Visit a Collegium Musicum Concert

Collegium Musicum Berlin: Startseite
Source: https://www.collegium-musicum-berlin.de/_inhaltselemente/feature-slideshow/_slideshow-images/konzertmitschnitte.jpg?width=1300

The Collegium Musicum is a joint venture of Freie Universität and Technische Universität Berlin. Its ensemble consist of 450 students, professors, and and other university staff from different departments, who meet up regurlarly to make music together. Traditionally, they give a number of concerts towards the end of the German semester in February.

Chamber Choir Concert

The 35 members of the chamber choir perform a unique selection of a capella music – ranging from classics to works by Jaakko Mänyjärvi and Francis Poulenc.

When? February 7, 2020, 7 p.m.
Where? St.-Jacobi-Kirche Kreuzberg, Oranienstraße 132 (U8 Moritzplatz)
Admission: 5€

Philharmonic Orchestra

If you are a fan of classical music, this might be the perfect concert for you. The symphony orchestra and the Great Choir perform a number of classical pieces by Anton Bruckner, Felix Mendellsohn Bartholdy, and Francis Poulenc.

When? February 9, 2020, 8 p.m.
Where? Philharmonie Berlin, Herbert-von-Karajan-Str. 1 (S and U Potsdamer Platz)
Admission: 10€

Bigband Winterconcert

Don’t have plans for Valentine’s Day yet? How about an evening with the UniBigband Berlin, where you might just discover your love for jazz?

When? February 14 and 15, 2020, 8 p.m.
Where? Kunstfabrik Schlot, Invalidenstraße. 117 (U6 Naturkundemuseum)
Admission: 5€

You can find more information on their website: www.collegium-musicum-berlin.de

Berlin Science Week

Berlin Science Week is a 10-day international festival. Based in Berlin, Science Week is the global platform for dialogue and collaboration between science and society to inspire a deeper understanding of the world. Some topics are future of digital identity, medicine or work, food security, the relationship between humans and machines, the politics of inequality, art and science, or climate change economics. This and more will be discussed in over 130 events across the city.

When? November 1 - November 10, 2019 
Where? At participating institutions all over Berlin, Central hub is the Museum für Naturkunde, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin. 
Admission:free

Festival of Lights

Serveral landmarks, historical sights, streets and squares in Berlin will be covered in light projections and video art (hotspots for this are Brandburger Gate, TV tower, Berlin Cathedral, to name but a few). The Festival of Lights will take place for the 15th time this year.

Museumsinsel (Museum Island) during the Festival of Lights
When? October 11 - October 19, 2019, 7pm - Midnight 
Where? all over Berlin

Useful apps for your stay abroad

Going Local Berlin – is an unconventional travel guide. 700 personal tips for Berlins 12 boroughs. The app includes personal Berlin tips for „Hidden Places“; „Must-Sees“ and „Food & Drink“ as well as annual event highlights.
BVG FahrInfo Plus – is a free app that covers all public transportation in Berlin and helps you to easily navigate your way through the city.
The Berlin Wall – is an interactive map that shows the exact location of the Wall. Photos, audio clips and texts about the respective site are stored at historically important locations between Brandenburger Tor and Potsdamer Platz.   
Splitwise – is a free tool to track bills and other shared expenses, so that everyone gets paid back. Perfect for friends travelling together.
   
Happycow – is a worldwide restaurant finder for vegetarian and vegan restaurants.
Komoot – Hike &Bike GPS Maps- is an app that provides you with offline maps, turn-by-turn navigation and recommendations on hikes, cycling routes and mountain bike trails.   
Street Art Berlin – displays 25 walls to help you discover giant paintings, wonderful cut-outs and lovely stencils. This guide will take you right to the hotspots of the Berlin Street Art.
Berlin History Guide – is an interactive city guide directed by the GPS in your smartphone.

 

 Kamino – is the perfect app for those of you who love to walk and explore the city without public transport. It offers walking tours created by travel experts and locals – stops for shopping and enjoying yummy food is guaranteed.
DB navigator App – is a convenient app by Deutsche Bahn (the German railway service) that makes plannung your weekend get-aways a little easier.

