There is really so much to be seen in and around Berlin and Potsdam. One of the best ways to do this is on the gravel bike. This ride will start at the Brandenburger Tor and follow the path of the old Berlin Wall for a moment. Through parks along old railway lines we will soon arrive on the airfield of Tempelhof, which was used for aviation until 2005 and forms a big recreational site today. We will then leave Berlin and head to the city of Potsdam, which leads us along several locations that carry some East/West Germany history. Along old Berlin Wall border strips and guarding towers you will get an idea of how this separation inside a country and even a city was handled.
The first POI in Potsdam will be Babelsberg Park, the place to hang out and relax for kings in the 19th century. Useless to say these kings wanted the park to offer a beautiful view on the Havel and Potsdam where we will also benefit from today.
The Einstein observatory, designed by Erich Mendelsohn forms only a short stop along our way to Potsdams most famous historical highlights.
The castle and park of Sanssouci were built in the early 19th century and are also called the Prussian Versailles. Several buildings in the rococo and baroque style are situated within a quite small circle and can be reached by bike better than you think. Without a doubt a must-see in the city of Potsdam.
On the way out of the city we will nearly automatically pass through the Dutch Quarter, a neighborhood with 134 Dutch brick houses built in the early 18th century, before we have to shift through the ages again and pass some Cold War monuments like Glienicke Bridge and Teufelsberg and stop in front of the five rings of the Berlin Olympic Stadium, which also happens to be situated close to a cycling-minded little cafe where we should take our chance for an espresso before we head into the last hour of this ride.
We will start this last hour along the river Spree, where we will have the Siegessäule in our sight very early. This Victory Column guides us in the right direction, so that we can also have a look at the Berlin Government District with the Reichstag and the Brandenburger Tor in the centrum of it. At the end there’s only one big thing missing. The Fernsehturm. You won ́t need me to guide you there as its widely visible, but I will accompany you either way. Maybe even with a little detour along the Gendarmenmarkt and Check Point Charly, putting the sights of two different ages within only a couple of hundred meters again.
