Atlantica - 01.03.2004, Side 23

A T L A N T I C A 21
the city to take advantage of the cheap
housing. As a result, a cultural awaken-
ing began, transforming the eastern
neighbourhoods like Mitte (centre),
Prenzlauer Berg and Friedrichshain into
cultural meccas. These small, tight-knit
neighbourhoods are full of energetic,
imaginative students, shopkeepers and
artists. New bars, cafes and shops are
popping up like wild flowers.
“What I like about Berlin is that you
can get into clubs with sneakers,” says
Sarah Bagel, a 23-year-old communica-
tions student, as she sits on her bicycle
at a stop light in Rosenthalerplatz. In
Berlin, she says, you can wear what you
want and nobody cares.
In fact that’s true. There seems to be
an overwhelming sense of individuality
in Berlin, especially in the East. You can
see it in the fashion. At the moment, the
only fashion tip you need is that the
more you dress down the better.
According to Raya, a 20 year old who
works at Falafel UFO, a funky eatery on
the never-ending street of Kastanien-
allee, the dress-down look is the fash-
ion statement of the day.
“The street fashion – it’s like drinking
coffee not because you like coffee, but
because it’s cool.” Raya, from Sofia,
Bulgaria, just happens to be studying
fashion. She sums up the just-crawled-
out-of-bed look that so many Berliners
are sporting these days as being
“Chicky Micky”.
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