Baumhaus an der Mauer

The Tree House on the Wall (Baumhaus an der Mauer) is an unusual Berlin sight, set on an occupied traffic island on Bethaniendamm between the districts of Mitte and Kreuzberg. It is not a classic tree house but a two-story garden shed built around two trees. Turkish immigrant Osman Kalin built the hut from discarded bulky waste after clearing the wasteland of trash in the 1980s and turning it into a vegetable garden. Despite the lack of a building permit or lease, city authorities tolerated the project, which gives the place its special character.

During the division of Germany, the plot lay in a legal gray zone right next to the Wall's border strip. East Germany allowed Kalin to use the land but forbade any taller structure, suspecting he might be digging an escape tunnel. After the fall of the Wall, he expanded the property and built today's structure on a concrete foundation. The house survived two arson attacks, in 1991 and 2003, and Kalin fought off demands to clear the site, supported by neighbors and the local church. Today the property is managed by his son Mehmet Kalin, who plans to open the house as a museum. Here you can experience a place that reflects the history of the city and the creativity of its residents, while the garden beds are watered mostly with rainwater.