Berlin in summer: city, beach, river
The ship is full. I get hold of the last red plastic chair on the deck, the engine makes the Spree to gurgle, immediately I feel like on vacation. "Next to us is the House of World Cultures, over there the Chancellor is working," says a voice from the loudspeaker, first in German, then in English. Who understands which language, you can see who turns his head when in the right direction. Next to me is a family that reacts to nothing. Daddy looks to the left, if there is an attraction on the right, Mum basks with eyes closed, and the son calls in Swedish (?) With his friends.
But what does an electoral Berliner like me do on this excursion ship? I know Berlin from below with the subway, in the traffic jam by car and from the top of the TV tower. I have visited the usual sights long ago. And when the tourists come, I like to flee to visitor-free areas, preferably to a quiet spot by the water. That's going well. Seven percent of the total area of Berlin is wet. If you want, you can play captain for weeks and from there you can sail across lakes, rivers and canals even to the Mediterranean Sea or the Black Sea.
I do not have to drive that far. The waters within Berlin make it possible to enjoy a whole summer, from the city tour from the duck's perspective to the sailing trip. I want to go for a little boat, watch the waves, walk on the shore and walk over (more than) 1000 bridges. Why else does the Spree flow through Berlin for 46 kilometers? From the east it meanders towards the center, in the west it looks past the Charlottenburg Palace and then sinks under cover into the Havel in Spandau.
A Spree ride offers great views, for example on the "Molecular Man", a sculpture by Jonathan Borofsky
Now my everyday stress is sinking in the flood, and the main station disappears from my view. "On the right you see the 'Pampers Palace', this is the kindergarten for the little ones of the parliamentary employees," says the voice from the loudspeaker, and in the curve in front of us lies the Reichstag. My Swedish (?) Neighbors are giggling, I'm confused because of the unfamiliar perspectives. Was the Reichstag always so close to the water? And where exactly did the border between East and West Berlin run? I remember how, in the past, I used to take a walk on the then godforsaken bank of the Spree and watch the police boats of the GDR. Or did you watch me? Today the Spree acts as if nothing had happened. We pass under the Weidendammer bridge.
"This is where Friedrichstrasse gently makes its step across the water." So Wolf Biermann has sung the bridge in his "Ballad of the Prussian Icarus". The slowness of the ride makes you pretty dösig. I let the historic and modern Berlin pass by. Until I suddenly wake up completely: Something is missing. I see cars on the shore and hear no noise. I see people and do not feel the typical rush.
Berlin from the water is like a quiet movie about a big city without the annoying side effects. No busyness, no fumes. Berlin from behind, diagonally from the hip and from below. From the bottom, the overview of the imposing buildings of the Museum Island, on which we are passing, is missing. For that I perceive for the first time what the foundations on which the Bode Museum was built are: thick, square stones, brown, partly covered with moss, licked round. For 108 years, the Spree sloshed against it, without getting admission.
From the water you can see everything that makes up a capital. Politics? The Bellevue Presidential Palace, Ministry of the Interior, Chancellery, Reichstag and Parliament Building are located on the Spree. Culture? The Brecht Ensemble, a bit further back the German Theater, the Radialsystem V for avant-garde art projects and Hebbel am Ufer in Kreuzberg. Media? Public and private broadcasters can see waves banging on the doorstep. Economy? The Westhafen, the largest goods handling center in the city, is very busy. And in Kreuzberg / Friedrichshain, young entrepreneurs are using former Spreespeicher as a cool location.
Hang out in the water lounge "Freischwimmer".
"Look, Mama, the sea," said a little boy in the suburban train yesterday as we drove over the Spree. You have to be small in order to keep the Spree big. With the Elbe or the Rhine, it can not compete with its manageable width and almost 400 kilometers in length. For wanderlust, it is not suitable for special moments. On the banks of the Spree, I greeted the year 2000 with thousands of Berliners and was pleased to see how the water reflected the gigantic brightly colored fireworks.Here, on a Spreewiese am Tiergarten, I lay in the sun and read, talked, kissed and cried. Water is just made for emotional swirls and glitter thoughts. Water has something timeless, it is a remnant of nature, not yet flattened by civilization.
