Zur deutschen Fassung.

All of Germany likes to complain about its capital city. It is often hard to tell whether it’s genuine disgust, secret envy or simply the national pastime of nagging. Those with the strongest opinion of Berlin, calling it a monstrous Moloch, a den of iniquity or the world capital of chaos, have probably never been to Berlin themselves.

Curiously, though, Berliners are also complaining all day long. In this case, the loudest voices come from those who have never left Berlin and believe that everywhere else in the world, every bus is always on time, that you obtain passports, driving licenses and building permits in one day and without any hassle, or that in the rest of the country, all roads and bridges repair themselves overnight, without construction sites and detours, without budget overruns or delays.

I myself am not a big city person, really. But whenever I spend some time in the largest city in the European Union, I am actually positively surprised. And as the bearer of good and cheerful news, as the optimist-in-chief, as the champion of truth and beauty, as whom you have gotten to know me, I want to invite you to join me on some of my walks around Berlin.

Relatively unknown, there is a network of paths, routes and trails in Berlin where you can get a completely different impression of Gotham City. Green Walks they are called, and there are twenty of them. For a total of 550 km, these routes wind their way across Berlin, mainly through green spaces, in forests and along waterways.

I don’t know how many of them I will manage to walk. After all, I also have other travel plans (Babylon, Baghdad, Bishkek, to name just a few). And some of the trails are a bit long, up to 63 km, like the Green Walk No. 1 (River Spree Trail).

On the other hand, and this is the beauty of Berlin and the Green Walks, you can take a break at any time, get on the bus or train, go home, and continue hiking the day or the weekend after. And for in-between, there are some short trails, starting at 7 km, like the Green Walk No. 20 (Bullengraben Walk).

For the first walk, I chose a route that lies between these two extremes: The 33 kilometers of the Green Walk No. 2, the Spandau Walk. On my German blog, I have a detailed report about this absolutely beautiful hike (part 1, part 2). I am terribly sorry for my international readers, but for these long articles, I just don’t find the time to write English versions anymore. :/ – As unsatisfying as online translations are (DeepL is still better than the others), I recommend that you get a subscription of my German blog and have it translated in your target language. You will definitely get the gist of it – and all the wonderful photos.

Honestly: I was absolutely blown away! I was of course aware that Berlin is greener than Dubai or Los Angeles. But I really wouldn’t have guessed that you can walk for kilometers through nature, without seeing a single other human being. A long, very varied and absolutely worthwhile trail.

The idea for the Green Walks is an old one, by the way. The urban planner Hermann Jansen had already included them in his plans for Greater Berlin, which was established in 1920. Unfortunately, a few things happened right after the founding of the city: Inflation, depression, National Socialism, World War II, the extensive destruction of the city and the division of Berlin all got in the way. Thus, the project was not realized until 1994.

Those among you who know this blog will already have guessed: On the walks, we will encounter all of these dramatic historical incisions. Because walking with me is never straightforward, but always a wild to and fro across the centuries.

With that much to write about, I particularly appreciate the quiet places where you can pause, think, write and smoke.

Links:

• More stories and photos from Berlin.
• More walks, long and short.