Konzerthaus Berlin, located on Gendarmenmarkt square near the historic center of the city, is considered to be one of the five best concert venues in the world due to its excellent acoustics. During the Christmas holidays, the Gendarmenmarkt hosts one of Berlin’s most popular Christmas markets.

The Berliner Dom (Protestant Cathedral in Berlin) features a dome decorated with mosaics, stained glass windows by Anton von Werner, massive pipe organ, Neo-Baroque pulpit, and crypt with more than 80 sarcophagi of Prussian royals. It is well worth the 270-step climb to the top of the dome to take in the views over Berlin.

During the Cold War, Checkpoint Charlie was the most famous crossing point in the Berlin Wall between the east and west sectors of the city. Though both the Wall and checkpoint were removed in 1990, a reproduction of the guard house and border sign were later recreated. Today, for a fee tourists have their photographs … Read more

Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate is built on the site that marked the beginning of the road from Berlin to the town of Brandenburg an der Havel. During the Cold War years, the Berlin Wall ran just to the west of the gate, leaving it standing in the “no man’s land” between the double concrete walls. Isolated … Read more

Berlin’s Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe is also known as the Holocaust Memorial. Designed by architect Peter Eisenman and engineer Buro Happoldt, it features 2711 granite stelae of varying sizes and heights. On the day I visited, our guide let each of us make our way through the memorial alone, then asked us … Read more