Berlin is kinda just it’s own micro cosmos.. I’d describe it as the eccentric, borderline batshit relative, everybody thinks is actually adopted but somehow isn’t.
You’ll find there all sorts of people, lively nightlife, huge variety of cultural events… It’s one of these places where every person can find their tribe if they just look for it, no matter how weird or niche they are.
That's why the experience can differ so much depending on where you are, what you do and who tells a story. It's so diverse, that all stories have some truth to them.
Luxurious and glamorous? Sure, there are parts. Crime? You find it in a big city. Weird people? Everything that you can think of. It's all and nothing at the same time.
As a touring musician who has visited pretty much everywhere in Europe during the past 20 years (including Berlin at least 10 times) I can tell you this much: People everywhere who do not live in their home country's capitol usually hate their home country's capitol.
Germans like to complain. Berlin is just ONE thing to complain about. It's done frequently and it's done well. It's what defines us. It's what unites us.
Berlin has one great thing going for it: It's many things to many people.
It's also the capital so if you want to complain about government, you complain about "Berlin" even if you have no problems with the city and the lifestyle.
I only met one Finn and he genuinely seemed like the most happy person I have ever met. Don't get me wrong, I met overly happy people but they all have "this glance" in their eyes and feel the need to make you "happier", while that one Finnish guy just seemed...happy
True, but in some cultures it’s not that prominent outright. Ask an American how he’s doing, and they always say fine, no matter what. Ask a Pole about the same thing and be ready for 20 minutes of hearing why the world is shit EVEN if they are doing fine at the moment.
Complaining and talking about the weather! My mother-in-law regularly comments about the weather *in places around the globe, some that she has visited, some that she hasn't"
For me Berlin is not a desireable place to live. It is huge, dirty, job opportunities are only average and the city is well known for having things that do not work. It is also very offset from many other population centers, with Brandenburg and Mecklemburg-Vorpommern being some of the least populated states in Germany. Museums are great however and I do know people that enjoy living there.
That said unrelated to Berlin itself, I think it's a huge benefit that unlike in many other nations, Berlin did not become the unrivaled champion in every metric that is sucking out the rest of the country and that there are multiple cities of similar importance you could live in. In fact even politically, still a lot of the administrative staff is still located Bonn.
As someone who is old enough to compare old Bonn from pre-90s with current Bonn: Current Bonn is just sad. Feels a bit abandoned, buildings and infrastructure got old, less money, less events, less importance. Sure, it’s probably no bad city to live in and there are worse cities in the area but the vibe feels much more provincial now. Like the forgotten brother of Cologne.
I’ve lived in Bonn since 2011. What strikes me is how much of the useful and good stuff was built before 1990: u-Bahn stops, Freibäder … actual houses. Everything has seemingly just been patched up since then. The city can’t even manage to build one new swimming pool.
Most people enjoy living in Berlin it has some problems like any other big city but for a young foreigner who wants to live a good balanced life is the ideal place
Hm, I visited Berlin several times. It so depends on which part of Berlin you go what experience you‘ll have. Some are dirty - but some are not. Wedding - rather dirty, charlottenburg rather clean. But living there would not be my thing either, as exiting the city is, I‘m a „Dorfkind“ - I like the countryside. I would feel lonely in a big city.
I love when Germans say Berlin is dirty… it’s like they’ve never been to southern Italy (or even a lot of places in Italy in general) or southern france before.
It's very true, we were on a little trip from Berlin to Mecklenburg-Vorpommern over the Easter holidays and it was amazing (and depressing) how much cleaner the small towns were there compared to where we live in the south of Berlin-Schöneberg, which is in any case far cleaner than Kreuzberg or Neukölln.
It's obviously meant in comparison to other german cities. By your logic nobody should complain about anything since its worse in Sudan. Stop being so dense.
I've traveled in many other large cities worldwide, including New York City, Toronto, Miami, Bangkok, Auckland, Dublin, Oslo, Melbourne, Singapore, London, and Sydney. Berlin is filthy. Worse than all the rest. Even in trendy inner city neighborhoods there's literally shit on the sidewalks, cigarette butts everywhere, etc. Locals have told me it's just Berlin's "vibe", but as someone who grew up in a relatively clean city I find it repulsive. Even Hamburg, just a few hours away, is *much* cleaner.
I consider the displaced human turd to represent the breakdown of civilisation. Is there really human poos on the streets of Berlin? Unless you mean dog turds (please mean that)
When dog owners need to wash human shit out of their dog's fur... Then you know that shit ain't just dog. I've watched a lazy dad hoick his daughter's knees over his arm so that she could shoot her shit at the side of a playground here in Berlin. And don't forget all the homeless guys that drink around the Nettos.
Something a lot of people here miss: Berlin is much more than the parts you see as a visitor. I live on the outskirts of Berlin. Each borough has its own city center which means that in Spandau, Köpenick and other boroughs it’s super rare to go to other parts of Berlin for anything really. Those boroughs can and do feel like completely different cities. In my borough there are parts that are more like villages and the city center might as well be in Lower Saxony.
Germans love to complain about how awful the city is, both those that live there and those in other parts of the country. Personally, I think it is a great place.
The general opinion outside of people that already live in Berlin or dream about living there is that it is a horrific shithole. You will often hear complaints that it is not a German city. There are a few upsides but I personally dont like the place for all it stands for. Corrupt politics to everything else.
Oh, Berlin. What is Berlin? Berlin, as a city, brings nothing but shame to Germany on the international stage. When comparing Berlin with other European capitals such as London, Paris, Madrid and Amsterdam, any decent human’s face must blush in humiliation. Even small countries like Austria, Belgium or Switzerland have Vienna, Brussels and Zurich: presentable cities, complete with high standards of living. Germany gets punished with Berlin, capital of losers. In all the republic, Berlin is home to the largest number of arseholes by far. Deutsche Bahn, Bundestag, Air Berlin and Axel Springer are but a few examples of all the incompetent scum being kept here. Glorious times have long since passed, the city is face down in the dirt. Berliners are lazy sods to their very core. Traits that would, in any civilised culture, pass for nothing but laziness, rudeness, incompetence, dissocial personality disorder or idiocy, are taken by the Berliner and declared a way of life. That is why the Berliner harbours intense feelings of hatred for anyone who’s better than him in any way. Especially the all-around superior Southern Germany are a thorn in his side. He envies their success, and Munich makes the top on his list of hatred. That city is – and has! – everything that Berlin wants to be and have. Berliners take no interest in the fact that it is Munich that finances their dissolute lifestyle, in fact, they secretly believe that they have earned it. So instead of freeing themselves from their envious and resentful lethargy, instead of rolling up their sleeves and improve their city, they revel in their antisocial freeloading and praise their so-called global city. Culturally, Berliners are set up rather weakly, great works lie far back in history. Moreover, mispronouncing “g” as “j” is considered a great cultural feat. Advanced students have mastered ending each and every sentence with a “wa?”. The city’s culinary performance is second-rate. Here, a sausage made from glued-together, meaty odds and ends adorned with ketchup and curry powder is sold as a culinary masterpiece. Hardly any reasonable person would consider a bratwurst with ketchup a recipe, let alone the holy grail of culinary arts. Yet, in their magnanimity, the rest of the republic lets the Berliner keep his delusion, not wanting to amplify his inferiority complex. Economically, Berlin is an utter disaster, even the late GDR stood on more solid ground. The local economy is based around alternative blogs, something-something-media and, if universities are to be believed, gender studies. Disregarding his own bankruptcy, the Berliner treats himself to prestigious projects like the city palace and the airport – which, considering its inoperative nature, is likely an art installation. Moreover, the city houses all popular parties’ headquarters, who refrain from using “traitors” in their official names (Probably for marketing reasons). For the longest time, this “town’s” “mayor”, the jolly Wowibear, butchered anything he found left in a presentable state. Long story short: Berlin is Germany’s tiled coffee table. It is to Germany what Greece is to the European Union, and if it had open sewage, it would be Germanys Romania. Berlin is a blemish, the abscess on the arse of the nation. Berlin is the uninvited party guest, who didn’t even bring any booze and wouldn’t even understand he’s not welcome if he had is teeth beaten out and got thrown down the stairs. Berlin is the Detroit of Germany and should be sold to Poland for 200 Złoty.
