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International Student Accommodation in Berlin
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5800 Boston Street 21224 |
Apartment | ||
| 810€ pcm | Map | View | |||
City Guide
The City
With its copious amounts of historical venues and cultural artefacts, Berlin has rightly claimed back its capital city status. Berlin is the biggest capital city in Europe, but after the devastation caused to the East from the war, it has the lowest number of inhabitants. The amount of construction in Berlin is at first alarming, but once you surpass this initial shock you can see the beauty that the city holds. Due to its continuous development, prices in Berlin are amazingly low and you can buy a beer for as little as 1€. Although there is technically an area in Berlin called 'Mitte', there are generally several city centres. Alexanderplatz, Zoologischer Garten and Friedrichstrasse are big enough to be capital cities on their own.
Transport
Just as stereotyped, the public transport system in Berlin is efficient, reliable and always on time. However, that is when it isn’t on strike. That point aside, if you want to get to point A from point B in X amount of time, then it’s more than likely that you will probably be Y minutes early as you have under-estimated how efficient this system really is.
If you are taking public transport, there are 5 options: Bus, Tram, U-Bahn, S-Bahn and the Regional Bahn. How often you will actually use these modes of transport ultimately depends on where you are living in Berlin, for example Trams only run in East Berlin. It is common however, to have to change lines and modes of transport regularly, as despite there being so many options it is quite rare that you can get to your destination without having to ‘absteigen’ and ‘ansteigen’ at some point.
Ticket prices are reasonably priced. Ranging from 6.10€ for a day ticket and 49.50€ for a monthly ticket, starting from 10am each day (applicable for every mode of transport). All the information you will need is on the ‘BVG’ website; http://www.bvg.de, including a map of the transport network and an application which shows the best route of your desired journey.
Being typically European and energy efficient, many Berliners opt for transport by bicycle. This is often preferred due to the number of strikes and the fact that Berlin’s landscape is extremely flat with hundreds of visible bike lanes. But BEWARE!, If making a long distance journey, you can take your bike on the S-Bahn BUT you must be in possession of a ticket for yourself AND the bike - if a ticket inspector finds you with the wrong ticket it’s 40€ in his back pocket!
University
There are 3 main Universities in Berlin; Freie Universitaet Berlin, Technische Univeritaet Berlin and Humboldt-Universitaet zu Berlin.
The biggest University is the Freie Universitaet Berlin, holding around 43,000 students, 5,000 being Erasmus students. This University, located in West Berlin, is also host to the greatest number of degree programmes; offering such courses from Biology to Japanese. It really is the place to be for a student.
Humboldt Universitaet is located in Eastern Berlin, in the vacinity of Alexanderplatz and is close to all the trendy student bars and cafes. So, although the scenery isn’t as picturesque, you are sure to have a crazy time.
Food and Drink
Bratwurst, Currywurst and all sorts of other ‘wurst’ can be seen everywhere in Berlin, but the most popular type of cuisine by far is Italian. The restaurant chain ‘Vapiano’ is a pasta and pizza based ‘do it yourself’ joint, where you can order your food and watch it being cooked directly in front of you! All for just around 8€ a head. If it’s more ‘typisch Deutsch’ you are after, ‘Maredo’s’ offers meat galore with steaks the size of your hand.
Unlike Britain, cafes in Berlin are open till late and are often more popular than bars at night. Some, like the ‘Schwarzes Café’ in Charlottenburg are even 24hr, offering food and drink around the clock. If you wish to combine the two in a unique atmosphere, the place to be is definitely the ‘Weinerei’ on Veteranstrasse’ in Mitte. This trendy restaurant/bar is decorated like your Grandma’s living room and offers a unique paying system in that its 1€ entry for all you can eat and drink and then when you leave, they ask you to pay however much you think the night was worth. You will normally find it full of English-speaking and other international students.
Also worth a visit is the Gourmet floor of Berlins answer to Harrods, ‘KaDeWe’ on the Kufuerstendamm. With a whole floor dedicated to obscure and traditional cultural food varieties, hours can be spent testing the free samples and eating freshly cut seafood, whilst watching rare fish swim at your feet. If it is more of a quick fix you are looking for, Berlin’s vast number of bakeries can satisfy the pickiest of eaters, with pretzels and rolls being their speciality.
