the Berlin club scene

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at sunrise on the Spree

  So I am not usually one for the all-night dance parties. Shocker? Probably not. But a good friend was celebrating her bachelorette party, so while Michael went urban exploring with the guys (pictures later), we ladies had an amazing vegetarian potluck followed by dancing.

The dinner was extreme, Thanksgiving-style stuffing ourselves followed by food coma. Not the best choice for pre-dancing. But my friends are amazing cooks and no one could say no to seconds. Especially not to peach cobbler. So after a little digesting, we went around 2:00 am to the club, Kater Holzig (where I had previously been to dinner but at night it's a club). The place actually has an interesting history, used to be the notorious techno club Bar25 until 2010, and this area of the river is in danger of being developed and gentrified in the future. (They just made a documentary about Bar25,more here and here.)

The line was an hour long to get in. Takes commitment. It was fun though and definitely a cultural experience. In the US, bars close at some point, whether it's midnight, two or four a.m. In Berlin, they never close. The weekend is a two-day long party and people are constantly coming in and out. In fact, a friend told me some people nap and then keep going....and I actually saw a guy sleeping in the corner of one room, with super loud techno blasting!

There were several different rooms with DJs and also a cool area outside with a few different bars. And you can go right down to the Spree. Pretty cool. And super-grungy. My friend Anne kept saying how a place like that would get shut down in the US. Fire code, bathroom codes, whatever.

We danced. To this kind of music. And this. And this. techno. :) And the people-watching was top-notch. A real freak show. Seriously, Berlin has some characters! Lots of people you would think are wearing costumes. :) We stayed past sunrise, and when we were leaving around 5:30 am, there was still a long line to get in! And it gets light out so early here! So we danced till dawn, and that was beautiful to be going home in the early morning hours like that. A great Berlin experience.

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