CŒUR À CŒUR – Chapter I –
In his CŒUR À CŒUR column, Guido Brancher of GUID-O-BERLIN talks about Berlin places and happenings, in the process trying to understand and put them into a historical and time-critical context. As for the subject matter, we have given him carte blanche as we like his eclectic taste and the breath of his understanding.
Yet even Berlin is only great if you can regularly get away, so Guido will also be reporting on some of his trips.
Come along, Life is a journey!
Berlin, Berlin!
There is no other place on this planet so full of the evidence of history that took its start in the early 20th century as Berlin.
The city has lived every social utopia, every artistic movement, every catastrophe of modern times to the fullest, whether the apogee of the middle classes towards the end of the Kaiserreich, the absolute freedom and chaos of the Weimar Republic, or the stock market crash of 1929 that cleared the way for the Nazis. Not to forget the subsequent destruction of the city, its reconstruction under two confronting systems and finally the miracle of the peaceful revolution that led to the city’s renaissance. It is this renaissance that attracts the youth of the world to this day because it is still possible in Berlin to think and experiment freely.
The city bears the honors and scars of all these cataclysms and fights daily against normality and gentrification.
In our post-factual times, complete with access to the entire knowledge of mankind at the click of a mouse, we often lack the context to put such knowledge into place. Exchanges on social networks are seldom about facts, but just state opinions and personal observations.
Berlin shows us the facts. That’s why this city is more important than ever.
So, come to Berlin! See, experience, discuss, laugh, dance, shag!
Get enlightened by Berlin, and carry this light into the world!
The Header Photo is by the Chilean, Berlin-based Photographer Gabriela Souza
„I always try to portray places as people in a raw way and without make-up. I just immortalize that moment as it is. I love walking down the street and capturing what’s going on. I love the street as a scenario.“
*GUID-O-BERLIN creates memories. We offer a selection of personalised tours and encounters in and around Berlin, thereby helping you go off the beaten tourist track and explore other European cities too.