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Top Sights and Attractions in Berlin
The vibrant German capital offers a lot of entertainment as well as cultural delights. You can see most of the city from a boat trip on the Spree River. Tours usually go around Museum Island, past the government buildings and reveal the most picturesque parts of the city. Particularly attractive is the night tour, which allows you to see the city in a totally different light. If not from the waterways, discover the city walking along its streets and squares, such as the most famous, Unter den Linden or Kurfuerstendamm alleys and the former East Berlin centre – Alexander Platz or the only recently adapted to a shopping and entertainment centre Potsdamer Platz. Don't forget about the zoo and the vast Tiergarten park in the very centre of the city, right next to the central railway station.
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Brandenburg Gate
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Address: Am Pariser Platz
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Erected in 1791, the Brandenburg Gate was one of the German capital’s 14 original city gates. Today, the only evidence of the others’ existence are the names of metro stations, such as Schlesisches Tor and Kottbusser Tor. The design of the Brandenburger Tor was inspired by the Acropolis in Athens. The famous statue on top of the gate is Victoria, the goddess of triumph riding atop a four-horsed chariot. It was crafted by the sculptor Gottfried Schadow. In 1806, the sculpture was taken to Paris by Napoleon’s troops as a war trophy only to be returned to Berlin after the ultimate war defeat of the French.
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King Friedrich II of Prussia Monument
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Address: Unter der Linden, Mitte
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The monument of King Friedrich II of Prussia (1712-86) stands at the end of Forum Fridericianum, marking the beginning of the boulevard of Unter den Linden. The monument forms part of what is known as Via Triumphalis, stretching from the victory arch of Brandenburg Gate to the Berlin Castle. Monuments along this route have been added by several generations of artists since the 18th Century. The statue of King Friedrich II was erected in 1851 and is one of the best known works of Christian Daniel Rauch. It significantly contributed to the later style of royal monuments.
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Holocaust Memorial
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Address: Cora-Berliner-Strasse
Phone: +49 030 740 729 29
e-mail: besucherservice@stiftung-denkmal.de
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Website: http://www.holocaust-mahnmal.de/en
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This intriguing monument to Jewish victims of the Third Reich was unveiled in the German capital 60 years after the tragic events of World War II. Nearly 15 years elapsed between the time it took to conceptualize and its final completion. It can be found beside the Brandenburg Gate and the remains of Hitler's underground bunker. It has since become an internationally recognised symbol of the victims of the Holocaust.
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Berliner Ensemble
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Address: Bertolt-Brecht-Platz 1
Phone: +49 30 28 40 81 55
e-mail: presse@berliner-ensemble.de
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Price: 5 - 30 EUR
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Website: http://www.berliner-ensemble.com/
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Berliner Ensemble is a famous theatre of Berlin, continuing the tradition which started in 1949 when Bertold Brecht and his wife Helene Weigel established a theatre group under this name. It was designed as a touring theatre, but five years later the theatre moved to the present building, earlier occupied by Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. Since then, it has staged plenty of plays by Brecht. With his wife and a team of directors, stage designers, composers and other collaborates, Brecht managed to prepare a number of excellent performances, such as ‘Mother Courage’ or ‘The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui’ and the Berliner Ensemble achieved a large success. After Brecht’s and Weigel’s deaths, the theatre extended its repertoire to plays of other European playwrights.
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Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin
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Address: Potsdamer Strasse 33
Phone: +49 30 266 23 00
e-mail: info@sbb.spk-berlin.de
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Website: http://staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/
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The Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, or Berlin State Library, boasts more than 350 years of history and is the largest and most important academic and research library in Germany today. It was founded in 1661 by Friedrich
Wilhelm I von Brandenburg and since then gathers and catalogues diverse
materials. Nowadays its impressive collection includes 10 million books,
13,5 million images in the picture archive, 1 million maps and atlases, more than 180,000 newspaper volumes, around 60,000 manuscripts, a large number of autographs, print music editions and personal archives. The library also possesses a state-of-the-art electronic catalogue and databases. This huge treasure is housed in two locations of the library in the centre of the capital - the original site in Unter den Linden, in the former East Berlin and the new building on Potsdamer Strasse, in the West.
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Nikolaikirche
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Address: Nikolaikirchplatz
Phone: +49 30 2400 2162
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Website: http://www.stadtmuseum.de/
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Nikolaikirche is situated in the heart of Berlin, exactly where the city was founded. It is the oldest standing church in Berlin and it is dedicated to Saint Nicholas. The church lies in the eastern part of central Berlin, in the district known as Mitte. It is surrounded by the historical streets of Spandauer Strasse, Rathausstrasse and the Muhlendamm, which contain many, restored Medieval houses. The over 400 kilometres long River Spree flows beside the church.
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Deutsche Staatsoper
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Address: Unter den Linden 7
Phone: +49 30 20 35 40
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Website: http://www.staatsoper-berlin.org
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Opening Hours: Monday-Friday 11 -19 Saturday-Sunday 14 -19
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The State Opera Berlin (Staatsoper Berlin) is the permanent seat of the German Opera Company and is situated in the famous Unter den Linden Boulevard. The construction of the building was commissioned by Frederick II in 1741, and the theatre soon started to operate under the name Forum Fredericianum. The site was officially inaugurated with the performance of Heinrich Graun's ‘Cleopatra e Cesare’ in 1742. The State Opera Berlin is also the home to another institution: the 16th-century Staatskapelle Berlin, with which it shares a 250-year-long collaboration.
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Deutsche Oper Berlin
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Address: Richard-Wagner-Strasse 10
Phone: +49 30 343 84 01
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Website: http://www.deutscheoperberlin.de
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A monumental structure, the Deutsche Oper occupies a central spot at Bismarckstrasse in Berlin-Charlottenburg. Active since 1961, the building towers over its surroundings, thus providing for one of the principal Berlin landmarks. The interiors of the Oper are vast and airy, with a spacious foyer. The work of architect Fritz Bornemann, the building has clear, distinct angles and simple architecture. The main auditorium follows the same rule of simplicity, and offers outstanding acoustics. The colouring is minimal, and the entire hall is clad in wooden panels.
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