Anyone living in the Klostergärten will enjoy a neighbourhood of particularly romantic charm. For here, where the city’s history began at the end of the twelfth century, picturesque old buildings and historic remains bear witness to the former significance of this area. Running along Waisenstraße behind the Klostergärten, for example, are the last remnants of the old city wall, which in the Middle Ages enclosed the twin city of Berlin-Cölln. There is also an almost enchanted feel to the impressive ruins of the Early Gothic brick church, which was built for the Franciscan Order’s Graues Kloster monastery and has since given the quarter its name.

Other high-profile neighbours include the imposing Altes Stadthaus building and – directly opposite the Klostergärten – the delightful Parochialkirche Baroque church, the tower of which used to house Old Berlin’s best known carillon, until it was destroyed in the Second World War.