pretty, posh Prenzlauer Berg

Tags

alois senefelder, Berlin, frog prince, Germany, Kathe Kollwitz, Lithography, Märchenbrunnen, parks and playgrounds, photography, photos, travel, yummy mummies

Late Post due to internet issues!

If Kreuzberg (my post on Kreuzberg is here) is Berlins angry, alternative little brother then the Prenzlauer Berg is the prettier and posher big sister, and I paid her a visit yesterday afternoon.

Everywhere you look you’ll see hipsters, yummy mummies, pretty kids and men in expensive suits. They sit and chat in the vast array of coffee shops, restaurants and ice-cream parlours that line the streets of Prenzlauer Berg. Most of the old houses have been restored, renovated to modern standards and are sold as homes to the young and upcoming yuppies of Berlin.

Admittedly it doesn’t have the same kind of edge that Kreuzberg does but the atmosphere is lovely and the paths are lined with trees, flowers and beautiful stucco facades.  And due to the young growing families there are lots of kids on bikes, in parks and playgrounds, providing for a giggling, laughing, chatting and squealing sound-collage.

There aren’t any “big” sights to see in Prenzlauer Berg but as you stroll around you’ll find lots of little interesting sights to spot. One of the bigger ones is possibly the Käthe Kollwitz Park, the artist lived on the square and provided Germany with some stunning art work but also helped the destitute, providing shelter, food and clothes.

Another interesting person from the neighbourhood is the German actor Alois Seefelder who invented Lithography in 1796, which then of course led to the possibility of mass printing. Come to think of it, I probably should thank him for my job!

After wandering up and down streets in Prezlauer Berg I took a walk over to Friedrichshain (my post with photos from Friedrichshain) to see the Märchenbrunnen (Fairy-Tale fountain) in the peoples park. I had missed it on my earlier visit and wanted to see it before I left.  And it didn’t disappoint. A little tacky for my taste maybe but my favourites where all waiting for me: Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty and of course the frog prince. So, just like I did as a little curly haired girl, I finished the day with a happy end, prince and all!

flowers outside a shop

waiting for a guest

at the Kulturbrauerei (Culture Brewery), an old brewery turned into a cultural center

Liebe =Love in big letters

stepped on this

old street sign

Bücher Tauschbaum, a free book exchange inside some tree trunks

stepped around this

wouldn’t fit into my bag

renovated in multi-colour

good to know but you need good walking boots

a fruit and veg shop display

at the Rykestrasse Synagogue

keeping the signs warm and colourful

at the old Wasserturm (water tower) … during WWII the Nazis used it as a prison now filled with pie shaped flats

keep your shoes clean

urban gardening at it’s best

pretty in pink

a squirrel at the Käthe Kollwitz Platz

and a snail at the playground on the Käthe Kollwitz square

no water anywhere near on this hill, but you should always be prepared

ice-cream parlor

I found this wonderfully exciting children’s playground with a fire pit, a wreaked car and lots of things to walk on, climb up, crawl through and even a place where you could create … I really was wishing I was ten again

hand-made flags

a plant-pot

a cool seat

even some low hanging fruit, not quite ripe

at Alois Senefelder statue … his name is mirrored as it would be using his printing technique

up high .. wonder if this means the same thing as it does in Dublin

another playground

balancing act … on my way to Friedrichshain

at the Märchenbrunnen … can you name them all?