Potsdamer Platz

Potsdamer Platz is one of the larger public transportation hubs, where the S-Bahn and the U-Bahn cross. Once you leave the station, most people head west to the Sony Center, Kulturforum or the Arkaden Mall, but there are worthwhile attractions to the west (including pieces of the wall) toward Mitte.

In the late fall, there is a spectacular Christmas market (as there are all over Berlin, or Germany for that matter), as well as a sledding hill and ice skating rink just outside of the station.

The Sony Center opened in 2000 and is quite spectacular to put it simply. Almost this entire area was completely destroyed or damaged during World War II. After the wall was built, this area was known as "No Man's Land" and nothing was reconstructed. After the fall of the wall in 1989, new and impressive buildings began to spring up.

The Sony Center has it all--shops, restaurants, hotels, offices, museums, LegoLand--all under a bright canopy that changes colors in a flashy manner. It is difficult not to be drawn to this complex at night and to sit at one of the many great restaurants as you people watch.

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Addess: Kemperplatz 1, 10785 Berlin
Phone: 0180 5252586
Hours: Varies by store

You will find this sculpture just before reaching the Tiergarden, which was originally meant as a hunting grounds for the king of Prussia. The sculpture is large enough that you can walk between either side through the entire length.

The Berlin Philharmonic was voted No. 3 out of the top 10 European orchestras in 2006, and has remained one of the top orchestras in Europe since. The orchestra was founded in 1882 and continues to play today. If you have the time to get tickets, it makes for an unforgettable night.

Be aware: Germans like their encores and the orchestra has known to perform several encoures and curtain calls and bows into the double digits. This can place a toll on your hands when clapping for so long, and many people just end up leaving with the applause echoing in the background.

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Address: Herbert-von-Karajan-Str. 1, 10785 Berlin
Phone: 030 254880

The Kulturforum was west Berlin's answers to Museum Island in the east after WWII. East Berlin had its own culture center consisting of several renowned museums, and the west needed its own since it was difficult (or impossible) to cross between East and West Berlin at the time.

The Kulturforum is home to the Berlin Philharmonic, the City Library, the Museum of Musical Instruments and Picture Gallery, the Arts Library, the New National Gallery and several other museums.

A lasting effect of the Berlin Wall is that many art museum genres have a museum in both East and West Berlin--each side needed its own museum when they were separated; now that they are unified, all the museums remain.

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Address: Matthäikirchplatz 1
Phone/hours: Varies by museum

This Neo-Romanesque church was constructed in 1846 when the population was rapidly expanding and there was high demand for another parish.

During World War II the entire Potsdamer Platz area was destroyed (this is why you see so many modern buildings), but this church remained much more intact. After being reconstructed in 1960 with a new interior, the church remains a reminder of the area's architectural glory.

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Address: Matthäikirchplatz, 10785 Berlin
Phone: 030 266424242
Hours: closed Monday, Thursday 10am - 10pm, Tuesday - Sunday (except Thurs) 10am - 6pm

This large shopping mall lies just south of the Sony Center and Bahn stations and houses a number of shops as well as an IMAX theater, musical theater and casino.

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Address: Potsdamer Platz Arkaden, Alte Potsdamer Strasse 7
Phone: 030 - 25 59 27 69
Hours: (Both Shops and Restaurants) Daily 10am - 9pm, (during Advent 1pm - 8pm)