View allAll Photos Tagged proper
1992 Ford Mustang LX now with wheels of a Mustang GT. They are 15" as opposed to 14" and have proper wheel offset so the wheels no longer look inset into the wheel wells.
Ah the days of First when anything could turn up on anything!
This superb Duple 425 turned up in Penzance on the 18 from Camborne (not that you could tell no visible blinds, good job I noted the working in a note book after checking with the driver!)
Found even more of my old snap earlier on a CD that I had misplaced, taken ages sifting through them, exciting way to spend a Sunday afternoon! :-)
52044 now resplendent in br black livery is seen heading for Ingrow with a shuttle from keighley on the 12th of March 2022
No proper photos of the Class 37? Good grief, we'll have to correct that shortfall!
That said, I'm not really that happy with this model to be honest - it doesn't speak of the spirit of a Class 37 to me. But it does run quite nicely though! When the bogie sides don't fall off....
Moreover, I seem to be struggling with my camera on these 'real brick' photos - everything looks like it's taken with soft focus (it isn't).
CSXT 8357 and 5233 lead a K train loaded with stone that will be interchanged to the AVR at Glenwood yard. The train consisted of a lot of former Algoma Central hoppers.
Had this golem build for a while, and I need to take it apart for the parts. I didn't have the time and mood to make a proper landscape so I just threw this crap together.
Berlin (/bərˈlɪn/, German: [bɛɐ̯ˈliːn] ( listen)) is the capital of Germany, and one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.5 million people,[4] Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union.[5] Located in northeastern Germany on the banks of Rivers Spree and Havel, it is the centre of the Berlin-Brandenburg Metropolitan Region, which has about six million residents from over 180 nations.[6][7][8][9] Due to its location in the European Plain, Berlin is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. Around one-third of the city's area is composed of forests, parks, gardens, rivers and lakes.[10]
First documented in the 13th century, Berlin became the capital of the Margraviate of Brandenburg (1417-1701), the Kingdom of Prussia (1701–1918), the German Empire (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–1933) and the Third Reich (1933–1945).[11] Berlin in the 1920s was the third largest municipality in the world.[12] After World War II, the city was divided; East Berlin became the capital of East Germany while West Berlin became a de facto West German exclave, surrounded by the Berlin Wall (1961–1989).[13] Following German reunification in 1990, the city was once more designated as the capital of all Germany, hosting 158 foreign embassies.[14]
Berlin is a world city of culture, politics, media, and science.[15][16][17][18] Its economy is based on high-tech firms and the service sector, encompassing a diverse range of creative industries, research facilities, media corporations, and convention venues.[19][20] Berlin serves as a continental hub for air and rail traffic and has a highly complex public transportation network. The metropolis is a popular tourist destination.[21] Significant industries also include IT, pharmaceuticals, biomedical engineering, clean tech, biotechnology, construction, and electronics.
Modern Berlin is home to renowned universities, orchestras, museums, entertainment venues, and is host to many sporting events.[22] Its urban setting has made it a sought-after location for international film productions.[23] The city is well known for its festivals, diverse architecture, nightlife, contemporary arts, and a high quality of living.[24] Over the last decade Berlin has seen the emergence of a cosmopolitan entrepreneurial scene.[
History
Etymology
The origin of the name Berlin is uncertain. It may have its roots in the language of West Slavic inhabitants of the area of today's Berlin, and may be related to the Old Polabian stem berl-/birl- ("swamp").[26] Folk etymology connects the name to the German word for bear, Bär. A bear also appears in the coat of arms of the city.[
12th to 16th centuries
The earliest evidence of settlements in the area of today's Berlin are a wooden rod dated from approximately 1192[28] and leftovers of wooden houseparts dated to 1174 found in a 2012 digging in Berlin Mitte.[29] The first written records of towns in the area of present-day Berlin date from the late 12th century. Spandau is first mentioned in 1197 and Köpenick in 1209, although these areas did not join Berlin until 1920.[30] The central part of Berlin can be traced back to two towns. Cölln on the Fischerinsel is first mentioned in a 1237 document, and Berlin, across the Spree in what is now called the Nikolaiviertel, is referenced in a document from 1244.[28] The former (1237) is considered to be the founding date of the city.[31] The two towns over time formed close economic and social ties. In 1307 they formed an alliance with a common external policy, their internal administrations still being separated.[32][33]
In 1415, Frederick I became the elector of the Margraviate of Brandenburg, which he ruled until 1440.[34] During the 15th century his successors would establish Berlin-Cölln as capital of the margraviate, and subsequent members of the Hohenzollern family ruled until 1918 in Berlin, first as electors of Brandenburg, then as kings of Prussia, and eventually as German emperors. In 1443, Frederick II Irontooth started the construction of a new royal palace in the twin city Berlin-Cölln. The protests of the town citizens against the building culminated in 1448, in the "Berlin Indignation" ("Berliner Unwille").[35][36] This protest was not successful, however, and the citizenry lost many of its political and economic privileges. After the royal palace was finished in 1451, it gradually came into use. From 1470, with the new elector Albrecht III Achilles, Berlin-Cölln became the new royal residence.[33] Officially, the Berlin-Cölln palace became permanent residence of the Brandenburg electors of the Hohenzollerns from 1486, when John Cicero came to power.[37] Berlin-Cölln, however, had to give up its status as a free Hanseatic city. In 1539, the electors and the city officially became Lutheran.[
17th to 19th centuries
The Thirty Years' War between 1618 and 1648 devastated Berlin. One third of its houses were damaged or destroyed, and the city lost half of its population.[39] Frederick William, known as the "Great Elector", who had succeeded his father George William as ruler in 1640, initiated a policy of promoting immigration and religious tolerance.[40] With the Edict of Potsdam in 1685, Frederick William offered asylum to the French Huguenots.[41] By 1700, approximately 30 percent of Berlin's residents were French, because of the Huguenot immigration.[42] Many other immigrants came from Bohemia, Poland, and Salzburg.[43]
