shop in the basement, the “Bonbonmacherei” where you can watch Katja and Hjalmar produce traditional sweets with antique equipments.

In the second backyard, the main one of the three, you’ll see why this is certainly one of the nicest backyards complexes in Scheunenviertel. It houses a little theater, boutiques, cafes, restaurants and even a hairdresser’s shop. The surrounding ivy clad buildings invite you to take a seat on a bench next to a lovely little fountain.

In the third backyard which you can also enter from Auguststrasse there isn’t that much special stuff going on – except for the impression you’ll get when you see how residents have improved their homes with a nice little gazebo structure in their own backyard – that is the real Berliner backyard culture (see the Backyard article)!

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Heckmannhoefe | Art & culture, Relaxing, Shopping, Theaters
Oranienburger Strasse 32 | Mitte
Daily

“For me Berliner backyards are like surprises. You never know what’s waiting for you behind the gate.”

On one hand the way apartment buildings were built during the so called “Gründerzeit” (time around 1870-1914) produced the typical apartment blocks in Berlin, now known as “Altbauten” (old buildings) or “Mietskasernen” (tenements). On the other hand it gave Berlin those backyards everywhere.

In a particular area called “Scheunenviertel” (Barn Quarter) you can find a couple of very interesting “Hinterhöfe” where life seems to be hidden. Enjoy theatres, cinemas, galleries, museums, shops, cafes, bars, restaurants and other surprises there!

Except for “Hackesche Höfe“, now a tourist magnet and the most prominent complex of backyards, tourists and even Berliners don’t visit them. That is very unfortunate. And you will understand that if you go out to discover the following backyards: – Backyard of Haus Schwarzenberg (see the Haus Schwarzenberg article)- Heckmannhöfe (see the Heckmanhoefe article)- Hackesche Höfe: a complex of 8 backyards Rosenthaler Straße 40/41 & Sophienstraße 6- Kunsthof, contains very nice hospitality and quality galleries Oranienburger Strasse 27- Sophie-Gips-Höfe, contains the Hoffmann Collection (see the Hoffmann collection article) Sophienstraße 21- Rosenhöfe, Rosenthaler Strasse 36- Panasia/Gallerie Cicero, Rosenthaler Strasse 38

Also, I’d like to encourage you to keep your eyes open for many other backyards in this area and not to be shy to enter them. With a bit of luck you can find real jewels of cultural & night life in them!

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Berliner backyards | Art & culture, Bars, Cinemas, Coffee & tea, Shopping, Theaters, Restaurants
Different locations | Mitte
Various opening times

Simon-Dach-Strasse became very famous some 15 years back. It is not at all a secret, hidden road but still more than worth to choose for going out.

Restaurants, cafes, bars, snack bars (such as the “Pizza Dach” (see the Pizza Dach article), ice cream parlors, shops and bakeries – the whole road is lined with them. There is always a bar that offers Happy Hour for cocktails (then €4.00 – €4.50). Beers cost between €2.80 – €3.20 in most places.

Find all styles of bars: rock, retro, old school or modern ones. One bar, the “DK – Dachkammer” even has a very atmospheric lounge on the floor upstairs.On Saturdays and Sundays people gather for “Brunch” when all cafes and restaurants offer quality buffet (all you can eat) for between € 5.00 and € 10.00.

When walking through Simon-Dach-Strasse pay attention to the recently renovated old buildings that are now probably more beautiful than they were in the times when they were built – an extraordinary example is on corner Simon-Dach-Str./Krossener Str. – check it out!

Important to know: Many more restaurants, cafes and bars are located at close by roads “Gabriel-Max-Strasse”, “Grünberger Strasse”, “Wühlischstrasse”, “Boxhagener Strasse” and “Gärtnerstrasse”. Although the most important road of all, “Simon-Dach-Strasse” can be used as a synonym for the whole area (in German called “Kiez”), including famous Boxhagener Platz (see the Boxhagener Platz article).

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Simon-Dach-Strasse | Bars, Coffee & tea, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants
Simon-Dach-Strasse | Friedrichshain
Daily