Berlin is great for parties and long walks with friends, but it's also a city marked by profound historical events. A visit to the Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg Nazi concentration camp offers a sobering perspective on this darker chapter of history. Just a half-day trip from the city, the camp saw over 200,000 prisoners pass through its gates from 1936 to the end of the Third Reich in May 1945. Primarily housing political prisoners during World War II, the camp's history is a stark reminder of the past.

The protestant Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church is a beacon of peace and reconciliation. It stands for the will of the Berliners to rebuild their city during the period after the war. Most of the original structure was destroyed by a British bombing raid in World War II — all that remained was its gaping, ruined tower. The first plans to rebuild the church would have removed the crumbling tower completely. However, Berliners protested the demolition of the 70-metre belfry and the new modernist church buildings are centred around this piece of history. Because of the distinctive geometrical shapes of the new buildings, locals nicknamed the church "Lippenstift und Puderdose" (the lipstick and the powder box).

Dating back to the Tang dynasty, this funerary monument is the burial place of the ancient ruler Wang Jian. Besides its unique architecture, this mausoleum also features plenty of carefully crafted and preserved cultural relics that will take you back to imperial China.