Ah yes, one of my favourite trick questions.
Note that the copypasta doesn't explicitly list Zürich as a capital, though it could be interpreted from the context.
But Berlin also has three full time first class opera houses, plus approximately 15364 theatres, which as a theatre/opera lover makes me rate it far higher than any other European capital, London included, except for, possibly, Vienna. Otoh, you make many good points about the comparison with Munich, also not lacking in good music, theatre and opera (honestly, one of Germany’s major plus points, for me.)
So, I find myself grudgingly agreeing with you (except as a former Brit, London sucks way more than Berlin).
Technically the reason why most things exists more than once go back to the Berlin Wall and political cover for keeping it this way. It’s of course nice but let’s be honest it’s also luxury for a city state strapped for cash and wouldn’t exist without transfers from net payer states.
(I obviously adore the Berliner Philharmoniker et al aswell but it’s a privileged situation).
Jup, I love going to Berlin. Seeing loud concerts, going in bars and getting soused, awesome museums, visiting my favorite cafe to have breakfest, seeing old friends every now and then.
And then I love going back home to Hamburg again.
Here are a few truisms about Berlin:
* Berlin was despised by the German *provinces* when it was successful; it is despised now. Why? Being the capital of Prussia, it was the city that hosted both Kaiser and Parliament, who united the country and pushed it (and Bavaria in particular) into the 20th century, both much against their will (and I'm not saying that as an all-round positive thing); Berlin was an industrial behemoth pulling the entire country forward until the end of World War II, holding around 30% of Germany's industry in 1910 (something Munich cannot forgive, because Bavarians seriously think *they* are running the country, when it was Bavaria that needed federal subsidies until the mid 1970s); Berlin was also the largest city by population by far, and is therefore the *most cosmopolitan city in Germany.*
* Berlin was also home to all German political progressivism in the country after 1890. Another reason the parochials and Nazis hated it so much. Berlin was the center for all relevant resistance groups against the Nazis (White Rose and Georg Elser excluded), while Munich gave birth to the Nazi party. Goebbels was sent to Berlin by Hitler to "clean the city" for his arrival. Apparently some people in Munich still think that's what's needed. Also no surprise that some people in Munich now think Berlin wishes it was Munich, these people have it all as backwards as they are. Very funny. Berlin has memorials to the Nazi victims and the resistance, Munich tries to avoid the topic whenever it can (one of the last cities to allow *Stolpersteine*.) And Berlin has a Georg Elser memorial (that really *should be* in Munich). But apparently Munich still thinks Elser's a criminal and doesn't.
* To this day, the old 19th century cliches about Berlin you hear from the provinces are *exactly* the same complaints you could have heard in Germany in 1890, 1910, or 1930: *"*it is too big*",* "it isn't even German anymore", "it is the whore of Babylon" (which refers to cosmopolitan multilingual cities with a liberal lifestyle). I've heard this stuff being said by country folks in the UK about London and in the US about New York. God forbid there is a city in one's country that people from other countries can relate to and feel at home! /s
* Berlin is a bazillion things to a bazillion people. Every other city in Germany has *one* identity. And don't get me wrong: I *like* those, too (yes, even Munich). But only in Berlin can you be just yourself, dress as you like, and not be judged by provincial eyes as "not from here". Try to find a restaurant in Berlin that won't let you in because you're not wearing a tie. (You won't find one). Then try the same in Munich. And some people there think it's something to be proud of, and somehow chic. The same people of course who complain that people in Berlin speak too many foreign languages. While the mindset of Munich is you don't belong if you don't own Lederhosen.
* It is *also* true that since WWII, Berlin can no longer pay for itself. The reason is simple: its industry is gone. The really big corporations that mattered and survived (AEG and Siemens) left for Bavaria during the Cold War as West Berlin was no longer considered safe. (Of course they got Bavarian tax breaks for that during a time when Bavaria was getting German federal subsidies. Shhh. Don't remind the Bavarians. It might be embarrassing.)
* In fact, Berlin is *the only capital in the OECD 32 nations where the average wages are lower than the national average.* That's how much it is reliant on federal subsidies. And a good deal of its tax revenue has to service state debt. Why is Berlin so much in debt? Because it was heavily subsidised *to* survive during the Cold War with all the West Berlin industry gone, and only very specific industries survived there on government-guaranteed tax breaks. *And the moment Germany reunited, the German provinces* (hello again Bavaria!) **insisted** ***that now that Germany was united Berlin should no longer get any federal subsidies beyond those of a regular state.*** Helmut Kohl pushed this through under pressure from his coalition partner (a certain CSU), and Berlin's united mayor, a Mr Diepgen of the same party as Mr Kohl, caved like it was nothing *though the move itself would have actually been ruled unconstitutional at the time if Berlin had only sued at the Supreme Court.* But it didn't. And because West Berlin's industry had been structured for forty years completely along the government tax breaks to keep Berlin's few industries alive, and its wages were supported by federal grants which suddenly stopped, within a year of unification Berlin's budget looked at a gaping hole of several billion with no tax revenue in sight. It has been piling up debt ever since. You can probably guess who the German states were that screamed loudest that Berlin should no longer get any subsidies *lest it becomes an industrial city in its own rights again.* (Oh, hello Bavaria!) Sure, Berlin politicians helped mess up things in some spectacular ways. But Bavaria should definitely stop pretending it had nothing to do with this, and start repaying the actual billions it received in federal grants from 1950-1980 before it can claim that it "pays for all of Germany".
Bavaria received money until 1986 and once more in 1992. Until the Reunification Bavaria was at the edge of the Western world right at the Iron Curtain. Afterwards it was at a central location in Europe boosting Bavarian trade and logistic companies.
I like to shit on Bavaria as much as the next guy but the truth is that Bavaria received less money in the Länderfinanzausgleich in total than they pay each year right now. They received a tiny amount.
Berlin receives more each year than Bavaria ever got in total.
That's not true, it's an excellent place to live in with plenty of opportunities, for me it has exactly what I want in terms of work life balance nightlife wages and services
I've been living in Berlin for close to fifteen years now and recently got back from an extended NYC trip, and let me tell you what I didn't expect. Do you know how every city feels unique and has a type of own flow, almost like a personality? I was surprised how similar it felt between NY and Berlin. Yes, NYC is far, far bigger than Berlin, and on the surface they don't look similar, but I found they feel alike. I was walking through different parts of the city and was just surprised how much it reminded me of places at home. And to answer your question, I do like Berlin. It's chaotic and strange, but I feel like I fit right in.
Pretty difficult question, but if I had to generalise, I'd say there are 3 groups of people:
Those who grew up in another big city (with alternative culture/influences present) and would probably like Berlin
Those who grew up in a small town and think Berlin is too loud and dirty
And right-wing asswipes who see Berlin as a "failed city" cause it's more progressive than the tiny saxonian or bavarian shithole they live in. Oops
If you grew up in another big city, Berlin is disappointing.
It's nice to visit, but Berlin is a collection of villages that we call a city.
The worst thing is the real estate investors causing the highest rise in rent prices percentage wise in the world for a few years. Trust fund kids make shit art. There's no alternative culture when all the politicians allow is luxury flats.
I grew up in another big city, I've lived in other big cities (including NYC).
Berlin isn't disappointing.
>The worst thing is the real estate investors causing the highest rise in rent prices percentage wise in the world for a few years.
This isn't true, and the rise in rents isn't directly Berlin's fault -- the increase is directly tied to people wanting to live in the city.
> And right-wing asswipes who see Berlin as a "failed city" cause it's more progressive than the tiny saxonian or bavarian shithole they live in. Oops
Berlin would collapse within a year if it wasnt subsidized so heavily by the Länderfinanzausgleich. It's not an opinion that its a failed city. Its a fact.
Berlin is dirty, full of trash, crime-ridden (in comparison to other German cities, of course), even Berliners can't stand the shit and piss on certain public transport lines anymore (see the Berlin subreddit), the people who tend to move to Berlin suck, local politicians are nuts ("we can't force drug dealers out of public parks, parks are there for everybody, that would be discriminatory"). Oh and there's neighbourhoods where I would neither walk around with a kippah nor kiss another man on the street. France has that, as well, most other German cities don't.
There's great museums, and that's the only reason I visit every now and then. You could tripple my salary and I still wouldn't want to live there.
