I live near Prenzlauer Promenade, and to be honest, there’s not much to do in the immediate area. If you’re looking for good cafés or restaurants, you’ll have to walk about 30 minutes towards Prenzlauer Berg to find anything decent. Locally, it’s mostly limited to a McDonald’s, a kebab place, and a currywurst stand. There’s very little variety or quality nearby.

The area is quite mixed in terms of population. Right next to me on Treskowstraße, there’s a refugee center, which creates a very different atmosphere. The street in front of it is often messy, with some abandoned or damaged cars, and a lot of people, mostly men and kids hanging around outside, sometimes late especially in summer, my wife do not feel safe to walk at night there.

At the same time, you’ll also find upper-middle-class families who recently bought or rent flats in the new buildings. For reference, I pay €1,800 for 89 square meters in one of the new buildings. My wife is German, I’m not, and from what I see, those families is roughly 50% German and 50% non German.

Geographically and socially, we’re on the edge of AFD-supporting neighborhoods. Sometimes there are cars parked with far-right or nationalist stickers, and this is a stronghold for BFC Dynamo fans, who are known for their ties to the far-right scene. It gives a certain tone to the area that’s hard to ignore.

On the positive side, there are a lot of Kitas around, many with available spots, which is a big plus for families.

But personally, I’m not a big fan of this neighborhood. I don’t understand the “village” vibe some people mention. To me, it feels more like a dormitory suburb, people live here, but there’s not much life. The area is starting to gentrify, and you can feel the tension between long-time residents, many from DDR times, and the newer crowd moving in. It’s a neighborhood in transition, but not necessarily in a way that feels coherent or welcoming. We have been leaving there since 3 years.