What links Berlin and Warsaw? What stories do we share, and what can we learn from one another? Together with Polish initiatives, Berlin-based communities and guests from Warsaw, we are celebrating 35 years of our town twinning in our three museums in the Nikolai Quarter. Discover your favourite spots, design your own ‘capital city’ bag, enjoy concerts, have fun learning Polish and discover lots more surprises in the programme!

11 a.m. – 4.30 p.m. | continuous | Museum Lab (ground floor)
Creative workshop
Warsaw’s Mermaid meets Berlin’s Bear
Design your own capital city bag! Together, we’ll use stencils and fabric paints to transfer the landmarks of Berlin and Warsaw onto fabric. An artist and an educator from ‘SprachCafé Polnisch’ will guide you through the process and offer creative tips. At the end, you can take your bag home as a souvenir.
Free admission
Languages: German, Polish, English
 
11 a.m. – 4.30 p.m. | continuous | Salon (Ground Floor)
Hands-on station
Warsaw – Berlin: A Collective Urban Mosaic
In what ways are Warsaw and Berlin similar today? Work with the founders of ‘Fundacja Puszka’ to create a map featuring unusual places and similarities between the two cities, and discover hidden treasures together. What feels familiar to you and is worth sharing? Are the same things important to you? And what does that tell us about these twin cities?
Languages: German, Polish, English
 
12.30 p.m. | Duration: 30 minutes | 1st floor (Room ‘1945’)
Performance reading
‘Kämpferinnen*’
For a long time, Polish women were largely overlooked in the fight against National Socialism. The artist and author Anna Krenz combines historical research, personal stories and artistic perspectives. She speaks of courage, solidarity and remembrance. Organised by the association Ambasada Polek e. V., this event forms part of the “KÄMPFERINNEN*” project on Polish women in the resistance.
Language: German
Part of the anniversary programme “Between Berlin and Warsaw – 35 Years of Neighbourhood”, coordinated by the German Poland Institute and funded by the German Class Lottery Foundation Berlin (LOTTO Foundation Berlin).
 
11 a.m. – 2 p.m. | continuous | Salon (ground floor)
Talk
Object of the Month
Discover the beaker, made around 1840, featuring an image of King Friedrich II. The design is based on an etching by Daniel Chodowiecki from 1777. He was one of the most significant Berlin artists of his time. To mark the 300th anniversary of Chodowiecki’s birth, our curator of fine art, Michael Bischoff, will tell you more about his work.
Free admission
Language: German
 
2 p.m. | Duration: 1 hour | Meeting point: Foyer (ground floor)
Family tour
A whirlwind tour through BerlinZEIT
This family tour takes you on an easy-to-follow and entertaining journey through the permanent exhibition on the history of Berlin. Along the way, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to try things out and experience them with all your senses. What did medieval fabric feel like? What did Berlin smell like around 1740? And which new inventions made everyday life in the big city easier?
Language: German
 
5.30 p.m. | Duration: 45 minutes | Salon (ground floor)
Presentation
Skyscrapers and Thickets
For the past 15 years, ever-taller skyscrapers have been springing up in Warsaw. The city is changing. Anyone wishing to understand it should explore the banks of the Vistula, the Finnish wooden houses in the Jazdów district or the giant artificial palm tree at the Charles de Gaulle roundabout. Urban researchers Aleksandra Litorowicz and Martyna Obarska from Warsaw’s ‘Fundacja Puszka’ highlight phenomena, developments and art projects that bring this transformation to life.
Free admission
Language: English

11 a.m. – 3 p.m. | non-stop | Meeting point: baptismal font
Families & Children
Family-Rally
What do the colours on the ceiling mean, and what are the oldest bricks in the Nikolaikirche called? Look for clues and hints inside the church to solve the puzzles in the family treasure hunt. There’s a prize waiting for you at the end!
Languages: German, Polish, English
 
3.00 p.m. | Duration: 30 minutes | in the nave
Concert
Warsaw and Berlin in song
The German-Polish choir ‘Spotkanie’ from Berlin brings people together through songs about their love for both cities and their longing for the charm of bygone days. Founded in 1989, the choir is led by singer and ethnomusicologist Dr Izabella Goldstein. ‘Spotkanie’ means ‘encounter’, and that is precisely what it is all about: Poles and Germans coming together through singing.
Languages: German, Polish
 
4.15 p.m. | Duration: 45 minutes | in the nave
Concert
Traditional Polish dance music
‘Kapela Agopsowicza’ from Warsaw brings Polish folk dance music from the countryside to Berlin – featuring mazurkas, oberkas, polkas and singing. The young musicians have learnt from masters of the rural musical tradition and are carrying on this heritage with great enthusiasm. Following performances in Poland and across Europe, ‘Kapela Agopsowicza’ is now playing in Germany for the very first time!
Languages: German, Polish
In collaboration with the Polish Institute in Berlin 

11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | continuous | Children’s Salon (ground floor)
Join-in Offer
Polish Language Lab
Games, puzzles and tongue twisters for all language levels
What does Polish sound like, and how much of it do you already understand? Pupils and teachers from the Berlin school association ‘Oświata’ have a variety of language games and exciting activities in store for you. Whether you’re hearing Polish for the first time or grew up bilingual: everyone can join in here, discover new things and experience just how much fun language can be.
Free entry
Languages: German, Polish, English
In partnership with KoKoPol – Centre of Excellence and Coordination for Polish
 
11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | continuous | in the exhibition (1st and 2nd floors)
Live speaker
Meeting Point Biedermeier
Our museum guides will give you exclusive insights into the everyday life of Berlin’s wealthy residents two hundred years ago at the Knoblauchhaus. Through the silk trade, architecture and their own brewery, the Knoblauch family played an important role in Berlin at that time. Today, you can explore their former home as a museum.
Language: German
 
11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | continuous | in the exhibition (1st and 2nd floors)
Families & Children
Family Rally
What did children play with 200 years ago? How did people keep warm in winter? And what was actually ‘in’ back then? Clues and hints around the museum will help you solve the puzzles in the Family Rally. A prize awaits you at the end.
Languages: German, Polish, English