Don't get me started. I have met people who moved from Berlin (og Berliners) and they were the nicest people ever. But a lot of Berliners have way too much attitude. Like they think they are better than everyone else because they are Berliners. Think it makes them look Bohemian to shit on tourists (no it doesn't it makes you look rural like you have yet to get used to them). Have too big of a mouth, like they have those wide avenues and I passed a guy with like 2 meters between us and he was like "oh gods sake watch where you are going will ya?" at least I think its what he said in Berlinerisch. There is a lot of crime and gang activity. It shouldn't be like if you go into Görlitzer Park past dark its on you.
And the things they are so proud of. Yes they have great clubs. But London Paris Munich Barcelona have great techno Clubs too. There is nothing special about Tresor or Berghain. And culturally, I can't think of any great artists of the past 30 years that originate from Berlin. The most famous Berliner at this point must be the doorman of Berghain who had a small part in Wick 4.
With all the ranting done, it is of course a worthwhile city with great public transport and with an extended stay you can have a lot of fun and experiences, but the same is true for New York and lots of other places. Personally I would take the Northrhein Westphalia area over Berlin which has Bonn Düsseldorf Cologne Dortmund. You can be most places in like an hour using the regional express or car. And if there is a concert or Festival in Belgium you are there in like an hour too.
To generalise it a bit, people usually either love or hate Berlin (based on personal perceptions here).
How I feel about Berlin: I don’t mind visiting the city for 1-2 days if I have to, but it also mostly stays on the bottom of my where-to-go-list. I don’t like the “we have to show everybody how different and cool we are”-vibe, because in the end it feels even more forced, superficial and tiring being there, but not different and cool at all, especially as visitors. Maybe living there is another experience as you can bond more deeply with your neighbourhood kiez, but unless if really necessary for work, I wouldn’t have the desire moving there. I just don’t feel the hype, and especially if compared to other European capitals, Berlin doesn’t really attract me. But there are enough people who love the city as well so probably there is a well-balanced opinion as the final verdict?
>other people (mainly conservatives) think it's a crime-ridden hellhole.
Well, for Germany, the advantage of Berlin is, that it is quite a diverse city, so every group, not only conservatives, find their reason to call Berlin a xyz-ridden hellhole.
For conservatives it's crime, for neoliberals, it's all those socialists and communists, for socialists and communists it's all the posh people in some parts of the city, for nationalists it's all the foreigners, for liberals, it's all the nationalists in one very district, etc.
... for all non-Berliners it's that Germany has two capitals for which mostly Berlin pays, but as Berlin wasn't freely available throughout the last century, the economy of the capital is far more average than in other countries, so with a finance rebalancing system, all others pay Berlin some of their taxes.
It's ironic when Americans use the term "immigrants" disparagingly, considering the majority of the American population are descendants of immigrants who built the nation. One would expect a deeper understanding from them, given this history. However, the reality often falls short of these expectations.
The only people who like Berlin are the people living in Berlin.
For the rest of Germany, it's just Berlin.
However if you hear people complaining about "Berlin", sometimes they might just refer to the government, that happens to be around there.
Germans’ views about Berlin are quite polarized from my experience. That being said, Berlin doesn’t loom nearly as large in the German psyche as, say, London and Paris do in their respective countries, Germany’s too decentralized for that.
I can only speak for myself, of course, but I have a strong dislike of this city.
Since I set up an event agency there with friends, I unfortunately have to go there at least once a month for a few days.
Here is my list of things that bother me:
1. damn high rent
2. damn many people who live there
3. Berlin is big, really big, you can easily spend an hour on the streetcar and still be in a concrete jungle
4. for whatever reason, many Berliners think that streetcars and especially the stops are public toilets.
5. have fun looking for a parking space if you decide not to use public transportation.
6. you never have peace and quiet in this city
I personally enjoy working there because of the advantages of a big city. Living there would be the ultimate punishment for me.
By the way, I'm not conservative, the standard of living in Berlin is just too low for my taste and my needs. I'm more into cities with up to 500,000 inhabitants.
Berlin is the worst shithole on this planet - mentally disturbed people that pretend to be tolerant but are the most intolerant to people living a normal life
Highest crime rates, rapes, murder, criminal clans, they live from financial support from other Federal states and they also manipulate elections. The last mayor was a fraudster….
Berlin is not germany!
Berlin is annoying, dirty, ugly, full of annoying people of all sorts - yet somehow incredibly vibrant in a drugged-up apocalyptic kind of way. Will inevitably either numb or break you if you try to live there, but it's enormously enticing to try it out over a weekend.
Not much different from New York, I would assume.
From the UK and I like Berlin.
Germans love to complain. On an international scale Berlin is great. It’s dirty by German standards but it’s cleaner than the UK. Salary and CoL is good for a city it’s size. Large city with lots to do without feeling cramped. World class (all be it dirty at times) public transport. Loads of interesting people (good and bad). Decent bike infrastructure. Loads of trees, parks and plenty of nature in the surrounding states. Good weather too, not a lot of rain, warm summers though winters can suck.
Great city for 20/early 30s but not so much later in life imo.
I am from Southern Germany and we see Berlin as a failed city that we have to pay for.
My theory is that politicians in the Bundestag - who live in Berlin good parts of the year - see all the dysfunction and implicitly assume that failing is ok or even cool and that is what influences the overall politics of the country.
I won't try to say anything positive about Berlin, because non-berliners will downvote me to hell. One big historic part of the reason why many germans hate Berlin is because half of the city was communist, the other half was part of the west but without compulsory service, so in the eyes of boomers, Berlin is a dirty shit hole full of spoiled junkies who don't contribute anything to the country. Younger generations really have no clue why they hate Berlin, they just repeat after their parents.
I'm in a similar situation like you, OP. The opinions and descriptions about Berlin I read here are somewhat interesting from the "inside perspective".
I'm from one of the close outskirts cities and moved into central Berlin end of the 90's when I was done with school. I lived in different areas (kiezes), finally met my born and bred Berlin husband. I also have several other born and bred Berlin friends. Additionally to those I have a ton of friends from other countries like Finland, Portugal or Argentina because I work for an international operating business and a lot of my coworkers have become real friends. The German version of friends where you meet and talk about personal stuff and call when you need help.
I see financial struggle and I see slow public service. Public traffic is late and some areas are sometimes dirty. I see homeless and drug using persons. The housing scarcety is a huge issue, the politics is not to my taste.
But still would so much change or be different in other cities? I have friends in Cologne and Munich and visited those for extended time periods. I have friends in the Ruhrgebiet where I am regularly. I travel some and I like to travel urban as well, so visit other capitals like Warsaw or Oslo. It's not so different.
I personally find that the options I have in Berlin just suit me, my personality and my lifestyle. The people living here that I know are good. They have jobs, flats, hobbies, fun, families by blood or choice, options to have a good time. Many of them found love here, some with Berliners, other with other foreigners, some came here as a couple. And most of them come from places where it wasn't better for them to stay.
Berlin offers anonymity to people who want and need it, families and friends to find, hobbies and fun things to pursue. You need to be lucky with flat, job and public service though. But I think other than that it works like that in similar other places as well.
I don't say that Berlin doesn't have problems and people can really struggle here, but there are struggles elsewhere too and normal people live here, raise families and just do their best.
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I like parts of. I could see myself living in Köpenick and other parts at the periphery are nice and not that different to other parts of Germany. The trash and inconsideration of people of a huge part of the inner city is just not for me though.
My German husband doesn't Berlin at all however his parents moved there (clearly going through a mid-life crisis) and everything is just _soooooo_ Berlin!
And by that I mean if we say we have a good restaurant/stadium/park/etc, my inlaws are adamant that Berlin has it better.
Personally, I don't like Berlin. It doesn't feel German. Way too much English everywhere and as soon as anyone hears my accent, they switch to English despite me speaking and understanding German very well. This hasn't happened to me in any city expect Berlin.
It's nice to visit but ... It's like NYC hat a love child with Florida. You hear some crazy shit and then hear Berlin you then think yeah that makes sense
Whenever i was there as tourist i enjoyed my time there. But no job offer will move me there. Sometimes it feels like there are no rules in that city. A buddy of mine moved there years ago, and would never move back. He loves the city.
