After being confronted with some articles about phobias (see resources below), I started to collect material for this text. Now, I would like to share some strange and funny phobias with you.

Person phobias
First of all, there are loads of phobias that deal with persons. Let us start with a common one: coulrophobia. This is the morbid fear of clowns that involves nasty symptoms like trembling, sweating and fainting. A better term might be clownophobia. Most of us got scared by Stephen King’s horror clown IT (aka Pennywise). Clowns are perceived as scary, because they have such exaggerated expressions of joy on their faces and therefore you can never estimate their real state of mind.
Another movie that scared loads of people is arachnophobia. The fear of spiders is ranked number one in the Top Ten, see below.When I was in the Amazon there was a big tarantula on my mosquito net… That’s how I found out that this nets are quite helpful…
Two other phobias that a lot of people share are necrophobia (fear of the dead, placed 10th in the Top Ten) and iatrophobia (fear of the doctor). Some have papaphobia (these lads are afraid of the Pope, not their dads), others are homophobic (afraid of homosexuals), pedophobic (afraid of children) or antropophobic (afraid of all humans, even heterosexuals and the elderly). Religious people could have peccatophobia (fear of committing a sin) or hagiophobia (fear of and aversion to holy and sacred objects, especially those of your own religion). But the most widespread of all – only found in males – is gynophobia (fear of women).
I would like to add Brabophobia (the fear of inhabitants of ‘Noord-Brabant’, a Dutch province). The reason for this recently found phobia is still a mystery, but the Christian tradition of carnival may have something to do with it. The symptoms involve being loud, binge drinking, hopping around and dressing like a bear, a penguin, a pirate, an asparagus or something like that.

Natural phobias
Some people are afraid of nature, as you know I am not afraid of nature (see blog: I love not man the less, but Nature more). Some people have strange fears, like ombrophobia (fear of rain) and thalassophobia (fear of the sea), these people do not like to get wet … for those people I would like to add that we are NOT made of sugar! I understand the astrophobics (people with fear of meteorological phenomena, such as thunder and lightning, placed 9th in the Top Ten), sometimes combined with nyctophobia (fear of the night). But I do not understand people with anthophobia (fear of flowers) and dendrophobia (fear of trees).

Spatial phobias
Common spatial phobias are claustrophobia (fear of closed spaces, placed 5th in the Top Ten) and, the opposite, agoraphobia (fear of open spaces, placed 4th in the Top Ten). And sometimes when you are about to cross a wobbly bridge you get gephyrophobia (this is, not surprising, fear of crossing a bridge).

Object phobias
Very common nowadays are iPhonophobics (people who are afraid of using the iPhone). Phonophobia (also called ligyrophobia) is the fear of loud sounds. It can also mean a fear of voices or a fear of one’s own voice (I think this is very difficult to live with). A funny one is arachibutyrophobia, the fear of peanut butter that sticks to the palate, yes this really exists.
An understandable fear is ballistophobia (fear of bullets); these people might also be hematophobic (afraid of blood) and therefore chromatophobic (afraid of certain colours, like red). A fear I do not understand is clinophobia (fear of beds); these people have to sleep on the floor or in a hammock. They must be afraid to enter bedrooms… These rooms can be full of hairs and clothing and therefore not suitable for trichopathophobics (people with fear of hair) and vestiphobics (people with fear of clothing) … those people have to be completely naked all the time. Some crazy Koreans are tetraphobic (they are afraid of the figure 4), because their word for ‘four’ sounds like their word for ‘death’. Therefore, Korean buildings do not have a fourth floor or indicate this floor by the ‘F’ instead of the figure 4. Let’s end this section with onomatophobics (people with a fear of words, I think none of them will read my blog). How on earth can people escape this fear?

Actional phobias
Persons that try to scratch their eyes out of their head can be optophobics (people that are afraid to open their eyes). They do normally not suffer from insomniaphobia (fear of sleeplessness).
People that have topophobia (fear of changing a place or situation) do usually also suffer from agyrophobia (fear of streets or crossing a street). Maybe because they are decidophobics and therefore have fear of making decisions (a lot of us have this problem). Two other phobias that a lot of people share are ergophobia (fear of work) and emetophobia (fear of vomiting, placed 7th in the Top Ten).
In Japan, some men have ‘Taijin kyofusho‘, the fear to annoy or disturb others with something unpleasant in themselves, like a bad breath or an ugly appearance. In Singapore, some men have ‘Koro’ phobia, the fear that your genitals shrink or will withdraw in your body, leading to death (quite interesting indeed).

