Category Archives: Berlin

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Spot the Fake Waiting Dog!

Waiting dog in front of a bakery near Baumschulenweg, Treptow, Berlin

The smell coming from the bakery was sooo delicious. Poor doggy, has to wait smelling that yumminess with a nose so sensitive – Photo by Stefan Klenke

Streetphoto of dog waiting in front of a Rossmann drugstore near Baumschulenweg, Treptow, Berlin

Poor waiting dog – He didn’t feel like smiling. – Photo by Stefan Klenke

Waiting dog in front of a shop near Baumschulenweg, Treptow, Berlin

Waiting is monkey business. Poor doggy. – Photo by Stefan Klenke

Waiting dog in front of a DM drugstore near Baumschulenweg, Treptow, Berlin

This waiting dog needs some medicine against loneliness. – Photo by Stefan Klenke

Waiting dog in front of a soup shop near Boxhagener Platz, Berlin, Photo by Stefan Klenke

Well, by now you should have spotted the fake waiting dog. I was laughing when I spotted him sitting outside that soup place in Friedrichshain.

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Fight the System!

Grafitti on a Berlin Neukölln house saying: “Our quarter - our streets“

Translation: Our quarter – our streets (Berlin, Neukölln) Photo: Stefan Klenke

Homeless person sleeping in U-Bahn station Berlin (Lichtenberg) - Photo: Stefan Klenke

Homeless person sleeping in U-Bahn station Berlin (Lichtenberg) – Photo: Stefan Klenke

Graffiti saying “Rixdorf needs to stay dirty!“ ), Berlin Neukölln, Photo by Stefan Klenke

Translates as: “Rixdorf needs to stay dirty!“ ), Berlin Neukölln, Photo by Stefan Klenke

Graffiti saying “Fight the Capitslism!“ (Berlin, Treptow, Sonnenallee) - Photo by Stefan Klenke

Translates as “Fight the capitalism!“ – Photo by Stefan Klenke

I just heard on the news that the rents in Berlin increased by 70%(!!!)  in the last 10 years. The price is now around 10 Euro per square metre when it was just around 6 Euro a decade ago. The reason for this incredible rise according to the news was the increase in population. I was disgusted to hear this. I think the real reason is a system that supports greed and profiting on the needs of human beings. The system allowed house owners to raise and raise the rents without a healthy limit.

 New Berliners who moved from other cities and countries where they already were used too expensive rents willingly accepted to pay those “still relatively cheap“ Berlin rents while the less fortunate poorer Berliners were pushed out of the city centres to the cheaper borders. 

In a popular city  like Berlin there will always be people who would still be able to pay for way too expensive rents. But still the problem is the system who failed to build cheap social housing and instead decided to cash in and build luxury expensive apartments for renting or buying and did not introduce an effective rent cap – and created another gentrificated unfair unequal city. This system is called Capitalism.

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So grey – so colourful

Streetart and advertising posters at trainstation Berlin Neukölln by Stefan Klenke

Berlin Neukölln – Colours like no other.

It’s a really grey and boring looking day today that’s why I was happy to see this colourful mix of street art and advertising posters at S-train station Neukölln this morning. Happy Friday, everyone!!! 😍😊

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Fixed it! 

Plastic bag repairment of leaking Deutsche Bahn fire hydrant

German efficiency

I loved how the gigantic billion Euro heavy Deutsche Bahn corporation fixed a leaking fire hydrant. Why spending hundreds when a 10 cent plastic supermarket bag will do the job. It’s also one of the trillions of bags less polluting the planet. We have a clear win-win situation here, friends. Well done Deutsche Bahn. #deutschebahn #respect

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Black and White Light

Waiting for the M41 Bus on Sonnenalle, Treptow, Berlin

Waiting for the M41 Bus on Sonnenalle, Treptow, Berlin

Contrast - seen in Mariendorfer Weg, Neukölln

Contrasts – seen in Mariendorfer Weg, Neukölln

Tree Shadow - Angermünde, Brandenburg

Tree Shadow – Angermünde, Brandenburg

Sunny moment at Eberswalde train station

Sunny moment at Eberswalde train station

View of silhouettes and roof of Potsdamer Platz

View of silhouettes and roof of Potsdamer Platz station

Black and white street photo of backlid silhouette near Potsdamer Platz

Backlid silhouette near Potsdamer Platz

Black and white street photo of passengers arriving at Erfurt train station

Passengers arriving at Erfurt train station.

Street photo of a man's reflection on a moving train window

Moving Mirror

Street photo of a man underneath Angermünde train bridge

Man underneath Angermünde train bridge

Black and white street photo of geometric shadowlines at train station Schöneberg, Berlin

When the sun becomes the artist (train station Schöneberg, Berlin)

Black and white street photo of a man waiting at train station Schöneberg, Berlin

Waiting at train station Schöneberg, Berlin

I love when the sun comes out and makes everything instantly look cinematic. Especially in the winter times when the sun never rises very high and thus creates dramatic background light, silhouettes, shapes and shadows. The perfect conditions for black and white photography. I literally cannot stop taking photos then. 

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Neukölln stay(s) dirty!

Graffiti on a house wall in Rixdorf area of Neukölln

Graffiti on a house wall in Rixdorf area of Neukölln

Dirty corner at Hermannstraße station in Neukölln, Berlin

Dirty corner at Hermannstraße station in Neukölln, Berlin

Having lived in Neukölln a few years I can confirm that it is in many areas a dirty place. A part of me feels it adds to the charme and undergroundy authentic vibe of the more and more hip district in the South West of Berlin. Another part is sad and angry that people chuck their rubbish everywhere disrespecting our environment. 

 The writing “Neukölln bleibt dreckig!“translates as “Neukölln stays dirty!“ I see it occasionally written on walls in the city; sometimes with Berlin, Kreuzberg etc. instead of Neukölln. I understand it as a angry cry for people who are scared of gentrification which is “cleaning“ up more and more areas and making the rents go up and up and thus taking away the home districts aka Kieze of people who cannot afford to live there any longer. 

Graffiti “Unsere Viertel - Unsere Straßen“ - “Our quarter - our streets“

“Unsere Viertel – Unsere Straßen“ – “Our quarter – our streets“

The question is if these writings will in any way stop the gentrification or if it adds to the area being seen as cool and undergroundy and therefore attracts even more rich, boring people who want to feel cool and undergroundy.