Since 1618, the Margraviate of Brandenburg had been in personal union with the Duchy of Prussia. In 1701, however, the dual state formed the Kingdom of Prussia, as Frederick III, Elector of Brandenburg now crowned himself as king Frederick I in Prussia. Berlin became the capital of the new Kingdom. This was a successful attempt to centralise the capital in the very outspread state, and it was the first time the city began to grow. In 1709 Berlin merged with the four cities of Cölln, Friedrichswerder, Friedrichstadt and Dorotheenstadt under the name Berlin, "Haupt- und Residenzstadt Berlin".[32]
In 1740, Frederick II, known as Frederick the Great (1740–1786), came to power.[44] Under the rule of Frederick II, Berlin became a center of the Enlightenment.[45] Following France's victory in the War of the Fourth Coalition, Napoleon Bonaparte marched into Berlin in 1806, but granted self-government to the city.[46] In 1815, the city became part of the new Province of Brandenburg.[47]
The Industrial Revolution transformed Berlin during the 19th century; the city's economy and population expanded dramatically, and it became the main railway hub and economic centre of Germany. Additional suburbs soon developed and increased the area and population of Berlin. In 1861, neighboring suburbs including Wedding, Moabit and several others were incorporated into Berlin.[48] In 1871, Berlin became capital of the newly founded German Empire.[49] In 1881, it became a city district separate from Brandenburg.[50]
20th to 21st centuries
In the early 20th century, Berlin had become a fertile ground for the German Expressionist movement.[51] In fields such as architecture, painting and cinema new forms of artistic styles were invented. At the end of World War I in 1918, a republic was proclaimed by Philipp Scheidemann at the Reichstag building. In 1920, the Greater Berlin Act incorporated dozens of suburban cities, villages, and estates around Berlin into an expanded city. The act increased the area of Berlin from 66 to 883 km2 (25 to 341 sq mi). The population almost doubled and Berlin had a population of around four million. During the Weimar era, Berlin underwent political unrest due to economic uncertainties, but also became a renowned center of the Roaring Twenties. The metropolis experienced its heyday as a major world capital and was known for its leadership roles in science, technology, the humanities, city planning, film, higher education, government, and industries. Albert Einstein rose to public prominence during his years in Berlin, being awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921.
In 1933, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party came to power. NSDAP rule effectively destroyed Berlin's Jewish community, which had numbered 160,000, representing one-third of all Jews in the country. Berlin's Jewish population fell to about 80,000 as a result of emigration between 1933 and 1939. After Kristallnacht in 1938, thousands of the city's persecuted groups were imprisoned in the nearby Sachsenhausen concentration camp or, starting in early 1943, were shipped to death camps, such as Auschwitz.[52] During World War II, large parts of Berlin were destroyed in the 1943–45 air raids and during the Battle of Berlin. Around 125,000 civilians were killed.[53] After the end of the war in Europe in 1945, Berlin received large numbers of refugees from the Eastern provinces. The victorious powers divided the city into four sectors, analogous to the occupation zones into which Germany was divided. The sectors of the Western Allies (the United States, the United Kingdom and France) formed West Berlin, while the Soviet sector formed East Berlin.[54]
All four Allies shared administrative responsibilities for Berlin. However, in 1948, when the Western Allies extended the currency reform in the Western zones of Germany to the three western sectors of Berlin, the Soviet Union imposed a blockade on the access routes to and from West Berlin, which lay entirely inside Soviet-controlled territory. The Berlin airlift, conducted by the three western Allies, overcame this blockade by supplying food and other supplies to the city from June 1948 to May 1949.[55] In 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany was founded in West Germany and eventually included all of the American, British, and French zones, excluding those three countries' zones in Berlin, while the Marxist-Leninist German Democratic Republic was proclaimed in East Germany. West Berlin officially remained an occupied city, but it politically was aligned with the Federal Republic of Germany despite West Berlin's geographic isolation. Airline service to West Berlin was granted only to American, British, and French airlines.
The founding of the two German states increased Cold War tensions. West Berlin was surrounded by East German territory, and East Germany proclaimed the Eastern part as its capital, a move that was not recognized by the western powers. East Berlin included most of the historic center of the city. The West German government established itself in Bonn.[56] In 1961, East Germany began the building of the Berlin Wall between East and West Berlin, and events escalated to a tank standoff at Checkpoint Charlie. West Berlin was now de facto a part of West Germany with a unique legal status, while East Berlin was de facto a part of East Germany. John F. Kennedy gave his "Ich bin ein Berliner" – speech in 1963 underlining the US support for the Western part of the city. Berlin was completely divided. Although it was possible for Westerners to pass from one to the other side through strictly controlled checkpoints, for most Easterners travel to West Berlin or West Germany was prohibited. In 1971, a Four-Power agreement guaranteed access to and from West Berlin by car or train through East Germany.[57]
In 1989, with the end of the Cold War and pressure from the East German population, the Berlin Wall fell on 9 November and was subsequently mostly demolished. Today, the East Side Gallery preserves a large portion of the Wall. On 3 October 1990, the two parts of Germany were reunified as the Federal Republic of Germany, and Berlin again became the official German capital. In 1991, the German Parliament, the Bundestag, voted to move the seat of the (West) German capital from Bonn to Berlin, which was completed in 1999. Berlin's 2001 administrative reform merged several districts. The number of boroughs was reduced from 23 to 12. In 2006, the FIFA World Cup Final was held in Berlin.