 

lgbtqia+ travel in Europe

Was bedeudet „LGBTQIA+“? | FIETE KielTo get a sense of what the lgbtqia+ culture is like in Europe and to keep up to date with country policies you can make use of different lgbtq+ organizations out there, like the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association and the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex Association. In terms of European lgbtqia+ rights organizations, Rainbow Europe and TGEU: Transgender Europe are worth getting to know as well.

In queer-friendly destination cities like London, Amsterdam, Madrid, Stockholm, Barcelona, and Paris, lgbtqia+ culture isn’t radically different from each other. And will be similar to what you will find here in Berlin (numerous bars, hotels, restaurants and shops specificially catering to the lgbtqia+ community). Usually, these differences vary based on the country’s or region’s cultural nuances.

It is obviously  important to note that Europe has homophobic and transphobic attitudes in all its regions. These are often found in more rural parts of the respective country. At the same time, cities are not immune to hate either. What applies here is the same advice we already gave you for Berlin, which is to be aware of your surroundings and carefully negotiate each setting and „test the waters“ to ensure safety.

Eastern Europe for instance does not have a very great track record for lgbtqia+ rights. Obvisouly it is up to you where you want to travel to, but as a general rule, the further east you travel in Europe, the more careful you need to be about public displays of your sexuality. This is primarily due to the reason that Eastern Europe is more socially conservative.

The European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) produces a very helpful “Rainbow Europe” guide to the legal positions of Europe’s states. All in all Europe is becoming more and more lgbtqia+ friendly!

lgbtqia+ at Freie Universität Berlin

What do the letters in LGBTQIA+ stand for? Common terms explained - ABC Everyday
Source: https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/36c462ccd86c9aa040bd42a581d6eeb7?impolicy=wcms_crop_resize&cropH=1079&cropW=1919&xPos=0&yPos=0&width=862&height=485

The official voice for all student affairs at Freie Universität Berlin is the AStA, which stands for Allgemeiner Studierendenausschuss (General Student’s Committee). As far as lgbtqia+ rights and issues are concerned, the AStA combines two departments: the Department of Queers and the Department of [LesBiTransInterA]*.

The Department of Queers  represents all gay, bisexual, trans*, inter* and queer students and organizes events such as lectures, pub crawls and movie nights, and also has opening hours, where you can get information about gbtq+ living in Berlin and support should you encounter discrimination.

Where? AStA FU Berlin, Otto-von-Simson-Str. 23, 14195 Berlin
Consulting Hours? Tue 4pm - 5pm, Thurs 2pm - 3pm
Email: queer {at} astafu.de

For lesbian, a-/bi-/poly-/pan-sexual women, trans*, genderqueer and intersex people the AStA offers the Autonome [LesBiTransInterA]*-Referat, which is situated in the attic of the AStA Villa. Casual meet-ups (excluding cis-men) provide a safe space for exchanging views about life, experiences at university and addressing lesbian, gender/queer, trans and intersex issues. The office regularly organizes networking meetings, communal breakfasts and various events relating to queer topics (for instance movie nights). The pink office also has a queer feminist library that you can check out (most books are in German though).

Where? AStA FU Berlin, Otto-von-Simson-Str. 23, 14195 Berlin
Consulting Hours? Tue 4pm - 5pm, Thurs 2pm - 3pm
Email: lesbitransintera (at) astafu.de
FYI: The main reason for the separation of the two offices is to make sure to provide a save space for every one, presuming that each community has different thematic focuses. Although the offices are separated, both clearly speak out against any form of heteronormativity and transphobia/homophobia. They both demand visibility of intersexual and genderqueer people, gay, lesbians and trans people in all areas of life, including life at the university, of course.

If you would like to get involved or just stop by for coffee, feel very free to.

lgbtq+ in Germany/Berlin

LGBTQ • Flaggen und Bedeutung

Coming to a foreign country as a member of the lgbtq+ community can be a little daunting at first. At home you might feel seen and safe and cared for by the community around you. So moving to a different country can be stressful, because you don’t really know what to expect. It can also be exciting though and an opportunity to find out more about yourself. To give you a little support along the way, we have created a small lgbtq+ section on this blog to tell you more about the queer scene in Berlin, at Freie Universität, where you can find help should you need it, etc. You find it all under Life Abroad – Queer Berlin.

