The REAL Bridge Of Spies: Following in the footsteps of Tom Hanks and Mark Rylance in Berlin and discovering how it has been transformed into a world-class city since its Cold War days

It's a city that was famously divided during the Cold War, patrolled by armed soldiers willing to shoot anyone who dared to cross from the East in an area known as the dead zone.

At that time, Berlin was the spy capital of the world – something that’s highlighted by Steven Spielberg’s Bridge Of Spies. It’s a movie that tells the gripping true story of how lawyer James B Donovan, played by Tom Hanks, negotiated an exchange of two hostages between the US and the Soviet Union, with an Oscar-winning performance by Mark Rylance as a communist spy.

The dramatic moment takes place on the world-famous Glienicke Bridge and on a visit to the city, I discover that it’s just as foreboding as it appears on the film, when the two sides stand on each side, waiting for the stalemate to break and the prisoners to be released.

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Healed scars: The luxurious Hotel Adlon Kempinski sits in the shadow of the Brandenburg Gate on land which was once the infamous dead zone, patrolled by Eastern European guards watching the wall 

Different era: This was the same view that people could see from West Berlin in 1987, just before the wall fell. Citizens were not allowed to approach the historic landmark

This is the world-famous Glienicke Bridge, which appears in the recent movie Bridge Of Spies, for which Mark Rylance won an Oscar. The US and the Soviets exchange prisoners on the bridge during the movie, as it is seen as a neutral point

This aerial shot of Glienicke Bridge shows how the area it's in is a picturesque, leafy suburban zone nowadays

True story: This is a view of 'Unity' or Glienicke Bridge from the American side, where U2 pilot Francis Gary Powers was exchanged for convicted Russian spy Rudolf Abel

Dramatisation: Tom Hanks on Glienicke Bridge, waiting for Powers to be released

Modern tale: In the movie Bridge Of Spies, released this week, Tom Hanks plays James B Donovan (pictured, right), the lawyer who negotiated the exchange, with Mark Rylance winning an Oscar for his supporting role as KGB agent Rudolf Abel (centre)

Despite the city now being totally transformed - Berlin Wall and dead zone scenes needed to be created artificially because they no longer exist, for instance - there are many other ways of experiencing the world the movie is set in.

The city does still bear scars from more troubled times - and there are hotels such as the Adlon Kempinski with strong Cold War connections.

It used to be Berlin's most iconic hotel.

It opened in 1907 and welcomed Kaiser Wilhelm II as its first guest and later stars including Greta Garbo and Charlie Chaplin checked in, no doubt keen to take in views from the rooms of the historic Brandenburg Gate.

The Adlon stayed open throughout the Second World War and accommodated officers, royalty and American presidents Franklin and Teddy Roosevelt.

But while the interior and architecture looks classic, it is actually relatively new.

It burned down shortly after the war, and the empty site was located in what later became the dead zone.

It was rebuilt in 1997 at a cost of 235million euros on the exact same spot and the five-star hotel, with a restaurant boasting two Michelin stars, is yet again one of Berlin's elite establishments.

Today, in the ornate lobby, musicians play the piano in the evening while guests sip Champagne and neatly made cocktails. or coffees in the daytime.

The suites have a classic interior, with wooden furniture that looks mature and stylish. They're big, too, with suites for two large enough for a family.

Political centre: Another site on the whistle-stop tour of the city's most significant and highly political landmarks is the Reichstag, the majestic building at the centre of German politics, where Angela Merkel and other politicians debate the country's issues

Getting in: Trips inside need to be planned weeks in advance, with organised tourists rewarded with permission to go to the top of the glass dome at the apex of the building for a unique view of the city

Historic spot: The gate to the West in Berlin was known as Checkpoint Charlie, guarded by Americans on one side and East Germans on the other. It's now a tourist attraction, with actors dressing up as US and East German soldiers

Stark contrast: The checkpoint today is a world away from the military guardhouse that manned the route into West Berlin years ago

The bathrooms have so many creams and lotions that you can dispense with the whole rigmarole of pouring toiletries into a plastic bag in front of crowds of people at the airport.

On the second day I discover that the shower has an intriguing disguise: A button on the outside that converts it into a sauna.

Stepping outside by the Brandenburg gate I go on a tour that explains the story of political tensions all over the world for the past century.

We walk to the Holocaust memorial and take in boards and information points that explain the impact of the First and Second World Wars and the divide between East and West throughout the rest of the 20th Century, Berlin being the focal point of the stalemate.

The gate to the West in Berlin was known as Checkpoint Charlie, guarded by Americans on one side and East Germans on the other.

It's now a tourist attraction. 

Visitors pay a few euros to have their pictures taken with actors who don military uniforms from both sides - and lend you a hat for the snap.

In Bridge of Spies it's the spot where, as Tom Hanks waits for a prisoner exchange at Glienicke Bridge, US soldiers anxiously await the arrival of another American imprisoned in East Germany in very tense scenes.

