Goodbye, Schöneberg!

For me, the beginning of 2010 meant finding my second work placement, and for us, that meant finding a new place to live. Job prospects outside of Berlin never really panned out, so we are staying in Berlin and decided to try out another part of town for a change of scenery. So, what better change of scenery than to pack our bags and move from the former West to the former East? Now that that change is final, here is my tribute to the historic Schöneberg neighborhood that hosted us for six months. (Warning: heavy on history, but I invite you to put on your nerd pants and walk with me just a few minutes.)

Every day I walked past this huge, hideous square concrete block at the end of our block on the way to work. Not so schön (pretty, great, nice): it's really an eyesore in our 'hood. I recently learned that it was an air raid shelter used during the Allied air raids in World War II and a NATO distribution center for supplies during the early Allied occupation afterwards. Apparently it was so well constructed, their best efforts couldn’t destroy it in the post-war years and they just decided to build that huge apartment block on top of it.

Next door to our apartment, I trudged across the lot where the former Berliner Sportpalast stood. Though a popular place for sporting events and concerts from 1910 until the 1970s, I only recently discovered that this is where Joseph Goebbels gave his eery Total War speech (actual speech begins around 2:05) in 1943.

This is the Kammergericht, in front of which Lauren and I spent many afternoons during the warmer months jogging and keeping fit (ok, really just Lauren). Apparently, we weren’t just sweating it out in front of some pretty building. This was where the Nazis “tried” some of the collaborators of the July 20 plot (think Valkyrie and von Stauffenburg). Later it became the site of the Allied Control Council, where the four Allied powers met to make post-war decisions about Germany and the Berlin Airlift was coordinated. Funny enough, after the Soviets stopped showing up in 1948 (effectively beginning the Cold War here), it’s said that the British, French, and Americans continued to observe a ritual pause and to leave seat empty in expectation of their Soviet colleague who never showed again - until 1990. The Allied withdrawal from Germany in the 1990s was in part finalized here (thus also effectively ending the Cold War here).

Just a couple blocks south from where we live is Schöneberg’s Rathaus (city hall), where John F. Kennedy gave his famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech. Inspiring speech, even though lots of people are still debating whether or not he said “I am a jelly donut.” (My fellow Schönebergers don’t seem interested in the debate, just the pastries.)

Lastly, who knew that the Brothers Grimm were buried a couple blocks away? A particularly relevant discovery for Lauren, who's been working her way through their fairy tales (auf Deutsch!).

Despite the great mix of people, the cozy cafes, and diverse restaurant scene (overshadowed by other more sexy sections of the city), I guess what I most enjoyed about our Schöneberg ‘hood (and what can probably be said of any part of Berlin) were the hidden nuggets of history that surrounded our everyday life and even composed the very stones on which we walked but only gradually revealed themselves. Though Schöneberg doesn’t have a Brandenburger Tor or a Reichstag, the continuous discovery of its “behind-the-scenes” history has made routine life schön and vivid at times. And for a history nerd like me (and you fellow nerds who are still reading), it’s been a true thrill. So thank you, Schöneberg.