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Berlin is still going through a transition since the Cold War - both in what used to be East and West Berlin. I can still sense the confusion and the struggle for identity there in the streets. There's a pulse to it.

To me, Berlin is as much a conceit as a reality. Why? Because the city is forever in the process of becoming, never being, and so lives more powerfully in the imagination.

Berlin is like being abroad in Germany. It's German, but not provincial.

In the past Berlin was much more radical and extreme and now it's becoming much more of a conventional European city.

Berlin is in a state of transition. There are lots of people who don't stay here. They pass through. They might not 'clean up,' but they mature. It is a city where people spend a significant time in their lives, and then they move on.

The particular feature of Berlin - well, all you need to do is look at the map: the geographical position of the city right in the heart of Europe, and the separation of the most powerful two blocs we've ever had in history, which went all the way through Germany.

No matter what happens to me and my career in the future, Berlin is always going to be my hometown.

Never think that lack of variability is stability. Don't confuse lack of volatility with stability, ever.

Berlin is my favourite city.

The best thing about Berlin was that I got to be surrounded by people who pursue their ideas for themselves.