Teltow Travel Guide

Teltow Kanal
[ source: Wikipedia]

Teltow Overview

Teltow is a town in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district, in Brandenburg, Germany. Market place and St Andrew's It is part of the agglomeration of Berlin (Berlin vacation rentals | Berlin travel guide), once separated by the Berlin Wall, today with no recognizable border dividing the small town from its big neighbour in the north. Teltow is a suburb of Berlin and allows easy access to Germany’s captial city, making it a good place to stay for exploring Berlin and its surroundings. The S-Train takes you to Potsdamer Platz and Brandenburger Tor in only 25 minutes. Several beautiful biking trails take you to Potsdam (Potsdam vacation rentals | Potsdam travel guide) or anywhere along the Teltow canal.

The settlement was first mentioned in a 1265 deed issued by Margrave Otto III of Brandenburg. It received its name from an eponymous plateau, a moraine of the last glacial period. Teltow was formerly known for the Teltower Rübchen (Brassica rapa ssp. rapa f. teltowiensis), a special type of turnip quite popular in the 18th and 19th century. The main sight of the town is the Protestant St Andrew's fieldstone church of the 12th century rebuilt in 1812 according to plans by Karl Friedrich Schinkel. It was depicted by Lyonel Feininger in his 1918 painting Teltow II.

The present municipality was established in 1994 by the merger of Teltow and the former village of Ruhlsdorf. It has seen a major increase of population since the fall of the Berlin Wall and German reunification. In 2005, German painter Markus Lüpertz installed his studio of sculpture at Teltow.

Culinary specialties of the region

Purchase your fresh Brötchen (bread rolls) daily at the bakery around the corner. The bakery is known for its specialty, the Kartoffelbrötchen (potato bread rolls), the baker’s award-winning own creation.

During your vacation, enjoy the great atmosphere of the restaurant Hammer in Teltow (5 min) and have a taste of the local specialty Teltower Rübchen, a type of beet that can be prepared in many variations. The annual Rübchen festival to celebrate the recent harvest takes place on 9/26/2010. 

Enjoy lunch or dinner at the restaurant Böfflamott, right across the street from the rental apartment. The Brewery Forsthaus Templin in Potsdam (20 min) offers a variety of traditional German food and delicious home brewed beer.

Major cities and activities nearby

Berlin, Germany’s capital city (30 min): Visit the Brandenburger Tor, Museum Island, Old Museum, Old National Gallery, Berlin Cathedral, Checkpoint Charly, Charlottenburg Palace, Museum for prehistory and early history, Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, and many more sites.

Visit the Tropical Islands - Europe’s largest tropical holiday world: Discover the Tropics in the heart of Europe. Tropical Islands stretches across an area of 66,000 m², the size of eight football fields. It has perfect temperatures of 26 °C and is home to the world’s biggest indoor rainforest, Europe’s largest tropical sauna and spa complex, a Tropical Sea with a 200 metre-long sandy beach and many other exciting attractions. And best of all it’s open all year round, 24 hours a day. www.tropical-islands.de/en/

Sanssouci, the former summer palace of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, in Potsdam (25 min). It is often counted among the German rivals of Versailles. While Sanssouci is in the more intimate Rococo style and is far smaller than its French Baroque counterpart, it too is notable for the numerous temples and follies in the park. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanssouci

The Deutsches Technikmuseum in Berlin (30 min.) is the place to find out about the history and science behind the appliances and things we use every day. There are aeroplanes and ships to look at, and real railway locomotives. Watch a suitcase being made, or find out how jewellery is manufactured. Discover just how much else we have to offer. Plan a whole day to enjoy all the museum has to offer. www.sdtb.de/English.122.0.html

Südwestkirchhof Stahnsdorf, cemetery (5 min) (www.suedwestkirchhof.de) 

This cemetery is famous and popular as a cultural monument far beyond the boundaries of Berlin. Until now the Stahnsdorf South-Western Cemetery is of national importance in terms of culture and history of art. Many famous people are buried here, and the Norwegian Wooden church is popular for different concerts, especially around Christmas time. Ticket reservation is strongly recommended.

Sports activities

• Cool off in summer and go swimming at the Kiebitzberge public swimming pool. (5 min)
• A Golf course is located only 10 min. down the road, in Großbeeren

Local activities and events

Local historic sites are the Heimatmuseum Teltow, the town’s oldest building erected in 1711.  Open every Sunday at 1-5pm and in combination with the monthly tour through the historic center of Teltow. www.teltow.de

The Teltower Stadtfest (town festival) takes place around October 3^rd, the Tag der deutschen Einheit (the German Unity Day). This year’s festival including several concerts and other entertainment will take place on10/1-10/3/2010. The festival area is only a 10 minutes’ walk away from the rental apartment.

Things to See in Teltow

St. Andreas Telltower, the symbol of the city dating back to the 12th century

Dorfkirche in Ruhlsdorf built in 1250.

Kriegerdenkmal

Stubenrauch-Denkmal

Buschwiesen

Heimatmuseum

The German Museum of pigs in the district Ruhlsdorf presents the only museum of its kind on the pig farm as the historical development of pig farming and breeding in Germany.

[ source: wikipedia ]