Winter in Berlin

Berlin in winter is not for the weak. The city shrugs off the sun like a bad hangover, wrapping itself in grey skies, freezing rain, and a cold that gets into your bones like regret. But that’s the charm, isn’t it? Berlin doesn’t try to seduce you. It dares you to stay.

Berlin is change. Last time I was in Berlin about a decade ago. I remember a sky full of construction cranes in the eastern parts. Today, some areas has changed beyond recognition.

Der Bloch at Monsterkabinett. Sleepy fellow.

There are ghosts in the architecture. Concrete blocks, iron rails, and bullet-pocked facades whisper old stories. Some glorious, most not. People pass by and pretend to not hear them.

We enter the Berlin underworld for another variant of bunker safari, providing perspective on the bombings during the later part of WW2, when the air-raid bunkers were once packed with people. Some of the rooms still have luminous phosphorus paint on the walls, original since 1940 and slightly toxic.

The Flak Tower in Humboldthain Park.

The nearby Flak tower in Humboldthain Park was one of several anti aircraft towers. Today the tower is inhabited by bats who hibernate during the winter months, like goths listening to Bauhaus while waiting for 1981 to return.

Hanging around.

We walk across the city, meet up with old friends in Friedrichshain and battle the bitter cold with Glühwein. Perhaps even a slice of currywurst.

We pay our respects at the Hansa Studios, where artists such as Depeche Mode, David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Nick Cave, Einstürzende Neubauten and Kent have roamed the halls and done recordings at the Meistersaal, once known as Studio 2.

Having Apocalypse Now Kakao at White Trash.

Winter here doesn’t sparkle, it smolders as eternal ember. And that’s exactly why I keep coming back. Good night Berlin, wherever you are.