Spotted: Berlin

This post is part of a global series featuring experiences shared by Night Owls members, written by Thomas Fischer. Have something you want to share or suggest? Share it with us!

Included within:

• Herrensauna

• Kink Workshops

• Seven Sins

• Kit Kat Club

• The Code

• Berghain
  

Berlin Report: Herrensauna

Image: Herrensauna

The music at Herrensauna (at Tresor) was pretty good. It wasn't that memory of Berlin techno that I had been craving to re-experience. It was quite literally a Herrensauna (translated gentleman sauna). When you went anywhere, you rubbed yourself along sweaty bear chest. It felt more gay than queer.

The play in the catacombs was happening. My friend wanted to voyeur without staring. So we pretended to be a bit steamy to give her cover for watching. It took no time, and there were two extra hands on my body.

Around 4 AM, the playing stopped entirely. I don't know what happened. Everyone was simply standing body to body like in the most packed elevator without anything happening.

The music was good. It has a techno beat and etheric, beautiful sounds. You could dance to either. The beat was never constant. There were always micro syncopations or two rhythms overlaid. So you had lots of choices on what to dance to.

The sound system didn't have the clarity and beauty of Berghain, which is what I was missing.

We never got bored of the music. We were dancing most of the time.

The door was interesting. The security held is for quite some time. They were talking with us and then standing silently. When they finally decided to let us in, the other security told my friends that they were too sparkly and shouldn't come back that sparkly.

I'd do it again. It's a bit of a shock to be back in NYC. The ride to Berlin airport was an easy direct train ride for the price of a normal ticket. Vabali Spa before flying was this beautiful, warm cocoon of naked people and fun Aufgusse where business don't nickel and dime you for every bit they can.

I'd want to do it again with a small group of friends or partner. I'm also curious to check out kink in Antwerp and London.

I might also set travel dates to coincide with House of Lunacy. I'm very curious about that party. Apparently, they lost their venue and will end this year.

https://www.lunacyberlin.com/

•⁠ ⁠Biggest oddity: Dog masks are extremely popular at parties. I get that puppy play is fun. However, they just wear them, no puppy play. They all look the same. Why do they all want to join the dog mask clone army?

•⁠ ⁠Getting into places: People seem to obsess on what to wear to get in. However, Berghain has a lot of people in white on the inside. And KitKat Club has people with sneakers inside despite it being against the dress code. I've heard that it matters more how you wear it than what. And that the door looks more at the vibe. Indeed, some people look like such intense party people that you feel a shock in your bones. Their faces and movements simply feel so severe. (But what do I know. I've been there for only a week.)

General lessons learned about Berlin:

•⁠ ⁠Hotel: Near the main train station (Hauptbahnhof) is a great choice because public transportation takes you to all the sexy places and you can walk to Vabali Spa every day.

•⁠ ⁠If I would go again, I'd want to stay at Provocateur Hotel. It supposedly projects porn at the wall at random times.

•⁠ ⁠Public transportation is a mix of street, underground, and regular train as well as bus. Google Maps can guide you. The BVG app lets you buy tickets.

•⁠ ⁠If you have a little time, most kink and sex positive places are less than an hour walking distance away. The walk is mostly along the Spree River.

•⁠ ⁠Food: Enjoy your first Doner as much as you can. You'll be sick and tired of Doner because it's often the only late night food.

•⁠ ⁠Vabali Spa is absolutely amazing. There is a bouncer at the door, who will warn you that it's mandatory nudity inside. The feel of the place is beautiful. The Aufguss schedule is very fun. There are so many different themes and treats. When the Aufguss master fans down searing heat on your skin like a desert planet on fire, listen for the huffing and puffing of people. That's the sign for the end coming. When the applause breaks out, you know you have won the equivalent of the Tour de France. I went there three times. They simply bill you based on how long you stay.

•⁠ ⁠Wasps: Those guys come in hordes anytime your food is served. Don't kill them. Germans are very strict on their environmental protection laws. You could be fined up to 50k euros for killing one.

•⁠ ⁠Prices and tipping: Prices are generally reasonable. A bottle of water was $3 at KitKat Club. The coat check was free. You don't have to tip everywhere for every little thing. It's so freeing.