Let’s end with the (American) Top Ten Phobia List:
1. Arachnophobia: the fear of spiders
2. Social phobia: the fear of being misjudged or the fright of being accused unreasonably in social situations
3. Aerophobia: the fear of flying
4. Agoraphobia: the fear of any place or situation where escape might be difficult or help might be unavailable in the event of developing sudden panic-like symptoms
5. Claustrophobia: the fear of being in enclosed or confined spaces
6. Acrophobia: the fear of heights
7. Emetophobia: the fear to vomit yourself or feel awkward to see others vomit
8. Carcinophobia: the fear of cancer
9. Brontophobia: the fear of thunderstorms (also known as astraphobia, keraunophobia, tonitrophobia or the fear of lightning and thunder)
10. Necrophobia: the fear of the death or dead things.

My question for you is: which of the following phobias would you prefer: panphobia (fear of everything) or fobophobia (fear of your own fears)? That’s not as easy as it seems, so think carefully! Put your answer in a comment on this blog, so we can all enjoy the reason(s) why you have chosen that one.

Resources:
1. Conversation between Elvira Campos (psychiatrist) and Juan de Dios Martínez (detective) about phobias following a penitent who destroys sculptures and images of saints. In ‘2666‘ by Roberto Bolaño, chapter ‘the part of the crimes’.
2. Elsevier: 41 – 2009, p. 70-72: ‘Sapperdeflap, een clown‘.
3. Nobiles Magazine nr. 5 – 2009, p.4-5: ‘Wereldwijd‘.

After being confronted with some articles about phobias (see resources below), I started to collect material for this text. Now, I would like to share some strange and funny phobias with you.

Person phobias
First of all, there are loads of phobias that deal with persons. Let us start with a common one: coulrophobia. This is the morbid fear of clowns that involves nasty symptoms like trembling, sweating and fainting. A better term might be clownophobia. Most of us got scared by Stephen King’s horror clown IT (aka Pennywise). Clowns are perceived as scary, because they have such exaggerated expressions of joy on their faces and therefore you can never estimate their real state of mind.
Another movie that scared loads of people is arachnophobia. The fear of spiders is ranked number one in the Top Ten, see below. When I was in the Amazon there was a big tarantula on my mosquito net… That’s how I found out that this nets are quite helpful…
Two other phobias that a lot of people share are necrophobia (fear of the dead, placed 10th in the Top Ten) and iatrophobia (fear of the doctor). Some have papaphobia (these lads are afraid of the Pope, not their dads), others are homophobic (afraid of homosexuals), pedophobic (afraid of children) or antropophobic (afraid of all humans, even heterosexuals and the elderly). Religious people could have peccatophobia (fear of committing a sin) or hagiophobia (fear of and aversion to holy and sacred objects, especially those of your own religion). But the most widespread of all x96 only found in males – is gynophobia (fear of women).
I would like to add Brabophobia (the fear of inhabitants of ‘Noord-Brabant’, a Dutch province). The reason for this recently found phobia is still a mystery, but the Christian tradition of carnival may have something to do with it. The symptoms involve being loud, binge drinking, hopping around and dressing like a bear, a penguin, a pirate, an asparagus or something like that.

Natural phobias
Some people are afraid of nature, as you know I am not afraid of nature (see blog: I love not man the less, but Nature more). Some people have strange fears, like ombrophobia (fear of rain) and thalassophobia (fear of the sea), these people do not like to get wet … for those people I would like to add that we are NOT made of sugar! I understand the astrophobics (people with fear of meteorological phenomena, such as thunder and lightning, placed 9th in the Top Ten), sometimes combined with nyctophobia (fear of the night). But I do not understand people with anthophobia (fear of flowers) and dendrophobia (fear of trees).

Spatial phobias
Common spatial phobias are claustrophobia (fear of closed spaces, placed 5th in the Top Ten) and, the opposite, agoraphobia (fear of open spaces, placed 4th in the Top Ten). And sometimes when you are about to cross a wobbly bridge you get gephyrophobia (this is, not surprising, fear of crossing a bridge).

Object phobias
Very common nowadays are iPhonophobics (people who are afraid of using the iPhone). Phonophobia (also called ligyrophobia) is the fear of loud sounds. It can also mean a fear of voices or a fear of one’s own voice (I think this is very difficult to live with). A funny one is arachibutyrophobia, the fear of peanut butter that sticks to the palate, yes this really exists.
An understandable fear is ballistophobia (fear of bullets); these people might also be hematophobic (afraid of blood) and therefore chromatophobic (afraid of certain colours, like red). A fear I do not understand is clinophobia (fear of beds); these people have to sleep on the floor or in a hammock. They must be afraid to enter bedrooms… These rooms can be full of hairs and clothing and therefore not suitable for trichopathophobics (people with fear of hair) and vestiphobics (people with fear of clothing) … those people have to be completely naked all the time. Some crazy Koreans are tetraphobic (they are afraid of the figure 4), because their word for ‘four’ sounds like their word for ‘death’. Therefore, Korean buildings do not have a fourth floor or indicate this floor by the ‘F’ instead of the figure 4. Let’s end this section with onomatophobics (people with a fear of words, I think none of them will read my blog). How on earth can people escape this fear?