Geography
Topography
Berlin is situated in northeastern Germany, in an area of low-lying marshy woodlands with a mainly flat topography, part of the vast Northern European Plain which stretches all the way from northern France to western Russia. The Berliner Urstromtal (an ice age glacial valley), between the low Barnim Plateau to the north and the Teltow Plateau to the south, was formed by meltwater flowing from ice sheets at the end of the last Weichselian glaciation. The Spree follows this valley now. In Spandau, Berlin's westernmost borough, the Spree empties into the river Havel, which flows from north to south through western Berlin. The course of the Havel is more like a chain of lakes, the largest being the Tegeler See and Großer Wannsee. A series of lakes also feeds into the upper Spree, which flows through the Großer Müggelsee in eastern Berlin.[58]
Substantial parts of present-day Berlin extend onto the low plateaus on both sides of the Spree Valley. Large parts of the boroughs Reinickendorf and Pankow lie on the Barnim Plateau, while most of the boroughs of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Tempelhof-Schöneberg, and Neukölln lie on the Teltow Plateau.
The borough of Spandau lies partly within the Berlin Glacial Valley and partly on the Nauen Plain, which stretches to the west of Berlin. The highest elevations in Berlin are the Teufelsberg and the Müggelberge in the city's outskirts, and in the center the Kreuzberg. While the latter measures 66 m (217 ft) above sea level, the former both have an elevation of about 115 m (377 ft). The Teufelsberg is in fact an artificial hill composed of a pile of rubble from the ruins of World War II.
Climate
Berlin has an Maritime temperate climate (Cfb) according to the Köppen climate classification system.[59] There are significant influences of mild continental climate due to its inland position, with frosts being common in winter and there being larger temperature differences between seasons than typical for many oceanic climates.
Summers are warm and sometimes humid with average high temperatures of 22–25 °C (72–77 °F) and lows of 12–14 °C (54–57 °F). Winters are cool with average high temperatures of 3 °C (37 °F) and lows of −2 to 0 °C (28 to 32 °F). Spring and autumn are generally chilly to mild. Berlin's built-up area creates a microclimate, with heat stored by the city's buildings. Temperatures can be 4 °C (7 °F) higher in the city than in the surrounding areas.[60]
Annual precipitation is 570 millimeters (22 in) with moderate rainfall throughout the year. Snowfall mainly occurs from December through March.
Cityscape
Berlin's history has left the city with a highly eclectic array of architecture and buildings. The city's appearance today is predominantly shaped by the key role it played in Germany's history in the 20th century. Each of the national governments based in Berlin — the Kingdom of Prussia, the 1871 German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany, East Germany, and now the reunified Germany — initiated ambitious (re-)construction programs, with each adding its own distinctive style to the city's architecture.
Berlin was devastated by bombing raids, fires and street battles during World War II, and many of the buildings that had remained after the war were demolished in the post-war period in both West and East Berlin. Much of this demolition was initiated by municipal architecture programs to build new residential or business quarters and main roads. Many ornaments of pre-war buildings were destroyed following modernist dogmas. While in both systems and in reunified Berlin, various important heritage monuments were also (partly) reconstructed, including the Forum Fridericianum with e.g., the State Opera (1955), Charlottenburg Palace (1957), the main monuments of the Gendarmenmarkt (1980s), Kommandantur (2003) and the project to reconstruct the baroque facades of the City Palace. A number of new buildings is inspired by historical predecessors or the general classical style of Berlin, such as Hotel Adlon.
Clusters of high-rise buildings emerge at e.g., Potsdamer Platz, City West and Alexanderplatz. Berlin has three of the top 40 tallest buildings in Germany.
Architecture
The Brandenburg Gate is an iconic landmark of Berlin and Germany. The Reichstag building is the traditional seat of the German Parliament, was remodeled by British architect Norman Foster in the 1990s and features a glass dome over the session area, which allows free public access to the parliamentary proceedings and magnificent views of the city.
The East Side Gallery is an open-air exhibition of art painted directly on the last existing portions of the Berlin Wall. It is the largest remaining evidence of the city's historical division.
The Gendarmenmarkt, a neoclassical square in Berlin the name of which derives from the headquarters of the famous Gens d'armes regiment located here in the 18th century, is bordered by two similarly designed cathedrals, the Französischer Dom with its observation platform and the Deutscher Dom. The Konzerthaus (Concert Hall), home of the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, stands between the two cathedrals.
The Museum Island in the River Spree houses five museums built from 1830 to 1930 and is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Restoration and the construction of a main entrance to all museums, as well as the reconstruction of the Stadtschloss is continuing.[65][66] Also located on the island and adjacent to the Lustgarten and palace is Berlin Cathedral, emperor William II's ambitious attempt to create a Protestant counterpart to St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. A large crypt houses the remains of some of the earlier Prussian royal family. St. Hedwig's Cathedral is Berlin's Roman Catholic cathedral.
Unter den Linden is a tree-lined east–west avenue from the Brandenburg Gate to the site of the former Berliner Stadtschloss, and was once Berlin's premier promenade. Many Classical buildings line the street and part of Humboldt University is located there. Friedrichstraße was Berlin's legendary street during the Golden Twenties. It combines 20th-century traditions with the modern architecture of today's Berlin.
Potsdamer Platz is an entire quarter built from scratch after 1995 after the Wall came down.[67] To the west of Potsdamer Platz is the Kulturforum, which houses the Gemäldegalerie, and is flanked by the Neue Nationalgalerie and the Berliner Philharmonie. The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, a Holocaust memorial, is situated to the north.[68]
The area around Hackescher Markt is home to the fashionable culture, with countless clothing outlets, clubs, bars, and galleries. This includes the Hackesche Höfe, a conglomeration of buildings around several courtyards, reconstructed around 1996. The nearby New Synagogue is the center of Jewish culture.
