podtour
Alexanderplatz and the TV Tower: Legends of East Berlin
The TV Tower, the symbol of an atheist state, drew a cross in the sunlight that the West called the Pope's revenge, and above its sphere the Stasi photographed number plates.
The GDR: a City Built and Watched in Berlin: audio walks
What did the East German state put up, tear down and keep watch on?
5 walks with different starting points and stories. Compare their maps, stops and duration, then choose where to begin.
Explore these walksEast Germany built, demolished and watched over part of Berlin. This theme connects those decisions with city spaces and the lives of the people who inhabited them. The walks bring architecture, control and remembrance into view together, asking what the East German state wanted to display and which experiences lay behind that image.
In “Wilhelmstrasse to Checkpoint Charlie”: The same building saw the birth of East Germany, faced the workers of 1953 and heard Ulbricht deny there would be a wall two months before he built it; when the Wall fell, it housed the agency that privatised the East's economy, whose president was murdered, and it very nearly came down.
In “Prenzlauer Berg: the Kollwitzkiez”: You finish between the showcase street that East Germany did up for 1987 and the Schultheiss brewery, which saw it all from its hill.
In “Alexanderplatz and the TV Tower”: The TV Tower, the symbol of an atheist state, drew a cross in the sunlight that the West called the Pope's revenge, and above its sphere the Stasi photographed number plates.
Choose from 5 independent walks in Berlin. Open the one that interests you to see its map, stops and approximate duration before deciding. You don't need to do them all or follow this selection's order; each walk has its own starting and finishing points.
Loading the map…
Open a marker to see its page. Use two fingers to move the map on mobile.
The East Side Gallery and the Oberbaum Bridge
You start in Stralauer Platz, in front of a piece of the first Wall, the one built from blocks.
Museum Island, the Palace and the Nikolaiviertel
You cross the river by the bridge that joined Berlin and Cölln and enter the Nikolaiviertel: a medieval old town put up with prefabricated panels for the 750th anniversary, and a rococo palace that the West handed back to the East in exchange for a porcelain archive.
Prenzlauer Berg: the Kollwitzkiez
You finish between the showcase street that East Germany did up for 1987 and the Schultheiss brewery, which saw it all from its hill.
From Wilhelmstrasse to Checkpoint Charlie: from Nazi power to the Wall
The same building saw the birth of East Germany, faced the workers of 1953 and heard Ulbricht deny there would be a wall two months before he built it; when the Wall fell, it housed the agency that privatised the East's economy, whose president was murdered, and it very nearly came down.
Berlin, before you go
Berlin alternates broad avenues, courtyards and neighbourhoods with lives of their own. Walk each area slowly and use transport between them: several good walks make more sense than one marathon.
Your first city,
on Podtour.
Join the waitlist. When we launch, your chosen city is yours to explore.
iOSAndroidComing soon
A little welcome gift
Your first city,
on Podtour.
Join the waitlist and get one whole city free when Podtour launches. You choose where.
Podtour manages your launch request with your consent. You can withdraw it and exercise your rights as explained in our privacy policy. Privacy details.
One city per person. All its Podtour routes in Spanish and English. Available at launch. Offer details.