Actional phobias
Persons that try to scratch their eyes out of their head can be optophobics (people that are afraid to open their eyes). They do normally not suffer from insomniaphobia (fear of sleeplessness).
People that have topophobia (fear of changing a place or situation) do usually also suffer from agyrophobia (fear of streets or crossing a street). Maybe because they are decidophobics and therefore have fear of making decisions (a lot of us have this problem). Two other phobias that a lot of people share are ergophobia (fear of work) and emetophobia (fear of vomiting, placed 7th in the Top Ten).
In Japan, some men have ‘Taijin kyofusho‘, the fear to annoy or disturb others with something unpleasant in themselves, like a bad breath or an ugly appearance. In Singapore, some men have ‘Koro’ phobia, the fear that your genitals shrink or will withdraw in your body, leading to death (quite interesting indeed).

Let’s end with the (American) Top Ten Phobia List:
1. Arachnophobia: the fear of spiders
2. Social phobia: the fear of being misjudged or the fright of being accused unreasonably in social situations
3. Aerophobia: the fear of flying
4. Agoraphobia: the fear of any place or situation where escape might be difficult or help might be unavailable in the event of developing sudden panic-like symptoms
5. Claustrophobia: the fear of being in enclosed or confined spaces
6. Acrophobia: the fear of heights
7. Emetophobia: the fear to vomit yourself or feel awkward to see others vomit
8. Carcinophobia: the fear of cancer
9. Brontophobia: the fear of thunderstorms (also known as astraphobia, keraunophobia, tonitrophobia or the fear of lightning and thunder)
10. Necrophobia: the fear of the death or dead things.

My question for you is: which of the following phobias would you prefer: panphobia (fear of everything) or fobophobia (fear of your own fears)? That’s not as easy as it seems, so think carefully! Put your answer in a comment on this blog, so we can all enjoy the reason(s) why you have chosen that one.

Resources:
1. Conversation between Elvira Campos (psychiatrist) and Juan de Dios Martxednez (detective) about phobias following a penitent who destroys sculptures and images of saints. In ‘2666‘ by Roberto Bolaxf1o, chapter ‘the part of the crimes’.
2. Elsevier: 41 x96 2009, p. 70-72: ‘Sapperdeflap, een clown‘.
3. Nobiles Magazine nr. 5 x96 2009, p.4-5: ‘Wereldwijd‘.

(English version below…translated by Google Translate)

Dierentuin
Er was een moment dat ik iets voelde
kijkend naar de olifanten
Het voelde nat in de nek,
vogeldrek, hè, get!

Beenhaar
Er was een moment dat ik iets voelde
Het viel eerst niet op door het gewiebel
er trok iemand aan mijn beenhaar
een Chinees.

Black out
Er was een plein in Berlijn
Ik wist niet hoe ik daar kwam
staand bij de garderobe
het begin van de avond
ja, dat wist ik nog,
maar tussen nu en toen?
Geen idee, Black Out

Krak
Er was een moment dat ik iets voelde
Drijvend op de lucht
een heerlijke vrije val
scherm open, Geluk!
bijna bij de grond
KRAK

Auschwitz
Er was een blond vlechtje
in een zee van grijs
het voelde ongemakkelijk, triest
toch scheen de zon

================================================================

For those of you who are English-speaking, here is the translation from Google Translate. It is not very good English, but this time you will have to deal with it .

Zoo
There was a moment I felt something
watching the elephants
It felt wet in the neck,
bird excrement, damn!

Leg hair
There was a moment I felt something
First it was not clear, due to the wobbling
then someone pulled my leg hair
a Chinese.

Black Out
There was a square in Berlin
I did not know how I got there
standing in the cloakroom
the early evening
Yes, I remember that,
but between now and then?
No idea, Black Out

Crack
There was a moment I felt something
Floating on air
a wonderful free fall
parachute open, lucky!
almost at the ground
Crack

Auschwitz
There was a blond braid
in a sea of gray
it felt uncomfortable, sad
though the sun shined

(English version below…translated by Google Translate)

Dierentuin
Er was een moment dat ik iets voelde
kijkend naar de olifanten
Het voelde nat in de nek,
vogeldrek, he, get!

Beenhaar
Er was een moment dat ik iets voelde
Het viel eerst niet op door het gewiebel
er trok iemand aan mijn beenhaar
een Chinees.

Black out
Er was een plein in Berlijn
Ik wist niet hoe ik daar kwam
staand bij de garderobe
het begin van de avond
ja, dat wist ik nog,
maar tussen nu en toen?
Geen idee, Black Out

Krak
Er was een moment dat ik iets voelde
Drijvend op de lucht
een heerlijke vrije val
scherm open, Geluk!
bijna bij de grond
KRAK

Auschwitz
Er was een blond vlechtje
in een zee van grijs
het voelde ongemakkelijk, triest
toch scheen de zon

================================================================

For those of you who are English-speaking, here is the translation from Google Translate. It is not very good English, but this time you will have to deal with it .

