Embassy of the United States, Berlin not be considered a capital until Berlin was unified. Relations with the East German state were hampered because of this policy, and by the erection of the Berlin Wall in 1961. The wall made the site of the former U.S. Embassy, still owned by the U.S. government, an inaccessible vacant lot that was part of the security zone separating east and west Berliners. The site became accessible after the Berlin Wall came down in November 1989, but remained a vacant lot until the 2004 groundbreaking for construction of a brand new U.S. Embassy. In the early 1970s the U.S., along
Berlin Now Berlin Now Berlin Now: The City After the Wall (also published as Berlin Now: The Rise of the City and the Fall of the Wall) is a 2014 book by German writer Peter Schneider. Published on the 25th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall, "Berlin Now" is a story of how Berlin has changed since reunification to become Europe's most vibrant melting-pot of artists, immigrants and entrepreneurs. "Berlin Now" is described as a "longtime Berliner's bright, bold, and digressive exploration of the heterogeneous allure of this vibrant city." The book combines memoir, history, anecdote and reportage on subjects