In the December 1995 issue of Gay Times travel writer Stuart Linden looked at the post-Wall Berlin of the 1990s and asked what had been lost and what had been gained in the reunification process. I had kept this article in my paper archive since then and decided to type it up and post it online as it offers today's readers/travellers a new insight into what those analogical times were like as compared to our smartphone-centered digital age.
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| Die Löwenbrücke im Tiergarten / The Lion Bridge at Tiergarten Park |
In the Stiller Don bar you can still find a huge painting of Lenin on the wall, although recently it's been moved from pride place into a dark corner , where it now gathers dust and a creeping nostalgia. Stiller Don is typical of the gay venues which you find in Berlin's former eastern sector. It's a small cafe bar with wooden furniture and low-hung, metal lampshades. On the pavement outside there are tables and chairs which become filled with men and women of all ages, deep in conversation. All of them quite happy to talk to a stranger, and share the secrets of where to find the best of gay Berlin. They are an intriguing, welcoming, un-westernised group of people.
For those into catching cultural change, there is perhaps no better time to visit Berlin. Six years after The Wall came down, the commercial differences between the west and east sectors of this city are quickly vanishing and, eventually, so too will the still-noticeable them and us differences in outlook. The former eastern sector houses one third of the gay scene and can still boast of a charm that is reminiscent of the gay scene in Prague, another former eastern block domain. Stiller Don is just one of the many gay bars that open at 6pm and close... well, when the last person goes home. In contrast, the western sector bars are more like other pink-packaged venues of the civilised world --specialised, interior-designed, efficient and, above all, predictable.
In the months that followed the removal of the wall, there was an initial two-way flurry of mixing between east and west. But unfortunately, whereas former east Germans are till keen to visit West Berlin bars, the former west Berliners are not so interested in the bars of the east now they have tried them out. With this one-way ticket in operation, it may only be a matter of time before the scene of the east is forced to conform with the styles of its wealthier neighbours.
According to gay folklore, the colourful history of Berlin alone sets it alongside other European "gay capitals" such as Amsterdam, Paris or London. Times may have changed, but Berlin is still a happening place. Since reunification, both the eastern and western parts of the city have once again started to blossom. Berlin is to be the administrative focus of all German life once more, with the country's Parliament relocating to the rebuilt Reichstag by the year 2000. Money is being invested in buildings and infrastructure and, with this, the population is bound to increase. Whilst no German truly expects Berlin to continue as the avant-garde gay Garden of Eden that it has been in the past, there is a renewed air of excitement and daring found on the gay scene. This is a city set on maintaining its liberal traditions and the unified Berlin now has over 50 gay and lesbian bars, clubs and restaurants --all eager to suit every taste, no matter how bizarre.
The main hope for east Berlin is that it retains an architectural heritage mostly lost in the west of the city. After the Second World War, the west Germans brought in architects to rebuild their share of the city, whereas in east Berlin, the Communists slowly restored the bomb-damaged buildings or left them as they were. The result is that there remains and old-fashioned air about the east which seems to be reflected in the attitudes of the people too. East Berliners still value the art of casual conversation and their bars rely less on loud music and noisy architecture and more on one-to-one conversation, although you are still likely to hear Boy George crooning away in the background. In the west sector bars, cruising tends to be faster, and people seem shallower.
Curiously, the reunified Berlin is now a city of not two but three distinct gay areas because the bars in the former west are themselves focused around two separate areas. Kreuzberg is the cheaper part, being alternative and almost hippy-like in decor and people. Here you will find the punks and the new bohemians of the gay scene, loitering in weird and wonderful places such as Cafe Anal (there are clear perspex partitions in the toilets, and flirtatious glances over chilled beers and frothy coffees are almost guaranteed). Bar Drama, a larger and very popular drinkers' bar, and Roses Club, a tiny bar to meet in and mellow the night away, both pull regular crowds which spill out onto the pavement on busy nights.
It is in this area that you will also find an excellent mixed restaurant. The Last Supper serves a splendid mixture of vegetarian and fish dishes, divine to eat and each with delightful names like Madonna Duet (or how about Der Koch Auf Saude Maso Trip?). For me, the whole experience was made complete by the background music which included Marlene Dietrich singing Lili Marlene, followed by Liza Minelli belting out highlights from Cabaret. As with everything else with Berlin however, food does not come cheap, and a meal for two with a bottle of wine will set you back £50 or more. But, without doubt, the busiest gay district of Berlin is Motzstrasse. After taking the underground to Nollendorfplatz, you will find yourself in the Berlin equivalent of Soho, and here you are bound to stumble across somewhere to suit your personal taste. A useful starting point is the Berlin Lesbian and Gay Centre, which includes both a cafe, Man o Meter, and a dropping centre where they supply an excellent gay map covering the whole city. The information service also includes help to find budget accommodation.
