Foreword

Dear readers,

There is no single answer to what Berlin is like—only countless ones. The city is like a living coral reef: colorful, bustling, and full of nooks and crannies where dazzling individuals find their place. Over 3.8 million Berliners call this city home, and more than 12 million visitors come here every year. For some, it is a place of longing; for others, it is everyday life. Everyone experiences a different Berlin here: the familiar neighborhood, a favorite street, or the club that turns night into day. Thus, many small worlds come together to form a greater whole—spanning 891 square kilometers full of stories.

This book is our attempt to capture a piece of this diversity. It showcases twelve places that are quintessentially Berlin to us: from the Brandenburg Gate to Tempelhofer Feld, from the clubs to the hoods. This can’t be a complete picture, of course, because Berlin is constantly changing. In the hidden object scenes, eras, people, buildings, and stories merge: artists meet politicians, animals stroll across squares, and sometimes works of art come to life.

Berlin itself is a hidden object picture: vast and diverse, and you’re always discovering something new, even in familiar places. On every spread, raccoons, pigeons, foxes, and even the famous—alleged—Berlin lioness are hidden. We’ve compiled exciting highlights for each location, and those who want to dive even deeper will find all the personalities and works of art depicted here explained in the glossary at the end.

With that in mind: Welcome to Wimmelberlin—where there’s room for everyone and a new story awaits around every corner.
Have fun exploring,
Laura & Patrick