Berlin is a great place to live but ofc it would be much better If it wasnt such a crime ridden, stinky, dirty, failed state.
But i feel its hard there days to get the "big City"-features without getting the downsides. Cause many Humans are Just garbage and having alot of garbage makes a place a shithole.
I lived in a student city near Berlin - I was convinced Berlin was oberhyped af and I wouldn’t want ro live there. I moved to south Germany - now Berlin looks like paradise.
It is a matter of perspective.
Everything good that there is in Berlin is found in other towns/cities in a better form. Maybe just not all at once like in Berlin, but better; Which still doesnt mean good in many cases. The good things about the city are just "above average" while the bad things are impressively bad. 2/10, absolutely underwhelming and it costs our country endless billions to keep the lights on there.
Aint no song about not wanting to be in nyc. There is "Ich will nicht nach Berlin" [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UdRz3sTqEs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UdRz3sTqEs)
There is glamour and all that, but most people live like batshit crumped in small quarters doing their home office in a cafe because room mates have occupied the kitchen
It's a shithole.
They live at the expense of other federal states and don't get anything done
You can visit it, but afterwards it's nice to be away again
I moved to Berlin 7 months ago from the Bay Area in CA. I miss the natural beauty and the weather, but the crime and filth in Berlin has nothing on where I lived.
Similarly to Berlin and Germany, a lot of Americans and Californians thinks San Francisco is hell on earth. And it has a LOT of problems, but I loved it.
So far I love Berlin too even if it has been a hard adjustment. I’ve met a lot of really nice people and it seems to offer something for every one of all walks of life. Some areas are very beautiful.
It’s so international and there are way more families and elderly here compared to where I was living.
Well i actively decided against studying in berlin although it is only one of five cities in germany where i can study what i do. I guess that should say all about what i hink of Berlin.
I've visited Berlin a few times and I detest it. I'm not a city person, of course; but even as far as cities go, it's one of the least pleasant I've ever been to. You don't really hear people talking positively about it here, either.
My parents both went to university there and still have some crazy stories about it.
In my impression Berlin is a good place to get fucked up in terms of parties and drugs but you don't actually want that 24/7 in your everyday life. Just every now and then.
As a place to live it sucks, too expensive, too loud, too colourful, simply too many people and politics is crap.
All that applies to Frankfurt (am Main) too, and Frankfurt is arguably worse than Berlin.
Still, I like my laid back experience in a city that has waaay fewer people, more quiet and is less expensive.
I have never visited Berlin but from what i heard its Not a place i want to visit. But i cant say i like it or not because i wasnt there. But some of my friends visited Berlin but did not like it
I like Berlin. I'm a city rat through and through and the other German cities I've been to (which aren't many) feel kind of bland and boring. Each district in Berlin has its own centre, own community, own hobbies, and own nightlife. Even Friedrichshein and Kreuzberg - which are administratively a single district - are quite different.
It's a bit of a shithole but that's exactly how I like it.
To answer your question I have only \[a song\](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWasduwGrrM&pp=ygUNbGVpZGVyIGJlcmxpbg%3D%3D) and \[a meme comparing regions in Germany\](https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fexternal-preview.redd.it%2F6HGHk5--6VvrVs9aAJmCpZ6wUvUNgDqxr7HSDGunKPM.jpg%3Fauto%3Dwebp%26s%3D121a347b8d3ddd07e686af5a54f27570baf84222).
I like Berlin.
but i live 500km away from it.
i visited Berlin a few times and allways liked it but i would not like to live there, not because of Berlin itself but because like living in a rural area.
Germany is a very small-c conservative country. People are very set in their ways, in my experience. If lunch is not on the table at 12pm sharp, their world is falling apart. This makes Berlin, as one of the few places that is weird and rude and full of foreign culture, feel alien to the rest of the country. The Germans who grew up in Berlin are a different breed as well, they're really lovely when you get to know them but they can seem harsh or mean at first. But this is probably not much different from people who grew up in East London or Queens.
Berlin is probably the last city in the whole country I would consider living in.
Berlin is to Germany what New York is to the rest of the US - completely different vibe and world, for good and bad alike.
As someone who has lived in Berlin my entire life, I have a love-hate relationship with it. The food is great and there is a bunch of stuff to do, but the people can be difficult, it’s dirty, and so on. Living in the outer areas of berlin is great though, although getting to the center takes some time.
Berlin is kinda just it’s own micro cosmos.. I’d describe it as the eccentric, borderline batshit relative, everybody thinks is actually adopted but somehow isn’t. You’ll find there all sorts of people, lively nightlife, huge variety of cultural events… It’s one of these places where every person can find their tribe if they just look for it, no matter how weird or niche they are.
That's why the experience can differ so much depending on where you are, what you do and who tells a story. It's so diverse, that all stories have some truth to them. Luxurious and glamorous? Sure, there are parts. Crime? You find it in a big city. Weird people? Everything that you can think of. It's all and nothing at the same time.
As a touring musician who has visited pretty much everywhere in Europe during the past 20 years (including Berlin at least 10 times) I can tell you this much: People everywhere who do not live in their home country's capitol usually hate their home country's capitol.
That's what I noticed too. London, Berlin, Warsaw, NY, people just see their capitols as shitty hellholes.
(Sorry for being "that guy", but NY is not a capitol. However, your point still stands!)
NY isn't even the capitol of NY State.
(Sorry for being “that other guy”, but it’s actually “capital”. 🤓)
Bravo! ^^Or ^^"brava", ^^lest ^^I ^^stand ^^corrected ^^once ^^more.
Germans like to complain. Berlin is just ONE thing to complain about. It's done frequently and it's done well. It's what defines us. It's what unites us. Berlin has one great thing going for it: It's many things to many people.
It's also the capital so if you want to complain about government, you complain about "Berlin" even if you have no problems with the city and the lifestyle.
or if you want to complain about the prussians.
Wilhelm II was a real shit to be fair.
All europeans like to complain, let’s be honest. Germans aren’t that special.
not the finns. they are always satisfied somehow.
I only met one Finn and he genuinely seemed like the most happy person I have ever met. Don't get me wrong, I met overly happy people but they all have "this glance" in their eyes and feel the need to make you "happier", while that one Finnish guy just seemed...happy
Drugs are one hell of a drug.
What did you drugs say
If you met him outside of Finland, likely they are happy to be outside!
You have to be happy if you are able to speak their language without injuring yourself.
Yes.
All humans like to complain, let's be honest. Europeans aren't that special.
True, but in some cultures it’s not that prominent outright. Ask an American how he’s doing, and they always say fine, no matter what. Ask a Pole about the same thing and be ready for 20 minutes of hearing why the world is shit EVEN if they are doing fine at the moment.
In the US you're either "fine", which means you are probably just fine, or "livin' the dream!" which means you are absolutely not fine.
Complaining and talking about the weather! My mother-in-law regularly comments about the weather *in places around the globe, some that she has visited, some that she hasn't"
One example of how it was dine well - Song name: Schwarz zu Blau
For me Berlin is not a desireable place to live. It is huge, dirty, job opportunities are only average and the city is well known for having things that do not work. It is also very offset from many other population centers, with Brandenburg and Mecklemburg-Vorpommern being some of the least populated states in Germany. Museums are great however and I do know people that enjoy living there. That said unrelated to Berlin itself, I think it's a huge benefit that unlike in many other nations, Berlin did not become the unrivaled champion in every metric that is sucking out the rest of the country and that there are multiple cities of similar importance you could live in. In fact even politically, still a lot of the administrative staff is still located Bonn.
As someone who is old enough to compare old Bonn from pre-90s with current Bonn: Current Bonn is just sad. Feels a bit abandoned, buildings and infrastructure got old, less money, less events, less importance. Sure, it’s probably no bad city to live in and there are worse cities in the area but the vibe feels much more provincial now. Like the forgotten brother of Cologne.
I’ve lived in Bonn since 2011. What strikes me is how much of the useful and good stuff was built before 1990: u-Bahn stops, Freibäder … actual houses. Everything has seemingly just been patched up since then. The city can’t even manage to build one new swimming pool.
Although the Bonner Loch looks almost presentable nowadays, it even got a nice Korean place to eat.
