Rails to Trails, Berlin Style

I'm so glad that I picked up the book 111 Orte in Berlin die Man Gesehen Haben Muss, ("111 Must-See Places in Berlin").  Earlier this summer, I had arrived in Berlin after a ten-day trip to Russia with family, to visit the old land of East Prussia. I was saturated with new information, geography, history, language, and personalities. It had been a full 10 days prior, and 10 days prior to that as well -- that I had spent with family in Switzerland and Germany.

All in all, it was a trip of a lifetime. I've only begun to write about it, but owe it to myself to write down the details before they slip away. Thank goodness photos are here to help with that, but they only help extend the memory of what they capture.

So what does one do with only four days in Berlin? It's a great problem to have: being in a foreign place with not enough time to absorb the amazing history of it. It's helpful to have a limiting factor or two. My chief limiting factors were: I didn't want to spend a ton of money,  and I had already been to a few locations on a prior visit in 2001. I was also motivated to use the train and bus system as much as possible, since I'd bought a 72-hour unlimited use pass. Plus, I always feel more authentically immersed, and less like a tourist, on local public transit.

I also traveled alone, so if I ended up lost or going somewhere not-so-worthwhile, I only had myself to disappoint, and a only myself to blame; that allowed me more freedom of choice.

As I stood in the Berlin bookstore on my first day, trying to plan the forthcoming days, rather than going with a Lonely Planet, or Frommer's, or the like, which are all different yet exactly the same, I selected the book I mentioned above, written only in German by a local.

Der Naturpark Südgelände is reachable by a combination of a few S-Bahn and U-Bahn (surface and underground) subway trains.I was a bit concerned that when I got off the train, I would be on my own finding the park -- but the sign below was a welcome sight, and got me there before I even had to consult a map. (Notice the large "Natur-Park" sign.)

Clear Signage at Haltestelle Priesterweg, August 2012.

Naturpark Südgelände is an old rail yard that has been allowed to become overgrown with vegetation. Trails have been made through parts of it, but other parts are strictly maintained as sanctuaries. I can't do it enough justice in today's post -- I have yet to translate the many interpretive signs that I shot photos of -- but I know that Naturpark Südgelände hosts many imperiled species in an otherwise urban/industrial area. And I know that the City of Berlin probably had other options rather than making it a park. 

So today Naturpark Südgelände stands to show nature's ability to overcome human constraint. This was one of three striking examples of this phenomenon that I observed on my Euro journey. Because of politics, wars, and border changes, examples of this are all over Europe. The other two I became intimately familiar with (Wiepenheide and Rauschen) are still in my memory bank.

Der Naturpark Südgelände, August 2012.