Prenzlauer Berg
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Prenzlauer Berg is a former borough of Berlin situated in the eastern part of the city. In 2001 Prenzlauer Berg was combined with the former boroughs Pankow and Weißensee under the name of Pankow.
After German reunification in 1990 Prenzlauer Berg soon attracted young people, often referred to as hipsters, with its alternative lifestyle.
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[edit] History
Prenzlauer Berg was developed during the second half of the 19th century based on an urban planning design from 1862 by James Hobrecht, the so-called Hobrecht Plan for Berlin. Envisioned as a working-class district, its tenement houses (in German: Mietskasernen) were mainly inhabited by intellectuals, artists, and students in the former German Democratic Republic. Since German reunification, Prenzlauer Berg's urban apartment block structures have, for the most part, been renovated. This and rising property values have led to more wealthy residents moving into some areas of the borough.
Older buildings like the water tower, near Kollwitzplatz, or the Prater Beer Garden in Kastanienallee, as well as the old breweries still give an impression of the days when Prenzlauer Berg was part of so-called Steinernes Berlin (Rocky Berlin) as described by author Werner Hegemann in 1930.
[edit] Prenzlauer Berg today
Countless pubs, restaurants, cafés, galleries and little shops create a day and nightlife atmosphere unrivalled in the rest of Berlin. Along with Schöneberg, Prenzlauer Berg is a focal point of gay life in Berlin. Along with Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg it is a focal point of student's life. Along with Mitte it is a focal point of art.
Berlin Prenzlauer Berg is one of the most popular districts in Berlin, is one of Berlin's prettiest neighbourhoods, still central, yet quieter than Berlin Mitte. Much of Prenzlauer Berg escaped damage in the second world war and post war redevelopment, meaning it is more beautiful than other districts of the city and offers a good 'quality of life' feeling. Nowadays Prenzlauer Berg offers trendy shopping with many streetstyle fashion designers plying their wares in trendy boutiques. For the real experience of Berlin, you have to visit Berlin Prenzlauer Berg.
Prenzlauer Berg has become famous for being one of the few places in Germany where there has actually been a baby boom in recent years. There is an abundance of playgrounds Helmholtzplatz, Kollwitzplatz, kitas (child daycare centers) and shops selling toys and second hand children's clothing. However, the birthrate is not higher than elsewhere in Germany. Instead, the impression of a large amount of children is based on the large percentage of people between 20 and 40 years, this is potentially parents of young children.
Kollwitzplatz and Helmholtzplatz have weekly street markets, and the former breweries Kulturbrauerei and Pfefferberg and Kastanienallee are the hot spots of interest.
[edit] Places of interest
- Kollwitzplatz and Helmholtzplatz on market days
- Rykestrasse Synagogue
- Jewish graveyard on Schönhauser Allee where painter Max Liebermann and composer Giacomo Meyerbeer are buried
- Gethsemane church, former meeting place of the resistance in the GDR
- Mauerpark (former location of the Berlin wall)
- Wasserturm (water tower), designed by Henry Gill, constructed by the English Waterworks Company and finished in 1875.
[edit] External links
- Map of Prenzlauer Berg in 1836 [1]
- Map of Prenzlauer Berg in 1893 [2]
- Map of Prenzlauer Berg in 1961 [3]
- Map of Prenzlauer Berg in 1989 [4]
- Virtual e-Tour Mauerpark Shockwave Player required
- Virtual e-Tour Helmholtzplatz Shockwave Player required
- Private website about life in the "kiez", history and landmarks (including maps and satellite view)
- Synagogue in Rykestrasse prior to its present restauration
- Photograph of the water tower – Detail 1 Detail 2
- BBC article about the baby boom in Prenzlauer berg
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