Berlin Charlottenburg

Most of Berlin's sights are located outside of residential Charlottenburg, closer to the center of the city. That said, Charlottenburg has certain sights that recommend themselves to the traveler with more than a day or two to spend in Berlin. Unique museums, grand palaces, and one of the world's most historic stadiums are spread out all over the neighborhood.

Käthe-Kollwitz-Museum, Fasanenstr. 24 (www.kaethe-kollwitz.de), Through both World Wars, Käthe Kollowitz, a member of the Berlin Sezession (Secession) movement and one of Germany's most prominent 20th century artists, protested war and the situation of the working class with haunting sketches, etchings, sculpture and charcoal drawings of death, poverty, and starvation. The series of works entitled, “A Weaver's Revolt,” on the 2nd floor are the drawings that skyrocketed Kollowitz to fame. The death of the artist's own son, who was killed in Russia during WWII, provides a wrenching emotional authenticity to her depictions of death, pregnancy, and starvation, and her own revealing self-portraits. U1: “Uhlandstr.” Admission €6, students €3. Open daily 11am-6pm.
Schloß Charlottenburg, Spandauer Damm 10-22 This expansive Baroque palace, commissioned by Friedrich I in the 1600s as a gift for his wife, Sophia-Charlotte, stands impressively at the end of a long treelined walkway on the outer north end of Charlottenberg. The Schloß is made up of several parts. Altes Schloß, the oldest section (marked by a blue dome in the middle of the courtyard), has rooms chock full of historic furnishings (much of it reconstructed due to war damage) and elaborate gold guilding. Neuer Flügel (New Wing), includes the marble receiving rooms and the more somber royal chambers. Neuer Pavillion houses a museum dedicated to Prussian architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel. Other sections include the Belvedere, a small building housing the royal family's porcelain collection, and the Mausoleum, the final resting place for most of the family. Behind the palace extends the exquisitely manicured Schloßgarten, full of small lakes, footbridges and fountains. Bus #M45 from Bahnhof Zoo to Luisenpl./Schloß Charlottenburg or U2: Sophie-Charlotte Pl. Altes Shloβ €10, students €7; Neuer Flügel €6/5; Belvedere €2/1.50; Mausoleum free. Audio tours available in English included. Altes Shloβ open Apr-Oct Tu-Su 10am-6pm; Nov-Mar Tu-Su 10am-5pm. Neuer Flügel open year-round M and W-Su 10am-5pm. Belvedere and Mausoleum open Apr-Oct daily 10am-6pm, Nov-Mar daily noon-5pm.
Museum Berggruen, Schloßstr. 1 (website), Think Picasso is a jerk whose art didn't deserve the hype it got? This intimate three-floor museum will put away your anti-Picasso sentiments. The first and second floor are Picasso-packed, with added bonuses of French Impressionist Matisse's art and African masks. The third floor showcases paintings by Bauhaus teacher Paul Klee and Alberto Giacometti's super-skinny sculptures of human forms. Bus #M45 from Bahnhof Zoo to Luisenpl./Schloß Charlottenburg or U2: Sophie-Charlotte Pl. €12, €6 students, children free. Audio guide included. Open Tu-Su 10am-6pm.
Bröhanmuseum, Schloßstr. 1A (www.broehanmuseum.de), If you're wondering where all the stuff you couldn't sell at your great-aunt's estate sale went, here it is. The Bröhanmuseum showcases epic brös ißing brös.. Just kidding, we mean Art Nouveau and Art Deco paintings, housewares, and furniture. Along with figurines and lampshades that resemble knicknacks you sneered at (and now regret not buying) at neighborhood garage sales, the ground floor also pairs several groupings of period furniture with paintings from the same era (1889-1939). The first floor is a small gallery dedicated to the Modernist Berlin Sezession painters, though occasionally upstaged by oddly chosen shocking green walls, and the top floor houses special exhibitions. Bus #M45 from Bahnhof Zoo to Luisenpl./Schloß Charlottenburg or U2: Sophie-Charlotte Pl. The museum is next to the Bergguen, across from the Schloß. Admission €6, students €4. Open Tu-Su 10am-6pm.