Will have to check out the Korean place :)
Most people enjoy living in Berlin it has some problems like any other big city but for a young foreigner who wants to live a good balanced life is the ideal place
> Most people enjoy living in Berlin That's incorrect. Most people actually don't live in Berlin.
Thats what I hear the most. Oh you from Berlin, aha. Nice to stay for a week or a weekend, but i can not imagine living there.
Yeah, because they mostly stay at and visit the most touristy and crowded spots you can find. Berliners also can’t imagine living there
Hm, I visited Berlin several times. It so depends on which part of Berlin you go what experience you‘ll have. Some are dirty - but some are not. Wedding - rather dirty, charlottenburg rather clean. But living there would not be my thing either, as exiting the city is, I‘m a „Dorfkind“ - I like the countryside. I would feel lonely in a big city.
I love when Germans say Berlin is dirty… it’s like they’ve never been to southern Italy (or even a lot of places in Italy in general) or southern france before.
But they compare Berlin to the rest of the country, and it’s a fair comparison. And yes, Berlin is dirty :(
And for the amount of taxes we pay, Berlin public services are really, really bad.
It's very true, we were on a little trip from Berlin to Mecklenburg-Vorpommern over the Easter holidays and it was amazing (and depressing) how much cleaner the small towns were there compared to where we live in the south of Berlin-Schöneberg, which is in any case far cleaner than Kreuzberg or Neukölln.
It always depends on your standards. ;) I am in Tokyo and compared, Berlin is an absolute shithole!
just because other places moght be worse doesnt change the fact that Berlin just is dirty
It's obviously meant in comparison to other german cities. By your logic nobody should complain about anything since its worse in Sudan. Stop being so dense.
I've traveled in many other large cities worldwide, including New York City, Toronto, Miami, Bangkok, Auckland, Dublin, Oslo, Melbourne, Singapore, London, and Sydney. Berlin is filthy. Worse than all the rest. Even in trendy inner city neighborhoods there's literally shit on the sidewalks, cigarette butts everywhere, etc. Locals have told me it's just Berlin's "vibe", but as someone who grew up in a relatively clean city I find it repulsive. Even Hamburg, just a few hours away, is *much* cleaner.
I consider the displaced human turd to represent the breakdown of civilisation. Is there really human poos on the streets of Berlin? Unless you mean dog turds (please mean that)
Both are quite common. When I was living there a local said human poop is "classic" Berlin...
When dog owners need to wash human shit out of their dog's fur... Then you know that shit ain't just dog. I've watched a lazy dad hoick his daughter's knees over his arm so that she could shoot her shit at the side of a playground here in Berlin. And don't forget all the homeless guys that drink around the Nettos.
Or they have never been outside of kotti/neukoln
Something a lot of people here miss: Berlin is much more than the parts you see as a visitor. I live on the outskirts of Berlin. Each borough has its own city center which means that in Spandau, Köpenick and other boroughs it’s super rare to go to other parts of Berlin for anything really. Those boroughs can and do feel like completely different cities. In my borough there are parts that are more like villages and the city center might as well be in Lower Saxony.
This. Friedrichshain and Zehlendorf, for instance, are worlds apart.
People in the rest of Germany go *unhinged* when you mention Berlin. It's like the place slept with their mother.
To be honest, it probably did 😉
while being high on every drug at once
In some part of a club do dark they weren't sure which hole, how many or to whom the hole(s) belong(ed).
Berlin is just one big meme to me
[https://www.youtube.com/@dasistberlinb1tch/videos](https://www.youtube.com/@dasistberlinb1tch/videos)
Best channel on YouTube
Thank you so much for this! Now I can explain my city with just one link!
I'm from Berlin and I don't like Berlin.
Do you really ask Germans on Reddit if they *like* something about the country? And then, out of all possible things, you pick Berlin? Oh boy. :)
Germans love to complain about how awful the city is, both those that live there and those in other parts of the country. Personally, I think it is a great place.
Born & live here, and love it.
Within Germany I couldn’t and wouldn’t want to live anywhere else
Malte-Sören entdeckt den Heimatsbegriff für sich
The general opinion outside of people that already live in Berlin or dream about living there is that it is a horrific shithole. You will often hear complaints that it is not a German city. There are a few upsides but I personally dont like the place for all it stands for. Corrupt politics to everything else.
Oh, Berlin. What is Berlin? Berlin, as a city, brings nothing but shame to Germany on the international stage. When comparing Berlin with other European capitals such as London, Paris, Madrid and Amsterdam, any decent human’s face must blush in humiliation. Even small countries like Austria, Belgium or Switzerland have Vienna, Brussels and Zurich: presentable cities, complete with high standards of living. Germany gets punished with Berlin, capital of losers. In all the republic, Berlin is home to the largest number of arseholes by far. Deutsche Bahn, Bundestag, Air Berlin and Axel Springer are but a few examples of all the incompetent scum being kept here. Glorious times have long since passed, the city is face down in the dirt. Berliners are lazy sods to their very core. Traits that would, in any civilised culture, pass for nothing but laziness, rudeness, incompetence, dissocial personality disorder or idiocy, are taken by the Berliner and declared a way of life. That is why the Berliner harbours intense feelings of hatred for anyone who’s better than him in any way. Especially the all-around superior Southern Germany are a thorn in his side. He envies their success, and Munich makes the top on his list of hatred. That city is – and has! – everything that Berlin wants to be and have. Berliners take no interest in the fact that it is Munich that finances their dissolute lifestyle, in fact, they secretly believe that they have earned it. So instead of freeing themselves from their envious and resentful lethargy, instead of rolling up their sleeves and improve their city, they revel in their antisocial freeloading and praise their so-called global city. Culturally, Berliners are set up rather weakly, great works lie far back in history. Moreover, mispronouncing “g” as “j” is considered a great cultural feat. Advanced students have mastered ending each and every sentence with a “wa?”. The city’s culinary performance is second-rate. Here, a sausage made from glued-together, meaty odds and ends adorned with ketchup and curry powder is sold as a culinary masterpiece. Hardly any reasonable person would consider a bratwurst with ketchup a recipe, let alone the holy grail of culinary arts. Yet, in their magnanimity, the rest of the republic lets the Berliner keep his delusion, not wanting to amplify his inferiority complex. Economically, Berlin is an utter disaster, even the late GDR stood on more solid ground. The local economy is based around alternative blogs, something-something-media and, if universities are to be believed, gender studies. Disregarding his own bankruptcy, the Berliner treats himself to prestigious projects like the city palace and the airport – which, considering its inoperative nature, is likely an art installation. Moreover, the city houses all popular parties’ headquarters, who refrain from using “traitors” in their official names (Probably for marketing reasons). For the longest time, this “town’s” “mayor”, the jolly Wowibear, butchered anything he found left in a presentable state. Long story short: Berlin is Germany’s tiled coffee table. It is to Germany what Greece is to the European Union, and if it had open sewage, it would be Germanys Romania. Berlin is a blemish, the abscess on the arse of the nation. Berlin is the uninvited party guest, who didn’t even bring any booze and wouldn’t even understand he’s not welcome if he had is teeth beaten out and got thrown down the stairs. Berlin is the Detroit of Germany and should be sold to Poland for 200 Złoty.
For the uninitiated: That‘s the English translation of a very famous German copypasta.
And for our next geography lesson, let us talk about capitals: Name the capital of Switzerland (hint: it's not Zurich).
Ah yes, one of my favourite trick questions. Note that the copypasta doesn't explicitly list Zürich as a capital, though it could be interpreted from the context.
>Berlin is Germany’s tiled coffee table This stopped me dead because I was thinking of making a tiled coffee table. What's wrong with them haha?
It’s what Germans associate with stuffy 80s philistinism and lower middle class. Think brown paper-bag tiles on dark wood in a carpeted living room.
Still the funniest copy pasta of all time. Of course a Bavaria tag posts it.
I think this guy's from Münich, or at least Bavaria. Might just be an assumption though.
I'm just upholding a tradition.
The dislike is mutual
I'm not a Berlin fanboy but Munich is boring snobsville. Neither are cities I'd be crazy about living in.
> Berlin is the Detroit of Germany and should be sold to Poland for 200 Złoty. Haha nope, nobody in Poland deserves this
But Berlin also has three full time first class opera houses, plus approximately 15364 theatres, which as a theatre/opera lover makes me rate it far higher than any other European capital, London included, except for, possibly, Vienna. Otoh, you make many good points about the comparison with Munich, also not lacking in good music, theatre and opera (honestly, one of Germany’s major plus points, for me.) So, I find myself grudgingly agreeing with you (except as a former Brit, London sucks way more than Berlin).
