Culture

Having been resident here for over a month now, I'm starting to get a feel, from initial impressions, at least, of Berlin. What makes it tick, how the people live, what the vibe of the city is. From my very first glimpse of it, back in October last year, I was overwhelmed by how laid back it felt, how slow the pace of life was, particularly in comparison with London. I still see that but have also now tapped in a little further into what goes on beneath and around that. Berlin has earned the tagline 'poor but sexy', due to its comparatively cheap cost of living and bohemian, artistic pull. I'm trying to work out if this is still the case: it's certainly a lot less poor these days, but its 'sexiness' still exists in areas, rife with underground bars, pulsing live music and in the painters and writers you see smoking and drinking espressos in the independent cafes. Without meaning to make any sweeping generalisations, here are a few things I've picked up so far on Berlin life:

Beer

It has to be top of the list. People don't just drink it, they live it. Breathe it. It's a way of life. Beer is really the only beverage to drink here in bars. Yes, lengthy menus might be available listing a range of spirits, wines, cocktails etc, but looking around an average bar and there's only one drink that most people are clutching. Be it in bottles or large hour-glass shaped glasses and sporting a thick head of white foam, it's beer beer beer. It's incredibly cheap and yet care is put into its making. There are recycling points in shops where one can return their empty beer bottle and in return gets a small amount of change back. Essentially, each beer bottle purchase therefore comes with a deposit, which you get back when taking to be recycled. This makes the whole thing even cheaper and more attractive, and does no harm in encouraging a greener lifestyle. On walking around the city, especially on a Saturday or Sunday morning, one is likely to come across broken glass or discarded bottles. The idea is that those too lazy, drunk or, perhaps, thoughtful, to take their bottle with them to recycle, leave it on the street for the homeless to pick up and claim the few cents themselves. Nice.

It is completely fine to drink beer on the streets, on the go, on public transport, wherever, whenever. In fact, it's actively encouraged: when we bought a bottle in a corner shop recently, the shopkeeper offered us use of a bottle opener, assuming we'd want to quaff it on the road. Even better, whilst strolling through Hackesher Markt recently, I saw what is best described as a mobile bar, serving drinks, powered by the the punters pedalling. It seems to be a tourist thing: a group of mates can hire one of these things, pedal about town whilst having a huge supply of beer to oil their throats. Insane, or genius, I'm not sure, but it's very definitely unmistakably German. Haven't got a photo myself, but here's one from the internet:

Food
 
Germany does food pretty well, despite British prejudices. Yes, they love a sausage, it's true. Bratwurst are sold all over the place, in small kiosks and even on the move, by mobile sellers heating the things in trays slung around their necks. Bung it in a roll that's far too short for it, cover it in ketchup and mustard, and you have yourself a cheap, warming treat.

Meat is definitely a favourite here. Whilst in Berlin it would be perfectly possible to eat out as a vegetarian, German food itself is definitely all about the meat, particularly pork. Chicken is much cheaper than in the UK so I buy that the most for use at home. Potatoes are also something of an obsession - there is a whole restaurant here dedicated to them. One thing the Germans certainly trump us at is bread. Like most Europeans, really. Freshly baked, delicious loaves of a number of varieties are cheap to buy in supermarkets and bread is usually given complementary in restaurants before a meal. It's always delicious and often quite dense and heavy. And salty. My, is the food salty. Everything seems to come with added salt. We are slightly worried about what the state of our health will be after a couple of years here. Fruit wise, apples are big. Not literally. I should have guessed really, that before learning German, apfel and kartoffel were two words that somehow were already in my brain. And, at German class, the lesson on food seemed to feature those quite heavily. Well, they've certainly come in handy. Finally, I've also noticed that brunch is a big thing here. At weekends, after a heavy night, people meet in cafes for strong coffee and a spot of food, sometime in the late morning/lunchtime/early afternoon for 'brunch'. This generally seems to last a long time, and could quite feasibly, on a good day I suppose, merge into dinner. And why not?

