Since Jan 01, 2000: District Pankow
|
|
|
|
Besides diverse tram and bus lines, Prenzlauer Berg is above all connected to the public transport net by the underground U2 (alongside Schönhauser Allee) and by the ring train S41/42 and city train S8.
Further information:: TIC Berlin Prenzlauer Berg
Men and women of letters, cultural initiatives and students have shaped Prenzlauer Berg's image since the days of the GDR. The district was erected for the working class in the second half of the 19th century. Older buildings such as the water tower with its impressive outline looming above Kollwitzplatz and the "Prater" Biergarten on Kastanienallee (Berlin's oldest) still testify to days when Prenzlauer Berg was the perfect destination for a summer outing.
For the most part the previously restored tenements from the Imperial period remain a part of the cityscape. Countless pubs, lounge bars, cafés and galleries make for unrivalled nightlife; popular places to go out include Kastanienallee, Kollwitzplatz (home to the sculptor Käthe Kollwitz), Kulturbrauerei (an expansive brewery which has been transformed into a centre for culture and evening entertainment) and Helmholtzplatz.
Traces of Jewish culture can be found in the old synagogue on Rykestraße and in the cemetery on Schönhauser Allee where Max Liebermann and Giacomo Meyerbeer and others are interred. The beautiful square around Gethsemanekirche Protestant church was one of the nuclei of resistance in the GDR. The Max Schmeling Halle in Mauerpark was completed in 1996 to host athletic and cultural events as part of Berlin's campaign for the 2000 Olympics. In the district's southeast two more architecturally intriguing sporting venues were constructed: the velodrome ("Berlin Arena") and the new World Cup swimming and diving hall.