The Berlin "washing machine" has joined the symbols of the city

Berlin - For eleven years, German chancellors have been operating in a futuristic building in the center of Berlin. During this time, this concrete giant has become one of the symbols of the German metropolis and a tourist attraction, visited by 90,000 people each year. For many, however, this unconventional building still remains just a large "washing machine," as the Germans nicknamed the federal chancellery even before its creation.
     "In the original design, the building was several meters taller, it was 45 meters, and there were two round openings on the sides from the outside. That is why the nickname 'washing machine' immediately appeared, which has stuck to it to this day, even though it is ultimately lower and only has semicircles on the sides," explained urbanist Christian Hajer to ČTK, revealing the origin of the unusual nickname.
     The eight-story building on the banks of the Spree River, where decisions that influence the development of the entire European Union are often made behind its walls, ultimately rose to a height of 36 meters and 36 centimeters. The two long side wings are exactly half the size. In terms of size, it is among the largest government headquarters in the world.
     Inside, 500 people work. In addition to three hundred offices for officials, a large conference hall, a gym, eight winter gardens, a kitchen with the chancellor's personal chef, a banquet hall, a cabinet meeting room, and of course, the office of its head - currently that of Angela Merkel - are hidden within its interior.
     Cynics claim that the Berlin chancellery is so large so that the hefty Helmut Kohl, under whose era construction started, could fit into it. "With his physical dimensions, the size of this building has nothing to do, even though Mr. Kohl had a significant influence on how the building would look, especially in terms of height," Hajer refutes this legend.
     According to him, Kohl advocated that the chancellery be taller than other official buildings in the area. "He said that anyone who comes here must immediately recognize that there are two important institutions: the German Bundestag with its dome and the other must be the federal chancellery. No one should have to guess which of these buildings is the chancellery. He wanted it to be obvious at first glance," Hajer stated.
     The project by architects Axel Schultes and Charlotte Frank for 480 million marks (about 6.3 billion CZK today) achieved this, although the "chancellor unifier" did not get to move in and work there until 2001, when his successor Gerhard Schröder took office. Since then, the chancellery has become almost a mandatory stop for tourists exploring Berlin, with hundreds of visitors taking photos every day in front of its facade, just like in front of the nearby historic Reichstag, home to the lower house of the parliament.
     However, not everyone finds this modern building appealing, as evidenced by the persistent comparisons to a washing machine. "Most visitors like it, although rather inside. For many people, it appears too angular and monstrous from the outside, but inside they find it beautiful with all those rounded corners, large staircases, and displayed art," tour guide Sabine Slaninaová described visitors' opinions.
     Although she does not lead tourists to Merkel's office - she has reportedly only been there once - participants in the tours do get to see most of the representative spaces and places that some of the office staff do not have access to, such as the cabinet meeting room or the outdoor terrace near the chief of staff’s office with a view of downtown Berlin and a sea of rooftop solar panels supplying this giant with electricity.
     "We have 1400 square meters of solar surfaces here and every square meter generates 117 kilowatts of power," Slaninaová is ready for even the most inquisitive questions from visitors. However, she prefers to talk about the collections of modern art in the chancellery, which were systematically built starting in the 1970s by then West German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt in Bonn.
     At his initiative, the so-called Chancellor's Gallery was also created - a series of portraits of all the heads of government of the Federal Republic displayed on the first floor. However, serving chancellors may only hang their portraits after leaving office. Therefore, Merkel still has to wait for her own portrait.
     On weekdays, pre-arranged groups can visit the chancellery, while on Saturdays, individuals can also enter. The biggest rush is always during the open house weekend, when 30,000 people do not miss the opportunity to see the places where high European politics is made. "In total, we have about 90,000 visitors here each year," claims chancellery spokesman Karl Schlich.
The nearest opportunity for interested Czech individuals to take a look inside will be this weekend, when German ministries will again open their doors to the public. Just be prepared for the fact that waiting in line in front of the "washing machine" can take a few hours.