Berlin before and after the Wall

Discover the Hot Spots of East Berlin

The Berlin Wall had separated Germany in two countries for long time. The wall, which was 166 km long and cut through 192 streets, came to symbolize the ideological divisions between East and West during the period of the Cold War and to celebrate 25 years since the dismantling of the Wall that divided East and West Berlin. A “Border of Lights” made up of 8,000 illuminated balloons, will mark a 12 km stretch of its former path.

The Berliner Wall was a border between two parts of the city, and the wall of balloons has to be symbolic division between light and darkness, all these balloons are filled with real memories. Each one represents an individual who was there when the Wall felt, ranging from normal citizens to politicians, churchmen and celebrities. Their recollections of that dramatic November in 1989 will be available on the internet for all to hear.

The balloons will remain illuminated throughout the weekend of November 9th,to give viewers ample time to wander along the route and experiences the scale of the former border. Then, after three nights, the balloons will be untethered and this symbolic Wall will float off into the sky.

Berliners didn't forgot how life was behind the wall. In the city there are many places where you can relive feelings of the past, buy original East Berlin furnishings, take a coffee in a GDR style cafe or even sleep in a hostel room with a traditional East German decoration. Here our recommendations to learn more about East Berlin.

The Stasi Museum (Ruschestraße 103)

Located in the former headquarters of the Stasi near Frankfurter Allee, the museum hosts memories of the former Minister of State Security Erik Mielke and presents collection of documents and an exhibition of evidence and research materials related to East Germany.

The DDR Museum (Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 1)

This museum highlights all facets of life behind the Wall, you can see the daily life and objects used in the former GDR.

The East Side Gallery (Mühlenstraße)

The East Side Gallery is a a 1.3 km long fragment from the Berlin Wall, which physically divided the city for 28 years from 1961 to 1989. This open air Gallery consists of 105 paintings by artists from all over the world, painted in 1990 on the east side of the Berlin Wall.

Das DDR-Hostel (Wriezener Karree 5)

The Ostel - DDR Hostel in Berlin is the only one original GDR designed hostel in Berlin. Located in an East Berlin ‘Platten’ building this hostel is furnished with East classics like the ‘Karat’ wall-wardrobe and other retro furniture.

DDR-Restaurant Domklause (Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 1)

This restaurant is located in the former Palasthotel, which was an important hotel frequented only by Communist Party dignitaries and preserved all the typical decorations of East Germany. The menu has also many original dishes from GDR.

Karl Marx Allee and Leipziger Straße

Karl Marks Allee is one of East Berlin's more monumental housing block developments. Walk also to Leipziger Straße with typical its East Berlin buildings.

Platz der Vereinten Nationen (Leninplatz)

An experiment in Plattenbau by East Germany's best known architect, Hermann Henselmann.

Pankow (Majakowskiring)

In the Pankow district you can vist the Majakowskiring, once home to many of East Germany's politicians.

Checkpoint Charlie (Friedrichstraße 43-45)

This places was the best known border-crossing of Cold War days in Berlin and the sign YOU ARE NOW LEAVING THE AMERICAN SECTOR become the iconic symbol of political division.

Café Sibylle (Karl-Marx-Allee 72)

This Cafe was opened 1953 as a Coffeehouse under the name "Milchtrinkhalle" and was very popular in Berlin. Since the middle of 60s the cafe was called Sibylle and was a hotspot for a coffee break in the past. Today that is a cafe, gallery and museum.

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