Iconic: Hotel Adlon Kempinski opened in 1907 and welcomed Kaiser Wilhelm II as its first guest and later stars including Greta Garbo and Charlie Chaplin checked in, no doubt keen to take in views from the rooms of the historic Brandenburg Gate

Relaxation: In the lobby, musicians play piano in the evening while guests sip Champagne, neatly made cocktails or coffees in the daytime

Room with a view: From the window of the luxurious suites (pictured), there is an amazing view of the historic Brandenburg Gate, and if you walk out through the classically designed lobby, you find yourself almost in its shadow

Classic style: The rooms have a classic interior, with wooden furniture that looks mature and stylish

Beside the landmark is the Museum Haus, known as Checkpoint Charlie Museum or the Last House Of Freedom, as it was formerly one of the final addresses on the street in West Germany used by human rights activist Dr Rainer Hildebrandt to help those wanting to escape the regime in the East.

Today it tells the story of life in the former German Democratic Republic with art, displays and memorabilia. It is run by Hildebrandt's wife, Alexandra, who considers it a personal mission to tell the tale of what happened there - so it never happens again.

Another site on the whistle-stop tour of the city's most significant and highly political landmarks is the Reichstag, the majestic building at the centre of German politics, where the most powerful people in the nation, including Angela Merkel, debate the country's issues.

Trips inside need to be planned weeks in advance, with organised tourists rewarded with permission to go to the top of the glass dome at the apex of the building for a unique view of the city.

Then there is Glienicke Bridge, the setting for the gripping climax of the movie and the actual place where U2 pilot Francis Gary Powers was exchanged for convicted Russian spy Rudolf Abel, played by Rylance. It's the real Bridge of Spies.

The bridge is on the edge of the west of the city and extended from the US-controlled area into Soviet-controlled Germany. It's a huge structure and the final snowy scene of the movie accentuates its foreboding form.

The unique dishes at Facil, a restaurant on Potsdamer Platz, which was the centre of Berlin's renaissance. Left is a dish with gourmet peanut butter at its centre and right is chili con carne made from polting lamb and polenta

Fine dining: The bavette steak with beans and jus (left) from Restaurant Bieberbau (right), roughly 20 minutes from the centre

Now, the more noticeable parts are the ornate sculptures at either end, the beautiful park and classic mansion - now a national treasure - in what was once the American sector, and the immense castle in the distance that can be seen from the middle, which offers an impressive view over the water.  

As you walk around the main tourist drag, you quickly realise that Berlin still has plenty of the steins and currywurst sausages it's famous for. But there is also a unique restaurant scene, with experimental chefs rustling up groundbreaking dishes.

A few minutes down the road, past the expansive Holocaust memorial, is Facil, a restaurant on Potsdamer Platz with lots of glass and high ceilings that was the centre of Berlin's foodie renaissance.

The dishes are unique and the sparkling German riesling is an even better reason to visit than the beer.

To start, they offer meals including rutabaga, with radicchio, ginger and liquorice, a smoked duck soup of celery and whey and impressively presented rock octopus.

Mains include chili con carne made from polting lamb and polenta - which both look and taste like modern art - and corn-fed chicken with cherry and sunchoke.

For afters there are rich desserts such as red berries with pecan and kampot pepper, and the bonfire, a chocolate sphere filled with ice cream and red berries, on a bed of popping candy.

The unique dining experience at the restaurant, rated number ten on TripAdvisor, will set you back 36 euros for two courses or 48 euros for three at lunchtime.

However, the top-rated restaurant in Germany is actually a 20-minute taxi journey from the centre, on what looks like a fairly quiet street and in a building that is a far cry from the glass-fronted hotel that houses Facil.

Restaurant Bieberbau has been there since 1894, and the interior is simple and stylish, but the food is anything but, boasting a menu with dishes including buffalo ricotta with sweet potatoes and meadow veal with baked celery. What's more there's a calm but friendly atmosphere where diners even seem to greet those on other tables - something almost unheard of in most British cities.

Today in Berlin you can eat gourmet foods and drink wines and spirits from all over the world - the hallmarks of any capital city. It's easy to lose track of whether you are in East or West Berlin, which makes the small signs of a divided past all the more poignant.

• Bridge of Spies is available on Digital HD, Blu-ray and DVD, courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox Home.

Flying out: Tom Hanks outside the Tempelhof Airport. It was only way to fly out of West Germany and the ability to do that is what separated the two sides of Berlin. The former runway is now a park, but tourists can still walk inside the terminal, which remains open

The wall: Tom Hanks walking outside the Berlin Wall, parts of which still exist today. Even the parts which have disappeared are remembered by bricks in the floor running down the roads and pavements where it once stood 

Released this week: Bridge of Spies is available on Digital HD, Blu-ray and DVD, courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox Home