5 towns you would never think of when you hear the name 'Berlin'

Lamas are essential in this tiny Berlin namesake village, keeping its 10 inhabitants warm with socks, hats and coats to fend off the cold. Bolivian Berliners also like lama steak, which can be kept for two to three months without refrigeration when sun-dried. It is the reason people used to live up to the age of 110, the old folks say.

Most towns called Berlin can be found in the US - for instance in the Midwestern state of Ohio. Two German Berliners founded the town in 1816. Some of the town's 3,000 inhabitants still live without electricity, phones or the internet even today: that part of Ohio is Amish country.

If you plan to visit Berlin in Russia, you will need a special permit, as the town is situated in southern Russia at the border with Kazakhstan, a forbidden zone. Here, Cossacks once shielded Russia from Tatar attacks. During the Seven Years' War in the 18th century, Russian troops moved across western Europe, and also occupied Berlin - which is how the city's name made its way back to Russia.

This Berlin is in northern Guinea, along the border to Mali. Legend has it that a Guinean once brought the name home as a "souvenir" of the German capital. The West African state's Berlin has about 350 inhabitants, who make their living in agriculture or try their luck mining for gold.

The name is a reminder of colonial times, and is rarely used these days. Between 1899 and 1914, a few islands off Papua New Guinea were German, and the colonial rulers named one town and island Berlinhafen, or Berlin Harbor. Today, they are known under their former names: Aitape and Tumleo.