Hipsters

The original 'poor but sexy'? They're still around, in plentiful supply, and there are plenty of establishments perfect for them. Whole areas of town, still a little dingy, but 'up and coming' are like flames to these beautiful moths. The artistic culture of the city spawns them like bacteria on a petri dish. On our trip to Teufelsberg, one particular couple stood out. He was carrying a leather satchel/backpack, wearing corduroy flares and a hat with a feather protruding from the side. She was a rainbow of colours, from her long hair to her shoes. Whilst everyone else in the group wandered about the site, exploring everything and taking hundreds of photos, they went immediately to the centre of one of those strange hollowed out white domes with the strange acoustics, rigged up a small sound system, put on some obscure classical music and set up camp for the rest of the visit.

On a recent evening out in Neukölln, one of the hip areas of town I'm referring to, we ended up in a small bar on a side street, intending to have a quick drink after dinner before heading home. The bar interior resembled a flea market: every chair, table and other item of furniture was entirely unique and fairly shabby (to be fair, it was probably furnished from a flea market: there are several in the area). We found a small table surrounded by a sofa, revolving chair and bathroom cabinet and ordered our beers. The place was packed, every last surface taken. Including, to our right, two people sitting and drinking casually in a bathtub lined with cushions.

Nightlife

Obviously, this is linked in to my previous points. It's big here. Aside from the hundreds of late-night opening cafes and bars (of both hipster and more run-of-the-mill variety), there are nightclubs which open not just til the early hours but to the later hours too. Not that I've experienced them yet, but I'm told it's fairly standard practice to leave such a club at 10am on a Saturday morning. I think some may just never bother closing, like casinos. But when the beer's flowing and the techno music pumping, who needs sleep?

Techno music is Berlin's baby and it's still hugley popular. However, the live music scene is vibrant too. There must be hundreds of gigs happening every night, in a host of venues. In my first week here, we went to a poky looking bar down the road from us which, when going down into the basement, turned unexpectedly into a thriving jazz club with an excellent band. On the road to the supermarket here, I pass what looks like a long-shut up shop, with barred windows and creepers growing all over its facade. Turns out, it's used as a live music venue too. We went last week to see an Italian electro duo and Irish indie band. The former were selling their album on casette tape for 5 euros. Last night, we headed to Kreuzberg, next to Neukölln, to another underground bar where, for 8 euro entry fee, 3 of which redeemable at the bar, we saw an excellent 5 piece rhythm and blues band who played their own songs interspersed with the odd bit of Eric Clapton, Dire Straits or Blues Brothers chucked in.

Unusually, perhaps uniquely (I haven't researched), smoking is permitted in bars in Berlin. This is still bizarre to me, having been used to the luxury of going out and NOT coming home smelling like an ashtray since 2006. It is not the case in all bars; I believe it's to do with the size of the establishment. The rule of thumb is, if there's ashtrays laid out, it's fine to light up. Last night, the venue was smoke-free during the music, with the ban lifted as soon as the band had finished their set. Often in these cramped, tiny, underground bars with only one small exit up some stairs, lit candles and people smoking, I have to deliberately try to stop worrying about fire regulations...

Religion

Berlin is a fairly multicultural city and I'm sure there must be people of just about every faith here. Christianity is predominant, however, and I enjoy the sound of church bells from several nearby places of worship drifting through our apartment windows on a Sunday morning. Just like things used to be in Britain, Sundays here are kept as a quiet day. The vast majority of shops are shut. Laundry and other noisy domestic activities is not permitted. People tend to spend the day with their families, walking the dog etc. I presume this is because of an ethos of traditionalism, but it also must help those rolling in from the club and into bed at lunchtime!


The nearest place of worship to us is the huge and beautiful Neue Synagogue. Badly damaged during the Second World War and not rebuilt until the '90s, it's had a turbulent history. Today, a nugget of that history lives on through the 24/7 police guard outside. Similarly, armed police constantly guard a smaller Jewish centre just around the corner. Germany is determined to protect its Jewish community, which is just beginning to properly regrow.