Our blog is where BBS members share their writings, ruminations, and recommendations about Berlin.
A Life of Resilience: Leon Weintraub’s Journey from the Holocaust to Hope
Leon and his wife, Evamaria
The Best View in Berlin
As BBS member Nadav Gablinger says, “Since Berlin is a flat city, from almost every roof you will have a beautiful view of the city.”
Discovering the Industrial History of Moabit
At the end of June 2021, BBS member Bernd Breitkopf treated our members to his original ‘Industrial Moabit’ tour.
Appetite for Destruction: The Strange Case Of Berlin’s Disappearing Palaces
In the latest of our Berlin Long Reads, BBS Member Ryan Balmer takes a hard look at the changing face of the Berlin City Palace.
On This Day | 20 July 1944: Stauffenberg And The Plot To Kill Hitler
On this day in Berlin history, Colonel Claus Schenk von Stauffenberg – along with the help of a number of other co-conspirators – attempted to assassinate the Nazi dictator and launch a coup d’état.
On This Day | 19 July 1988: Bruce Springsteen Plays East Germany
19 July 1988: On this day in Berlin history, Bruce Springsteen played the largest ever concert in the history of East Germany.
On This Day | 1 July 1989: The First Love Parade
1 July 1989: On this day in Berlin history, a crowd of around 150 people gathered on west Berlin’s Wittenbergplatz to take part in the very first Love Parade.
On This Day | 22 June 1941: Operation Barbarossa
22 June 1941: On this day in history, Nazi Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. With a force of over 3 million, it is widely recognised as the largest invasion in military history.
On This Day | 22 June 1990: The Removal of Checkpoint Charlie
22 June 1990: On this day in Berlin history, the infamous control post at Checkpoint Charlie was hoisted off its foundations, placed on the back of a lorry and driven away.
On This Day | 29 May 1917: John F. Kennedy Is Born
29 May 1917: On this day in history John Fitzgerald Kennedy, descendant of Irish immigrants and son of an ambassador, would be born into one of the United States’ most formidable political families.