Olympiastadion, Olympischer Pl. 3 (Visitor Center) (www.olypiastadion-berlin.de), This massive Nazi-built stadium comes in a close second to Tempelhof Airport in the list of monumental Third Reich buildings in Berlin. It was erected for the infamous 1936 Olympic Games, in which African-American track and field athlete Jesse Owens won four gold medals. Hitler refused to congratulate Owens, who has since been honored with a Berlin street, Jesse-Ownes-Allee and his name has been engraved into the side of the stadium with the other 1936 gold medal winners. The six stone pillars flanking the stadium were originally intended to signify the unity of the six “tribes” of ethnicities that Hitler believed fed into true German heritage. Recent uses have included the 2006 World Cup final. The independently operated Glockenturm (bell tower) provides a great lookout point and houses an exhibit on the history of German athletics. S5, S7, or U2: Olympia-Stadion. For Glockenturm, S5 or S7: Pichelsburg. €4, students €3. Tour with guide €8, students €7, children under 6 free. Open daily Mar 20-May 9am-7pm, June-Sept 15 9am-8pm, Sept 16-Oct 31 9am-7pm, Nov-Mar 19 9am-4pm.
Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirch (Memorial Church), Centre of the Breitscheidpl. This partially destroyed church was left standing after World War II as a reminder of the devastation of war. With gaping holes where the large circular stained glass used to fit, this is a moving testament to the price Germany paid. Part neo-Romanesque and Byzantine style, part war-ravaged, cracked colorful mosaics line the interior, which you can compare to a small exhibit that shows the church in happier days and horrific photos of the city in the wake of WWII. Across from Memorial Church stands the New Church, constructed in 1992 with a plain exterior and blue stained glass interior. On the Kurfürstendamm in the centre of the Breitscheidpl. Exhibit open M-Sa 10am-4pm. Church open daily 9am-7pm.
Zoologischer Garten, 8 Hardenberg Pl. (www.zoo-berlin.de), Germany's oldest zoo houses around 14,000 animals of 1500 species, most in open-air habitats connected by winding pathways under dense cover of trees and brush. While you're there, pay your respects to the world-famous polar bear u Knut, or he may go nuts. Originally deemed the cutest polar bear alive, Knut has been diagnosed by animal specialists as a psychopath addicted to human attention. Luckily, he's still pretty cute. U2 or U9: Zoological Garten, or S5, S7 or S75: Bahnhof Zoo. Main entrance is across from the Europa Center. €12, students €9, children €6. Combination to zoo and aquarium €18/14/9. Open daily from 9am-7pm (last entry 6pm). Animal houses open 9am-6pm.
Aquarium, Budapester Str. 32 (www.aquarium-berlin.de.), Within the walls of the zoo, but independently accessible, is an aquarium with three floors of fish, reptiles, amphibians and insects. Highlights include the pychadelic jellyfish and the slimey carp petting zoo. U2 or U9: Zoological Garten, or S5, S7 or S75: Bahnhof Zoo. €12, students €9, children €6. See above for aquarium-zoo combination tickets. Open daily 9am-6pm.
Beate Uhse Erotik Museum, Joachimstalerstr. 4 (www.erotikmuseum.de), The world's largest sex museum contains over 5,000 sex artifacts from around the world. Attracting a quarter of a million visitors per year, it is Berlin's fifth most popular tourist attraction.Visitors come to see erotica ranging from explicit carvings on a 17th century Italian deer-hunting knife to a 1955 calender featuring Marilyn Monroe in her birthday suit. A small exhibit describes the life of Beate Uhse, a pilot-turned-entrepeneur who started Europe's first and largest sex-shop chain, then decided to get historical about the whole thing and founded the museum. S5, S7 or S75: Bahnhof Zoo. €14 per person, €25 couples. €10 students with ID, or with WelcomeCard. Make it an orgy (€10 per person for groups of 10 and over), or bring grandpa (€10 seniors). Open daily 9am-midnight.