It would be nice. In fact, the Spree in the center of Berlin is anything but natural. Between 1995 and 2002, architects have diverted them temporarily so as not to interfere with the construction of the government district. No matter. For me, the Spree remains my very original recreational area. "Agata" chugs past. The captain of "Tabu" wears a thick golden chain. "Gerda" begins to overtake. Why do ships have such strange names? And does "Moni 3" mean that this is the owner's third motorboat, or does he love three monis?
Lying on the grass, every few minutes a ship slides into my field of vision. Since the Spree was expanded in the transport project German unit also for larger ships, the traffic volume has increased significantly. Alone at the lock Charlottenburg last year 3947 cargo ships, 957 passenger ships, 8902 sports boats and 936 other watercraft were counted. I'm glad that not all of them are driving past the Spreewiese, where I'm currently lying.
Anyone who knows Berlin only as a hip metropolis, must get out of the city, where there are chic beach bars with palm trees for a cocktail. Outside on the lakes, time seems to have stopped; You can drink coffee in the open, feed ducks or go for a walk. Anyone who has a dog in Berlin, and many of them, likes to travel to the Grunewaldsee on the southwestern outskirts in summer - here there is a dog bathing beach. I drive a bit further, to Schlachtensee. There I rent an old rowboat and do my best.
The best thing is to float in the middle of the lake. The water is green, the trees are close to the shore, from a distance I hear children laugh. A grebe looks at me, I put a hand in the water. And if I close my eyes, I put myself in the time, when one spoke of summer freshness. I see myself in a white dress with straw hat and blue ribbon sitting in this boat. A handsome gentleman in a white suit is rowing me to paradise. One is coughing in paradise. I open my eyes again. A naked man has swallowed while swimming.
ChroniquesDuVasteMonde WOMAN author Regina Kramer likes Berlin's quiet places on the Spree.
In, on and on Berlin's waters one feels the summer on the skin. For example, when sailing on the Wannsee. Or canoeing on the Teltow canal. Or have a picnic with the family at the Müggelsee. Fresh fish can even be caught out of the water; In the Spree, for example, live bream, roach, zander and bleak. And if you want to feel like a fish in the water, you can swim on the Spree: Opposite Friedrichshain is a heated bathing ship. The pool is a bit narrow, but the view of the Oberbaum bridge and the TV tower ingeniously far.
Everyone has their favorite places, sometimes because they are so beautiful, sometimes because something special happened there. My favorite spot is at the Moabite Bridge. There I stood in an extremely cold January and watched the Spree freeze. The ice floes crunched, no ship could drive any more, the trees on the shore were frozen, the river as white as the sky. Maybe the Spree will never look like that again, because it will never be so cold again. But even on a summer evening like today, I always remember that picture when I stand on that bridge.
I forgot the baseball cap. The sun is so deep that I can only blink. That's wonderful. It seems that I am leading the ship right through a forest of weeping willows, everything else is blurred, literally. I do a "bridge ride" in the evening. There are more than 1700 bridges in Berlin, under 64 we have to go through. Move in, stay seated. At Treptow we turn into the Landwehrkanal. The was built in the 19th century to relieve the Spree. The materials for building up Berlin were brought over this oldest canal in the city. Today, Berlin is still not finished, but the drive over the Landwehrkanal is one of the most romantic, which can be experienced from the water in the middle of the city. Close to the shore are huge poplars, willows and alders. What looks picturesque, is unfortunately a disaster: Almost eleven kilometers of shores are so dilapidated, that from the 3500 trees many have to be cut down. So have a good look.
The sun is already gone. People play chess and barbecue on the shore. There is a drumming, here are kissing two girls. A group of young men is dancing. In the dark you can see white teeth flashing. And this should be the "problem districts" Kreuzberg and Neukölln? We pass under one of the most beautiful bridges, the wrought-iron Admiral's Bridge. Above it hangs a slate silver moon. And suddenly I am very touched. Berlin, it is said, is poor but sexy. Dynamic and tough.But here, from the water, I experience the city as no prospectus would describe it: gentle and mild.
