FORGET about gawking at posters featuring well-endowed women hawking beer.

Here in Berlin, breakfast at the Pension mitArt comes with a big helping of art since large, bold paintings splash colour onto the clean white walls.

The tasteful, no-frills hotel - 'mit Art' means 'with art' - is unsurprisingly connected to an art gallery for contemporary German art.

Meanwhile, the smell of apple strudel wafts from the kitchen, and the owner walks around plying guests with buttery scrambled eggs.

This mix of art and hospitality, sleek surroundings and warm welcomes, is symptomatic of the pleasant confusion that is modern Berlin.

Balancing on the cusp of an uneasy past and an exciting present, the German capital presents many faces.

Organised by the logic of historical upheaval and division, Berlin is less of a unified city than a geographical outline holding together very different neighbourhoods.

Stamina, therefore, is key. The do-or-die place to visit is the central Mitte district, studded with impressive baroque and neo-classical landmarks that survived World War II.

And running straight through the area is Unter den Linden, the lime tree-lined main street.

Buildings from the Hohensollern dynasty through the Weimar Republic, from the Third Reich to the German Democratic Republic (GDR), are found in or close to this celebrated road.

The lime trees (linden) weren't always popular with the locals though. Former strongman Adolf Hitler, worried that the trees obscured the view of his parades, had them chopped down. They were replaced in 1946 with four rows of trees.

Brandenburger Tor (Brandenburg Gate), at the west end of Unter den Linden, is the only remaining city gate left from Berlin's original 18. On top of it sits the Quadriga statue, a four-horse chariot driven by Victory.

Next to the triumphant Gate is the Pariser Platz, which teems with tourists, kooky street performers in all garbs and frozen postures, including the ubiquitous Berlin bear.

We travel east and the sights come fast and thick: baroque ornamentation in the Zeughaus (German history museum), classical colonnades in Staatsoper (the Opera House) and neo-classical pillars in the Kronprinzenpalais.

After the visual gorging, we decide to rest our feet in one of the cafes strewn about in the area.

Guidebook legend has it that a mind-blowing Apfelstrudel is served in the elegant Viennese coffeehouse Caf Einstein (Unter den Linden 42, 204 3632). The dessert lives up to its name - we demolish the steaming portion, vanilla ice cream and all.

However, to really rot your sweet tooth, stop by any Leyseiffer outlet, a chocolatier with chocolate so fine and unadulterated it makes grown men weep.

Regular Berlin fare is less known for fancy dressings than for variations of the meat, potato and cabbage combo.

Rich stews with pork knuckles, comforting breads, potato dumplings and beer provide necessary fortitude against the cold weather.

And don't forget the sausages. Currywurst, a sausage so popular songs have been written about it, is a hot pork sausage cut into slices and seasoned with ketchup and generous amounts of curry powder.

Though opening hours tend to be shorter in winter, with many places closed for renovation, one can never complain of being bored. Escape to another neighbourhood and a fresh rhythm and aesthetic hit you.

Check out the evidence of a divided past at Checkpoint Charlie, for example, which marked the notorious border crossing between East and West Berlin.

It retains the iconic sign that reads, 'You are leaving the American sector'.

And reminders of the communist influence abound, from the real remnants of the Berlin Wall to the fake 'broken pieces' on sale in souvenir shops.

It also helps that Berliners are friendly, which is a pleasant surprise, given stereotypes of tight-lipped and efficient Germans.

At the end of an eventful trip, we stand at the airport gates.

But we know we have forgotten something. I run to the departure hall for some last-minute shopping.

At the baggage scan, the burly guard cracks a grin at the X-ray. 'Leyseiffer Schokolade,' he says with a chuckle, counting all six bars.

The writer, a former intern with Life!, is studying literature at the University of Edinburgh.

BERLIN BLITZ

Where to stay:
Pension mitArt (Friedrichstrasse 127, 2839 0430)
Elegant pension-cum-art gallery, and a good base for gallery-hopping in the area. Log onto website for promotion rates.
 
Where to eat:
Gambrinus (Linienstrasse 133, 282 6043)
As traditional as it gets in terms of food. Meat, potatoes, cabbage and packed with locals.
 
Where to get the best view:
Fernsehturm (Panoramastrasse)
The silhouette of this television tower is visible from any point in Berlin. Take the lift up the telepargel, or toothpick, to its 203m-tall viewing platform for one of the best views of the city. Admission: 7.5 euros (S$14.50).
 
Where to get the best souvenirs:
Berlin Story (Unter den Linden 10, 2045 3840)
Chock-full of Berlin-related books in German and English, this store also sells posters, CDs and souvenirs such as mounted wall chunks.
 
What a Berliner must-do:
Konnopke's Imbiss (corner of Danziger Strasse and Sch???nhauser Alle)
Go to this ultimate currywurst place, grab a piping-hot ketchup-coated hotdog (from 1 euro) and eat it as you walk down the street.