Berlin O philia

The TV Tower (Fernsehturm) on Alexanderplatz is, as mentioned before, enormous. It can be seen from virtually everywhere in Berlin, and actually, it’s a very good navigation mark. It was built in 1969, and is 365 meters high (so every schoolboy could remember its height, you see…). Apart from fulfilling the former GDR’s technical need for a separate broadcasting system, it became an architectural and political symbol.

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Alexanderplatz (Alexander square) was once called Ochsenmarkt (ox market), but was named Alexanderplatz after a visit by the Russian Tsar Alexander in the beginning of the 19th century. Most of the buildings on the square were destroyed in WW2, and being in the center of East Berlin, the place was used as a showcase of Communist architecture. That means plain bulky buildings, and an enormous Television tower.

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