Zoo
There was a moment I felt something
watching the elephants
It felt wet in the neck,
bird excrement, damn!

Leg hair
There was a moment I felt something
First it was not clear, due to the wobbling
then someone pulled my leg hair
a Chinese.

Black Out
There was a square in Berlin
I did not know how I got there
standing in the cloakroom
the early evening
Yes, I remember that,
but between now and then?
No idea, Black Out

Crack
There was a moment I felt something
Floating on air
a wonderful free fall
parachute open, lucky!
almost at the ground
Crack

Auschwitz
There was a blond braid
in a sea of gray
it felt uncomfortable, sad
though the sun shined

This month, I went to the German island Rügen for five days and stayed one day in Hanzestadt Greifswald. I swam in the sea, biked 40 km, walked 15 km through the forest and I went to one of the northernmost spots of Germany. But the most impressive was my visit to Prora, the place where the Nazi’s started to build the largest holiday resort of the world.

We start with the trip from Greifswald to the beach of Sellin (famous of the 394 meters long pier, see picture): inside car, overgrown track, small zoo, good jazz, bridge at Stralsund, Altefähr, Rügen, 30 km, Sellin, pension, walk, forest, steep, beach, swim, big jellyfish, small jellyfish, blue towel, clouded, sun, shade, silence, magazine, loud guy, mental handicapped, ‘You have to wear a shirt’, people in tent-construction, applying sunblock, loads of sand, murmur of the sea, children playing in the sand, filming father, filmed daughter, naked woman, splashing water…

MACHT Urlaub
After an early breakfast at Pension Störtebeker in Sellin (named after pirate Klaus Störtebeker who lived at the end of the 14th century), I get in my car with destination Prora. This small town is situated at the most beautiful bay on the island. After a 30 minutes ride, I arrive as one of the first visitors at the parking lot of the ‘seaside resort for 20.000′. After paying the parking fee, I get inside the Prora Documentation Centre where I visit the exhibition ‘MACHT Urlaub’ (a word play meaning both ‘make holiday’ and ‘power holiday’).

The leader of the German Labor Front, Robert Ley, stated that Hitler himself has had the idea of building five seaside resorts. However, it is only in Prora where building really started. Hitler himself chose the design by the Cologne architect, Clemens Klotz. The seaside resort contains a 4,5 kilometres long building strip, consisting of five blocks, each with a length of 500 metres. This enormous building was designed to house 20.000 holiday makers. All rooms measure 5,0 x 2,5 m², contain two hospital beds and have seaview. The shared toilet facilities were located at the other side of the building.

Strength through Joy
The construction took place between 1936 and 1939 on the authority of the Nazi association KdF – ‘Kraft durch Freude’ (‘Strength through Joy’). As World War II started in 1939, all construction work stopped and the workers were withdrawn. So, the building was never completed and would never serve its intended purpose. Between 1939 and the end of the war, some parts of the construction were used as an education camp for police officers. Any further work was carried out by people sentenced to forced labour and prisoners of war. In 1943, citizens of Hamburg, who had been left homeless by the allied bombing raids, were housed at Prora. From 1944 it did serve as a military hospital. During the era of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) Prora was declared a military prohibited area and was not open to the public until 1991.

Nowadays, Prora is well known as an architectural monument and a part of the social history of ‘The Third Reich’. Prora claims to be the largest closed architectural residue of the Nazi era. The unfinished construction shows the failure of the Nazi’s social policy.

Urban Exploring
It is not easy to urban explore the building, since most of the windows have been barricaded. That is why I go to the northern part of the building. And there I find a open window to climb into the building. But, since I am on my own and the inside darkness, I only explore for ten minutes. There are better explore possibilities at Rügen near the village of Lobbe (see picture).

The northernmost point of Rügen island is Kap Arkona, famous of the lighthouses (see picture). The older, angular lighthouse was built in 1826 and was designed by the famous architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel. He is the architect of the Altes Museum, the Neue Wache, the Schauspielhaus at the Gendarmenmarket, the Schlossbrücke, Schloss Tegel, the Friedrichswerdersche Kirche, the Neuer Pavillon, Schloss Glienicke, the Bauakademie and the Luisenkirche in Berlin and Schloss Charlottenhof, the Nikolaikirche, the Römische Bäder and Schloss Babelsberg in Potsdam.

This month, I went to the German island Rügen for five days and stayed one day in Hanzestadt Greifswald. I swam in the sea, biked 40 km, walked 15 km through the forest and I went to one of the northernmost spots of Germany. But the most impressive was my visit to Prora, the place where the Nazi’s started to build the largest holiday resort of the world.

