Berlin: area by area - Unter den Linden

As Berlin has come back together, its historic heart is revitalized and pulsing with vibrant life.

Once more, Unter den Linden leads into the historic heart of the city.
Before the war, Unter den Linden was one of Europe's grand boulevards. In the '20s, when Berlin was famous for its anything goes love of life, this was the cabaret drag, a springboard to stardom for young and vamp entertainers like Marlene Dietrich.

Named centuries ago for its thousand linden trees, this was the most elegant street of Prussian Berlin before Hitler, and the main drag of East Berlin after. Hitler replaced the venerable trees — many 250 years old — with Nazi flags. Popular discontent actually drove the dictator to replant the trees.

Today, Unter den Linden is no longer a depressing Cold War cul-de-sac, and its pre-Hitler strolling café ambience is returning.