Rising to 368 metres, Berlin’s Fernsehturm dominates the skyline and ranks as the second-tallest building in the European Union. Built between 1965 and 1969, it was designed primarily for television broadcasting. Today, the gleaming sphere near the top also contains a viewing platform, a rotating restaurant, and a Berlin Tourist Information point.
The viewing platform sits 203 metres above ground and includes a bar. On clear days, visibility can reach up to 42 kilometres. Berlin’s famously flat landscape stretches out in all directions, though the view is sometimes described as less dramatic than in hillier cities. The condition of the glass can also make photography difficult.
The Sphere restaurant is just a little higher at 207 metres. It rotates gently, completing a full turn every 30 minutes, so diners can watch the cityscape glide by while they eat.
Two lifts carry visitors from the base to the viewing areas in about 40 seconds. There is also a 986-step staircase. The tower is not accessible to wheelchair users.
The tower’s place in Alexanderplatz, shaped by socialist-era planning, drew mixed reactions among Berliners. East German television tried to popularize the nickname “Telespargel” (television asparagus), but it never truly stuck.
At certain times of day, sunlight reflecting off the sphere created a striking, cross-shaped flare over the city. Locals wryly called it the Rache des Papstes—Pope’s revenge—an ironic halo for a symbol of a secular state. Rumors claimed the architect paid a professional price for the optical surprise.
After dark, lighting from the tower section can give the illusion of beams shooting outward, prompting comparisons to a Death Star straight out of Star Wars.
Source - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernsehturm_Berlin
More than 30 million objects in the scientific collection and a fascinating exhibition in one of the most significant institutions of its kind in the world. Some parts still under construction.
Arguably the most beautiful bridge in Berlin and the only connection between Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg. As signage on the bridge indicates, it was built twice - once in the 1890s and once in the 1990s. Before reunification the border ran where the bridge now is.
Official residence of the (largely ceremonial) President of Germany since 1994. Only Roman Herzog (president 1994-1999) actually lived here, his successors have preferred a quiet apartment on the outskirts of Berlin, but this is where the president will usually host guests and do public events. Guided tours are possible, but plan to book up to nine months ahead and be prepared for having to reschedule if the president decides to hold an event on short notice which preempts tours.
Berlin's biggest lake and popular resort for bathing and watersports. You can also travel there by tram, which is an experience by itself.
It was the only border crossing between East and West Berlin that permitted foreigners passage. Residents of East and West Berlin were not allowed to use it. This contributed to Checkpoint Charlie's mythological status as a meeting place for spies and other shady individuals. Checkpoint Charlie gained its name from the phonetic alphabet; checkpoints "Alpha" and "Bravo" were at the autobahn checkpoints Helmstedt and Dreilinden respectively. Checkpoint Charlie's atmosphere was not improved at all on 27 Oct 1961 when the two Cold War superpowers chose to face each other down for a day. Soviet and American tanks stood approximately 200 m apart, making an already tense situation worse. Now the remains of the Berlin Wall have been moved to permit building, including construction of the American Business Center and other institutions.At the intersection of Zimmerstraße and Friedrichstraße (U-Bahn Kochstraße U6) is the famous "You Are Leaving the American Sector" sign. The actual guardhouse from Checkpoint Charlie is now housed at the Allied Museum on Clayallee. For a more interesting exhibit go to the Haus am Checkpoint Charlie. This is a private museum with kitschy memorabilia from the Wall and the devices GDR residents used to escape the East (including a tiny submarine!). There are also people who set up booths here offering to stamp your passport with souvenir stamps in exchange for a small fee. You are highly advised not to put these stamps in your passport, as these are not official stamps and could invalidate it. Instead, bring along an expired passport or a small booklet to put the stamps in.
Features many objects and even whole rooms in Wilhelminian style. Only accessible by guided tour (English tours can be arranged).
Exhibition of digital interactive entertainment culture. You can actually play almost all of the exhibits making it a more "hands on" museum than most.
It was a museum of applied arts and a listed historical monument since 1966, and it is now a well-known Berlin exhibition hall.
Want to feel like one of the angels in Wim Wenders' classic film Der Himmel über Berlin (a.k.a. Wings of Desire)? Climb to the top of Gold-Else, as the statue of Victory on the top of the Victory Column is known. Just don't jump off if you're not actually an angel. Unfortunately there is no elevator, so be prepared for 285 steps to the platform at 50.7 m.Else was built to commemorate Prussian military prowess in the wars against Denmark (1864), Austria (1866) and France (1870-71), and moved to her present location by the Nazis. Five roads run into a traffic circle called Grosser Stern, in the centre of which is the Siegessäule. Else is visible from much of the city district known as Tiergarten. At the base of the statue are reliefs of war scenes representing the conflicts which this monument memorializes. The Allies forced Germany to take those panels down in 1945, but they were remounted in 1984 and 1987. It also served as a backdrop for a speech by then senator Obama in 2008, after his request to speak in front of Brandenburger Tor caused a political debate in Germany.
In this house the surrender of Germany was signed on May 9th, 1945, ending WWII in Europe. This museum describes the history of the war between Germany and the Soviet Union between 1941 and 1945 and the GDR/German-Russian relationship ever since. Historic rooms, permanent exhibition and special exhibits.
Closed for renovations; the temporary Bauhaus-Archiv is at Knesebeckstraße 1-2 in Charlottenburg. Building designed by Walter Gropius. Inside a museum, library, cafe and shop.