We start with the trip from Greifswald to the beach of Sellin (famous of the 394 meters long pier, see picture): inside car, overgrown track, small zoo, good jazz, bridge at Stralsund, Rügen, 30 km, Sellin, pension, walk, forest, steep, beach, swim, big jellyfish, small jellyfish, blue towel, clouded, sun, shade, silence, magazine, loud guy, mental handicapped, ‘You have to wear a shirt’, people in tent-construction, applying sunblock, loads of sand, murmur of the sea, children playing in the sand, filming father, filmed daughter, naked woman, splashing water…

MACHT Urlaub
After an early breakfast at Pension Störtebeker in Sellin (named after pirate Klaus Störtebeker who lived at the end of the 14th century), I get in my car with destination Prora. This small town is situated at the most beautiful bay on the island. After a 30 minutes ride, I arrive as one of the first visitors at the parking lot of the ‘seaside resort for 20.000′. After paying the parking fee, I get inside the Prora Documentation Centre where I visit the exhibition ‘MACHT Urlaub’ (a word play meaning both ‘make holiday’ and ‘power holiday’).

The leader of the German Labor Front, Robert Ley, stated that Hitler himself has had the idea of building five seaside resorts. However, it is only in Prora where building really started. Hitler himself chose the design by the Cologne architect, Clemens Klotz. The seaside resort contains a 4,5 kilometres long building strip, consisting of five blocks, each with a length of 500 metres. This enormous building was designed to house 20.000 holiday makers. All rooms measure 5,0 x 2,5 m², contain two hospital beds and have seaview. The shared toilet facilities were located at the other side of the building.

Strength through Joy
The construction took place between 1936 and 1939 on the authority of the Nazi association KdF: ‘Kraft durch Freude’ (‘Strength through Joy’). As World War II started in 1939, all construction work stopped and the workers were withdrawn. So, the building was never completed and would never serve its intended purpose. Between 1939 and the end of the war, some parts of the construction were used as an education camp for police officers. Any further work was carried out by people sentenced to forced labour and prisoners of war. In 1943, citizens of Hamburg, who had been left homeless by the allied bombing raids, were housed at Prora. From 1944 it did serve as a military hospital. During the era of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) Prora was declared a military prohibited area and was not open to the public until 1991.

Nowadays, Prora is well known as an architectural monument and a part of the social history of ‘The Third Reich’. Prora claims to be the largest closed architectural residue of the Nazi era. The unfinished construction shows the failure of the Nazi’s social policy.

Urban Exploring
It is not easy to urban explore the building, since most of the windows have been barricaded. That is why I go to the northern part of the building. And there I find a open window to climb into the building. But, since I am on my own and the inside darkness, I only explore for ten minutes. There are better explore possibilities at Rügen near the village of Lobbe (see picture).

The northernmost point of Rügen island is Kap Arkona, famous of the lighthouses (see picture). The older, angular lighthouse was built in 1826 and was designed by the famous architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel. He is the architect of the Altes Museum, the Neue Wache, the Schauspielhaus at the Gendarmenmarket, the Schlossbrücke, Schloss Tegel, the Friedrichswerdersche Kirche, the Neuer Pavillon, Schloss Glienicke, the Bauakademie and the Luisenkirche in Berlin and Schloss Charlottenhof, the Nikolaikirche, the Römische Bäder and Schloss Babelsberg in Potsdam.

It has become an obsession to get inside Berghain, the famous club in Berlin. Berghain was voted ‘Best Club in the World‘ in a poll among DJs conducted for the British music publication DJ Mag. I once stood in line with my Swiss friend Christophe, but we were not allowed to get in. Last weekend I tried it again with some Dutch friends.

Berghain’s exterior looks like a design of architect Albert Speer. The former power station (built in 1954 and in use till 1985) is now notorious for its hedonistic atmosphere, its selective door policy and endless opening hours. The parties are running until the late hours of Sunday evening. The club (opened in 2004) is named after two Berlin quarters: KreuzBERG and FriedrichsHAIN.

The row outside is quite long at this time of the night (1.30 am), but it is moving quickly. The queue is filled with ‘Easyjetset’ (European youth that flies to Berlin with cheap airlines). To get inside will be a 50-50 chance; even Britney Spears did not get in. Between 3.00 and 5.00 am it is even more difficult to get in, but after 6.00 am it is getting easier.

Random door policy
We see loads of people that are not allowed to get inside. I start to guess why they are not allowed in. Bad shoes? Too much make-up? Strange shirt, blue socks? Too much hair, no hair at all? Why did they sent those two girls away? Too young? But on the other hand, sometimes guys with shorts and flip flops are allowed to get in. This makes the door policy totally random.

