The Eastside Gallery is a MUST STOP when visiting the Hauptstadt Berlin…read more If only to come see the mural "My God, Help Me to Survive This Deadly Love" by Dmitri Vrubel. Recently, Berlin foodie stop Curry 61 did a funny parody, see photos. This section of the former Berlin Wall, has over a hundred mural on this lone remaining section on Mühlenstraße along the Spree River.

East Side Gallery is not really what is commonly thought of as an, "Art Gallery." What it is, is a…read morelong section of wall where various artist exhibit their work by creating one of their pieces on the wall. Yes, it is a little bit strange. East Side Gallery is a really a very long wall. There are a lot of artists that have their work showing on this wall. Just like beauty in in the eye of the beholder, so is art. Some of the work along this wall is very good. Others, not so much. All this being said, it is an interesting concept. And, it is something that you should see if you are in Berlin. Just don't get your hopes up to experience something truly revolutionary or cutting edge. Remember, it's just a wall with a bunch of paintings on it.

Just happened to see this bridge after walking through the entire length of the East Side Gallery…read moreWall and amused by its beauty. Wished I had the time to explore more. It's a double deck bridge and has a walking tunnel with beautiful vaults and towers.

In the past, this bridge was an exchange-place of agents between east and west…read more And it's also known, cause of the german action film "Lola rennt"

For what it is their Berlin neighborhood has a lot to offer. Berlin in general is a relatively…read moreinexpensive EU city to live in - and Kreuzberg is the most "happening" of the least expensive areas of Berlin. This is a haven for artists and student - rebels and young people. Kreuzberg has a growing number of galleries, and cafes, as well as being the center of the growing Berlin LGBT community. The energy here is young and vibrant.

This is one of those grand European architectural locations. Once you get anywhere near this area,…read morewhat you will find are great cathedrals, beautiful buildings, and a very large square. The center point of this area is the large square. My suggestion is that you go and stand in the center of it, look around, and study its true uniqueness. What you will experience is one of the best places to view the grandeur of historic Berlin. Around this very large square, what you will find, (occasionally), is that they will have marketplaces. These marketplaces are usually seasonally orientated. Meaning, if it's Christmas season, you will find a great selection of Christmas orientated items. The main reason you come here is not so much simply to go shopping or dining, of which there are a lot of places to check out around the surrounding area, but to go inside some of the structures, and truly bask in the architectural glory of the statues, the way the buildings were constructed, and all of that kind of stuff. This isn't really a highly-touristy Berlin location. Which, is a good thing. Meaning, you can come here and really bask in a historic Berlin, which is deeply rooted in history. It will provide you with the true flavor and culture of Berlin. Overall, I would suggest that you do go here. You just need to know what to expect. There's not necessarily a lot to do, unless you truly appreciate the finer elements of architecture. But, it's a great place to visit.

One visits Gendarmenmarkt to take in the local flavor. There are beautiful buildings and sculptures…read moreto view and appreciate. People come here to hang out with their families and loved ones. I especially enjoyed looking at the expressions on the faces of the sculptures within the gates of the church. The artist truly captures a feeling. I walked here from the hotel I was staying at and enjoyed lunch in the immediate vicinity. It is a place to visit when in Berlin.

What is there to say about Hermannplatz? This is where traffic converges, whether on the road, on…read morefoot, on bike, or underground. It's a transportation hub, a bit chaotic at times, but there is also a lot going on. The square itself is a good meeting point for joining up with friends. A few days a week there is a little market, which offers various foods and other tactile goods. Meanwhile, the streets surrounding have lots of shops and shopping centers, in addition to one whole block taken up by Karstadt. Often, when I have essentials to pick up, Hermannplatz is like a one-stop shop for me.

The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe is a memorial that opened in 2005 and remembers the six…read moremillion Jewish victims of the Holocaust. It consists of the Field of Stelae designed by Peter Eisenman and the underground Information Centre. Admission is free. I did not go into the underground information center, but as part of a self-arranged group tour, I did walk among some of the 2,710 concrete slabs. My tour guide explained that the concrete slabs were hollow in the center and that the precipitation and cold weather was causing cracks in some slabs. I appreciated walking through and viewing the thousands of concrete slabs, which were artistically staggered, and remembering the Jewish victims.

Yelp asks "How would I rate my experience here and how many Stars would I give it?" After a couple…read moreof thousand reviews, I find we were completely speechless here. Later in our Viking trip, we visited both Birkenau and Auschwitz. Those visits and here, are bookends to horrors of hate and the decent into humanities worst period of cannibalisms. I phrase it like that, because the people of that period, consumed and devoured the living nightmare of hate, as if it was to purge the world of group(s) of people they just didn't like, didn't understand and wanted to eradicate. So this place is a memorial of their memory, but also a reminder of what happens, when we allow Hate to devour our humanity and our souls. Five Stars and hopefully, never again! But I/we know better.... Seattle, Christopher Straße Tag...