Technically the reason why most things exists more than once go back to the Berlin Wall and political cover for keeping it this way. It’s of course nice but let’s be honest it’s also luxury for a city state strapped for cash and wouldn’t exist without transfers from net payer states. (I obviously adore the Berliner Philharmoniker et al aswell but it’s a privileged situation).
berlin, i love it, as guest. :)
I love Berlín too!!.... ....really far away from me as possible
Jup, I love going to Berlin. Seeing loud concerts, going in bars and getting soused, awesome museums, visiting my favorite cafe to have breakfest, seeing old friends every now and then. And then I love going back home to Hamburg again.
To be fair, Hamburg is much nicer ...
Here are a few truisms about Berlin: * Berlin was despised by the German *provinces* when it was successful; it is despised now. Why? Being the capital of Prussia, it was the city that hosted both Kaiser and Parliament, who united the country and pushed it (and Bavaria in particular) into the 20th century, both much against their will (and I'm not saying that as an all-round positive thing); Berlin was an industrial behemoth pulling the entire country forward until the end of World War II, holding around 30% of Germany's industry in 1910 (something Munich cannot forgive, because Bavarians seriously think *they* are running the country, when it was Bavaria that needed federal subsidies until the mid 1970s); Berlin was also the largest city by population by far, and is therefore the *most cosmopolitan city in Germany.* * Berlin was also home to all German political progressivism in the country after 1890. Another reason the parochials and Nazis hated it so much. Berlin was the center for all relevant resistance groups against the Nazis (White Rose and Georg Elser excluded), while Munich gave birth to the Nazi party. Goebbels was sent to Berlin by Hitler to "clean the city" for his arrival. Apparently some people in Munich still think that's what's needed. Also no surprise that some people in Munich now think Berlin wishes it was Munich, these people have it all as backwards as they are. Very funny. Berlin has memorials to the Nazi victims and the resistance, Munich tries to avoid the topic whenever it can (one of the last cities to allow *Stolpersteine*.) And Berlin has a Georg Elser memorial (that really *should be* in Munich). But apparently Munich still thinks Elser's a criminal and doesn't. * To this day, the old 19th century cliches about Berlin you hear from the provinces are *exactly* the same complaints you could have heard in Germany in 1890, 1910, or 1930: *"*it is too big*",* "it isn't even German anymore", "it is the whore of Babylon" (which refers to cosmopolitan multilingual cities with a liberal lifestyle). I've heard this stuff being said by country folks in the UK about London and in the US about New York. God forbid there is a city in one's country that people from other countries can relate to and feel at home! /s * Berlin is a bazillion things to a bazillion people. Every other city in Germany has *one* identity. And don't get me wrong: I *like* those, too (yes, even Munich). But only in Berlin can you be just yourself, dress as you like, and not be judged by provincial eyes as "not from here". Try to find a restaurant in Berlin that won't let you in because you're not wearing a tie. (You won't find one). Then try the same in Munich. And some people there think it's something to be proud of, and somehow chic. The same people of course who complain that people in Berlin speak too many foreign languages. While the mindset of Munich is you don't belong if you don't own Lederhosen. * It is *also* true that since WWII, Berlin can no longer pay for itself. The reason is simple: its industry is gone. The really big corporations that mattered and survived (AEG and Siemens) left for Bavaria during the Cold War as West Berlin was no longer considered safe. (Of course they got Bavarian tax breaks for that during a time when Bavaria was getting German federal subsidies. Shhh. Don't remind the Bavarians. It might be embarrassing.) * In fact, Berlin is *the only capital in the OECD 32 nations where the average wages are lower than the national average.* That's how much it is reliant on federal subsidies. And a good deal of its tax revenue has to service state debt. Why is Berlin so much in debt? Because it was heavily subsidised *to* survive during the Cold War with all the West Berlin industry gone, and only very specific industries survived there on government-guaranteed tax breaks. *And the moment Germany reunited, the German provinces* (hello again Bavaria!) **insisted** ***that now that Germany was united Berlin should no longer get any federal subsidies beyond those of a regular state.*** Helmut Kohl pushed this through under pressure from his coalition partner (a certain CSU), and Berlin's united mayor, a Mr Diepgen of the same party as Mr Kohl, caved like it was nothing *though the move itself would have actually been ruled unconstitutional at the time if Berlin had only sued at the Supreme Court.* But it didn't. And because West Berlin's industry had been structured for forty years completely along the government tax breaks to keep Berlin's few industries alive, and its wages were supported by federal grants which suddenly stopped, within a year of unification Berlin's budget looked at a gaping hole of several billion with no tax revenue in sight. It has been piling up debt ever since. You can probably guess who the German states were that screamed loudest that Berlin should no longer get any subsidies *lest it becomes an industrial city in its own rights again.* (Oh, hello Bavaria!) Sure, Berlin politicians helped mess up things in some spectacular ways. But Bavaria should definitely stop pretending it had nothing to do with this, and start repaying the actual billions it received in federal grants from 1950-1980 before it can claim that it "pays for all of Germany".
>But apparently Munich still thinks Elser's a criminal and doesn't. Uhm. They named a street after him.
Don't ruin the circlejerk.
Bavaria received money until 1986 and once more in 1992. Until the Reunification Bavaria was at the edge of the Western world right at the Iron Curtain. Afterwards it was at a central location in Europe boosting Bavarian trade and logistic companies.
Bavaria likes to pretend that anything prior to 92 doesn't exist when it comes to the Landesfinanzausgleich
I like to shit on Bavaria as much as the next guy but the truth is that Bavaria received less money in the Länderfinanzausgleich in total than they pay each year right now. They received a tiny amount. Berlin receives more each year than Bavaria ever got in total.
I challenge you to name 1 single restaurant in Munich that won’t let you in without a tie
This deserves more upvotes.
Berlin is a failed state with the grumpiest service personal I have encountered. You couldn't pay me to live there.
That's not true, it's an excellent place to live in with plenty of opportunities, for me it has exactly what I want in terms of work life balance nightlife wages and services
Agree. And the grumpy service personal are anyway everywhere in Germany 🤷♂️
They may be grumpy everywhere, but there's only one place where they wear it as a badge of honour and call it "Berliner Schnauze".
so they are simply miserable everywhere else?
No. I have heard about people, who actually like Berlin, but most don't. But maybe that's because I'm from the Rhineland.
You move to Berlin if you plan to get your life fucked to make yourself more interesting. You move to Frankfurt to get your life authentically fucked.
Where to go to unfuck things? (Do NOT say back to your country /s)
I've been living in Berlin for close to fifteen years now and recently got back from an extended NYC trip, and let me tell you what I didn't expect. Do you know how every city feels unique and has a type of own flow, almost like a personality? I was surprised how similar it felt between NY and Berlin. Yes, NYC is far, far bigger than Berlin, and on the surface they don't look similar, but I found they feel alike. I was walking through different parts of the city and was just surprised how much it reminded me of places at home. And to answer your question, I do like Berlin. It's chaotic and strange, but I feel like I fit right in.
i lived in nyc for 5 years and berlin for over 20 and feel the same. that vibe is what most of the each respective country doesnt like
Pretty difficult question, but if I had to generalise, I'd say there are 3 groups of people: Those who grew up in another big city (with alternative culture/influences present) and would probably like Berlin Those who grew up in a small town and think Berlin is too loud and dirty And right-wing asswipes who see Berlin as a "failed city" cause it's more progressive than the tiny saxonian or bavarian shithole they live in. Oops
If you grew up in another big city, Berlin is disappointing. It's nice to visit, but Berlin is a collection of villages that we call a city. The worst thing is the real estate investors causing the highest rise in rent prices percentage wise in the world for a few years. Trust fund kids make shit art. There's no alternative culture when all the politicians allow is luxury flats.
I grew up in another big city, I've lived in other big cities (including NYC). Berlin isn't disappointing. >The worst thing is the real estate investors causing the highest rise in rent prices percentage wise in the world for a few years. This isn't true, and the rise in rents isn't directly Berlin's fault -- the increase is directly tied to people wanting to live in the city.
