Photo: Jon Åslund

Berlin has almost as many independent cinemas as it does saunas, and, though they’re not as warm as a Finnish hotbox and the nudity is (usually) only on screen, they do offer an extensive and diverse film program to help escape the autumn gloom. While the highlight of the filmgoing season is February’s Berlinale, rarely a week goes by here without a film festival or retrospective being screened somewhere around town. From arthouse & avant garde cinema to B-movies and cult classics there is something to suit every taste and, unlike the sauna, a movie theatre has the distinct advantage of being very, very dark, so no one will notice if you’re still working off those extra helpings of holiday cheer.

If you’re in Berlin and want to get out of the house without worrying about what you are - or aren’t - wearing, start by checking out the programs at these cinemas, where you’ll find most of the films shown in their original language versions, with or without subtitles.

Part of the Book Burning Memorial on Bebelplatz Photo: Chan'r

Being a book lover can be a burden when combined with a love for travel - literally! My insatiable lust for those finely bound objects of desire takes up not only precious room in my luggage, as I seem unable to board a plane or train without a half dozen readables tucked into my bags, but also a good portion of my travel budget, since every new destination offers countless opportunities to browse the local bookshops and secondhand shops. Embarassed as I am to admit it, I've now taken to bringing along an empty suitcase when I travel to a new city, in anticipation of all my new prizes.

Even here at home in Berlin I am not safe from this weakness for the written word. The Germans are notoriously literate (remember the Gutenberg Bible?), and in the years since reunification Berlin has once again grown to be a center of European culture and contemporary art. One can't walk fifty meters in any direction without coming across the windows of a bookstore whispering of the fascinating finds which may be waiting inside. As my apartment is relatively small, I try to keep my library pared down to manageable proportions by selling or giving away books once I am finished with them. Still I still accumulate books faster than I can read them and, since I long ago ran out of shelfspace, I am slowly being buried beneath thick volumes of Berlin history, psychoanalytic film theory, and paranoiac-critical surveys of art history.

A bittersweet malady this craving for life between the covers and, since misery loves company, I've compiled a short list of some of Berlin's best book pushers for visiting bibliofiends.

It's that time of year again in Berlin; the skies are cold and damp, darkness falls early, stays late, and you can't swing a dead cat around here without hitting a Christmas market.  One of the city's most loved holiday traditions; the markets are a time-honored way to lighten the gloom of Berlin's long December nights. This week I tried my luck at a 'traditional' Weihnachtsmarkt in front of Schloss Charlottenburg, on the far side of town.

Even from a distance the market glows invitingly, the twinkling bulbs of the Christmas trees framing the royal palace, festively painted with holiday colors. Crowded with merrymakers of every age wandering along the rows of wooden huts and rustic cabins, the palace's normally staid front lawn takes on the appearance of the small alpine village of Christmas fantasy.

The tiny sizes of the huts belie the wealth of goods they offer. I could have knocked out a good part of my Christmas list had I been in the mood, but I'm an unrepentant last minute shopper so i just browsed through, taking in the holiday cheer, the children's joyful shrieks as they whirled around the antique Christmas carousel or miniature Ferris wheel, and their wide-eyed wonder at the endless selection of toys and trinkets.

There’s plenty to tempt older children like me too. The vendors were laying out long rows of woolen gloves and scarves, fashionable felt hats, hand carved nativity scenes, and holiday house decorations. The stuffed shopping bags and cash changing hands confirm that this tiny alpine village is a one stop shop for every holiday need.

And then there are the edibles - lots and lots of edibles. Eating and drinking is a central part of the Christmas market experience and long lines of red noses circle cabins offering every sort of goulash, grilled beast and, this being Germany, a multitude of wursts. Bloodwursts, Bratwursts and Bockwursts are turning and burning on the grill and, though not a big meat eater, I waited in line like everyone else. There are few things that can warm the belly on a chill winter evening better than a smoked bratwurst slathered in mustard and washed down with a steaming mug of Glühwein, that sweet, warm, intoxicating brew that, as its name implies, adds an extra glow to every Christmas market. Afterwards I treated myself to a paper sac full of hot roasted chestnuts to keep that holiday warmth all the way home.

There are still a couple of weeks to go before the big day and I’m planning to make my way to a few more Christmas markets.  There’s the trendy Weihnachtszauber on the Gendarmenmarkt, the hipster market in Prenzlauer Berg's Kulturbrauerei, the proletarian market at Alexanderplatz with its ice skating rink, and even a Hanukkah Market at the Jewish Museum.  With so many to choose from I'll be able to keep the winter blues at bay and find plenty to marvel at while contemplating the true gifts of this holiday season.

Photo: Claudius Prößer

We had a bright, breezy summer in Berlin this year and, while I wasn't able to fly south for lazy days spent supine on Italian beaches, I found my share of sun wandering the Mark Brandenburg trying to avoid horse apples and honeybee stings. Now, as the days grow shorter and I trade in my sandals for sweaters, I'll need to seek my thrills in places with central heating and rainproof roofs.  Thankfully Berlin's cultural outpourings also move indoors with Autumns arrival, so there is still plenty to see and do.  Here are some events which will see me through until year's end ...

Photo: Phil Strahl

The new arrival in Berlin may be shocked and horrified on their first Sunday in the city, when they awake to find the stores closed and the shops shuttered. Usually crowded consumer corridors are as empty the OK Corral at High Noon, lacking even the tumbleweeds and six shooters of the sleepy western town. Despite recent attempts to loosen restrictions on Sunday hours, most retail businesses are still six day affairs, and shoppers with poor planning skills are forced to drag their hangovers to the nearest train station, where a handful of shops are usually open for “travelers”.

So what to do on a Sunday afternoon when a crumpled wad of Euros is burning a hole through your pocket?  Head off to one of Berlin's flea markets, which offer not only valuable purchasing possibilities, but hours of entertainment as well! This past Sunday I rose early to make the rounds, caffeine deprived and braving crowds of Sunday shoppers (and the odd bagpipe) in a valiant attempt to find those odds and ends which I never knew existed but now can’t live without.