Analysing does not bring anything, but everybody in line does it. I start thinking, will they let me and the other Dutchies in? How should we act? Do not talk to much! Split up in duos, because a group of four might be too big! Oops, we have three guys and only one girl … we will not get in. Are my shoes all right? Is my shirt not too flashy? Why do I ask myself all this questions? Why do I suddenly start to care how I look? Why do I think this much? Anyway, I decide to look relaxed. I am not eager to get in. I do not want to get in!

Gorilla
We are almost at the entrance. We are approaching the famous tattooed guy that decides who gets in and who has to leave. This ‘Gorilla’, Sven Marquardt (see picture), he has long hair, a tattoo and loads of piercings in his face. His two helpers look like cage fighters. Oh my, we are the next ones….

And then …. The guy nicks his head and does not say anything more. Anyhow, WE GET IN! All four of us, NICE! We are in Berghain!

The first thing we do is putting our stuff in the wardrobe and check all the rooms in the house. It are actually two clubs in one building. Panorama Bar (upper part) and Berghain (lower part). Both with their own program. The main LIVE acts were Prosumer + Murat Tepeli feat. Elif Bicer (Panorama) and Jeroen Search (Berghain). I never heard of them before, but they must sound familiar to some readers.

We first go up the stairs and 18 metres higher we reach the Berghain dance floor. Time to drink our first beer, a Becks in a bottle. There is not a lot going on in Berghain. So we decide to go up more stairs. In Panorama Bar the party has already started. Panorama has a big window with a shutter that opens at sunrise. Crazy!

After another beer in Panorama, where the music is loungy. We go down again. In Berghain the music (hard techno) is much louder. The dance floor is dark, filled with smoke and lights that try to give you an epileptical attack.

Taking pictures is not allowed in Berghain. This means visitors can do whatever they want. And they do. As the night grows, especially the gays start to take off their shirts and dance topless. These topless gays assemble at the (unisex) toilets. In Panorama they have ‘boxes’ in dark corners where people can play with each other. And they do….

Covered in sweat
The techno music puts the people in a trance. But you need to go to the toilet once in a while. To get to the toilets I first have to go through a group of topless man. Unfortunately, all toilets are occupied. And while I am waiting for a toilet, one of the doors opens. Two men covered in sweat come out. I enter the toilet with a strange feeling. At the ceiling of this ‘darkroom’ I see a red light bulb. Anyway, I was happy that I did not have to do the ‘Number 1′ and after the pee I return to the dance floor. Where I get into the trance of techno.

I wanted to check the famous dark room downstairs. But that was a bit of a dodgy place. Opening the curtain revealed two guys having sex with each other. A view I did not like. So I went dancing again, waiting for the sun.

After sunrise I leave Berghain, this is around 6.15 am. And there are still loads of people that are waiting to get in. Some Berliners say, it is best to go in Berghain at 6.30 am on Saturday or Sunday morning. I even heard about crazy people that enter the club on Friday night and leave the club at Sunday afternoon …. That is really crazy!

Whenever you are in Berlin, try to get in Berghain!

It has become an obsession to get inside Berghain, the famous club in Berlin. Berghain was voted ‘Best Club in the World‘ in a poll among DJs conducted for the British music publication DJ Mag. I once stood in line with my Swiss friend Christophe, but we were not allowed to get in. Last weekend I tried it again with some Dutch friends.

Berghain’s exterior looks like a design of architect Albert Speer. The former power station (built in 1954 and in use till 1985) is now notorious for its hedonistic atmosphere, its selective door policy and endless opening hours. The parties are running until the late hours of Sunday evening. The club (opened in 2004) is named after two Berlin quarters: KreuzBERG and FriedrichsHAIN.

The row outside is quite long at this time of the night (1.30 am), but it is moving quickly. The queue is filled with ‘Easyjetset’ (European youth that flies to Berlin with cheap airlines). To get inside will be a 50-50 chance; even Britney Spears did not get in. Between 3.00 and 5.00 am it is even more difficult to get in, but after 6.00 am it is getting easier.

Random door policy
We see loads of people that are not allowed to get inside. I start to guess why they are not allowed in. Bad shoes? Too much make-up? Strange shirt, blue socks? Too much hair, no hair at all? Why did they sent those two girls away? Too young? But on the other hand, sometimes guys with shorts and flip flops are allowed to get in. This makes the door policy totally random.

Analysing does not bring anything, but everybody in line does it. I start thinking, will they let me and the other Dutchies in? How should we act? Do not talk to much! Split up in duos, because a group of four might be too big! Oops, we have three guys and only one girl, so we will not get in. Are my shoes all right? Is my shirt not too flashy? Why do I ask myself all this questions? Why do I suddenly start to care how I look? Why do I think this much? Anyway, I decide to look relaxed. I am not eager to get in. I do not want to get in!

Gorilla
We are almost at the entrance. We are approaching the famous tattooed guy that decides who gets in and who has to leave. This ‘Gorilla’, Sven Marquardt (see picture), he has long hair, a tattoo and loads of piercings in his face. His two helpers look like cage fighters. Oh my, we are the next ones….