Beach bars, restaurants, cafes - tips for trips to the water
beach bars
Beach bar middle Here you take your drink in a deck chair with a view of the Bodemuseum. Open until about mid-September. (Monbijoustraße 3, Berlin-Mitte, www.strandbar-mitte.de)
Federal Press beach Large sandy beach with sun loungers, gastronomy, glass pavilion and playing field for beach volleyball, also meeting point for beach parties and salsa courses. Open until the beginning of September. (Kapelle-Ufer 1, corner Kronprinzenbrücke, near central station, www.bundespressestrand.de)
restaurants
Fisherman's hut at the Schlachtensee While you can eat and drink on the restaurant terrace, self-service is in the beer garden right on the Schlachtensee. (Fischerhüttenstraße 136, Berlin-Zehlendorf Tel. 030/8049 83 10, www.fischerhuette-berlin.de)
Hoppetosse In the restaurant ship you do not necessarily go because of the (dainty) food, but because of the good view the Oberbaumbrücke and the Alex, the TV tower. (Eichenstraße 4, Berlin-Treptow, Tel. 030/5332 03 40www.ms-hoppetosse.de)
Capt'n Schillow Somewhat hidden is the ship on the Landwehrkanal, and you could forget, surrounded by green, smooth, that you are here in the middle of Berlin. On the weekend you get between 10 and 14 o'clock a good breakfast; then you can go directly across the street from June 17 to the large flea market. (Straße des 17. Juni, Höhe Charlottenburger Tor, Berlin-Charlottenburg, Tel. 030/31 5050 15, www.capt.schillow.de)
Van Loon Very good German cuisine is served on this 1914 built cargo ship, which is located in the Urbanhafen. (At the Baerwald Bridge, Carl-Herz-Ufer 7, Berlin-Kreuzberg Tel. 030/69262 93, www.vanloon.de)
Buchwald Café The café is well-known in the city for its excellent Baumkuchen, inside it looks like in the 50s, outside you have a view of the Spree, diagonally behind it is the Ministry of the Interior, not far away the district court Tiergarten. (Bartningallee 29, Berlin-Tiergarten Tel: 030/391 59 31, www.konditorei-buchwald.de)
exhibition
Historic harbor In addition to more than 20 historic inland vessels, there is the boat "Renate-Angelika", which presents an exhibition on the history of the maritime inland navigation and has a bar. (Fischerinsel, Berlin-Mitte, Tel. 030/214 73 257, www.historischer-hafen-berlin.de)
water sports
Canoe Connection Good address for paddlers: If you want to rent a kayak during the high season (daily), you should book early to be on the safe side. (Köpenicker Straße 9, Berlin-Kreuzberg, Tel. 030/612 26 86, www.kanu-connection.de
Marina Lanke Berlin AG In the largest water sports center in Berlin you can do sailing and motorboat courses, charter motorboats and houseboats or rent boats of various types for a few hours. (Scharfe Lanke 109 - 131, Berlin-Spandau, Tel. 030/96 08 51 29 (boat rental), 36 20 09 99 (Charter).) Www.marina-lanke.de)
Surf and sailing school Müggelsee Here you can not only make various boat licenses and learn to surf on Berlin's largest lake, but also rent boats? from the pedal boat to the sailing ship. (Fürstenwalder Damm 838, Berlin-Treptow-Köpenick, Tel. 030/648 15 80, www.wassersport-berlin.de)
Go swimming
Photo show: Berlin on the water
bathing ship If you want to swim on the Spree, but not in Spreewasser, jump into the heated pool of the Badeschiffs, which also includes a bar. (Eichenstraße 4, Berlin-Treptow, Tel. 030/533 20 30, www.badeschiff.de)
Strandbad Wannsee, Wannseebadweg 25, Berlin-Wannsee
Outdoor pool Müggelsee, Fürstenwalder Damm 838, Berlin-Treptow-Köpenick
Strandbad Weißensee, Waterfront at Weißensee, Berlin-Weißensee
Crooked Lanke, Fischerhüttenstraße 141, Berlin-Steglitz-Zehlendorf
A water map with information about water routes and excursion possibilities you get for 1.85 euros in the Tourist Info Centers (Brandenburg Gate, south wing, Europa Center, at the TV tower Alexanderplatz) and by fax 030/84 79 82 28 at BTM Wolanski.
Even more information for Berlin visitors are available on the website of the Berlin Tourist Information. There are also various providers of round trips by ship called.
