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Wednesday 10 June 2009

corner view: out your back door or window






this is not really what i meant to post, but i left my digital camera at a friend's house and had to go through the pictures i already have instead of taking some new ones for this week's corner view. hope you'll come along for the ride anyway!

i live at the end of a street, very close to the former berlin wall. my part of the street was actually considered borderland before 1989. today, that's hard to imagine, but in berlin, history isn't something that's confined to certain places, it's everywhere and often quite poignant. the stretch of the wall that ran behind our street has since been turned into a park (mauerpark). not far from here, small remnants of the wall are still up (on the second image you can spot some at the very top of he hill) and the wall memorial centre is less than a five-minute bike ride from my house. i think it's a good thing that this no-man's-land from cold war times is now being reclaimed by the local community and visitors alike. on sundays, a big flea market takes place and people hold picnics, there's a little city farm for children, some playgrounds and a freeclimbing 'rock' wall, too. if you happen to know which part of the fences bordering on unbuilt plots and industrial sites behind the park has a hole in it through which to climb, you're bound to find the odd alternative club in an abandonded shed. maybe i'm getting old, but i don't have the first clue of where the current holes are to be found - i just sometimes hear the music drifting our way when the wind's right. 

take a look at other corners here, there and everywhere (many of them much more idyllic than my urban corner):

caitlinjoyceanikima day that is dessertnatsumiepe,kaylovesvintagetrinschc.t.jeannetteoutischanettritva,francescastate of blissjenniferdana,denisecabrizettebohemia girlruthdiannaisabelleambera girl in the yellow shoesmister e,janiskarijgyjennaskymringelizabethaudreyallison, lisecate,monvictoriacrescent moon, erinotliamy, idacarolinelisadorte,kimmiela lune dans le cielnicolamalovanessa,brittavirgina,april, rebecca, bkyndale samanthakarenkristinaangelina, dorit,goldensunfamilysophiejanetmcgillicutty, desiree, di,travelingmama, aimee, sunnymama amandaalijenellguusjebritta,juanitapamela, inna, daan, myrtille, cris, ibbsusi, jodililygillian,doobleh-vay 

21 comments:

Kaylovesvintage said...

looks nice...guess I will make some plans to go to Berlin in September, but I will be in touch before

Allison said...

The third photo is my favorite... I just know there is something fantastic at the top of those stairs. I visited Berlin about three years ago and was so impressed by the intergration of the old and the new and that history was everywhere as you put it. It is great that this area is being "reclaimed"... and the fact that it is now coming full circle.

april said...

deine bilder wecken erinnerungen, genau in dieser ecke berlins habe ich vor vier jahren (so lange ist das schon her) mit meinen kindern einen freund besucht. auch er wohnt da gleich um die ecke, wir waren auf allen spielplätzen im prenzlauer berg, beim bauernhof und auch auf dem flohmarkt beim mauerpark. wunderschön, mit vielen menschen und vielen kindern. es ist wohl an der zeit bald wieder mal nach berlin zu reisen...solltest du nicht schon in venedig sein? liebe grüsse*

Anonymous said...

I try to recognize, but I can't... only the television tower ! The weather is nice, cool ! Have a beautiful day.

jane said...

great post kristina- love your descriptions. i have a friend who just got back from there- she LOVED it- especially some abandoned building where artists hang out and sell their paintings(she bought one). do you know of it? besos-jane

kristina - no penny for them said...

@ kay: that would be cool, let me know! ;)

@ allison: thank you, i love those stairs a lot, too! and i just like the idea that places that were guarded borderland and completely off-limits for everyone are now being lived-in.

@ april: ach, wie schön, dann kennst du dich hier ja bestens aus! :) und ich fahre erst am 1. juli nach venedig, es ist nur die vorfreude so groß, dass ich schon jetzt darüber schreiben musste...

@ jane: thank you... maybe your friend has been to tacheles on oranienburger straße? i'm glad she liked berlin!

Unknown said...

Berlin just sounds so interesting! It's great to see that the wall is being reclaimed for fun things!
I didn't do the Corner View today but will be back on it next week!

kyndale said...

Love the grassy steps.

malo said...

I am amazed by the rural look in the second and third pic. Also, a very entertaining read - i guess I wouldn't find those clubs either.

Dana said...

incredible, really. "history" in my lifetime never fails to inspire me.

Elizabeth said...

I like your urban corner view -- thank you for a very cool visit!

et lille oejeblik - a little moment said...

i loved looking at these photos. this looks like a beautiful place. but i'd love to see your urban view too when your camera is back. even though i love my rural surrounding i long for the beautiful cityview too :)

caitlin said...

Gorgeous! Especially the third photo.

Jeannette said...

Die Treppen sehen so vertraumt aus. Das Stuck von Berlin haben wir nocht gesehen...mussen wir auch mahl entdecken. Und ich will auch noch immer zum Flohmarkt im den Mauerpark.
Irgendwie kommt immer was dazwischen....
Aber ich werde es mahl schaffen!!! ;)
LG, Jeannette

Palmer and Co said...

Awesome post! I love hearing the beauty that comes out of pain. Love the purple and green together!

Jodi said...

I love love the 1st and 3rd shots and the 4th.. what is that? the trees in the 2nd look like it was a very windy day. Thanks for sharing!

Ida/FarEastLogbook said...

Beautiful post. I love the picture of the stairs, it looks so calm and mysterious, I can't believe that's taken in a city. It must be great to live so close to all that history :-)

;) said...

Beautiful !! I like the stairs for paradise ;)

Ian said...

A very interesting post. I was in Berlin shortly after the wall came down and haven't been back since. I don't expect there is much evidence of it left now.

Ana Cristina Abreu said...

these really are great shots of a great place!!
i love those stairs!!!!

Bonnie said...

fascinating !!! i love it ! such rich history ... and yeah, i'm lovin' those stairs too !!

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