•⁠ ⁠Whatsapp groups: It's hard to find where stuff happens through internet searches. Whatsapp groups inform about a lot more stuff happening.

•⁠ ⁠Biggest surprise: Everyone talks about how kinky Germans are. I thought I'd get my mind blown right off. I didn't see anything particularly wild. However, I didn't make it to Quälgeist.

Berlin Report: Kink Workshops

I'm finishing my report of Berlin with my experience of kink workshops. I went to Karada House and 2x IKSK. I'll loosely translate IKSK as "International Body Studies and Sexual Culture." I wish I had made it to Daruma and Kor as well.

The places have great workshops. However, catching then requires planning travel dates.

I attended a rope share at Karada. Very queer and very pretty describe the place. They are very supportive of queer. Someone even came to simply hang out in a queer friendly space without participating in the rope. They have beautiful, colorful lanterns at the ceiling. They have a garden for tying. It's the opposite of a dungeon.

They really catered to shy people. It felt like they spent an hour on warmups before you were even allowed to ask someone to tie. And then they had a separate space where shy people can go to be alone.

IKSK is situated in what feels like a rebel anarchist themed outdoor food market. Sails stretched in between trees as shade and ambiance of recycling center, you have to find the relatively unmarked entrance and climb all the way to the top.

If you've ever wanted to tie in full view of trains going by on the raised platform outside, here's your chance. The views outside the windows are epic. And so must be the views for the rest of Berlin in!

It's hard to put a finger on what made it different from the NYC rope jams, but it felt very different. Overall Berlin jams feel like pairs are into very specific things and have developed that direction.

One of the most intriguing scenes was a small woman doing a suspension scene on a guy. Otherwise, scenes followed gender stereotypes closely. She'd suffocate him until he spasmed. She'd beat him with a cane until his cries turned heads. The joy of sadism from the smile of her face felt so free and pure. She seemed to give him warm aftercare.

One thing that lots of prior mentioned was that all spaces draw almost only paired up people. Solo people struggle to find partners. At one event, there was a huge couch full of solo people. They had a vibe like they didn't want to be approached and never approached anyone. I asked locals if they didn't come to meet people or if they really wanted to stay alone. The locals said that they don't know because nobody talks. I tried talking to someone. I said, "Hello!" The person said "hello" and then turned away.

IKSK only takes cash. If you are smart, you get cash at a grocery store to avoid ATM fees.

I went to Seven Sins tonight.

Image: @sevensinsparty

This time the door rejected me. I thanked the bouncer and walked away. Wondering what happened to my tickets and the guest list, I turned around and asked him. He chided me that I should have told him that I'm on the guest list right away. He told all the next security guys to let me through.

He even found me later in the club to remind me to say next time right away that I'm on the guest list. So that was interesting.

Seven Sins was similar to KitKat on Wednesday, but more than half of the club was closed and the energy wasn't as strong.

More people used the pool.

A throuple started the night by playing on a platform under light beams.

Compared to other nights, there was a little kink: one Shibari scene and one impact scene.

Berghain was a lot more fun. I miss it already.

However, it's all relative. I hung out with a twenty-one year old from Moscow. It was her first Berlin Club. She was completely shocked to see guys naked. She hadn't even seen any of the play happening.

Here is my experience from KitKat Club (Berlin) last night.

I hear it's very different on different nights. I completely didn't expect what it was like. From the website, I had thought it's an aging swingers club with a very calm, quiet atmosphere.

At the door was a commotion. One guy was mad that a bouncer had shoved him. Someone got rejected. Someone else was told that he needs different pants. The bouncer didn't even look at me and waved me in.

The first thing is the people and their dress. It's hard to describe. In one dimension, they go way more extreme then NYC. Yet, they don't seem as refined and upscale as NYC. It's strange to describe someone wearing only a thin leather strap over the pussy as wearing it the way one works comfortable old workout shorts.

People were in kink gear. However, it didn't feel sexy or flirty at all. Maybe, I've been around too many naked people here in Berlin at spas, Shibari events, and parties. It felt more like an intense uniform.