Out on the Town
Berlin is the home of techno electro. But with the ever-growing influence of American and British music, there are more indie rock and roll and R&B clubs emerging on the Berlin club scene every week.
Whatever your musical tastes however, you are sure to find a club that tickles your fancy. Most club nights are heavily advertised, but if you are looking for a specific kind of venue, then it is advisable to pick up a free copy of Berlins cultural magazine ‘030’, found in most H&M stores. You can also try the English text magazine ‘Ex-Berliner’, sold by street vendors for around 2€. If it is traditional house beats you’re into, then you really are spoilt for choice. The most popular clubs are: ‘Weekend’ and ‘Watergate’, both over-looking the River Spree and offering amazing scenery whilst the sun rises in the early hours behind the DJ booth.
If you are new to Berlin and need a helping hand, there are several organised pub crawls, mostly located around Oranienburgerstr in North East Berlin. They offer free shots and entrance into 5 clubs, all for around 12€. Berliners are nocturnal at the weekend, and the party doesn’t usually get started until the early hours, so if you want to get started early despite the locals still being at home, try going for pre-party drinks at Hackescher Markt and then heading off to the club around 1am.
Day Tripper
No matter what time of year you find yourself in Berlin, there will always be something happening. At Christmas there are, of course, the great German markets in every city centre, with food stalls and even ice rinks. At Easter, you will find fantastic Easter markets and day and night entertainment for kids and adults.
Even if you are just visiting in a non-eventful time of year, there is still plenty to occupy yourself with. For the more educated and historically inclined, seeing the sights of Berlin is an absolute must. From the Brandenburg Gate, to The Reichstag and from Checkpoint Charlie to The Berlin Cathedral, it is rare that you can get through all the sites in just one visit. However, if this is why you visited Berlin in the first place, then it is advisable to jump on a sight-seeing bus which circles the sights all day everyday. They offer a guided tour and a ‘jump on – jump off’ service, so that visitors can investigate the landmarks on a more personal basis.
Berlin is also renowned for its many Museums, namely the ‘Museum Insel’ (Museum Island) at Alexanderplatz. This area is home to the world famous Pergamonmuseum, Alte National Galerie, Bodemuseum and Altes Neues Museum. However there is no need to stop there, as Berlin has many other museums on offer, including the architecturally stunning Jewish museum and the Checkpoint Charlie Haus Museum.
After all that history, you may need to relax a bit. So why not visit Berlin Zoo and the Aquarium next to Berlins beautiful Tiergarten, or take a boat ride on the River Spree and a trip up the TV tower at Alexanderplatz.
How to make your life easier
Anybody who is staying in Berlin for more than three months must register their permanent address with the Resident Registration Bureau (Einwohnermeldeamt) within one week of their arrival. You will need to find out where your nearest Resident Registration Bureau is located – the International Office at your host University or the nearest Information Centre will tell you where this is.
You will then need to apply for a Residence Permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis or, for EU nationals, a Freizuegigkeitsbescheinigung) from the Foreigners’ Affairs Office (Auslaenderbehoerde) in your town. You must apply for this yourself in person and take along with you sufficient evidence that you can support yourself financially. This usually means that you have at least 500€ at your disposal each month. Remember to get a ‘Lohnsteuerkarte’ whilst registering, so that you don’t have to pay taxes!
It is generally compulsory to open a German bank account if you are staying in halls of residence, and is highly advisable, as rates on transferring money from your home currency can be astonishing. It is relatively easy to open a German bank account, just walk up to the counter with a valid ID and within ten minutes you will find yourself holding a bank card with your initials engraved on it. But remember that you cannot open an account until you have registered. Oh, and as you can imagine, after you have registered into the Berlin society it is also necessary to unregister within a week of you leaving. If you find yourself in a pickle at any time in Berlin, you can find saviour at the British Embassy on Wilhelmstr. 70, which can provide you with anything from emergency passports to advice on money issues.
The boring stuff
To view some further information about Bank Accounts & Money transfers, Internet & Telephone and Health, visit our Germany homepage.
Guide written by Carolyn Peach, English exchange student Berlin, 2007/2008.
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