Eat a lot: Golgatha, Viktoriapark, Kreuzberg

Golgatha, Viktoriapark, entrance via Katzbachstraße (near Monumentenstraße), 10965 Berlin, website, open April - end of September (weather permitting till end of October) from 9am till late.

Pauls Liegewiese, Park am Gleisdreieck, Kreuzberg

Das Park am Gleisdreieck was one of the last large open spaces in Berlin's city centre to be filled (the Tempelhofer Feld being, perhaps, the sole exception). Once an area where a load of train lines converged into a triangle of rails, it was bombed heavily during the Second World War only to be forgotten about for decades. Now a modern, clean and spaceous park, it feels the complete opposite to its previous state of mysteriously overgrown wrought iron glory. 

With the arrival of companies, people and money to Berlin in general and Kreuzberg and Schöneberg in particular, it was only a matter of time before the Gleisdreieck area was spruced up. And boy, did they spruce it up. The park looks beautiful, albeit a tad too 'designed', and offers something for everyone. Playgrounds, swings, a skatepark, pretty benches, shade and grass and gravel. Naturally, it also houses several cafés.

At Pauls Liegewiese, you can rent deck chairs but most people seem to stop over for the Wiener sausages with bread (€2,20). They make a decent coffee, have one of those huge chuppachup holders with hundreds of lollies and serve homemade chilli con carne for €2,50. No alcoholic drinks though, a Fritz Limo or ice cream will have to do. A great place to watch the yummy mums go by and pick up some skateboarding slang in the process.

 

Pauls Liegewiese, Park am Gleisdreieck, next to the skaterpool and the basketball field, website, open Mon-Fri 11am-6pm, Sat-Sun 10am-7pm.

Eat a lot: Adana Grillhaus, Kreuzberg

Adana Grillhaus, Manteuffelstraße 86, 10997 Berlin, no website, +49 30 612 7790

Eat a lot: 3 Schwestern, Kreuzberg

Restaurant 3 Schwestern is located in the beautiful old Bethanien building, a former hospital complex built mid 20th century, tucked away behind Oranienstraße. Predictably, tourists don't venture far from what they know and therefore tend to skip the Mariannenplatz and this impressive building, with its long corridors full of artist studio's, printing presses and exhibition rooms. A huge mistake.


I brought some Dutch friends here who were suitable impressed by the vaulted restaurant ceiling, the allsorts collection of guests and the excellent food. At around €15 for a main course, prices are a bit above the average Berlin budget, but our European guests didn't bat an eyelid. But then in Holland, people are used to paying the same amount of money for a sad, overcooked bit of salmon... The lovely waiting staff at 3 Schwestern served me a crispy, succulent, generous piece of halibut fillet with panfried potatoes to die for instead. Other winners on their German style menu where the apple fed pork with dumplings (visions of little pigs being hand fed with mountains of juicy apples ensued) and stewed leg of lamb with a rosemary jus. 

If you're on a low budget, head to the large, leafy garden out back on a summer's afternoon for tea and cake. The summer cheesecake looked a treat and I would have happily devoured it, had I not pigged out beforehand on the bread basket and zingy lemony garlic butter. Or you can take advantage of their very reasonably priced lunch menu (3 courses for €10.50). As for me... I'll be back. Next time we have guests that offer to pay for dinner, this is where we'll be going. God, I really sound like a cheapskate don't I? Sorry about that. It's the Berlin way of life.

This was the stage at which I remembered to take a picture. 

PS There's an open air cinema (Freiluftkino), showing Original Language films, on all summer at Bethanien. Daily at 9.45pm.


3 Schwestern, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Mariannenplatz 2, 10997 Berlin, 03060031860, 3schwestern-berlin.de, open Tue - Sun from 11 am

A Grand Day Out with Slow Travel Berlin

Today I went to A Day of Creativity, Culture and Cuisine organised by Slow Travel Berlin. And for the first time since moving here I truly felt like I belonged... It was like everything I've been doing sort of came together in this event. There were loads of people I knew, Like Pilates teacher Renate, the Berlin Pop choir people, Nick the musician and Katie from Hudson's, as always in her chef's whites and serving up delicious morsels of something or other. The purpose of the day went right over my head (something to do with sustainability, slow life and good food, with some photography and music thrown in for good measure, I think) but the air was buzzing and the organic soup was flowing. Happy days.

I attended a photography workshop by the wonderful Katrina James of I'll get you my pretty. She took a little group of us out into the streets of Kreuzberg to - shock, horror - take pics. We all want to be photographers but who dares to actually go out there and take the shot? Katrina, that's who. Even though I only had my point-and-shoot camera with me, I took some shots that made me happy. Most of all, the workshop reminded me how much I love photographing stuff, and how much there is out there worth capturing on film. Or rather on pixel. 

Drink a lot: Ankerklause, Kreuzberg

When I was in Berlin last year, scoping out the place as a potential place to live, I was mesmerized by Ankerklause. A beacon of warm light, perching on a bridge half over the water of the canal: it's a place you cannot walk past on a cold winter's night without going in for 'just the one'. The bar has a patchwork collection of rooms, all with a nautical theme and fish painted on the walls. 

Heartwarming in winter, it's great for summer too, when the plastic covers of the 'balcony' are rolled up and you'll be sipping your Bionade outside, looking out over the water. Even the tables out front are a strangely relaxing place to sit and watch the world go by, even though you're sitting almost IN Kottbusser Damm, perhaps the least relaxed street in the whole of Berlin.

Drinks range from my favourite white beer du moment (Schneider hefeweizen dunkel) to a cup of Nesquik, from mojitos to organic white wine. It's the kind of place where you start with a coffee after browsing around the Maybachufer market and find yourself still sitting at the end of the afternoon, having moved on to beers and getting slightly hungry. Not to worry, because they serve food too. The selection's predictable (burgers, nachos, chili con carne) but the quality is good - I loved the plateful of potato salad, mustardy and with just the right amount of chopped pickles, for just €2. I have a feeling I'll be coming back again and again and again...

Ankerklause, Kottbusser Damm 104, 10967 Berlin, +49 (0)30 6935649, open Monday from 4pm, Tue-Fri from 10am, ankerklause.de

Mackerel at the market

I bumped into the cutest little street market today, on Schönleinstraße (corner Boppstraße, right outside the wonderful Hudson's) in Kreuzberg. It consisted of just one greengrocer's, one baker's, one of those little coffee carts, a flower stall and two people from Ostsee selling freshly grilled fish. I sat on the pavement in the sun, eating my mackerel sandwich. What a way to start the weekend.

Makrelenfilet im brötchen, €3.80

Schönleinstraße Saturday street market

Drink a lot: Chocolateria Sünde, Kreuzberg

Chocolateria Sünde, Oranienstraße 194, Berlin (Kreuzberg), open Mon-Sat, chocolateria-sünde.de