Tom`s travels: Bernau bei Berlin & Panke trail (06/12/2021)

On a cold and snowy early December day, I decided to take a ride to the nearby town of Bernau bei Berlin, just about 30km from the city center of the capital, and from there hike all the way back to Berlin. I took a train and after a short time reached Bernau; once there I got off the train, exited the station, and headed towards the city center. I first passed by the neogothic Herz-Jesu-Kirche built at the beginning of the 20th century and then reached the Steintor, a late Gothic brick city gate from the second half of the 15th century. The only surviving city gate of three that once stood in the city, and part of the walls that once fully encircled the city, now most of which luckily are still present. However, the interior of the city, which was largely spared during WWII due to the fact the city did not feature any major industry, was then fully altered between the 1960s and 1980s when Bernau was part of East Germany. In fact, a large part of Bernau's old town, which mostly consisted of half-timbered houses, was demolished and largely replaced with new prefabricated buildings known as Plattenbau. The renovation of the heavily dilapidated old buildings was too expensive for the government at the time and so as it was cheaper and faster they built these ugly constructions. Bernau thus became one of three model cities for how the GDR dealt with the preservation of monuments, mostly through the destruction of old buildings in disrepair and very few refurbishments and renovations. Next to the Steintor, connected by ramparts, was the Hungerturm, one of the towers part of the city's walls that used to serve as a prison. From the city gate, I then walked following the perimeter of the medieval walls until I reached the northern gate the Mühlentor. The gate was built in 2013 after the old one was demolished back in 1883 as it caused traffic congestion and carriages could not pass through. It obviously looks more modern than the other, the Steintor, but at least it fits well with its surroundings and the walls. Not far from the city gate, inside the town, I then reached the main church, St Marien, a large gothic structure that was unfortunately closed. As I continued on I walked the rest of the perimeter of the city walls and saw another of the towers, the Powder tower, a typical conical brick tower found also elsewhere in the Brandenburg region. I had then a last stroll around the old town seeing the mostly ugly socialist plattenbau buildings and just two blocks of houses that had been spared from demolition right next to the Marktplatz, the city's main square. After that, it was time to start following the trail which for most of its way would follow the course of the Panke river into Berlin. I left Bernau heading southwest with still the surroundings covered in snow. Shortly after I reached and passed through the town of Panketal, and then back again through more countryside in the direction of the town of Buch, now leaving Brandenburg and entering Berlin. After passing the town, I then continued through more countryside in an area filled with marshland and small lakes. Here I stopped to have lunch which I had brought over with me; I sat on a log and enjoyed a salad with mango sauce and shrimp. It was rather cold to sit and eat so I tried to finish quickly in order to get back to walking and warm up once again. At one point, despite the distance, I could already spot in the distance the tall TV tower located right in the middle of the city center of Berlin, so I knew my house was not too far. The trail which continued along the river then also sided the highway for quite a while until I reached the district of Pankow. Here I then reached the Schönhausen Palace, a baroque palace built in 1662 for Countess Sophie Theodore. I walked around the castle's park and around the building as well and then continued on my walk. From there I wasn't so far from the city center and home, and in fact, after leaving Pankow, I entered Wedding and finally home.