9 places you would not expect to find in Berlin
Berlin is known for trendy districts and monumental buildings. But there are also places that don't fit one or the other cliché and can surprise even Berliners.
A sandy beach like at the seaside
There are many lakes in Berlin. Especially popular is the lido and beach at Wannsee Lake, which has room for up to 50,000 people. A fine sandy beach stretching 1,200 meters (3,937 ft.) gives you the feeling of being at the seaside and not in Germany's capital! But this feeling is not that wrong, because the sand was partly brought in from the Baltic Sea coast.
Magnificent cherry blossoms like in Japan
On the boundary of Berlin's Lichterfelde Süd district and the city of Teltow, 2,000 cherry trees blossom in spring. Anyone would think they've been transported to Japan. This thought is not so far-fetched either, because to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, a Japanese television station called for a fundraising campaign, the proceeds of which were used to plant cherry trees in Berlin.
Free-roaming peacocks like in the wild
There is even more nature to enjoy on Pfaueninsel (Peacock Island) in the Havel, not far from the lido at Lake Wannsee. It is the home of free-roaming peacocks, introduced when Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm II created a nature idyll on the island with agriculture and livestock farming. Today the Pfaueninsel is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a popular excursion destination.
Water buffalo like on the savanna
Water buffaloes also live on the Pfaueninsel. Along the Tegeler Fliess stream on the other side of Berlin, 13 fellow buffaloes are also an attraction. Until autumn they act as natural lawnmowers and are a delight for admiring walkers. Seemingly removed from the big city, the Tegeler Fliess in Reinickendorf is considered one of the most beautiful natural landscapes in Berlin.
Village life like in rural areas
If you want to hike along the Tegeler Fliess stream, it is best to also stroll through Alt-Lübars. This part of Reinickendorf is Berlin's oldest village, where agriculture is still practiced today. Surrounded by the natural landscape of the Tegeler Fliess and many paddocks, you will find a village idyll that appears far the big city. Yet Berlin's center is only 30 minutes away.
A cable car like in the Alps
Berlin might not have mountains like the Alps, but it does have a cable car! Built in 2017 for the International Garden Exhibition, it runs across a park in the eastern Marzahn district. 64 cable cars, six of them with glass floors, offer a beautiful view of the city and the Gardens of the World, a recreation park showing garden culture from all over the world in nine sections.
Lost Worlds like in the movies
A tour through the Plänterwald will make you feel like you're in the Lost World of the Jurassic Park II film. In this former Berlin amusement park on the Spree River you will find an old ghost train, rusty swans, a Ferris wheel and dinosaurs! Not real creatures, just fallen sculptures. The park has been abandoned since 2002. A new concept for an art and culture park is being planned.
Temples reminiscent of India
Rich decorations and lush colors adorn the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple at Volkspark Hasenheide in the district of Neukölln. It has been under construction since 2009 and is due to be inaugurated in the last week of October 2020. It is dedicated to the elephant god Ganesha, who represents success, education, knowledge, wisdom and prosperity. The 17-meter-high tower is the temple's shimmering landmark.
Underwater worlds like in the South Seas
In Berlin-Mitte you will find the AquaDom, the largest cylindrical aquarium in the world. It is currently being renovated, but soon visitors will again be able to take the glass elevator through the interior and admire approximately 1,500 tropical fish.