Berlin Blog #1: Viktoriapark

I’ve only been in Berlin for five days, but I’m having a hard time pinning the city down. It’s old, but constantly being developed. It’s covered in graffiti, but springtime has brought swaths of blooming trees and greenery. It’s flat (the name “Berlin” is said to have come from the old Slavic word for “swamp”), but in the southern neighborhood of Kreuzberg, there is a massive hill where you can go to overlook the city.

I visited this hill, an urban park known as Viktoriapark, on Saturday night with my study abroad instructor and a group of other students. People say it’s a really wonderful place to have a picnic, especially at sunset. So that’s what we set out to do.

We visited a grocery store first, and I struggled a bit to pick out a cohesive meal in a shop where just about every product was labeled in German. Then, we took a tram and two U-Bahn trains and walked through Kreuzberg. After about 45 minutes of traveling, were greeted by a massive waterfall.

The artificial waterfall at Viktoriapark. See that little pointy tower in the back, all the way at the top of the falls? That’s our final destination.

The waterfall was pretty cool. The only things I’ve ever seen that remotely resembles anything like it are those cheesy fake waterfalls with turquoise-dyed water at mini golf courses. The waterfall at Viktoriapark, a replica of a natural fall in Poland, is 24 meters high. At the very top is a monument that was built to commemorate the battles fought during the War of Liberation.

This was our final destination, just one steep hike away.  And so, with legs already burning and feet already aching from that morning’s six-hour bike tour, we started our trek up to the top of the hill. My neck was slick with sweat and my arms were sore from dragging a heavy sack of food around Berlin, and after such a long trip I was just excited to sit down and eat already.

During the hike we stumbled upon a beautiful patch of lavender flowers. We took a quick break to peek around and catch our breath. Thank you Amanda for the picture!

Just when my legs feel like collapsing and I decided that I hate the hill and hiking and all things physical, we see the jagged green peaks of the monument. We made it.

I wasn’t expecting to see so many people, but the top of the hill seemed to be the place to be that night. The steps underneath the monument were packed with kissing couples, mothers and their babies, and gaggles of teenagers smoking cigarettes. There was even a group of Germans having a birthday party, complete with bottles of champagne, music and a single balloon.

We settled at the top of the steps, leaning back against the green metal of the monument. We cracked open bottles of fruit wine and tore into crusty loaves of bread. I was starving and tired and so excited to eat. I had a salad with some dressing that I could not identify based on the German label and a massive hunk of what appeared to be raspberry cheese. It was excellent.

The TV Tower, framed by two churches.

We just missed seeing the sun dip under the horizon, but from the top of the hill the twilight cast a soft purple glow over the city.

From this high up I spotted some of the sights that I’d biked past earlier in the day — the TV Tower hovering over Alexanderplatz,  steeples of old churches, smudges of lights from cars far below.

The view from the top of the hill.

The evening was so relaxing and peaceful, which was exactly what I needed after such a wild start to this study abroad trip (by the way, I am here in Berlin for two weeks to study photojournalism and eat my weight in pretzels).  In the days leading up to our park excursion, I experienced my first international flight, went 40 hours without sleep, stayed in my first hostel with some new friends and an Australian stranger named Tom (hi, Tom), and biked in a 12-mile loop around Berlin. The park was just what I needed.

Viktoriapark was gorgeous, and unexpected, and a lovely way to experience a slice of Berlin. I’m very much looking forward to seeing more of this city.