Neukölln Tristesse Beauty

A few weeks ago, on a grey and cloudy day when there were no leaves on the trees yet, Susanne and I took a walk through parts of Neukölln. It´s a walk that we take every week, always with slightly different variations, come rain or come shine. On this day it was particularly grey, we walked along stretches of roads that looked particularly monotone, making everything look particularly bleak and dreary. A day where it seems impossible for this borough to make a lasting impression on passer-bys. Yet it´s a popular neighborhood attracting the young, artistic, innovative, alternative crowd. The mix of time-capsule-70s-Berlin, old-established West-Berliners, newcomers, Turks and Arabs seems to be the potion for success. This part of Neukölln has been written off and depreciated many times over the years and now it seems close to impossible to get an apartment or just a room for a decent price. 

Mock Memorial for a garden colony (Schrebergarten) that used to be here

until a school started expanding. Education before personal

amenities is a good thing for a change.

A shop with Palestinian and Kurdish paraphernalia.

Jackson the Berghain DJ.

Entrance to the Rütli-Campus, a school formerly known for its notorious and

violent reputation, now a successful model school.

Berlin Gallery