This area is also home to Tom's Bar, a strictly men-only haven. A loing narrow bar with two rooms on the ground floor leads to a very popular room in the basement, which appeared to be lacking in ventilation as everyone who came out was blinking with blinking and perspiring somewhat. Next door to Tom's, Hafen is a very similar bar which attracts a younger crowd, but again one popular with the leather and tattoo brigade.
If you are interested in a more modern vision of gay Berlin then, just across the road, Lentz is possibly the busiest cafe bar in the city, oozing with Calvin Klein-clad bous of all shapes and sizes. The music here is up-beat and loud, the waiters are even louder and the crowd is youngest and the loudest of them all. The atmosphere is reminiscent of London's Village Soho or ManchesterManto --great fun, but bar prices that can sting at around £4 for a beer.
In the Motzstrasse area, nobody hits the main gay bars much before 11pm because the clubs are open from midnight until 6am. But early evenings (and lunchtimes) can be spent in Cafe Bar Connection, a modern street cafe bar that makes excellent sandwiches too. The crowd is varied and, if you get there early enough, you can grab an outside table and get an eyeful of the kind of guys and gals you will be seeing later on in the clubs.
Curiously, Berlin's main gay disco is called Club Connection, although there is no connection between the two. Surprisingly, the place is only open on Friday and Saturday, probably because the scene is very weekend-oriented. Five quid gets you in and buys your first drink. Music-wise, Techno is currently big in Berlin, but dancing is awkward because the dance floors tend to be small and cramped. Only a quarter of Club Connection is given over to drinking and dancing, with the rest of the venue being more like a giant sex supermarket. There is a well-stocked shop selling all kinds of boy toys, two floors of cabins and video screens, and the cellar provides a variety of naughty rooms with some lovely soft leather swings in one and a smelly bath in another.
In the daytime, the best place to find gay life is at the (in)famous Tiergarten, Berlin's answer to Hyde Park. A huge section of the park is known to all as Queen's Meadow if only because, in summer at least, you seem to find the entire resident gay and lesbian population of Berlin here --nude sunbathing, playing volleyball and riding around the many secluded pathways and ponds on bicycles. Should you visit Berlin in warm weather, relaxing with a picnic in the Tiergarten is a must, if only to soak up the atmosphere of the gay space. Cruising is blatant in the park and goes on all day and night. Whilst daylight is safe enough, caution is advised at night. Walking to the park past the Zoo, for example, you see reminders of the seedier side of Berlin night life in the form of of used needles carelessly discarded amongst the (more welcome) used condoms.
For another daytime pursuits, Berlin offers space and an element of calm that is lacking in most other cities. The city is comparable in size to London yet has a considerable smaller resident population, which means less traffic and less stress. The public transport system is extensive and has won many awards in Europe for its design and reliability (although I found it particularly difficult to master the underground due to the lack of sign-posting in the stations, often fining myself heading in the wrong direction). A trip on the underground (U-Bahn) or trams (S-Bahn) will cost around £1.75. If you are as hopeless as I was, then just throw yourself in the back of a taxi, wave a map in the driver's face and he will magically transport you to your destination. The only flaw in this approach is the cost. Taxi drivers in Berlin are honest to the point where they will even knock money off your fare if they have taken a wrong turn or got lost, but a taxi still costs £2.50 just to sit in, and from the Brandenburg Gate to the Stiller Don bar will cost a stonking £12.
Other methods of transport include rickshaw taxis and riverboat cruises but, if serious sightseeing is your thing, then try catching the Bus 100, which will take you through the Brandenburg Gate and past the Tiergarten. You can hop on and off this bus at will to get a closer look at places such as the Reichstag and Unter den Linden. The walk from Juni 17te Strasse (where there's an excellent flea market on Sunday mornings) and the Victory Monument (as seen on the U2 video) to the Brandenburg Gate and on down Unter den Linden, is well worth the shoe leather for the architecture alone.
If you go looking for The Wall, Check Point Charlie or the remains of Hitler's Bunker, then disappointment is almost guaranteed, because [some of these landmarks] have been swept away by a country more keen to look forward than to dwell on its past. The Führer Bunker is actually buried under a children's playground (behind a record store at Wilhelmstrasse 92); the feeling is that to dig this up and open it to the public is more likely to create a place of pilgrimage for neo-fascists, than to simply remember an era of Berlin's history. There are plans to mark where the Berlin Wall once stood , but the city has other forward-looking priorities. One nod in the direction of history is the current rebuilding of the legendary Hotel Aldon to its original designs and on its original site, next to the Brandenburg Gate.
I was in Berlin for just four days which proved to be fine for a first visit, allowing ample time to sample both the former east and west of this huge city. There must, however, be many intriguing gay haunts here that I never had time to discover and, if you really want to get a feel for where Berlin has been or where it may be going, you would be wise to stay for at least a full week. After all, Berlin may soon be the gay capital of mainland Europe once again. (Gay Times, December 1995)
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