Madame Tussauds Berlin

May 24, 2011

Madame Tussauds, founded by wax sculptor Marie Tussaud, displaying waxworks of historical and royal figures, film stars, sports stars and famous murderers has now grown to become a major tourist attraction around the world with branches in Amsterdam, Bangkok, Berlin, Blackpool, Dubai, Hamburg, Hollywood, Hong Kong, Hot Springs, AR, Las Vegas, Moscow, New York City, Shanghai, Vienna and Washington, D.C.

Madame Tussauds Berlin is your chance to experience the real glamour and elegance of Berlin and the World of celebrity. You will find a total of 82 figures featuring predominantly historical dignitaries, cultural icons and A-list celebrities.

Meet and interact with the people that shaped German history and culture and learn about their achievements through hands-on exhibits and immersive sets.

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Kunsthaus Tacheles Berlin

May 10, 2011

The legendary tourist attraction Art House Tacheles was closed last month after serving as a home for many artists from around the world for more than 20 years and I went there to take a couple of pictures before the whole thing will be demolished in the near future.

The Kunsthaus Tacheles was an art center and nightclub that was opened in East Berlin after the Berlin Wall came down in the spring of 1990. Tacheles is a large (9000 square meter) building on Oranienburger Straße in the district known as Mitte. The exterior of the building was damaged from shelling in World War II, and much of the damage was never repaired. Huge, colorful graffiti-style murals are painted on the exterior walls, and modern art sculptures are featured inside.

The Kunsthaus was formerly a department store in the Jewish quarter (Scheunenviertel) of Berlin, next to the synagogue, it was originally called Friedrichsstadtpassagen. After serving as a Nazi prison, the building was taken over by artists, who called it “Tacheles”, Yiddish for “straight talking.”

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Yuuki Concert Animuc 2011

April 30, 2011

I’m in Munich right now at this year’s Animuc in Fürstenfeldbruck. The Animuc is a cosplay convention for the southern part of Germany. This year’s special Guest is the japanese singer and writer Yuuki, today she gave a little concert for a few hundred visitors and I was really lucky to get some amazing shot of this great show.

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Körperwelten – Body Worlds – Berlin 2011

April 28, 2011

Fascinating and informative, BODY WORLDS “Körperwelten” is back in Berlin with its newest exhibition, “The Story of a Heart”. More than 32 million people have seen this exhibition so far, featuring a unique collection of over 200 authentic human specimens including whole-body plastinates, organs and translucent body slices.

The BODY WORLDS exhibitions are first-of-their-kind exhibitions through which visitors learn about anatomy, physiology, and health by viewing real human bodies, using an extraordinary process called Plastination a groundbreaking method for specimen preservation invented by Dr. von Hagens in 1977.

The exhibition was held till the 14th of August 2011 at Postbahnhof / Berlin Ostbahnhof, Straße der Pariser Kommune 8.

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Cherry Blossom Festival Berlin 2011

April 19, 2011

„Beotkkot Chukje“, „Shang Mei“ and „Hanami“, again this year, the Cherry Blossom Festival took place in Berlin’s Gardens of the World with many shows, performers, cosplayers and of course sakura trees.

The cherry blossom (sakura) is the national flower of Japan. To honor its beauty, and short life span, the Japanese celebrate its arrival with a yearly festival. Friends will gather under the trees to enjoy rice wine (sake), sing songs, and celebrate the coming of spring.

In Berlin, the Japanese, the Chinese and the Koreans celebrated this day together on Sunday, 17. April.

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Berlin Victory Column renovated

April 15, 2011

Last year, I mentioned that Berlin’s Siegessäule (Victory Column) is under construction. Now, the scaffold was removed and the golden Statue of Victoria again shines in all her glory in the middle of the Great Star.

During the refurbishment works, about 1200 gram of gold leaf were put on the bronze sculpture of Victoria, which is 8.3 meters high and weighs about 35 tons. If you want to pay her a visit, you have to climb 285 steps upstairs to reach the observation platform on top of the monument. There is no elevator but your effort will be rewarded with a great view on Berlin Tiergarten.

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Brandenburg Gate Street Piano

April 7, 2011

What happens if a lonely piano is standing around in public? After some examining, people are starting to play on it and you will get a big plus, if you can actually play something that doesn’t sound like as if you are hitting the keys with only two fingers.

Listen!

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Jellyfish Discovery at Sealife Berlin

April 1, 2011

The Sealife Berlin got a new area, the Jellyfish Discovery. I was invited to the opening ceremony yesterday and I think I got some amazing shots of all these slimy tiny creatures.

Unlike most other marine creatures, and despite their stunning beauty and great variety, jellyfish are rarely given the attention they deserve. Now you can marvel at their infinite colours, graceful motion and ghost-like forms in a spellbinding spectacle that reveals their mysterious lives and world in a totally new light.

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Earth Hour 2011 Berlin

March 27, 2011

So yesterday was Earth Hour, a world wide event organized by WWF. Hundreds of cities in 131 countries around the globe switched off their lights for one hour, from 8:30 pm till 9:30 pm, 26 March 2011.

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turned their lights off for one hour to take a stand against climate change.

In Berlin, the Brandenburger Tor, the Rote Rathaus as well as the Fernsehturm and many other public buildings turned off their lights during this hour. Hundreds of candles were build up in front of the Brandenburger Tor to form the words “Energiewende Jetzt” which means something like, “change your energy sources now” or “change to clean energy now”.

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Blue Man Group Wax Figures at Madame Tussauds Berlin

March 23, 2011

I got another invitation from Madame Tussauds Berlin to take some pictures of their newest attraction, the Blue Man Group. After Lady Gaga and Freddy Mercury, this is my third article from Berlin’s House of Wax.

Founded in 1988 the Blue Man Group have numerous albums, stage shows around the world, and have reached iconic status, all without saying a word.

You can visit the three Blue Men, Chris Wink, Matt Goldman and Phil Stanton at Madame Tussauds Berlin till May 2011, after that, they will travel back to their home location, Las Vegas.

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