The Straße des 17. Juni, connecting the Brandenburg Gate and Ernst-Reuter-Platz, serves as the central East-West-Axis. Its name commemorates the uprisings in East Berlin of 17 June 1953. Approximately half-way from the Brandenburg Gate is the Großer Stern, a circular traffic island on which the Siegessäule (Victory Column) is situated. This monument, built to commemorate Prussia's victories, was relocated 1938–39 from its previous position in front of the Reichstag.
The Kurfürstendamm is home to some of Berlin's luxurious stores with the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church at its eastern end on Breitscheidplatz. The church was destroyed in the Second World War and left in ruins. Nearby on Tauentzienstraße is KaDeWe, claimed to be continental Europe's largest department store. The Rathaus Schöneberg, where John F. Kennedy made his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner!" speech, is situated in Tempelhof-Schöneberg.
West of the center, Schloss Bellevue is the residence of the German President. Schloss Charlottenburg, which was burnt out in the Second World War is the largest historical palace in Berlin.
The Funkturm Berlin is a 150 m (490 ft) tall lattice radio tower at the fair area, built between 1924 and 1926. It is the only observation tower which stands on insulators and has a restaurant 55 m (180 ft) and an observation deck 126 m (413 ft) above ground, which is reachable by a windowed elevator.
Demographics
On 31 December 2014, the city-state of Berlin had a population of 3,562,166 registered inhabitants[4] in an area of 891.85 km2 (344.35 sq mi).[69] The city's population density was 3,994 inhabitants per km2. Berlin is the second most populous city proper in the EU. The urban area of Berlin comprised about 4 million people making it the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union.[5] The metropolitan area of the Berlin-Brandenburg region was home to about 4.5 million in an area of 5,370 km2 (2,070 sq mi). In 2004, the Larger Urban Zone was home to about 5 million people in an area of 17,385 km2 (6,712 sq mi).[9] The entire Berlin-Brandenburg capital region has a population of 6 million.[70]
National and international migration into the city has a long history. In 1685, following the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in France, the city responded with the Edict of Potsdam, which guaranteed religious freedom and tax-free status to French Huguenot refugees for ten years. The Greater Berlin Act in 1920 incorporated many suburbs and surrounding cities of Berlin. It formed most of the territory that comprises modern Berlin and increased the population from 1.9 million to 4 million.
Active immigration and asylum politics in West Berlin triggered waves of immigration in the 1960s and 1970s. Currently, Berlin is home to about 200,000 Turks,[71] making it the largest Turkish community outside of Turkey. In the 1990s the Aussiedlergesetze enabled immigration to Germany of some residents from the former Soviet Union. Today ethnic Germans from countries of the former Soviet Union make up the largest portion of the Russian-speaking community.[72] The last decade experienced an influx from various Western countries and some African regions.[73] Young Germans, EU-Europeans and Israelis have settled in the city.[
International communities
In December 2013, 538,729 residents (15.3% of the population) were of foreign nationality, originating from over 180 different countries.[76] Another estimated 460,000 citizens in 2013 are descendants of international migrants and have either become naturalized German citizens or obtained citizenship by virtue of birth in Germany.[77] In 2008, about 25%–30% of the population was of foreign origin.[78] 45 percent of the residents under the age of 18 have foreign roots.[79] Berlin is estimated to have from 100,000 to 250,000 non-registered inhabitants.[80]
There are more than 25 non-indigenous communities with a population of at least 10,000 people, including Turkish, Polish, Russian, Lebanese, Palestinian, Serbian, Italian, Bosnian, Vietnamese, American, Romanian, Bulgarian, Chinese, Austrian, Ghanaian, Ukrainian, French, British, Spanish, Israeli, Thai, Iranian, Egyptian and Syrian communities.
The most-commonly-spoken foreign languages in Berlin are Turkish, English, Russian, Arabic, Polish, Kurdish, Vietnamese, Serbian, Croatian and French. Turkish, Arabic, Kurdish, Serbian and Croatian are heard more often in the western part, due to the large Middle Eastern and former-Yugoslavian communities. English, Vietnamese, Russian, and Polish have more native speakers in eastern Berlin.
Religion
More than 60% of Berlin residents have no registered religious affiliation.[82] The largest denominations in 2010 were the Protestant regional church body of the Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia (EKBO) (a church of united administration comprising mostly Lutheran, and few Reformed and United Protestant congregations; EKBO is a member of the umbrellas Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) and Union Evangelischer Kirchen (UEK)) with 18.7% of the population,[83] and the Roman Catholic Church with 9.1% of registered members.[83] About 2.7% of the population identify with other Christian denominations (mostly Eastern Orthodox)[84] and 8.1% are Muslims.[85] 0.9% of Berliners belong to other religions.[86] Approximately 80% of the 12,000 (0.3%) registered Jews now residing in Berlin[84] have come from the former Soviet Union.
Berlin is the seat of the Roman Catholic archbishop of Berlin and EKBO's elected chairperson is titled bishop of EKBO. Furthermore, Berlin is the seat of many Orthodox cathedrals, such as the Cathedral of St. Boris the Baptist, one of the two seats of the Bulgarian Orthodox Diocese of Western and Central Europe, and the Resurrection of Christ Cathedral of the Diocese of Berlin (Patriarchate of Moscow).
The faithful of the different religions and denominations maintain many places of worship in Berlin. The Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church has eight parishes of different sizes in Berlin.[87] There are 36 Baptist congregations (within Union of Evangelical Free Church Congregations in Germany), 29 New Apostolic Churches, 15 United Methodist churches, eight Free Evangelical Congregations, six congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, an Old Catholic church, and an Anglican church in Berlin.
