Britta's Letters from her life divided between city-life in German's capital Berlin and life in a Bavarian village

Saturday 1 August 2020

Have You Ever Been to Brandenburg?



Dear You, 

you might have wondered where I have been - sorry to write so late - but I was lost in Brandenburg (a joke that only insiders might understand): Brandenburg is the (charming) "waste-land" around Berlin. 
Rainald Grebe, a German comedian, wrote a very angry song about it ("take something to eat with you/ we drive to BRANDENBURG"). 

But I think it is very beautiful, a lot of nature around. 

Huge woods:


and woods with fields (at the moment sunflowers) 


and ripe crops....


                                                   .... and woods .....
         

But they have also many castles, some I will show you next time. 

Till then:  Toodle-pip! 

Yours truly 
Britta 



 

27 comments:

  1. PS: 1) I was not able to open "preview" on new blogger - so, there may be more faults than normally; 2) I could not find out how to delete a photo (so I minimised it to the smallest possible version).

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    1. When my youngest son worked in sales for his company he traveled to Berlin a few times. He said it was the prettiest of all the countries he visited.

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  2. I agree with him, Emma, though I also love various other landscapes in Germany too:Bavaria, the area around the Rhein, and also Northern Germany (Friesland).

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  3. Many many years ago I visited a German exchange student (with a friend) in Berlin who we had met in England and he took us to a beautiful countryside and just outside Berlin and we walked through woods and I remember sandy soil under my feet. I don't know where that was but it almost felt like being by the sea without the sea!

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    1. It must have been Brandenburg, Rachel! They call it "The Lord's sand-caster" (which you used to dry ink on paper) - poor soil, but beautiful woods. It is a lovely flat landscape. Xxx

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    2. I found the woods quite spooky in fact and the sand under foot, but very beautiful. We saw very few other people there which added to the strange feeling of should we really be here.

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  4. I used to live outside of Celle. There was some beautiful countryside there. But it was miserable in the winter.

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  5. Oh, Celle is a beautiful little town, I know it quite well - Hannover near. But as you say: in winter not the most vivid place to live in.

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  6. I also know Celle.Had family there and visited there many times when my children were small.

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  7. Then you might know the surrounding cities as well, Yael? I lived for 19 years in Hildesheim.

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  8. I have been to the Brandenburg Gate, many years ago, 1974. Is that the same place? I have photographs of it.

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    1. The Brandenburger Tor is the last remaining of 18 city gates that Berlin once have had. In the time of the GDR it stood between East and West Germany, and Ronald Reagan said: “Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” Brandenburg is one of the provinces of Germany, surrounding Berlin. It will be very interesting to see your photographs!

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    2. The photographs even though taken with a colour film, look very dark and grey. I only had a basic camera in those days. Also some of them were taken from inside a coach. I remember we went through Checkpoint Charlie from West to East. Someone came onto the coach and took our passports, and returned them half an hour later. we were allowed to cross over but not allowed to get out of the coach. After an hour or two in the East we had to return to the West side. The Gate stands very tall with six pillars in the centre section. Either side was smaller sections with pillars. Basically roofs with pillars that you could look right through. On the top is a statute, can't quite make out what it is, maybe a chariot pulled by horses with a figure standing on it. I don't have a scanner, I could try photographing them but they wouldn't be very clear. I also have pictures of Charlottenburg Castle and Kurfurstendamm.

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    3. That sounds very interesting, Meanqueen! When you describe the time one had to wait to get one's passport checked, I thought of the hours we waited, the search of the car by the Vopos and many things more. I was in Eastern Berlin as visitor as a child, sometimes .
      I think that I might write about the Brandenburger Tor when I am back in Berlin - it has a very, very interesting history.
      I live near the Kurfürstendamm (in a quiet quarter around the Victoria-Luise-Platz), and often visit the Charlottenburger Schloss - the park especially.

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  9. I like the concertos, but I have never been to Berlin.

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    1. But you know that H.I. and you are very welcome in Berlin, Tom, and Brandenburg is very easy to reach by car or by train.

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    2. Thank you Britta. We may take you up on that some day.

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  10. And fields with towers! My friend Ruth would know this place well.

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    1. Yes, Joanne: lookout towers, water towers, and even a Six Tower Ranch!

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  11. Mooi. Daar wil ik ook nog wel eens heen. Vrijdag gaan wij naar Braunlage (Niedersachsen) voor een aantal dagen.

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  12. Zo ben je veel onderweg in Duitsland, Guusje! Braunlage im Harz is echt een goede adres voor natuur. Ik wens je veel plezier!

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  13. I could quite happily get lost for a while in Brandenburg with the forests and those sunflower fields.
    If you want to get rid of an image on new blogger, just click on it and then press the return key on your computer.

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  14. Well, I believe that you would enjoy it, Rosemary - especially when you see the castles we visited.
    Tank you for the hint with the elimination of a photo - I'll just go and try it.

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  15. The Australian Brandenburg Orchestra is my favourite orchestra here. It's the closest I've been to Brandenburg!

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  16. I think they are also worthwhile, Pupisttello! And before our little daytrips I came as nearest to Brandenburg as Tom has written :-)

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    1. Typo on mz Smartphone , sorry , Pipistrello!

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    2. And now I find that the whole keyboard is typing wrong - grrrrr.....

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