We are fresh off our third weekend straight spent relaxing and socializing in the park. We have steadily shifted to life outside here in Germany as the number of Covid infections hovers and mostly holds steady and the weather warms. After months indoors, Germans are more eager than ever to get to the parks.
Park visits are a summer staple. Germans barely wait for the frost to leave the grass before they are rolling out their blankets, ready for the rays to touch their sun-starved skin. Summer afternoons in the park are a leisurely affair where everyone brings a little something to share (or a full-on picnic), Radlers are drunk, and everyone just hangs out til the light finally fades around 10 to 11 and people slip away into the night.
These meet-ups are perfect in the time of pandemic. As Corona still lurks, waiting to infect the unsuspecting, park hangs are ideal in that you can keep your distance in the great outdoors. Really, the visits aren’t so different from other summers but I think appreciation for them has never been higher.
Our 4th of July was spent in a Berlin park PHOTO: Cinthya Amezcua
Here are all the elements for a perfect German park hang, plus a few things to watch out for.
Food & Drink in German Parks
What to do while whiling away the hours at a park than eat and drink?
Grillen is the norm, but not all parks allow it. Charcoal grills come in all shapes and sizes (gas or true BBQs are much more rare) and a disposable set can easily be purchased at the grocery store for as little as 3 euros. However, this practice isn’t exactly eco-friendly and peoples’ laziness with throwing the little grills in the trash mean parks are often strewn with waste. There is information on parks websites if grills are verboten and signs around the park usually point out the no-grill zones.
Welcome at any park meet-up are a few shareable dishes. While the true to type Germans usually remember plates and utensils, the easiest things are rolls and a variety of dips. In my international group, chips and salsa are also totally acceptable. And it wouldn’t be a German meal without something sweet like cake.
Drinks also accompany the best outings – alcoholic or non. In Berlin, trendy Club Mate was once ubiquitous, although today you are just as likely to find a locally crafted soda, organic juice, or iced tea. Of course beer and wine also make an appearance with Spätis (convenience stores) in Berlin offering cold drinks on hot days. To not completely dehydrate and lounge all day, a Radler (mix of lemonade and beer) is the perfect park drink.
Another type of Kabob PHOTO: Erin Porter
Sports in German Parks
Of course, park life in Germany is not all laying down. Many people take to the parks with vigor by bike, by rollerblade, or even wind surfing. Tempelhof‘s expansive runways are an ideal setting for rolling around. A viral video featuring Oumi Janta has been making the rounds and roller skating at an old airport has never looked so cool.
This is also a great spot for kites with an annual festival (most years). Amateurs are also welcome to come fly a kite.
Sunbathing in German Parks
For those unfamiliar with Germany’s Freikörperkultur (Free Body Culture), if you visit a German park in summer prepare to get intimately acquainted. Especially pervasive in former East Germany, people can go nude just about anywhere. There is an open culture around nudity and it is particularly acceptable to be in your natural state when swimming and sunning at the lakes, of course in the sauna, and – yes – in the country’s many parks.
A few places are famous for it, like the meadows surrounding the Siegessäule in Berlin‘s Tiergarten and Munich‘s Englischer Garten. Generally it is not sexualized and children are frequently nude, too. If it is hot, do like the Germans and take it off.
Live Music in German Parks
This last weekend in Treptower Park we heard a bagpiper, trance music for meditation, and folk music within a hundred meters of each other. On a nice day a live concert awaits you on every park corner.
In the time of Corona, parks have also replaced clubs. A growing number of informal and registered raves and parties are happening in Berlin. The outdoor nature of these events should curb some of the spread of the illness, but most have been found to be unsafe and are swiftly shut down by the police. An infamous event that happened amid the worst of the lock down had a party of hundreds of boats and inter tubes floating down the Landwehrkanal. It was roundly criticized on social media as a very uncool look.
Though limits on how many households can meet have been lifted, be reasonable about it. We want to enjoy this park life and not go in to another lock down.
Drugs in German Parks
A point of interest for some and a deterrent for others is the prevalence of drugs in German parks. If you are looking for some weed or even a variety of harder drugs and don’t have a connection, odds are you can walk around a park and find someone dealing.
This can be very off-putting for straight-laced people just trying to enjoy the sunshine. However, most dealers are only interested in you as a customer so if you aren’t buying they are quick to ignore you.
Flowers in German Parks
Germany has many famous gardens like Frankfurt‘s Palmengarten, but there is no need to pay for entrance if you just want to see some flowers. Germany’s parks offer gorgeous sculpted lawns and cascades of flowers with scenic benches in which to enjoy them. In my two closest parks there are luxurious rose gardens and perfectly kept flowerbeds.
There has never been a better time to stop and smell the roses.
Get lost in the park PHOTO: Erin Porter
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