Berlin has 76 mosques (including three Ahmadiyya mosques), 11 synagogues, and two Buddhist temples, in addition to a number of humanist and atheist groups.
Government
City state
Since the reunification on 3 October 1990, Berlin has been one of the three city states in Germany among the present 16 states of Germany. The city and state parliament is the House of Representatives (Abgeordnetenhaus), which currently has 141 seats. Berlin's executive body is the Senate of Berlin (Senat von Berlin). The Senate of Berlin consists of the Governing Mayor (Regierender Bürgermeister) and up to eight senators holding ministerial positions, one of them holding the official title "Mayor" (Bürgermeister) as deputy to the Governing Mayor.
The Social Democratic Party (SPD) and The Left (Die Linke) took control of the city government after the 2001 state election and won another term in the 2006 state election.[88] Since the 2011 state election, there has been a coalition of the Social Democratic Party with the Christian Democratic Union, and for the first time ever, the Pirate Party won seats in a state parliament in Germany.
The Governing Mayor is simultaneously Lord Mayor of the city (Oberbürgermeister der Stadt) and Prime Minister of the Federal State (Ministerpräsident des Bundeslandes). The office of Berlin's Governing Mayor is in the Rotes Rathaus (Red City Hall). Since 2014 this office has been held by Michael Müller of the SPD.[89] On 26 August 2014, Wowereit announced his resignation as of 11 December 2014.[90]
The total annual state budget of Berlin in 2007 exceeded €20.5 ($28.7) billion including a budget surplus of €80 ($112) million.[91] The total budget included an estimated amount of €5.5 ($7.7) bn, which is directly financed by either the German government or the German Bundesländer.[
Boroughs
Berlin is subdivided into twelve boroughs (Bezirke). Each borough contains a number of localities (Ortsteile), which often have historic roots in older municipalities that predate the formation of Greater Berlin on 1 October 1920 and became urbanized and incorporated into the city. Many residents strongly identify with their localities or boroughs. At present Berlin consists of 96 localities, which are commonly made up of several city neighborhoods—called Kiez in the Berlin dialect—representing small residential areas.
Each borough is governed by a borough council (Bezirksamt) consisting of five councilors (Bezirksstadträte) including the borough mayor (Bezirksbürgermeister). The borough council is elected by the borough assembly (Bezirksverordnetenversammlung). The boroughs of Berlin are not independent municipalities. The power of borough administration is limited and subordinate to the Senate of Berlin. The borough mayors form the council of mayors (Rat der Bürgermeister), led by the city's governing mayor, which advises the senate. The localities have no local government bodies.
Sister cities
Berlin maintains official partnerships with 17 cities.[93] Town twinning between Berlin and other cities began with sister city Los Angeles in 1967. East Berlin's partnerships were canceled at the time of German reunification and later partially reestablished. West Berlin's partnerships had previously been restricted to the borough level. During the Cold War era, the partnerships had reflected the different power blocs, with West Berlin partnering with capitals in the West, and East Berlin mostly partnering with cities from the Warsaw Pact and its allies.
There are several joint projects with many other cities, such as Beirut, Belgrade, São Paulo, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Oslo, Shanghai, Seoul, Sofia, Sydney, New York City and Vienna. Berlin participates in international city associations such as the Union of the Capitals of the European Union, Eurocities, Network of European Cities of Culture, Metropolis, Summit Conference of the World's Major Cities, and Conference of the World's Capital Cities. Berlin's official sister cities are:
Capital city
Berlin is the capital of the Federal Republic of Germany. The President of Germany, whose functions are mainly ceremonial under the German constitution, has his official residence in Schloss Bellevue.[97] Berlin is the seat of the German executive, housed in the Chancellery, the Bundeskanzleramt. Facing the Chancellery is the Bundestag, the German Parliament, housed in the renovated Reichstag building since the government moved back to Berlin in 1998. The Bundesrat ("federal council", performing the function of an upper house) is the representation of the Federal States (Bundesländer) of Germany and has its seat at the former Prussian House of Lords.
Though most of the ministries are seated in Berlin, some of them, as well as some minor departments, are seated in Bonn, the former capital of West Germany. Discussions to move the remaining branches continue.[98] The ministries and departments of Defence, Justice and Consumer Protection, Finance, Interior, Foreign, Economic Affairs and Energy, Labour and Social Affairs , Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, Food and Agriculture, Economic Cooperation and Development, Health, Transport and Digital Infrastructure and Education and Research are based in the capital.
Berlin hosts 158 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of many think tanks, trade unions, non-profit organizations, lobbying groups, and professional associations. Due to the influence and international partnerships of the Federal Republic of Germany as a state, the capital city has become a venue for German and European affairs. Frequent official visits, and diplomatic consultations among governmental representatives and national leaders are common in contemporary Berlin.
Economy
In 2013, the nominal GDP of the citystate Berlin experienced a growth rate of 1.2% (0.6% in Germany) and totaled €109.2 (~$142) billion.[99] Berlin's economy is dominated by the service sector, with around 80% of all companies doing business in services. The unemployment rate reached a 20-year low in June 2014 and stood at 11.0% .[100]
Important economic sectors in Berlin include life sciences, transportation, information and communication technologies, media and music, advertising and design, biotechnology, environmental services, construction, e-commerce, retail, hotel business, and medical engineering.[101]
Research and development have economic significance for the city. The metropolitan region ranks among the top-3 innovative locations in the EU.[102] The Science and Business Park in Adlershof is the largest technology park in Germany measured by revenue.[103] Within the Eurozone, Berlin has become a center for business relocation and international investments.[
Companies
Many German and international companies have business or service centers in the city. For some years Berlin has been recognized as a center of business founders in Europe.[105] Among the 10 largest employers in Berlin are the City-State of Berlin, Deutsche Bahn, the hospital provider Charité and Vivantes, the local public transport provider BVG, and Deutsche Telekom.
