In Enchanted Geography Sarnath Banerjee writes about a hyped city, Berlin, while making full use of common clichés. The 17 columns that the Berliner-by-choice composed in 2013 for “The Hindu”, one of India’s largest dailies, document these phenomena, but do not leave it at that.
Berlin and its airports - a joke in itself. While in 2020 everyone is still waiting for the opening of the scandal capital airport in Berlin Schönefeld, one of the other two is already history: Berlin-Tempelhof started scheduled flights in 1923. Until its closure on 30 October 2008, it was known as the Central Airport. The monumental building counted 350,000 passengers. Since 2010, the site has been open to the public. Berliners usually call it Tempelhofer Feld.
The Kottbusser Tor - affectionately called Kotti by the locals - is a popular hotspot in Kreuzberg. For newcomers, the sometimes quite foul-smelling place is not very attractive. Four streets lead from the noisy roundabout into four different neighbourhoods. If you really want to understand Berlin, you must have been to Kotti once. But not only at the underground station of the same name...
The Berliner likes to use playful terms: He affectionately calls the winged sculpture on the Victory Column on the Great Star in the Tiergarten Goldelse. It is one of the most important sights of Berlin and one of the most important national monuments in Germany. There is a vantage point on the 69-metre-high column, which promises a fantastic view over the Tiergarten and nearby Bellevue Palace. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
Marie Schröer on "Enchanted Geography ”
Let me reveal at the start that this piece of work has turned out to be fabulous, not least because of the fairy-tale like characteristics."
