Visiting Holtzmarkt in Berlin

By: Henry Grosso

For this blog post, I felt it was only right to talk about something Berlin-related because, after all, I came abroad to study in Berlin. Coming to Berlin for me was a risk culturally and in terms of just fitting in. Berlin is a very alternative city, and it is something very different than what I am used to. Berlin is dark, edgy, and unfamiliar, and it puts you out of your comfort zone. In comparison to the other European cities, I have visited it is one of its own and nothing I went to compared to anything I see here. 

Berlin was once a very corrupt place, being divided into 2 separate states and now unified as one. Berlin is a place where people often come to find themselves and feel like they have somewhere to fit in. 

One place I visited while here that is very interesting to me is Holtzmarkt. Holtzmarkt originated as Bar25, a bar, club, and haven, for people who needed an outlet from whatever was going in their lives. Over time it transitioned from Bar25 5o Holtzmarkt as the city thought it was in the city's best interest to do this. This place has helped me better understand Berlin for what it is over time. 

This a place where food vendors of all different cultures are selling cuisine, bartenders are making cheap drinks at the cost of nothing, and artists selling and showing off their creative art. Berlin is all about this, expressing yourself in a way that no other city understands and often accepts. This place has grown my imagination and more importantly, served as a lesson for what I should be taking away from my time here in Belin. An understanding of who I am, how I am growing, and who I am going to become is what Berlin has shown me.