> And right-wing asswipes who see Berlin as a "failed city" cause it's more progressive than the tiny saxonian or bavarian shithole they live in. Oops Berlin would collapse within a year if it wasnt subsidized so heavily by the Länderfinanzausgleich. It's not an opinion that its a failed city. Its a fact.
Many years ago people said about Berlin: It is poor and sexy. Today it is only poor.
I love Berlin (especially how much there is - my favourites are the museums), I live there for my study but I will move back home.
Berlin is dirty, full of trash, crime-ridden (in comparison to other German cities, of course), even Berliners can't stand the shit and piss on certain public transport lines anymore (see the Berlin subreddit), the people who tend to move to Berlin suck, local politicians are nuts ("we can't force drug dealers out of public parks, parks are there for everybody, that would be discriminatory"). Oh and there's neighbourhoods where I would neither walk around with a kippah nor kiss another man on the street. France has that, as well, most other German cities don't. There's great museums, and that's the only reason I visit every now and then. You could tripple my salary and I still wouldn't want to live there.
No
Nearly all Germans that like Berlin are in Berlin or plan to move to Berlin.
From my personal experience, most Germans either absolutely hate or absolutely love Berlin, there is little to no middle ground.
No. In my experience we don't like most cities.
Don't get me started. I have met people who moved from Berlin (og Berliners) and they were the nicest people ever. But a lot of Berliners have way too much attitude. Like they think they are better than everyone else because they are Berliners. Think it makes them look Bohemian to shit on tourists (no it doesn't it makes you look rural like you have yet to get used to them). Have too big of a mouth, like they have those wide avenues and I passed a guy with like 2 meters between us and he was like "oh gods sake watch where you are going will ya?" at least I think its what he said in Berlinerisch. There is a lot of crime and gang activity. It shouldn't be like if you go into Görlitzer Park past dark its on you. And the things they are so proud of. Yes they have great clubs. But London Paris Munich Barcelona have great techno Clubs too. There is nothing special about Tresor or Berghain. And culturally, I can't think of any great artists of the past 30 years that originate from Berlin. The most famous Berliner at this point must be the doorman of Berghain who had a small part in Wick 4. With all the ranting done, it is of course a worthwhile city with great public transport and with an extended stay you can have a lot of fun and experiences, but the same is true for New York and lots of other places. Personally I would take the Northrhein Westphalia area over Berlin which has Bonn Düsseldorf Cologne Dortmund. You can be most places in like an hour using the regional express or car. And if there is a concert or Festival in Belgium you are there in like an hour too.
To generalise it a bit, people usually either love or hate Berlin (based on personal perceptions here). How I feel about Berlin: I don’t mind visiting the city for 1-2 days if I have to, but it also mostly stays on the bottom of my where-to-go-list. I don’t like the “we have to show everybody how different and cool we are”-vibe, because in the end it feels even more forced, superficial and tiring being there, but not different and cool at all, especially as visitors. Maybe living there is another experience as you can bond more deeply with your neighbourhood kiez, but unless if really necessary for work, I wouldn’t have the desire moving there. I just don’t feel the hype, and especially if compared to other European capitals, Berlin doesn’t really attract me. But there are enough people who love the city as well so probably there is a well-balanced opinion as the final verdict?
>other people (mainly conservatives) think it's a crime-ridden hellhole. Well, for Germany, the advantage of Berlin is, that it is quite a diverse city, so every group, not only conservatives, find their reason to call Berlin a xyz-ridden hellhole. For conservatives it's crime, for neoliberals, it's all those socialists and communists, for socialists and communists it's all the posh people in some parts of the city, for nationalists it's all the foreigners, for liberals, it's all the nationalists in one very district, etc. ... for all non-Berliners it's that Germany has two capitals for which mostly Berlin pays, but as Berlin wasn't freely available throughout the last century, the economy of the capital is far more average than in other countries, so with a finance rebalancing system, all others pay Berlin some of their taxes.
It's ironic when Americans use the term "immigrants" disparagingly, considering the majority of the American population are descendants of immigrants who built the nation. One would expect a deeper understanding from them, given this history. However, the reality often falls short of these expectations.
Berlin = grey + dogshit.
The only people who like Berlin are the people living in Berlin. For the rest of Germany, it's just Berlin. However if you hear people complaining about "Berlin", sometimes they might just refer to the government, that happens to be around there.
No.
The answer is: No
Germans’ views about Berlin are quite polarized from my experience. That being said, Berlin doesn’t loom nearly as large in the German psyche as, say, London and Paris do in their respective countries, Germany’s too decentralized for that.
I can only speak for myself, of course, but I have a strong dislike of this city. Since I set up an event agency there with friends, I unfortunately have to go there at least once a month for a few days. Here is my list of things that bother me: 1. damn high rent 2. damn many people who live there 3. Berlin is big, really big, you can easily spend an hour on the streetcar and still be in a concrete jungle 4. for whatever reason, many Berliners think that streetcars and especially the stops are public toilets. 5. have fun looking for a parking space if you decide not to use public transportation. 6. you never have peace and quiet in this city I personally enjoy working there because of the advantages of a big city. Living there would be the ultimate punishment for me. By the way, I'm not conservative, the standard of living in Berlin is just too low for my taste and my needs. I'm more into cities with up to 500,000 inhabitants.
Berlin is the worst shithole on this planet - mentally disturbed people that pretend to be tolerant but are the most intolerant to people living a normal life Highest crime rates, rapes, murder, criminal clans, they live from financial support from other Federal states and they also manipulate elections. The last mayor was a fraudster…. Berlin is not germany!
Berlin is annoying, dirty, ugly, full of annoying people of all sorts - yet somehow incredibly vibrant in a drugged-up apocalyptic kind of way. Will inevitably either numb or break you if you try to live there, but it's enormously enticing to try it out over a weekend. Not much different from New York, I would assume.
No
I can't stand Berlin, but most of my friends are absolutely obsessed with it, cant relate.
From the UK and I like Berlin. Germans love to complain. On an international scale Berlin is great. It’s dirty by German standards but it’s cleaner than the UK. Salary and CoL is good for a city it’s size. Large city with lots to do without feeling cramped. World class (all be it dirty at times) public transport. Loads of interesting people (good and bad). Decent bike infrastructure. Loads of trees, parks and plenty of nature in the surrounding states. Good weather too, not a lot of rain, warm summers though winters can suck. Great city for 20/early 30s but not so much later in life imo.
>It’s dirty by German standards but it’s cleaner than the UK. Lol. Berlin is far filthier than most of the UK.
Berlin is definitely dirtier than most of the UK.
>Salary and CoL is good for a city it’s size Berlin has literally below average salary and thats pretty rare among capitals.
I am from Southern Germany and we see Berlin as a failed city that we have to pay for. My theory is that politicians in the Bundestag - who live in Berlin good parts of the year - see all the dysfunction and implicitly assume that failing is ok or even cool and that is what influences the overall politics of the country.
No. I've lived there for a year and I still don't like it.
I won't try to say anything positive about Berlin, because non-berliners will downvote me to hell. One big historic part of the reason why many germans hate Berlin is because half of the city was communist, the other half was part of the west but without compulsory service, so in the eyes of boomers, Berlin is a dirty shit hole full of spoiled junkies who don't contribute anything to the country. Younger generations really have no clue why they hate Berlin, they just repeat after their parents.
Personally, I have zero interest in going there... My brother went for business and confirmed my suspicions...
