A good place to drown your Berliner winter-melancholy. The bartenders are top notch and the interior is warm but stylish, with the inevitable retro vibe. Open from 6 till late. There´s also a legendary (and kinda expensive) restaurant next door, which provides the bar with some excellent snacks. Works for dates and for friends, but if you´re planning for a bigger group it might be wise to reserve.

Taking a little sun and walking around Paul Linke Ufer is always a good way to spend the afternoon and recharge batteries.

Boutique space offers natural perfumes, organic soulful objects, Japanese crafts/ceramics and antiques, natural incenses and smudges, resins and wood pieces for burning in incense ceremony. There are also Chinese tea ceremony going on Saturdays, zen meditation, scent-related soirees and other workshops.

I never knew this neighbourhood existed and went to visit a friend and was instantly transported out of Berlin into some sort of 50's utopia. "The Hansaviertel is a prime example of modern architecture and urban planning in the fifties in Berlin. 36 individual buildings or ensembles still form the model of modern architecture and urban planning of the 1950s. The southern part of the war-damaged Hansaviertel, which lies between the S-Bahn line and Tiergarten, was chosen as the central demonstration area of ​​the International Building Exhibition in order to present the "city of tomorrow" - in deliberate contrast to the East Berlin Stalinallee and the restored tenement barracks." - berlin.de Also visit The Akademie der Künste, if not for the art then the architecture alone.

If you want something a little different from your beer, try Lager Lager. "We are an independent bottle shop and taproom in Neukölln with a passion for all things beer. Choose from our 8 rotating taps and 250+ bottles, with new stock arriving each week. Drink in or takeaway a Growler bottle of your favourite beer using our counter-pressure bottle filler, which guarantees freshness."