Burg (Spreewald)

The Spreewald is a water landscape southeast of Berlin, crisscrossed by over 970 kilometers of natural and artificial waterways. Since 1991, it has been recognized by UNESCO as a Biosphere Reserve. It is divided into the larger Oberspreewald in the south and the smaller Unterspreewald in the north, which meet near Lübben.The cultural landscape was significantly shaped by the Sorbs, and cucumbers are cultivated on approximately 500 hectares. The best way to experience the region is by punt: Punted trips depart from places including Lübbenau, Lübben, Lehde, and Burg.

Lübbenau (Lower Sorbian: Lubnjow) is the gateway to the Spreewald, 80 kilometers southeast of Berlin. From the Großer Spreewaldhafen, the region's biggest port, punted barges navigate the labyrinth of waterways; tourism began here in 1882.The old town, with St. Nikolai Church (built 1738-1741) and the neoclassical castle, is already within the Biosphere Reserve. In Lehde, where mail is delivered by barge from April to October, the Open-Air Museum illustrates Spreewald life of yesteryear.

Until 1912, Neukölln was called Rixdorf: A document from 1360 mentions the village, and in 1737 Friedrich Wilhelm I. settled Bohemian religious refugees who founded Böhmisch-Rixdorf. In 1899 Rixdorf became a city, in 1920 Neukölln joined Greater Berlin, and after the war, it belonged to West Berlin. Today, the densely built-up north with its Gründerzeit districts is vibrantly diverse; by mid-2021 almost half of its residents had a migration background from 155 countries.You can stroll along Sonnenallee and Karl-Marx-Straße, discover old Rixdorf around Richardplatz with its forge and Bethlehemskirche, and descend into the lower-lying Körnerpark. In Reuterkiez, which Berliners call Kreuzkölln, and in Schillerkiez, many bars and cafés have opened since the 2000s, and right next door, the expansive Tempelhofer Feld beckons. At Hermannplatz U-Bahn station, lines U7 and U8 intersect, and the S-Bahn lines S41, S42, S45, S46, and S47 also run through the district.

Friedrichshain owes its name to the Volkspark Friedrichshain in the north, laid out from 1846 as Berlin's first public park, and reaching south to the Spree. The 1950s saw the creation of Stalinallee, today's Karl-Marx-Allee, whose Socialist Classicist buildings are now listed monuments; the uprising of June 17, 1953 began on its construction sites. To the east, Gründerzeit tenements define the image; since 2001, the district has formed a joint borough with Kreuzberg.Stroll along Karl-Marx-Allee from Strausberger Platz to Frankfurter Tor, ascend the Großer Bunkerberg in the Volkspark, and browse the Saturday weekly market at Boxhagener Platz. In the evenings, bars and restaurants around Simon-Dach-Straße draw visitors from across the city. Warschauer Straße station serves S-Bahn lines S3, S5, S7, S75, S9, and is the terminus for U-Bahn lines U1 and U3; Ostkreuz is Berlin's busiest station.

Kreuzberg is a district in the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough, named after the 66-meter-high Kreuzberg hill in Viktoriapark, where Schinkel's National Monument for the Liberation Wars has stood since 1821. During the time of the Berlin Wall, the eastern part, SO 36, was enclosed on three sides and became the hub of the alternative movement and squatting in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, around 160,000 people live here, many with Turkish roots, and its nightlife and cultural scene are well-known far beyond Berlin.During the day, you can visit the Jewish Museum or the German Museum of Technology, climb the Kreuzberg hill in Viktoriapark, or meet up at the Admiralbrücke over the Landwehrkanal, a popular meeting spot. In the evenings, the district's nightlife beckons. You can get here via U-Bahn lines U1 and U3, which largely follow the former Akzisemauer, with U6 and U8 running north-south, and also with U7; in total, there are 14 U-Bahn stations in the district.