Kottbusser Tor

Another neighborhood in the former East Berlin. I'm told that the largest concentration of Turks out side of Turkey is in Germany, and that is focused in this neighborhood. It seems they were invited after world war 1 to help rebuild due to a lack of workers. The Turks have become part of Berlin to the point where döner kebab was created here and has become the fast food of the city. (And it's good, too!)
Kreuzberg is also famous for art and music. It is the punk center of Berlin, and the first picture includes SO36, the oldest punk club in Berlin frequented by well-known musicians such as Iggy Pop.
Berlin is known, too, for alternative housing. The 2nd picture is of the Bethanian. This was built as a hospital in the 1840s and continued in operation until about 1970. It survived world war 2 because it was both a hospital and an important way mark for allied bombers. After it closed, it became a squat house (occupied by squatters not paying rent). Today it's an art space focusing on current social and cultural issues.
The 3rd picture is another squat house, this one used by one of the groups that made up the Red Army Faction anarchist group.
The 4th picture is of a tree house built by a Turk using discarded materials. It is on the west side of the wall on East Berlin land. (It's a long story.) It overlooks the wall and the 5th picture. This is of a part of the former no man's land between east and west. Note the wooden playgrounds, a lovely reuse of land with an ugly history.
The last picture looks across at YAAM: Young African Art Market and club, beach bar, eateries, street art site and more. I had dinner at a place run by a Presbyterian from Ghana. To my friends in Lowell, there were lots of familiar flavors. I thought of you all.Read more