Generally, Germany is amongst the most lgbtq+ friendly countries in the world in terms of civil rights. „Not only are homosexual relations legal, but same sex partnerships have been recognized on a national level since 2001 (ILGA). In August 2009, second parent adoption rights were granted to homosexual couples […]” (Shalosky, LGBT Student Guide for Education Abroad) and same-sex marriage has finally been legal since October 1, 2017. Berlin itself has become a hub for gay culture  with a thriving lgbtq+ social scene (numerous clubs, organizations and magazines) and you can expect to see open expression of different sexual orientations. This being said, it is always a good idea to carefully negotiate each setting and „test the waters“ to ensure safety, because it is possible to experience mixed messages about the acceptance of lgbtq+ individuals.

Use „bike swapping“ to explore Berlin on two wheels

Lately, it feels as if Berlin is making a real effort to become a bit more bike friendly. More and more bike lanes are set up and one seems to find a sharable bike on every corner. So what better way is there to explore the city than by bike!? You defnitely get a better sense of how Berlin’s different districts are connected (in contrast to a you that is mostly living underground) and you even get a daily workout in. If you don’t have the stamina to look for your own cheap bike at a flea market (and also don’t want to go through the hassle of reselling your bike when you leave) you can use a bike swapping service that allows you to use a bike for an extended period of time, before you can get rid of it fairly easy. The big advantage of a bike swapping service in comparison to a bike sharing service is that you are actually owning the bike for the duration you are using the service. Also! Swap bikes are way more comfortable, since they are regular bikes and not funny looking space ships (which could be said about most of the sharable bikes. Of course, you can try and judge them yourself).

S w a p f i e t s

The swapping service that many people use in Berlin is Swapfiets. You can read more about their service, how it works exactly (FAQ), their bikes, and how you can sign up here. To give you a quick overview, this is how it works: you get a bike subsciription that you are able to cancel monthly. For example, you want to use your bike for three months. You sign up and then cancel your membership at the end of your second month. A monthly subscription costs 15€/month (student price, no deposit or start-up costs). Included are a fully equipped bike, a lock and a full swapping service. Swapping service means, if anything is broken or doesn’t work anymore, your bike is swapped for a new one within 24 hours. This way you always have a full functioning bike at hand.

Visit Europe’s biggest Jewish cemetery

The Jewish Cemetery in Berlin-Weißensee was set up in 1880 by Berlin’s Jewish community. It covers around 42 hectars and thereby is the biggest Jewish cemetery in Europe that is still in good condition. Since the 1970’s it is under preservation orders.

If you have a sunny afternoon to spare this is a nice place for taking a walk (it can also be very pretty during the winter months, provided that there is snow). Although you obvisouly will be wandering a graveyard, I wouldn’t classify this as a very sad place; you are rather hit by a mystical and even kind of joyful (if you can call a graveyard joyful) tranquility. Big trees portrude from the grounds and create an enchanted atmosphere for the cemetery’s visitors.

Where? Herbert-Baum-Straße 45, 13088 Berlin Weißensee
Opening Hours: Monday-Thursday 7:30am - 5pm, Friday 7:30am - 2:30pm, Sunday 8am-4pm, closed on Saturdays and Jewish public holidays.

Watch the trailer for the documentary about the cemetery here.

Living room feels at Frollein Langner

As is the case for so many of Berlin’s bar establishments – when you enter Frollein Langner for the first time, you don’t quite know if you have just stepped into your Grandma’s living room or have found a cool bar in Berlin Neukölln. Here, the latter is the case. Fun fact: next to the many cosy sofas and sofa chairs, a bath tub also belongs to the bar’s interior. However, due to the numerous comfortable seating options, we think it should be neglected. They have a good selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and even small food options (which are cooked at the place next door).

They sometimes do special events, like pub quizzes and music events. For this keep up to date on their Instagram.

Where? Weisestr. 34, 12049 Berlin, Neukölln
Opening Hours:  Monday-Friday 4pm-2am, Saturday-Sunday Noon-4am, Public Holidays 4pm-Midnight.
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