Daimler manufactures cars, and BMW builds motorcycles in Berlin. Bayer Health Care and Berlin Chemie are major pharmaceutical companies headquartered in the city. The second largest German airline Air Berlin is based there as well.[106]
Siemens, a Global 500 and DAX-listed company is partly headquartered in Berlin. The national railway operator Deutsche Bahn and the MDAX-listed firms Axel Springer SE and Zalando have their headquarters in the central districts.[107] Berlin has a cluster of rail technology companies and is the German headquarter or site to Bombardier Transportation,[108] Siemens Mobility,[109] Stadler Rail and Thales Transportation.[
Tourism and conventions
Berlin had 788 hotels with 134,399 beds in 2014.[111] The city recorded 28.7 million overnight hotel stays and 11.9 million hotel guests in 2014.[111] Tourism figures have more than doubled within the last ten years and Berlin has become the third most-visited city destination in Europe.
Berlin is among the top three congress cities in the world and home to Europe's biggest convention center, the Internationales Congress Centrum (ICC) at the Messe Berlin.[19] Several large-scale trade fairs like the consumer electronics trade fair IFA, the ILA Berlin Air Show, the Berlin Fashion Week (including the Bread and Butter tradeshow), the Green Week, the transport fair InnoTrans, the tourism fair ITB and the adult entertainment and erotic fair Venus are held annually in the city, attracting a significant number of business visitors.
Creative industries
Industries that do business in the creative arts and entertainment are an important and sizable sector of the economy of Berlin. The creative arts sector comprises music, film, advertising, architecture, art, design, fashion, performing arts, publishing, R&D, software,[112] TV, radio, and video games. Around 22,600 creative enterprises, predominantly SMEs, generated over 18,6 billion euro in revenue. Berlin's creative industries have contributed an estimated 20 percent of Berlin's gross domestic product in 2005.[
Media
Berlin is home to many international and regional television and radio stations.[114] The public broadcaster RBB has its headquarters in Berlin as well as the commercial broadcasters MTV Europe, VIVA, and N24. German international public broadcaster Deutsche Welle has its TV production unit in Berlin, and most national German broadcasters have a studio in the city including ZDF and RTL.
Berlin has Germany's largest number of daily newspapers, with numerous local broadsheets (Berliner Morgenpost, Berliner Zeitung, Der Tagesspiegel), and three major tabloids, as well as national dailies of varying sizes, each with a different political affiliation, such as Die Welt, Neues Deutschland, and Die Tageszeitung. The Exberliner, a monthly magazine, is Berlin's English-language periodical focusing on arts and entertainment. Berlin is also the headquarters of the two major German-language publishing houses Walter de Gruyter and Springer, each of which publish books, periodicals, and multimedia products.
Berlin is an important centre in the European and German film industry.[115] It is home to more than 1000 film and television production companies, 270 movie theaters, and around 300 national and international co-productions are filmed in the region every year.[102] The historic Babelsberg Studios and the production company UFA are located outside Berlin in Potsdam. The city is also home of the European Film Academy and the German Film Academy, and hosts the annual Berlin Film Festival. With around 500,000 admissions it is the largest publicly attended film festival in the world.
Infrastructure
Transport
Berlin's transport infrastructure is highly complex, providing a diverse range of urban mobility.[118] A total of 979 bridges cross 197 km (122 mi) of inner-city waterways. 5,422 km (3,369 mi) of roads run through Berlin, of which 77 km (48 mi) are motorways ("Autobahn").[119] In 2013, 1.344 million motor vehicles were registered in the city.[119] With 377 cars per 1000 residents in 2013 (570/1000 in Germany), Berlin as a Western global city has one of the lowest numbers of cars per capita.
Long-distance rail lines connect Berlin with all of the major cities of Germany and with many cities in neighboring European countries. Regional rail lines provide access to the surrounding regions of Brandenburg and to the Baltic Sea. The Berlin Hauptbahnhof is the largest grade-separated railway station in Europe.[120] Deutsche Bahn runs trains to domestic destinations like Hamburg, Munich, Cologne and others. It also runs an airport express rail service, as well as trains to several international destinations, e.g., Vienna, Prague, Zürich, Warsaw and Amsterdam.
Public transport
Airports
Flights departing from Berlin serve 163 destinations around the globe
Berlin has two commercial airports. Berlin Tegel Airport (TXL), which lies within the city limits, and Schönefeld Airport (SXF), which is situated just outside Berlin's south-eastern border in the state of Brandenburg. Both airports together handled 26.3 million passengers in 2013. In 2014, 67 airlines served 163 destinations in 50 countries from Berlin.[122] Tegel Airport is an important transfer hub for Air Berlin as well as a focus city for Lufthansa and Germanwings, whereas Schönefeld serves as an important destination for airlines like easyJet.
Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) will replace Tegel as single commercial airport of Berlin.[123] The new airport will integrate old Schönefeld (SXF) facilities and is scheduled to open not before 2017. Because of the rapid passenger growth at Berlin airports the capacities at the BER are already considered too small for the projected demand.
Cycling
Berlin is well known for its highly developed bicycle lane system.[124] It is estimated that Berlin has 710 bicycles per 1000 residents. Around 500,000 daily bike riders accounted for 13% of total traffic in 2009.[125] Cyclists have access to 620 km (385 mi) of bicycle paths including approximately 150 km (93 mi) of mandatory bicycle paths, 190 km (118 mi) (120 miles) of off-road bicycle routes, 60 km (37 mi) of bicycle lanes on roads, 70 km (43 mi) of shared bus lanes which are also open to cyclists, 100 km (62 mi) of combined pedestrian/bike paths and 50 km (31 mi) of marked bicycle lanes on roadside pavements (or sidewalks).[
I've been told that I draw "like a five year old". I don't think that those people get that I choose to draw that way. I *could* draw in this style all the time, if I wanted to, but I don't (although I do enjoy it now and then.)
