Earlier this month, I gave an interview to a newspaper on the topic of Berlin’s tourism, and what the future of the city might be. It was fascinating to reflect on where we have come from and where we might be going. Our motto of ‘poor but sexy’ feels outdated, but what are we now? I wouldn’t say Berlin is experiencing an identity crisis; it’s more that the city is growing and changing and no one is quite sure how things are going to turn out. It’s no longer as affordable as it used to be, so using ‘poor’ as a selling point feels out of touch. At least Berlin is still, inarguably, the capital of sexy. But this no longer makes up for the fact that a good life here is moving out of reach for much of the population. In our feature on tourism on p.26, Christian Tänzler, spokesperson for VisitBerlin, acknowledges that the poor but sexy era is over. He says we are now “free and sexy”. This falls a bit short too. Berlin is far from free (the Ordnungsamt wait around every corner to ruin your day with a petty fine, you can barely breathe if you don’t have an Anmeldung, the Finanzamt can freeze your bank account on a whim), even though the city does offer certain freedoms.
During the conversation, I asked myself what I would pitch as a new city slogan. An idea sprung to mind: ‘offen und ehrlich’. Open and honest. To me, this sums up modern Berlin: open to new people, open to new ideas, open for experiences. Some people (mainly the AfD) would like to pull up the drawbridge on Berlin (and Germany). The city’s resistance to this is part of its DNA and we should preserve it.I have been known to jokingly and fondly refer to Berlin as the ‘open legs of Europe’. As an international melting pot, that’s the way it should be, right?
Berlin isn’t trying to be something it’s not. What you see is what you get – rough edges and all. Even the infamous Berliner Schnauze is its own kind of (often unwelcome) honesty. The city is honest and true to itself. We all know Berlin is not Paris, London or New York. Yet while we have a clear grasp of what we’re not, we haven’t quite landed on what we are. One chapter is over but the future is unwritten. The reality is, the people are a huge part of what makes Berlin what it is, and every one of us can influence the direction it takes next. We might not know where we’re going, but at least being open and honest is the Berliner way to get there.
