Travel Germany. Best of Brandenburg - A state for every season


Did you know that Berlin is an island? I have not been here for that long but one thing is for sure I’m head over heels in love with Brandenburg, the state that completely surrounds the city-state Berlin. There are 16 federal states in Germany, and Brandenburg one of them, is roughly triple the size of the Bahamas or you might as well say, as large as Belgium. 

Travel Germany. Best of Brandenburg - A state for every season

Whenever I need a change in scenery, and whenever I need to clear my mind, I make my way to Brandenburg. It is so close to Berlin, but it is a different world. Towns, villages or hamlets appear to have just been awakened from a very long sleep. If you take a look at Germany's recent history it most probably just happened.

During the Dictatorship of the GDR (learn about it at a museum in Berlin) whole city centres were covered in soft brown ash (a result of mining), and most period properties were in a state of decay. After the fall of the wall, towns, schools, roads and bridges have been renovated. Visit any town in Brandenburg to see how picturesque everything is. The only thing missing are work opportunities and as a result income. The deindustrialization that began after 1990 was ideal for the natural environment. The nature is outstandingly beautiful, look at this, Brandenburg is a state for every season.

 

March in the state capital Potsdam


You might need to walk through deep snow (everything is possible in March), but the lovelier it is to find one of the many atmospheric cafes in town and warm-up. To feel your fingers again after a long walk is pure bliss.

March in the state capital Potsdam - there can be snow

April in Ribbeck


The small town in the Havelland region, a mere 50 kilometres from Alexanderplatz in the centre of Berlin, is the main character in a poem by the German poet and novelist Theodor Fontane. Read more about my visit in Travel Germany. Visit the town of Ribbeck, Havelland region in Brandenburg

April in Ribbeck - Bright yellow rapeseed. Spring has sprung

May in Chorin


If you jump on a train at Berlin central station you are going to be in Chorin only 45 minutes later. The town in the district of Barnim in Brandenburg is bounded by Poland, Maerkisch-Oderland, Berlin and the Uckermark. This is where you can read everything about my visit to Chorin and the Chorin Abbey in Brandenburg.

Chorin - home of wild beavers

June near Lake Parstein


This is how the land in the Biosphere Reserve Schorfheide-Chorin looks in June. UNESCO classifies the cultural landscape between the upper Havel, the lower Oder and the Barnim in the north-eastern part of the Mark Brandenburg as so interesting and important that it is one of the few most valuable landscapes in the world. 

Poppy meadow near Lake Parstein

June at Lake Liepnitz


Lake Liepnitz is said to be one of the cleanest lakes in all of Brandenburg. As part of the Barnim Nature Park, the lake is a result of glacier activity. The lake is almost surrounded by beech forest, and it is simply fantastic to hike around it. It would take roughly two hours to walk the 9.5 kilometres. Look at the colour of the lake. Picture-perfect for swimming. Lake Liepnitz is not too far away from Berlin. It is just around the corner from the town of Bernau. By car, it would take you roughly 40 minutes from Alexanderplatz, right in the centre of Berlin. 

A wooden pier leads the way into a green-blue coloured lake surrounded by reeds and trees.

July in Templin in the Uckermarck district


This stork stood here almost motionless on the light pole but was so very interested what was going on in the world. Every other moment the stork looked inquisitively into a different direction, was this out of fear to miss something?

Stork on a light pole in Templin

August in Lower Lusatia


I went hiking for hours, in seemingly complete remoteness. Every year in mid-August the heather blooms in lilac to dark purple. It is a true spectacle to look at. Travel Germany. Hiking in the moorland in Lower Lusatia in Brandenburg.

Heath in Lower Lusatia - a magical sea of purple (Prince would have loved it)

 

September in Lehde, an island village in the Spreewald


There are no roads in this town in the southeast of the state. Firefighters, removers, as well as rubbish collectors, come by barge. I went on a boat ride through the canals, to experience this first hand. The area became UNESCO biosphere reserve in 1991. 

Lehde, an island village in the Spreewald

 

October in Altkuenkendorf


You can only enter the impressive landscape with dense forests, ancient alleys and clear lakes of the Beech forest Grumsin in the Schorfheide-Chorin UNESCO Biosphere Reserve with a certified ranger. Read all about my visit: A Magical Place in Germany: Visit the UNESCO World Heritage Beech Forest in Grumsin.


Fly Agaric in Grumsin in the Schorfheide-Chorin UNESCO Biosphere Reserve

November in Ruppin Switzerland


Boltenmuehle, 18 kilometres north of Neuruppin, is part of Guhlen Glienicke. It is where I start my walk around the lake. Read all about it in Experience the perfect Indian Summer at the Tornowsee in Brandenburg

Colourful foliage at Lake Tornow / Tornowsee

December in Babelsberg

Landscaped park with a stone tower in the background under a grey winter sky.


Babelsberg Castle used to be the summer residence of the German Empress/Emperor and Queen/King of Prussia, William I and his wife Augusta. The beautiful garden has been designed by Pueckler, the famous glamour boy, landscape artist, traveller, and dessert muse. The park and its palace are UNESCO World Heritage-listed.

Info: All these places are only one to two hours from Berlin. I can't wait to visit more places in the picture-perfect state of Brandenburg. Where is your favourite place?

From Berlin with love