The guy nicks his head and does not say anything more. Anyhow, WE GET IN! All four of us, NICE! We are in Berghain!

The first thing we do is putting our stuff in the wardrobe and check all the rooms in the house. It are actually two clubs in one building. Panorama Bar (upper part) and Berghain (lower part). Both with their own program. The main LIVE acts were Prosumer + Murat Tepeli feat. Elif Bicer (Panorama) and Jeroen Search (Berghain). I never heard of them before, but they must sound familiar to some readers.

We first go up the stairs and 18 metres higher we reach the Berghain dance floor. Time to drink our first beer, a Becks in a bottle. There is not a lot going on in Berghain. So we decide to go up more stairs. In Panorama Bar the party has already started. Panorama has a big window with a shutter that opens at sunrise. Crazy!

After another beer in Panorama, where the music is loungy. We go down again. In Berghain the music (hard techno) is much louder. The dance floor is dark, filled with smoke and lights that try to give you an epileptical attack.

Taking pictures is not allowed in Berghain. This means visitors can do whatever they want. And they do. As the night grows, especially the gays start to take off their shirts and dance topless. These topless gays assemble at the (unisex) toilets. In Panorama they have ‘boxes’ in dark corners where people can play with each other. And they do….

Covered in sweat
The techno music puts the people in a trance. But you need to go to the toilet once in a while. To get to the toilets I first have to go through a group of topless man. Unfortunately, all toilets are occupied. And while I am waiting for a toilet, one of the doors opens. Two men covered in sweat come out. I enter the toilet with a strange feeling. At the ceiling of this ‘darkroom’ I see a red light bulb. Anyway, I was happy that I did not have to do the ‘Number 1′ and after the pee I return to the dance floor. Where I get into the trance of techno.

I wanted to check the famous dark room downstairs. But that was a bit of a dodgy place. Opening the curtain revealed two guys having sex with each other. A view I did not like. So I went dancing again, waiting for the sun.

After sunrise I leave Berghain, this is around 6.15 am. And there are still loads of people that are waiting to get in. Some Berliners say, it is best to go in Berghain at 6.30 am on Saturday or Sunday morning. I even heard about crazy people that enter the club on Friday night and leave the club at Sunday afternoon x85. That is really crazy!

Whenever you are in Berlin, try to get in Berghain!

Lately, I did a bike tour along the path of the former Berlin Wall. I took my bike with me on the U- and S-bahn, all the way north to Frohnau at the border between Berlin and Brandenburg.

Outside of S-bahnhof Frohnau, my bike and I follow a path that leads through a field (see picture). This path is part of the Berlin Wall trail (Mauerweg), the road that the border soldiers used to patrol on in their Trabant-cars. This trail goes through a neighbourhood with houses built in a Dutch architectural style. The so-called ‘Invalidensiedlung’ (see map), where once the disabled soldiers of the Prussian Wars lived. Close to this ‘Dutch’ neighbourhood’ is the Florastrasse, where some concrete poles depict that the Wall once crossed behind the houses at this street (see picture).

To check East-German residents that wanted to flee into West-Berlin, a lot of watchtowers were built. Thanks to this tour, I have now seen all of the four watchtowers that are still standing. The oldest one (of the first version) is in a cul-de-sac close to Potsdamer Platz. The first version watchtower became a bit wobble when the wind was strong. Because of this, soldiers were not allowed to use the tower at stormy days. That is why the second version of more robust watchtowers were designed. The three (robust) towers that are still standing are the one of Jürgen Litfin (see picture)
, the tower at Schlesisches Busch (close to Club de Visionäre) and the last one I have seen on this tour.

The tower I discover on this tour is owned by the Deutsche Waldjugend (see pictures).


Now, it is in use as an information centre for nature. The tower was built in the 1980s and used to monitor the border. It also functioned as a control centre for other watchtowers, which were spaced about 500 meters apart along the border strip. Each command post was occupied by three border soldiers and an officer, and also had a cell for any ‘border violators’ who might be arrested.

After a short lunch break in the forest close to the Waldjugend tower, I follow the path into the woods around the lake Hubertussee (see map). In this woods I discover some concrete poles where once the Wall was. I can even see trees that still have the (now rusted) barbed wire in them (see picture). In the Wall-period (13th of August 1961 – 9th of November 1989) the East-German border soldiers would not have allowed me to be here.

Back at S-bahnhof Frohnau (former West-Berlin), I decide to check some more Wall remains. It leads me to Lübars (former East-Germany), where once the ‘duck’s beak’ (Entenschnabel) was.
This beak (see map) consisted of the street ‘Am Sandkrug’, the houses at this street were part of East-Germany and they were surrounded by West-Berlin. Because of its special situation, visitors, tradesmen, doctors and delivery trucks were only allowed to enter the street with a special permit.

