DW presenter Nicole Frölich was out on the town in Berlin to shoot the next edition of Discover Germany, DW's weekly travel show. She wanted to find out if Berlin is worth visiting in winter. Yes, it is!
Image: DW/N. Frölich
Advertisement
Sightseeing
Cold or not, some sights just can't be missed on any first-time visit to Berlin:
Brandenburg Gate: the symbol of Berlin
Berlin Cathedral: Berlin's biggest church
The Reichstag: seat of the German Bundestag
TV Tower: the visitors' platform offers a breathtaking view of the city
Museums
Museums are a staple of urban sightseeing!
Nicole was very impressed by T-Rex Tristan Otto in the Natural History MuseumImage: picture-alliance/dpa/B. Pedersen
The Museum Island is a sight in itself with a listing as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The Natural History Museum: A sensational new exhibit is thrilling visitors: the only Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton on display anywhere in Europe.
The Currywurst Museum: whimsical, delectable and typical for Berlin
Topography of Terror: an eye-opening, horrifying and informative exhibit on the crimes of the Nazi era
Shopping
Berlin is a shopper's paradise. Here are some of the best places to shop:
Pop Up Fashion in the Bikini House: Does the dress suit Nicole?Image: DW/L. Hofmann
Kurfürstendamm: Berlin's premier shopping boulevard
Bikini: a shopping center full of unusual little boutiques
Schlossstrasse: after Kurfürstendamm, it's one of Berlin's largest shopping boulevards
Mitte District: a big selection of little shops, from upcycling to high fashion
Food & Drink
Nothing helps fight the cold and damp like a layer of winter fat - easily and tastefully obtained in Berlin's vast selection of dining establishments. Increasingly popular is the vegan cuisine, to be found, among other places, here:
On the shoot Nicole tested vegan food and she liked it.Image: DW/V. Kern
Chipps: a vegetarian restaurant with many vegan dishes on the menu
The Bowl: This restaurant serves vegan dishes with organic ingredients, all of them prepared strictly according to the Clean Eating concept.
Viasko: a vegan restaurant with soya gyros and gluten-free dishes
Vöner: Berlin is known for its kebab. It can be found here in a vegan edition.
Activities
Swimming in the lake and playing beach volleyball are winter activities only for a very hardy few. More popular for the colder days are:
With snow:
Nicole's climbing attempts in the Magic Mountain gymImage: DW/K. Schmidt
Sledding down the Teufelsberg
Cross-country skiing on the Tempelhofer Feld
Without snow:
Climbing in the Magic Mountain Climbing Gym
Ice skating (there are several rinks around Berlin)
Nightlife
Berlin's nightlife is legendary, summer, winter, spring and fall. The colder outside, the hotter inside:
Chatting and chilling in the Mein Haus am See bar.Image: DW/L. Hofmann
Simon-Dach-Strasse in Friedrichshain: the place to go bar hopping without going long distances in the cold. Here it's one pub after the other.
Rosenthaler Platz in Mitte: Bars with and without dance floors are concentrated here, for example: Mein Haus am See.
Berghain: Berlin's most famous club for the fetish-oriented. Not everyone gets through the door.
The Pearl and Felix: these two clubs are the places to go to party down in style.
And action! Here's a personal peek behind the scenes by Nicole Frölich.
Making-of Discover Germany
And action! Nicole Frölich and her team hit the streets of Berlin to shoot the latest edition of Discover Germany. She had lots of adventures. Here’s a personal peek behind the scenes by Nicole.
Image: DW/K. Schmidt
The presenter
The presenter? Well, that’s me - the one in the photo wielding a pick! :-) Where am I? In the Natural History Museum. That was a fabulous location, perfect for selfie maniacs with an abundance of fascinating subjects: towering dinosaurs, panda bears, polar bears and other interesting creatures, some of which I'd never seen before.
Image: DW/K. Schmidt
The team
Without my team, nothing would get done! From left to right: producer and camerawoman Elisabeth Yorck von Wartenburg, assistent Lukas Hofmann, myself and, next to me, producer Kerstin Schmidt. We spent two days together shooting in Berlin.
Image: DW/L. Hofmann
The locations
Is Berlin worth visiting in winter? Yes, of course! There are lots of places where you can experience all kinds of things. Our suggestions and locations include: the Brandenburg Gate, the Magic Mountain gym, the Kurfürstendamm, the Bikini shopping center, the vegetarian Chipps Restaurant and the Mein Haus am See bar on Rosenthaler Platz.
Image: DW/L. Hofmann
The equipment
To shoot a TV show, of course, you need quite a range of equipment: tripods, cameras and microphones are just the beginning. We're constantly packing and unpacking the car. Some chaos is inevitable.
Image: DW/K. Schmidt
The interviewees
On my sojourns through Berlin, I met a number of people: these men from Egypt, for example, at the Brandenburg Gate. They had come to see Berlin and were just heading off to shop for souvenirs of Germany to take back to their relatives.
Image: DW/L. Hofmann
The climbing instructor
This show had me climbing the walls more than once. With help from climbing instructor Valentin Hansen, I tackled the wall and made it to the gym's ceiling several times - all nine meters! That definitely won't be my last time in the climbing gym.
Image: DW/K. Schmidt
Necessity is the mother of invention!
To get my own subjective view of my phenomenal climbing skills, we decided to shoot with a GoPro. The problem was, we didn't have any way to fix it to the helmet. So my camerawoman lent me her belt, and we taped it to my helmet easily and quickly. Problem solved!
Image: DW/K. Schmidt
Selfie alarm: ta daaa! My new outfit!
Berlin is an Eldorado for shopping individualists. We shot material in the Bikini-House's Pop Up Fashion Store. What do you think of my new outfit?
Image: DW/L. Hofmann
Always time to have fun!
Shooting can be lots of stress, but also fun! And I sincerely hope our viewers are pleased with the results!
