What’s Doing in Berlin
The Französischer Dom as seen from the Konzerthaus on the Gendarmenmarkt
WHAT TO SEE
Visitors wishing to acquaint themselves with Berlin’s most iconic sights should start in the Mitte district.
The Brandenburger Tor, a former city gate and later triumphal arch, is located on Pariser Platz, and is surrounded by the British, American, French and Russian embassies. Designed in the late 18th century by Carl Gotthard, the 65.5-meter-wide and 28-meter-high gate, topped with a golden quadriga, has become emblematic of Berlin. Originally meant to symbolize peace, the gate’s connotations have shifted with political changes through history. Inaccessible and isolated during the Cold War partition of the city, the structure was completely restored after unification.
The historic Reichstag building on the nearby Platz der Republik is the seat of German parliament. The new glass dome, designed by the British architect Sir Norman Foster, represents political transparency and offers a view of the debating chamber below, as well as views of the Berlin cityscape.
From Brandenburger Tor, the Straße des 17 Juni runs west along the Tiergarten to the Siegessäule (Victory Column), a pillar topped with a golden statue of Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory. The monument commemorates Prussia’s triumphs in a number of mid-19th century wars.
To the east, Unter den Linden leads past Humboldt University, one of Berlin’s oldest institutions of higher learning. The area includes many architecturally significant buildings of the Kaiserzeit, especially the twin cathedrals on Gendarmenmarkt, the Deutscher Dom and the Französischer Dom. The former is a reconstruction of the original, destroyed by fire in the last days of WWII and rebuilt in 1993 to house the Bundestag’s museum of German parliamentary history. The latter was built by French Huguenots, and has a viewing platform that looks out over the city.
Also on Gendarmenmarkt stands the neoclassical Staatsoper, home to the Berlin Philharmonic and currently under the direction of world-class Israeli-Argentinian pianist and composer Daniel Barenboim. The building is a legacy of Frederick the Great’s urban renewal projects in the mid-18th century.
Five of Berlin’s best museums are situated on the Museumsinsel in the city center. The Pergamon Museum takes its name from the principle exhibit, a reconstruction of the altar from the ancient city of Pergamon in Anatolia. The altar is 117 feet (35.65 meters) wide and 110 feet (33.4 meters) long, featuring a dramatic high-relief frieze of the Gigantomachy, the struggle for supremacy between the Greek gods of Olympus and the race of giants in ancient Greek mythology. Another noteworthy exhibit is the Ishtar Gate of Babylon, its blue glazed bricks depicting golden lions, dragons and other beasts.
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