Close to the ‘duck’s beak’ is a small river, the Tegeler Fließ (see picture). This now idyllic landscape (part of Natura 2000) was once spoiled by the Wall. Although it could have been worse. Since the river was the border between West-Berlin and East-Germany, the Wall should have been placed at the riverbank. However, the swampy ground at the river was not able to carry a heavy concrete wall. I follow the Tegeler Fließ until I reach a bridge over the swamp. I bike through this natural park and then take the train back home.

After reaching U-bahnstation Hermannplatz, I decide to visit one more thing. I bike to the Lohmühlenbrücke (see pictures)
, which is close to my house in Neukölln. The bridge connects the quarters of Neukölln (West) and Treptow (East). The Wall was placed at the north side of the bridge and the very first watchtower in the Death Strip was erected here. Various buildings in the area were raised in order to enable a better view over the Death Strip. Close to the bridge is a wooden foot-bridge, a cut-off access for residents of Treptow.

Thanks to this tour I have now seen about 80 of the 155 kilometres where once the Wall stood, that is about 52%. Do you like to bike or walk the Berlin Wall trail (Mauerweg), click here for more information.

Lately, I did a bike tour along the path of the former Berlin Wall. I took my bike with me on the U- and S-bahn, all the way north to Frohnau at the border between Berlin and Brandenburg.

Outside of S-bahnhof Frohnau, my bike and I follow a path that leads through a field (see picture). This path is part of the Berlin Wall trail (Mauerweg), the road that the border soldiers used to patrol on in their Trabant-cars. This trail goes through a neighbourhood with houses built in a Dutch architectural style. The so-called ‘Invalidensiedlung’ (see map), where once the disabled soldiers of the Prussian Wars lived. Close to this ‘Dutch’ neighbourhood’ is the Florastrasse, where some concrete poles depict that the Wall once crossed behind the houses at this street (see picture).

To check East-German residents that wanted to flee into West-Berlin, a lot of watchtowers were built. Thanks to this tour, I have now seen all of the four watchtowers that are still standing. The oldest one (of the first version) is in a cul-de-sac close to Potsdamer Platz. The first version watchtower became a bit wobble when the wind was strong. Because of this, soldiers were not allowed to use the tower at stormy days. That is why the second version of more robust watchtowers were designed. The three (robust) towers that are still standing are the one of Jürgen Litfin (see picture)
, the tower at Schlesisches Busch (close to Club de Visionäre) and the last one I have seen on this tour.

The tower I discover on this tour is owned by the Deutsche Waldjugend (see pictures).


Now, it is in use as an information centre for nature. The tower was built in the 1980s and used to monitor the border. It also functioned as a control centre for other watchtowers, which were spaced about 500 meters apart along the border strip. Each command post was occupied by three border soldiers and an officer, and also had a cell for any ‘border violators’ who might be arrested.

After a short lunch break in the forest close to the Waldjugend tower, I follow the path into the woods around the lake Hubertussee (see map). In this woods I discover some concrete poles where once the Wall was. I can even see trees that still have the (now rusted) barbed wire in them (see picture). In the Wall-period (13th of August 1961 – 9th of November 1989) the East-German border soldiers would not have allowed me to be here.

Back at S-bahnhof Frohnau (former West-Berlin), I decide to check some more Wall remains. It leads me to Lübars (former East-Germany), where once the ‘duck’s beak’ (Entenschnabel) was.
This beak (see map) consisted of the street ‘Am Sandkrug’, the houses at this street were part of East-Germany and they were surrounded by West-Berlin. Because of its special situation, visitors, tradesmen, doctors and delivery trucks were only allowed to enter the street with a special permit.

Close to the ‘duck’s beak’ is a small river, the Tegeler Flieβ (see picture). This now idyllic landscape (part of Natura 2000) was once spoiled by the Wall. Although it could have been worse. Since the river was the border between West-Berlin and East-Germany, the Wall should have been placed at the riverbank. However, the swampy ground at the river was not able to carry a heavy concrete wall. I follow the Tegeler Flieβ until I reach a bridge over the swamp. I bike through this natural park and then take the train back home.

After reaching U-bahnstation Hermannplatz, I decide to visit one more thing. I bike to the Lohmühlenbrücke (see pictures)
, which is close to my house in Neukölln. The bridge connects the quarters of Neukölln (West) and Treptow (East). The Wall was placed at the north side of the bridge and the very first watchtower in the Death Strip was erected here. Various buildings in the area were raised in order to enable a better view over the Death Strip. Close to the bridge is a wooden foot-bridge, a cut-off access for residents of Treptow.

Thanks to this tour I have now seen about 80 of the 155 kilometres where once the Wall stood, that is about 52%. Do you like to bike or walk the Berlin Wall trail (Mauerweg), click here for more information.