Political spaces are not solidly built backdrops but places where power is experienced, conflicts are resolved and participation is tried out. This is shown by three examples, all can be reached in a five-minute walk from the Federal Palace complex. Everything here is under a protection order, apart, that is, from the Federal Council. The Bundesplatz in front of the parliament building is a public space. During the week it is a market and a space where people meet, in the evening a temporary stage — but repeatedly a location for demonstrations. Only a few minutes’ walk away is PROGR. Erected in the late 19th century as a “Progymnasium”, a kind of secondary school, after the closure of school the complex became a self-administering culture centre, a space appropriated by the grassroots community.