This was a v. quick drawing because Mr P. kept moving.
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Monday was the proper deep powder day we've been waiting for here in Utah. We had over a foot of snow overnight and got out early for a pow skiing photo session. This is Joe Johnson, who got me my job taking pictures at Alta, a few years ago. He works as an athlete liaison at Salomon, now. But when it's required, he makes a pretty good ski actor, as well. My favorite part of this photo is the little bit of fir branch stuck to the tip of Joe's pole. It cracks me up :-)
Two horizontal compositions of this male quail in Tennessee Valley last May. They are such remarkably beautiful birds, and I love it when they give me a chance to take some portraits.
When I posted a vertical composition of this bird previously, there was a comment about how I was able to get such a clean background at only f/8. The secret to this shot is that the backdrop is a hillside on the other side of the the valley, perhaps a few hundred yards away!
Puya ? or Echium wildpretii ???
I have to check the proper name next time when I go to... @ Chelsea Physic Garden, London
By the way, my voice has changed :-(((
Still sore throat and blocked nose :-(((((((((
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Explore No.320 : #34
Front Page
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This photo was selected for inclusion in the 8th edition of Schmap London Guide.
Chelsea Physic Garden
In October we made a proper visit to St Mary’s church in East Quantoxhead. It's only a small village and although it's only a couple of miles on the seaward side of the A39, it feels very much like part of an ancient estate, as indeed it is. Right next to the church is Court House, the mostly Elizabethan home of the Luttrell family, whose other home was Dunster Castle over many centuries. The chimneys you can see above the church roof are those of Court House.
St Mary’s was built in the 14th century on the site of an earlier one, was restored in 1698 and some further renovation took place in 1860. It has a modest rood screen with parts dating from the 14th century, some early 16th-century carved bench ends and a large canopy tomb in the chancel to Hugh Luttrell, who died in 1522 and his son Andrew, who died in 1538. Several other Luttrells are buried in St George’s church in Dunster.
My affinity for pumps is not what it once was, I'm drawn more to strappy open toe sandals with a little pizzazz these days. This pair of classic pencil thin 5 inch stilettos are an exception. These were sent to me by a friend in Europe over the Winter and I've been looking forward to some warmer weather to break them out.
Constructed between 1847 and 1849 by the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway, (MS&LR - later became the Great Central), this is Torksey railway Viaduct, which crosses the River Trent between Lincolnshire & Nottinghamshire, roughly half way between Lincoln and Gainsborough. Designed by John Fowler (1817-1898), who later was one of the two engineers for the Forth Rail Bridge, Torksey Viaduct is a rare, and early surviving example of a tubular girder bridge.
There are two 130-foot spans over the River Trent, each consisting of two massive wrought iron girders - as seen here.
These are supported on stone piers - one in the centre and one at each side. On the Lincolnshire side is a 570-foot approach viaduct of 20 spans, and the bridge proper starts over a small natural island in the river. The position of the Bridge was chosen to use this island to simplify the task.
Captain Lintorn Simmons, the Board of Trade’s inspector, refused to grant permission for the viaduct to be opened, having “entertained doubts as to the ultimate security” of the bridge. After much argument, Fowler, supported by the Engineering profession, won the day, and the first train passed over in April 1850.
The bridge was twice strengthened - in 1877 & 1897, because increasing traffic and train loads. A conventional steel lattice girder (again, seen in this photograph) was inserted centrally into both main spans in the 1897 works, whilst the northern girders were moved out to maintain track clearances.
The "Leverton Branch", as this line (which ran between Sykes Junction near Lincoln and Clarborough, just West of Gainsborough), was known, was closed on November 3rd 1959, with Lincoln-Sheffield trains taking the only slightly less direct route through Gainsborough Lea Road. However, the line to the West of the Trent was reinstated in 1969 to serve the new power station at Cottam's need for coal, whilst on the Lincolnshire side, the line was run from Sykes Junction to the Shell petrol depot at Torksey. Only the viaduct itself remained closed.
The Oil traffic ceased in the late 1980s, and the track is now all lifted (and the road bridge on the Gainsborough-Lincoln road was removed).
Until the early 1990s it was possible the walk across the viaduct - this was no longer possible by the 1990s as the track bed had been removed on the bridge itself, and that part was fenced off. Happily, this was resolved during the las 12 months. The cycling and footpath charity Sustrans have installed the required safety fencing and reinstated the bridge bed on the North side. There is now a fine footpath over the impressive bridge to the riverbank on the Western (Nottinghamshire) side of the river. This shot shows the (still without a track bed) South side of the bridge.
The viaduct is rightly covered by a Grade II* listing but worryingly, also features on English Heritage's Buildings at Risk register.
Camera: Nikon F5
Lens: Nikkor 28-80mm zoom
Film: Kodak Ektar 100
None of this 599 Milarky.
Great to see one on the street in the middle of London...What was wierd was the other classic icon the other side 10 mins later. Yellow Lamborghini Miura!
The folks that live in this community definitely don't need any help when it comes to decorating! They go all out for holidays and especially the 4th of July! After the dinner/dance they start marshaling up the golf carts in the front parking lot, getting ready for the parade. It wouldn't do just to have your ride pimped out, you need to be dressed the part as well!
This is from our community party/dance/parade. The folks that live here are pretty patriotic, it comes with the generation.
Had to do some serious crop on this shot to avoid clutter.
