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World War II ended here on 8 May 1945, when Germany signed its unconditional surrender. Documents, uniforms and photographs, displayed in the former officers’ casino, relate the story of the war.

A fragment of the Berlin Wall, 1.3 km (1,422 yards) long, was left standing next to the Spree River. In 1990, 118 artists from around the world painted colourful images onto the grey concrete wall, making it a unique work of art. Particularly famous is a picture by the Russian artist Dmitri Vrubel, showing Leonid Brezhnev and the East German leader Erich Honecker, exchanging fraternal Socialist kisses. Much has faded due to exhaust fumes, but it is now being restored.

This former secret police prison for “political” prisoners was in use until 1990. Before 1951, it served as a reception centre for the Red Army. On a guided tour, you can visit the watchtowers and the cells – particularly horrifying are the so-called “submarine cells”, rooms without windows used for solitary confinement, where inmates were interrogated and tortured.

The former headquarters of the much-feared “Stasi”, East Germany’s secret police, is now a memorial, commemorating the thousands of victims of the East German regime and of Erich Mielke, the minister in charge of the secret police. Visitors can see his offices, the canteen and various pieces of spying equipment, revealing the methods used by the Socialist big-brother regime.

Großer Müggelsee, known as Berlin’s “bathtub”, is the largest of the city’s lakes, covering an area of 766 hectares (1,892 acres). Müggelsee is not as popular as Großer Wannsee, its West Berlin counterpart, mainly because it is so far from the centre, in the southeast corner of the city. The lake is known for the beer gardens on its south side, which can be reached by boat from Friedrichshagen. Further south, Müggelturm (tower) offers magnificent views over Berlin and the surrounding Brandenburg province. All around the lake there are excellent paths for walking and cycling. You can also swim in the lake, for example at the beach resort of Rahnsdorf.

Köpenick is a small, quiet, self-absorbed world. This island community has a venerable history: as early as the 9th century, people had settled on Schlossinsel. The former fishing village stayed independent until 1920, and its coat of arms still features two fish, as do many of the house façades. The Old Town, on the banks of the Dahme River, is still characterized by cobbled streets and low fishermen’s huts from the 18th and 19th centuries, taking the visitor back in time. Schüßlerplatz, Grünstraße and Alter Markt, too, still have some older buildings. Old Köpenick became famous on 16 October 1906. Wilhelm Voigt, a homeless man dressed up as a captain, commanded a troop of soldiers, marched into the town hall, arrested the mayor and confiscated the municipal coffers. Today the “Hauptmann von Köpenick” (Captain of Köpenick), who later became a popular folk figure, is commemorated by a statue in front of the Rathaus (town hall). The vast red-brick structure, dating from 1901–4, is a typical example of Gothic brick architecture from Brandenburg province.

The Köpenick palace, which is situated on Schlossinsel (palace island) in the south of the district, was built in 1677–81 to plans by the Dutch architect Rutger van Langervelt for Frederick, heir to the throne and future King Frederick I. In the 17th century, the charming Baroque palace was extended by Johann Arnold Nering and others. Today it houses part of the collections of the Berliner Kunstgewerbemuseum (arts and crafts museum) (see Museums) .

This small zoological garden is situated in the middle of a beautiful park next to Friedrichsfelde Palace. The animal park is particularly worth visiting for the lions and Siberian tigers, which are kept in rocky outdoor enclosures. The elephant house, too, attracts many visitors. Matibi, a baby elephant, is the star among the pachyderms.

Treptower Park, established in the 19th century as a recreation area for Berlin’s working-class communities, is today best known for the giant Sowjetisches Ehrenmal (Soviet Memorial). In April 1945, 5,000 Red Army soldiers, who died during the liberation of Berlin, were buried here. Beyond the mass graves rises a 12-m (39-ft) bronze statue of a Russian soldier, holding a child in one arm and a sword in the other, which he has used to destroy a swastika.

Berlin’s oldest landscaped gardens, the people’s park, was designed by Joseph Peter Lenné in 1840. Today it provides an oasis of tranquillity in the middle of the densely built-up district of Friedrichshain. World War II has left its traces here, too. Kleiner and Großer Bunkerberg – two heaps of rubble (the latter nicknamed “Mount Rubble”) reaching a height of 78 m (256 ft) – were piled up here after the war. Less traumatic is the Märchenbrunnen, a charming Neo-Baroque fairy-tale fountain created by Ludwig Hoffmann. It is decorated with 106 richly ornamented figures from popular fairy tales.