Berlin's Bahns & Buses: Hauptbahnhof

Berlin's Hauptbahnhof, or central train station, is considered one of the most beautiful train stations in the world. I have to agree. Its grandeur, the way the light filters through the glass and steel and down through all the layers of the station make it an awe inspiring place. It is, I must admit, a bit weird to walk out of all that modern grandeur into the surrounding part of the city. Indeed, it doesn't feel like a city here at all, but rather like, well, a lot of space with some cool modern buildings off in the distance. I've come to cherish the space and the feeling of near-vertigo one gets while standing out in the grassy field across the river from the train station.

For a lot more video footage of the Haubtbahnhof, go to my Bahns & Buses video & essay. For views of other train stations in Berlin, check out Feuerbachstrasse, Olympia Stadion, Deutsch Oper, Westhafen, Gesundbrunnen.

Berlin's Bahns & Buses: Olympia Stadion

It was a dark, cold, damp day in mid-January when I arrived at the Olympia Stadion S-Bahn station. The train was almost empty. The train platforms -- there are many of them, to accommodate the crowds during big soccer games or other events -- were absolutely empty. I suppose it's like this in the middle of a week day in winter, when nothing is happening at the stadium. Still, it was creepy.

Even more creepy were the stadium grounds themselves. They were overwhelming in scale, and overwhelming in their barrenness -- a blank slate on which my imagination could run wild, transposing Leni Riefenstahl images all over the place. The only thing that seemed alive, that escaped the blank rationality of it all was that gnarled tree growing up as if from stone and concrete, all crooked and mysterious. That tree made me feel better.

Even the U-Bahn station was deserted and dark, as if forgotten. I waited there and looked up at the security camera. It glared back at me. When the train came, it was empty, as if it were a ghost from another time.

For my other Berlin's Bahns & Buses posts and photos: Overview & video, Feuerbachstrasse, Deutsche Oper, Westhafen.