Outside the centre of Berlin to the West you’ll find the residential and shopping area of Tegel, as well as one of the city’s two international airports.
We did do some shopping our visit today (including nipping into C&A; – still alive and well in Germany!) but the main reason we visited the area was to go for a walk on the shore of Lake Tegel, the second largest of Berlin’s lakes – 4km across at its widest point. If you head to the lake from Tegel’s shopping area the first thing you’ll come to is a feature that immediately reminds you that it’s southern end was located in the French-controlled sector when Berlin was divided by the Wall – the Greenwich Promenade. Graced with a red telephone box and a postbox marked with the initials ‘VR’, this area contains moorings for the pleasure boats that ply their trade up and down the lake later in the year, as well as many of the restaurants, bars and cafes that sit looking out over the water.
From Tegel December 2010 |
Even on a bitterly cold winter’s day like today the lake is a beautiful sight. I can only imagine how glorious it is when you can cruise around licking an ice-cream and sipping an ice-cold beer in August! The birds don’t seem to mind the cold that much though…