My Berlin Moment – A Flea Market Find
The Flea Market Find
When I see the machine at the flea market, I can practically smell the coffee. Admittedly, the smell might actually be coming from the Coffee-Bike next door. But I can smell something else too. I’m standing at this flea market in Berlin, and I can smell the morning coffee from my flat. I picture the coffee machine standing in my kitchen, and I know right then and there that I’m going to buy it.
It’s the bright yellow colour that makes this vintage coffee machine stand out from a pile of old electrical appliances. And yet, of course, I hadn’t intended to buy anything today. Just a bit of a stroll round the flea market, as one does on a Sunday in Berlin. Rummaging through clothes racks and boxes, flicking through vinyl records, having a coffee here and perhaps spotting a few familiar faces there.
But the seller notices me looking at it and pulls the machine out of the pile. It’s been in his kitchen for a long time, he tells me, and I end up hearing his life story in passing – how he came to Berlin, his first shared flat and all the times he’s moved house with the coffee machine. We then agree on the price, almost as an afterthought.
In my kitchen, the machine now looks as though it’s always been there. And with every cup of coffee, I think back to that one Sunday in Berlin.
Ready for your own Berlin moment?
Whether you’re looking for a special one-off item or simply enjoying a leisurely stroll past the shop windows, Berlin offers countless opportunities for a leisurely shopping trip.
As well as the regular flea markets, there are of course plenty of established shops too. Antique lovers can browse the Suarezstraße antique mile in Charlottenburg, design fans are drawn to KaDeWe, and second-hand shoppers will find countless vintage shops in Berlin’s neighbourhoods. Your next favourite piece might already be waiting for you in one of these places.
Our tip
Keep an eye out for flea markets, especially on Sundays. From Boxhagener Platz to Maybachufer, Berlin’s flea markets, with their lovingly stocked stalls, brighten up the weekend.
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