A beloved New England treasure and long-time staple Papa Gino's closed in 2021, after decades of loyal service at the Lincoln Mall in Lincoln, Rhode Island.
The Caldor Rainbow did an extensive preservation of the oldest-retaining tenant and time-capsule restaurant from the Boston, Mass.-based chain from better times in 2020.
Now known as Lincoln Commons, most shops inside the remaining mall portion have since vacated, except for CW Lanes & Games and Theaters and Lincoln Tech.
Papa Gino's, currently operates 79 locations, mostly in Massachusetts but no longer in Boston proper with only 5 remaining in neighboring Rhode Island.
... IMAGINE TO BE HERE...
after a pleasant walk inside the Park Sempione, completely surrounded by green and plants... walking slowly till this magic place...
....
Porta Sempione
("Simplon Gate") is a city gate of Milan, Italy. The name "Porta Sempione" is used both to refer to the gate proper and to the surrounding district ("quartiere"), a part of the Zone 1 division (the historic city centre), including the major avenue of Corso Sempione. The gate is marked by a landmark triumphal arch called Arco della Pace ("Arch of Peace"), dating back to the 19th century, although its origins can be traced back to a gate of the Roman walls of Milan.
History[edit]
Former toll house of Porta Sempione
A gate that roughly corresponds to modern Porta Sempione was already part of Roman walls of Milan. It was called "Porta Giovia" ("Jupiter's Gate") and was located at the end of modern Via San Giovanni sul Muro. At the time, the gate was meant to control an important road leading to what is now Castelseprio. Very little remains of the original Roman structure; some Roman tombstones that used to be placed by the outer side of the walls have been employed in the construction of later buildings such as the Basilica of Saint Simplician (located in Corso Garibaldi).
In the Middle Ages, part of the Roman walls in the Porta Sempione area were adapted as part of the new walls. The gate itself was moved north, in a place that is now occupied by the Sforza Castle. The Castle itself was completed in the 15th Century, under Duke Filippo Maria Visconti, and the gate itself became part of the Castle.
In 1807, under the Napoleonic rule, the Arch of Peace was built by architect Luigi Cagnola. This new gate marked the place where the new Strada del Sempione entered Milan. This road, which is still in use today, connects Milan to Paris through the Simplon Pass crossing the Alps. At the time, the gate was still called "Porta Giovia". When the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy fell and Milan was conquered by the Austrian Empire, the gate was not yet completed, and the construction was abandoned for a while.
The construction of the Arch was resumed, again by Cagnola, in 1826, for Emperor Francis II, who dedicated the monument to the 1815 Congress of Vienna. When Cagnola died in 1833, his project was taken over by Francesco Londonio and Francesco Peverelli, who brought it to completion in 1838.
The gate was the scene of several prominent events in the Milanese history of the 19th century. On 22 March 1848, the Austrian army led by marshal Josef Radetzky escaped from Milan through Porta Giovia after being defeated in the Five Days of Milan rebellion. On 8 June 1859, four days after the Battle of Magenta, Napoleon III and Victor Emmanuel II of Italy triumphally entered Milan through the gate.
Structure and location
The Foundation of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, bas-relief by Pompeo Marchesi, on the right-hand side of the Arch of Peace
The Simplon Gate is located at the center of a wide round square known as "Piazza Sempione" (Simplon Square). It is adjacent to the Simplon Park, the main city park of Milan, which was designed with the explicit intent of providing panoramic views encompassing both the Arch and the nearby Sforza Castle.
It is neoclassical triumphal arch, 25 m high and 24 m wide, decorated with a number of bas-reliefs, statues, and corinthian columns. Bas-reliefs and statues are made of a variety of materials, including marble, bronze, wood, and stucco. Many of such decorations, especially bas-reliefs, are dedicated to major events in the history of Italy and Europe, such as the Battle of Leipzig, the foundation of the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, the Congress of Vienna. Other decorations have classical mythology subjects such as Mars, Ceres, Minerva, Apollo, and Victoria-Nike. There are also a group of statues that are allegories of major rivers in North Italy such as the Po, the Adige and the Ticino. Notable artists that have collaborated to the decoration of the gate include Pompeo Marchesi, Luigi Acquisti, Grazioso Rusca, Luigi Buzzi Leone, Giovanni Battista Comolli, Luigi Marchesi, Nicola Pirovano, Francesco Peverelli, Benedetto Cacciatori, Giovanni Antonio Labus, Claudio Monti, Gaetano Monti, Camillo Pacetti, Antonio Pasquali, Giovambattista Perabò, Angelo Pizzi, Grazioso Rusca, Girolamo Rusca, and Francesco Somaini.
What came immediately to my mind while watching these three photos is the Roman Quadriga on top of the Arch.
Please, note that
ALL the other Quadriga all over the world and particularly in France and Germany are copies of the Roman Quadriga.
At the sides of the Arch of Peace there are two minor rectangular buildings that used to be the customs office.
References in popular culture
In his novella A Moveable Feast, Ernest Hemingway mentions the Arch of Peace, expressing the belief that its orientation be parallel to those of the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel and the Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile in Paris.
FOR MORE INFORMATIONS:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porta_Sempione
www.aviewoncities.com/milan/arcodellapace.htm
FOR THE PLACE:
wikimapia.org/#lang=it&lat=45.478700&lon=9.165173...
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“It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera…
they are made with the eye, heart and head.”
[Henry Cartier Bresson]
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Please don't use any of my images on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit written permission.
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Look at me all prim and proper, butter would melt would it?
I think we all know the truth :-)
Last on from this set for the time being because I still have a few more styles from July to post.
I really should decide if I am going out this week or not and if so what to wear. Oh the life of a woman is never dull.