BERLIN: Made In GDR

If you are looking in East Berlin’s Prenzlauberg for traces of 40 years of socialism these days, you will have a problem. Trabbis disappeared from the townscape. Most houses are renovated for Western tenants. Nevertheless, you can do a real Ossi shopping tour. Original GDR-cultural goods are offered at the grocery store ‘Ostkost’. Ostkost deals with classics like Club Cola, the East Nutella, Nudossi, extremely hot V.E.B mustard from Bauzen, malt coffee Im Nu, Grabower chocolate kisses and Husten drops Kruegerol. The original East Schrippen awakens the socialist in everyone. For the real Ossi interior designs, you can go to ‘furniture fuer Sie und Ihn’. Here you can find funky tea sets, socialist 70s wallpaper and ugly furniture from official flats and congress centres - everything made in the GDR. After a long shopping trip in the Kiez, the real Ossi goes to the Prater. The only eastern beer garden offers eastern beers and at the weekend hobby wrestling under the clear sky.