Café Achteck

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Café Achteck (Café Octagon), vintage public toilet by Carl Theodor Rospatt
Gendarmenmarkt
Berlin, September 2011

“We don’t usually go around pointing out public toilets as tourist attractions, but the octagonal Christmas tree–green hut outside the Senefelder Platz U-Bahn station is worth a special mention. It’s one of about two dozen remaining public urinals that popped up all over Berlin in the late 19th century when the municipal sanitation system couldn’t keep up with the exploding population. Inspired by their distinctive shape, Berliners nicknamed these relief stations Café Achteck (Café Octagon). Most were torn down when indoor plumbing became commonplace, but the survivors are gradually being restored and modernised. The ‘Cadillac’ models – like the new one on Gendarmenmarkt – can even accommodate women. But you still can’t get coffee…” (Lonely Planet, Berlin Travel Guide, 6th Edition)

See also: Organ-grinder - Französischer Dom - Deutscher Dom