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For many tourists Mitte simply IS Berlin. Its greatest architectural achievements are all there and luxury has arrived in the shops and in the hotels. It is international with Germany playing a part, but a modest one on a very large canvas. Around Oranienburgerstrasse, home to the New Jewish Synagogue and Tacheles, one of the first art squats, the changes wrought in recent years have meant trendy bars and restaurants of an international flavour usurping grocery stores. It could be said it is losing its bohemian roots in favour of boutiques and strict club door codes. A more Berliner side of Mitte is seen in the streets behind. Where Auguststrasse and Linienstrasse strike parallel paths is die schöne Viertel (the beautiful quarter) as it abounds in all things beautiful. Visitors will now walk through the Brandenburg Gate to Tiergarten as they could not do so for nearly 30 years but in a way there is no need; Mitte has caught up and will not slip back.

To the west is the Tiergarten, acres of woodland, grass, lakes and cycle tracks with only the occasional building as an intrusion. It is also home to people who would have been happy to see the former West Berlin stand still in 1985. Only on its fringes does the world move on. The Reichstag and surrounding new government buildings make it clear that Berlin is definitely the capital of Germany, if not of Europe, but these are deliberately shared with Mitte, across the River Spree, to stress the reunification. Only the Potsdamer Platz shared with Mitte gives it a truly contemporary feel.

To live in Zehlendorf is a sign of success and always has been. Houses built last year show this just as much as those built a hundred years ago. Everything is big in this rich, leafy quarter, but not ostentatious. It has been a broad-minded area too. Races and nationalities have mixed well, as have artistic and architectural styles. The Wannsee Lake is large enough to offer a beach, which is most welcome to tourists in the summer months.

This is the arty, bohemian centre of Berlin. Anything goes here and does. Other parts of Berlin are for the tame and the contented; Prenzlauerberg is for those in a hurry, for those who want to experiment, for those who want to change. Come here for ideas not for self-satisfaction. The latest fashionable bars, dark and retro, have gravitated towards Helmholzplatz. If a dress, a dish or a film catches on in Prenzlauerberg, see it next in London or Paris but nowhere else in Berlin. The neighbourhood had to be politically intense in the late 1980s when the East German Government could not face the thought of change, now central government concerns it less. Many people are self-employed here, few are unemployed, and it’s the latest residential hotspot as families are now joining the singles who traditionally dominated the area.

Charlottenburg does not need to move with the times; it has shrugged off most previous regimes and will presumably continue to do so. It has money and it has time so it sees no need to keep open its shops late or to use convenience foods. Locals have a lengthy meal out or stay at home. They make no claims to be cosmopolitan when they have been so successful in a purely German environment. It seems pointless to build glass domes when the granite and marble of the 19th century are still intact. The opulent interior of the Charlottenburg Palace reflects the hold of the past on the surrounding area. Modern taste is to be kept firmly behind the doors of a few museums or a few restaurants. The vast parklands of Grunewald show similar staid tastes. Walk here, but do not leave litter, dress provocatively or expect any fun after sundown.

Also known as the new Prenzlauerberg it is far less attractive than its aspirational quarter with many more Communist era blocks and bleak buildings, but its gentrification, like other areas of the former East Berlin, is only a matter of time.

Before reunification Kreuzberg in the then West Berlin was what Prenzlauerberg would have liked to have been. If the rest of the town was happy to enjoy its status as “the bulwark of freedom” and the seemingly never-ending Wirtschaftswunder (economic miracle) Kreuzberg was the power-house for new ideas and new people. It was bohemian in a way that few Germans could then cope with. It launched the protests against the Vietnam War in the 60s and then absorbed the Turkish immigrant communities in the 70s. It brought homosexuality out of the closet and is still a centre for the gay community. Politically it is still at the forefront of radical ideas; the artists, designers and dot.com fanatics who moved to Prenzlauerberg in the mid-90s did not take their politics with them. Expect the bars to have posters about the next demo rather than displays of protruding breasts and bottoms. It is the Turkish heart of Berlin and the second generation of Turks will probably determine the future of Kreuzberg. To the west is Schöneberg which has turned from alternative to up-market in recent years. There is still a young vibe to it and the main hub of the area is centred around Nollendorfplatz. With cafés like Berio and clubs like the KitKatClub this area is also popular with the gay community.

Visitors to the palace at Potsdam, to the southwest of the city, will understand why the royal family when tired of Berlin, or frightened of it, were so happy there. Yet even Potsdam was insufficient for them; hence the palace at Köpenick to the east.

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