Exclaves

The curious effects of the Cold War and the Berlin Wall can be seen in the former exclaves Eiskeller, Fichtewiese and Erlengrund. Due to territorial exchanges between the Allied occupying powers and the Soviet Union, these were located on GDR territory, but belonged to West Berlin. Residents could only get there via a narrow corridor.

Fichtewiese and Erlengrund

North of the Bürgerablage bathing spot in the Hakenfelde district of Spandau there were two summerhouse colonies directly by the Havel.
Between 1961 and 1988, they were completely cut off by the Wall from the rest of West Berlin and only accessible via a small paved path. A separate access gate in the Wall with a bell marked the border here.

Eiskeller

Eiskeller is located on the western edge of Spandauer Forst. In 1961 the picture of a schoolboy called Erwin Schabe went around the world. The 12-year-old claimed to have been stopped by GDR border police on the way from his home in the exclave of Eiskeller to school in Spandau. He was then escorted to school for several months by a British tank. Only years later did the truth come to light: he had made up the story in order to skip school.