Culture in Berlin

[2] The expanding cultural role of Berlin was underscored by the relocation of several entertainment companies after 2000 who decided to move their headquarters and main studios to the banks of the River Spree.

[10] Throughout the 1990s, people in their twenties moved to the city with its affordable rents and made Berlin's club scene one of the premier nightlife destinations of Europe.

Since the early 1990s, Mitte and the eastern borough of Friedrichshain have been the home to many nightclubs, including techno clubs such as Tresor, E-Werk, KitKatClub or Berghain, some of which became known for the length of their parties.

[citation needed] In the western part of the city, the former West Berlin, SOUND, located from 1971 to 1988 in Tiergarten and today in Charlottenburg, gained notoriety in the late 1970s for its popularity with heroin users and other drug addicts as described in Christiane F.'s book Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo.

Several technology and media art festivals and conferences are held in the city, including Transmediale and Chaos Communication Congress.

[16] Today, the city has a huge number of gay clubs and festivals, such as Easter Fetish Week (Easter in Berlin), Christopher Street Day (Berlin Pride)—central Europe's largest gay-lesbian pride event celebrated on the last weekend of June—Folsom Europe and Hustlaball.

The largest gay areas in Berlin are in Schöneberg close to Nollendorfplatz and in Prenzlauer Berg at the Schönhauser Allee subway station.

In spring 2006, the expanded Deutsches Historisches Museum re-opened in the Zeughaus with an overview of German history through the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

The site of Checkpoint Charlie, one of the most renowned crossing points of the Berlin Wall, is still preserved and also has a museum, a private venture which exhibits comprehensive documentation of detailed plans and strategies devised by people who tried to flee from the East.

[26] Berlin has evolved and earned its reputation as a leading European city with its high art scene and dynamic, cutting-edge performances.

Walking along and making small detours from this avenue one can catch a glimpse of the State Opera House, admire the Hedwig's Cathedral or take a closer look at the collections of the Old Museum, which reveal a microcosm of cultural excellence.

Berlin landmarks, such as the Gendarmenmarkt and the French and German Cathedral (including the Schauspielhaus), are the highest examples of the city's Classicist architecture.

The list of significant structures goes further with the Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam, where one can find the famous terraces designed by Knobelsdorff, as well as the Neues Palais and Orangerie.

From among the numerous monuments of Berlin, one of the most famous is the Schiller statue, which reminds the visitors of the city's powerful literary tradition.

Since the reunification of 1989, visitors can get there by a boat-ride on the Spree River (which passes by the Reichstagsgebäude – government buildings) or on foot, strolling through the historic inner city.

Although much of the great art collections of former Berlin suffered the consequences of World War II, many paintings were saved stored in salt mines.

Some pieces of art were preserved in the eastern part of the country, including a collection of ancient treasures discovered by 19th- and early 20th-century German archaeologists, and later were distributed among Berlin's numerous museums.

Another landmark is the Mausoleum with the tombs of Friedrich Wilhelm II and Queen Louise, which serves as an important memorial to the history of the Royal Family of Prussia.

It incorporates segments of the original wall, but is mainly made of steel and has tiny holes through which visitors may take a look to the other side.

Other sites commemorating the city's dark era include the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, which occupies a vast area in central Berlin and comprises 2,711 columns symbolising gravestones.

The memorial, designed by architect Peter Eisenman, is set south of the Brandenburger Gate and was erected for the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II.

The building of the Kongresshalle, as well as the Philharmonie, where the world-famous Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra resides were designed according to the trends of mid-20th-Century architecture.

Additionally, the city is thriving with the most modern architectural designs, some of which are lacking structural logic, but nevertheless, Berlin continues to evolve as a unified world metropolis.

[33] Many local foods originated from north-German culinary traditions and include rustic and hearty dishes with pork, goose, fish, peas, beans, cucumbers or potatoes.

[35] Turkish and Arab immigrant workers brought their culinary traditions to the city; for example, the döner kebab, falafel and lahmacun, which have become common fast-food staples.

[36] Zoologischer Garten Berlin, the older of two zoos in the city, was founded in 1844, and presents the most diverse range of species in the world.

Its summit is man-made and covers a Second World War bunker and rubble from the ruins of the city; at its foot is Germany's main memorial to Polish soldiers.

Together with the countless cafés, restaurants and green spaces in all districts, they create an important source of recreation and leisure time.

[46] The FIVB World Tour has chosen an inner-city site near Alexanderplatz to present a beach volleyball Grand Slam every year.