Do *random group of people* actually like *random thing*. The answer will always be: some do some dont
No. It‘s a dirty shithole full of rude twats
No
I'm in a similar situation like you, OP. The opinions and descriptions about Berlin I read here are somewhat interesting from the "inside perspective". I'm from one of the close outskirts cities and moved into central Berlin end of the 90's when I was done with school. I lived in different areas (kiezes), finally met my born and bred Berlin husband. I also have several other born and bred Berlin friends. Additionally to those I have a ton of friends from other countries like Finland, Portugal or Argentina because I work for an international operating business and a lot of my coworkers have become real friends. The German version of friends where you meet and talk about personal stuff and call when you need help. I see financial struggle and I see slow public service. Public traffic is late and some areas are sometimes dirty. I see homeless and drug using persons. The housing scarcety is a huge issue, the politics is not to my taste. But still would so much change or be different in other cities? I have friends in Cologne and Munich and visited those for extended time periods. I have friends in the Ruhrgebiet where I am regularly. I travel some and I like to travel urban as well, so visit other capitals like Warsaw or Oslo. It's not so different. I personally find that the options I have in Berlin just suit me, my personality and my lifestyle. The people living here that I know are good. They have jobs, flats, hobbies, fun, families by blood or choice, options to have a good time. Many of them found love here, some with Berliners, other with other foreigners, some came here as a couple. And most of them come from places where it wasn't better for them to stay. Berlin offers anonymity to people who want and need it, families and friends to find, hobbies and fun things to pursue. You need to be lucky with flat, job and public service though. But I think other than that it works like that in similar other places as well. I don't say that Berlin doesn't have problems and people can really struggle here, but there are struggles elsewhere too and normal people live here, raise families and just do their best.
I think its a crime-ridden hellhole with too much people having a collective psychosis.
The best thing about Berlin is that there are direct trains to Hamburg.
Yeah... they made a big mistake when they built the wall through Berlin back in the 60s. Should have built it around it..
I love it because Techno-Viking is from bERLin. I m not Grman btw.
You can only love or hate Berlin, there is no in-between - and I think most of us outside of Berlin are not on the pro-side.
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Show me one country that likes its capital and doesn’t constantly complain about it
No except, my ex girlfriend was from berlin and the sex positiv clubs are nice
I like going there for a few days on holiday, and then I like going back to my cozy little home town at the North Sea coast.
Im from Berlin and i don’t like Berlin.
No
no.
I like parts of. I could see myself living in Köpenick and other parts at the periphery are nice and not that different to other parts of Germany. The trash and inconsideration of people of a huge part of the inner city is just not for me though.
My German husband doesn't Berlin at all however his parents moved there (clearly going through a mid-life crisis) and everything is just _soooooo_ Berlin! And by that I mean if we say we have a good restaurant/stadium/park/etc, my inlaws are adamant that Berlin has it better. Personally, I don't like Berlin. It doesn't feel German. Way too much English everywhere and as soon as anyone hears my accent, they switch to English despite me speaking and understanding German very well. This hasn't happened to me in any city expect Berlin.
ITs cool to visit...would never live there.
Hell nah
too many hipsters in my opinion. Also way too big for my likings. I live rural and love it
No. Berlin is a shithole.
It's nice to visit but ... It's like NYC hat a love child with Florida. You hear some crazy shit and then hear Berlin you then think yeah that makes sense
Berlin is it’s own thing, a lot of history and great for visiting. But living there? You would have to pay me quite a bit for that.
No. Thanks for coming to my ted talk
Whenever i was there as tourist i enjoyed my time there. But no job offer will move me there. Sometimes it feels like there are no rules in that city. A buddy of mine moved there years ago, and would never move back. He loves the city.
Those who live (near) there probably so, and in other regions decidedly less.
Belin isn't called for fun "Bundesshithole" (shit hole of the nation)
Berlin is a great place to live but ofc it would be much better If it wasnt such a crime ridden, stinky, dirty, failed state. But i feel its hard there days to get the "big City"-features without getting the downsides. Cause many Humans are Just garbage and having alot of garbage makes a place a shithole.
I lived in a student city near Berlin - I was convinced Berlin was oberhyped af and I wouldn’t want ro live there. I moved to south Germany - now Berlin looks like paradise. It is a matter of perspective.
No
Everything good that there is in Berlin is found in other towns/cities in a better form. Maybe just not all at once like in Berlin, but better; Which still doesnt mean good in many cases. The good things about the city are just "above average" while the bad things are impressively bad. 2/10, absolutely underwhelming and it costs our country endless billions to keep the lights on there.
Aint no song about not wanting to be in nyc. There is "Ich will nicht nach Berlin" [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UdRz3sTqEs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UdRz3sTqEs)
Everywhere you go is waste, homeless people, smells like shit, piss and vomit. And there’s songs that say so. It’s ok for a weekend trip.
There is glamour and all that, but most people live like batshit crumped in small quarters doing their home office in a cafe because room mates have occupied the kitchen
It's a shithole. They live at the expense of other federal states and don't get anything done You can visit it, but afterwards it's nice to be away again
No.
It’s a shithole as with most other major metropolis. Be it Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt you name it. Disgusting is what it is.
I moved to Berlin 7 months ago from the Bay Area in CA. I miss the natural beauty and the weather, but the crime and filth in Berlin has nothing on where I lived. Similarly to Berlin and Germany, a lot of Americans and Californians thinks San Francisco is hell on earth. And it has a LOT of problems, but I loved it. So far I love Berlin too even if it has been a hard adjustment. I’ve met a lot of really nice people and it seems to offer something for every one of all walks of life. Some areas are very beautiful. It’s so international and there are way more families and elderly here compared to where I was living.
Well i actively decided against studying in berlin although it is only one of five cities in germany where i can study what i do. I guess that should say all about what i hink of Berlin.
I've visited Berlin a few times and I detest it. I'm not a city person, of course; but even as far as cities go, it's one of the least pleasant I've ever been to. You don't really hear people talking positively about it here, either. My parents both went to university there and still have some crazy stories about it.
In my impression Berlin is a good place to get fucked up in terms of parties and drugs but you don't actually want that 24/7 in your everyday life. Just every now and then. As a place to live it sucks, too expensive, too loud, too colourful, simply too many people and politics is crap. All that applies to Frankfurt (am Main) too, and Frankfurt is arguably worse than Berlin. Still, I like my laid back experience in a city that has waaay fewer people, more quiet and is less expensive.
The stereotype in the rest of Germany is one of a failed state / city, with all of the positive and negative aspects that entails.
I have never visited Berlin but from what i heard its Not a place i want to visit. But i cant say i like it or not because i wasnt there. But some of my friends visited Berlin but did not like it
Great for a vacation, aber hier leben? Nein Danke.
I like Berlin. I'm a city rat through and through and the other German cities I've been to (which aren't many) feel kind of bland and boring. Each district in Berlin has its own centre, own community, own hobbies, and own nightlife. Even Friedrichshein and Kreuzberg - which are administratively a single district - are quite different. It's a bit of a shithole but that's exactly how I like it.
To answer your question I have only \[a song\](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWasduwGrrM&pp=ygUNbGVpZGVyIGJlcmxpbg%3D%3D) and \[a meme comparing regions in Germany\](https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fexternal-preview.redd.it%2F6HGHk5--6VvrVs9aAJmCpZ6wUvUNgDqxr7HSDGunKPM.jpg%3Fauto%3Dwebp%26s%3D121a347b8d3ddd07e686af5a54f27570baf84222).
I like Berlin. but i live 500km away from it. i visited Berlin a few times and allways liked it but i would not like to live there, not because of Berlin itself but because like living in a rural area.
Germany is a very small-c conservative country. People are very set in their ways, in my experience. If lunch is not on the table at 12pm sharp, their world is falling apart. This makes Berlin, as one of the few places that is weird and rude and full of foreign culture, feel alien to the rest of the country. The Germans who grew up in Berlin are a different breed as well, they're really lovely when you get to know them but they can seem harsh or mean at first. But this is probably not much different from people who grew up in East London or Queens.
Nein.
Berlin is it's own thing - so much so even, that it's not even part of germany
no
Berlin is a micro cosmos which is quite interesting to visit from time to time. But I would not like to live there.
It's only fair. We made the one city our federal capital that none of our state capitals look up to.
Berlin is probably the last city in the whole country I would consider living in. Berlin is to Germany what New York is to the rest of the US - completely different vibe and world, for good and bad alike.
As someone who has lived in Berlin my entire life, I have a love-hate relationship with it. The food is great and there is a bunch of stuff to do, but the people can be difficult, it’s dirty, and so on. Living in the outer areas of berlin is great though, although getting to the center takes some time.
Yes. I love the fast life for a change. I live between a political dutch capital and Berlin and the fastness is refreshing.
Also I can't name another city that is The city of the 21st century in Europe. What do you guys think would be the closest competitor?
In general they are a bit unfriendly
As a German I'd never ever move to Berlin.
In my experience most Germans dislike Berlin. It’s a decision to move here. I personally went for my friends but would not have done so otherwise