Prenzlauer Berg: Kollwitzplatz and the water tower

Stops along the way

Things to notice.

1. 01

   1

   Senefelderplatz (U2)

   Come up from the U2 and you're already in the *Kiez* — the close-grained neighbourhood that gives this walk its scale. Head north up Kollwitzstraße; the streets get prettier with every block.

   01

   Senefelderplatz (U2)

   Come up from the U2 and you're already in the *Kiez* — the close-grained neighbourhood that gives this walk its scale. Head north up Kollwitzstraße; the streets get prettier with every block.

   ◉Street View
2. 02

   2

   Kollwitzplatz

   The square at the centre of the restored east. The bronze Käthe Kollwitz sits on the green, after the printmaker who lived and worked nearby. On a Saturday the organic market fills the place; on any other day it's young families and good cafés. Go on the Saturday if you can — see the body note.

   02

   Kollwitzplatz

   The square at the centre of the restored east. The bronze Käthe Kollwitz sits on the green, after the printmaker who lived and worked nearby. On a Saturday the organic market fills the place; on any other day it's young families and good cafés. Go on the Saturday if you can — see the body note.

   ◉Street View
3. 03

   3

   Wasserturm (water tower)

   The round brick *Wasserturm* of 1877, Berlin's oldest, sits on its own grassed mound a block south-east. The SA used the basement as an early torture cell in 1933 — a quiet plaque marks it. Walk the ring of the mound; the tower is now flats.

   03

   Wasserturm (water tower)

   The round brick *Wasserturm* of 1877, Berlin's oldest, sits on its own grassed mound a block south-east. The SA used the basement as an early torture cell in 1933 — a quiet plaque marks it. Walk the ring of the mound; the tower is now flats.

   ◉Street View
4. 04

   4

   Husemannstraße

   The showpiece street — a full run of restored *Gründerzeit* tenement façades, stucco and balconies, done up for Berlin's 750th birthday in 1987 while the rest of the East crumbled. Walk it slowly and read it as theatre; that's what it was built to be.

   04

   Husemannstraße

   The showpiece street — a full run of restored *Gründerzeit* tenement façades, stucco and balconies, done up for Berlin's 750th birthday in 1987 while the rest of the East crumbled. Walk it slowly and read it as theatre; that's what it was built to be.

   ◉Street View
5. 05

   5

   Kulturbrauerei

   A whole block of yellow-and-red brick — the old Schultheiss brewery, now a courtyard culture complex of cinemas, a small museum of GDR everyday life, and a Sunday-ish food market in the *Höfe* (courtyards). Wander in; the courtyards are free and the brickwork is the draw.

   05

   Kulturbrauerei

   A whole block of yellow-and-red brick — the old Schultheiss brewery, now a courtyard culture complex of cinemas, a small museum of GDR everyday life, and a Sunday-ish food market in the *Höfe* (courtyards). Wander in; the courtyards are free and the brickwork is the draw.

   ◉Street View
6. 06

   6

   Gethsemanekirche

   The red-brick 1890s church where, in October 1989, vigils for political prisoners drew crowds the Stasi couldn't disperse — one of the rooms where the GDR ended. Step inside if a service or exhibition is on; otherwise the plaque outside tells it.

   06

   Gethsemanekirche

   The red-brick 1890s church where, in October 1989, vigils for political prisoners drew crowds the Stasi couldn't disperse — one of the rooms where the GDR ended. Step inside if a service or exhibition is on; otherwise the plaque outside tells it.

   ◉Street View
7. 07

   7

   Eberswalder Straße (U2)

   The walk lands back on the U2 viaduct, under the yellow trains. Currywurst from Konnopke's under the tracks if you want the local ending. One stop back to where you started.

   07

   Eberswalder Straße (U2)

   The walk lands back on the U2 viaduct, under the yellow trains. Currywurst from Konnopke's under the tracks if you want the local ending. One stop back to where you started.

   ◉Street View