The place was very intense. The music was super loud, super hard, and super fast. You couldn't really dance to it in any other way but to copy a jack hammer.

There were ample play spaces: padded surfaces to lie on, a few St Andrews crosses, and a gyno chair. There were a handful of people playing. Considering the sound volume - my ears are still hurting the next day - it was an amazing feat that they were able to play. Nothing very sensual or elaborate kink. It mainly looked like jack hammering.

The place has a pool surrounded by couches. It seemed like groups claimed the spots and stayed there. There was a main dance floor and two small ones.

One of them went down a steep, dilapidated staircase into a cellar. It seemed like a fire code violation. The cellar was packed with people. It was pretty much skin to skin contact with everyone else and jumping up and down because no other movement was possible. And the staircase was hard enough to navigate in heels without people pushing if a fire had happened.

I talked for a while with someone. They thought that the right to smoke cigarettes in a club was essential to the functioning of a club. The reason was that once you enforce that rule and bring security to supervise, all other freedoms get lost. And so the act of smoking cigarettes is what protects Berlin's club culture.

There seemed no enforcement in the club. I climbed a pole and inverted on it. Nobody stopped me.

There are lots of spaces to explore. As the night went on more and more doors opened to new spaces. At one point, I thought I had found a secret door to an orgy room. It turned out to be a smoking room. I have no clue why they have a smoking room when people smoke everywhere.

It's really hard to capture what it felt like there because it was so different from any parties in NYC. People talking about the most mundane topics. A huge bulky man completely naked, except for a black latex apron. Groups of friends hanging out like a picnic in the park. Someone in a latex nurse uniform in a wheel chair in front of the restroom playing with their soft genitals. Someone crazy in love with the music but not moving because it's so undanceable. There is no gradient from social to sex where people flirt or do foreplay, but someone got a boner and is railing a still body in the shadows.

It seems like one has to experience and feel the place because imagination couldn't paint it.

To make you want to go even more, I went to a kink clothing store: The Code.

It's very cute in a kinky way clothing. I made friends with a couple. The changing room has transparent curtains. They were like: Don't mind us being naked. We compared plans and found out where they overlapped.

Berlin is so friendly. Yesterday, I asked a couple for help with the subway. They ended up feeding me fruit.

I got into Berghain last weekend.

Image: Indie-Mag

I get why people say that they don't want to share how to get in because figuring it out is half the fun.

Here is a little taste of why that is.

When I got there, nobody lined up. Everyone hung out nearby. Seemingly, nobody wanted to appear to eager to be the first. Only waiting for the line to form was an hour-long wait.

When it did form, people weren't sure if they wanted to line up. They kind of stood far enough away to pretend to not be in line but close enough to block people from passing them.

Eventually, everyone agreed to line up.

People were drinking in line. Public drinking is common here. When done, they would hide, the bottles very carefully in the overgrown grass nearby. People with bags and flash lights came to search the grass for bottles.

It's very fascinating to experience this world.

Everyone in line was completely dressed in black. I was the only one who was covered in rhinestones. The bouncer told person after person in front of me: "Entschuldigung" und "Tut mir leid." I was completely prepared to go back to the end of the line and try again.

The beginning of the night was actually my favorite. I wandered into the giant, empty power station with lighting that made it amazing. I had no clue where to go. The exploring of giant halls for dance floors, hidden staircases leading somewhere was wonderful exploration.

And the music was more etheric, inviting to float around the empty dance floor with only a couple of mesmerized dancers. The sound quality was absolutely amazing - so clear and full of details.

I recommend going early to experience it!

A few bits to tease you too explore:

•⁠ ⁠There is this hidden padded platform, excellent for play with a row of movie seats in front of it to watch.

•⁠ ⁠There are lots of comfortable places to sleep to stay there for 24 hours.

•⁠ ⁠One bartender decided to go naked. It wasn't an American look at me how hot I am and tip me more. It was more of a: I just don't feel a need for clothes right now.

•⁠ ⁠There is ice cream if you can find it!

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Spotted is a living journal of nightlife, culture, and connection. A space for storytelling, reflection, and discovery, exploring the people, places, and ideas shaping modern social life.