Berlin monuments fall dark to save energy

Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany at night under a beautiful starry sky. The city of Berlin started switching off spotlights illuminating its historic monuments as part of a national effort to save energy. Photo: AFP

The city of Berlin started switching off spotlights illuminating its historic monuments as part of a national effort to save energy in the face of Russian gas shortages.

Some 200 buildings and landmarks including Berlin's red-brick city hall, State Opera House and Charlottenburg Palace will fall in darkness at night, officials in the German capital said recently.