My husband and I live in an apartment in the Tempelhof area and close by is a great park. I remember the first day that I saw it after moving to Berlin and I was taken aback not just because of its size (386 hectares), but because it is very open. There are few trees, it’s very flat…and there are two runways in the middle of it. Tempelhof Park is the site of the former Tempelhof Airport that closed in 2008. Basically, there is a lot of room for people to participate in many outdoor activities such as running, cycling, rollerblading, kite surfing, having a picnic or barbeque, and festivals. The history of the park extends back to the beginnings of the city of Berlin, but its history around the time of the Second World War and the Cold War is particularly robust. While going for runs in the park, I had no idea that National Socialist and then later, Western allied activites all took place here.
If you are interested in learning more about the history of the city, I highly recommend that you read about Tempelhof Park. I also highly recommend that you visit, because it is such an interesting landmark of Berlin.
The lookout in the park was closed so the view from this vantage point does not do the park justice. To get an idea of its size, I’m standing at the Tempelhof entrance in the neighbourhood of Tempelhof. The buildings at the far end of this photo are in Neukölln and everywhere in between is the park!
Cheers,
Sara