Berlin has its very own gondola that flies over the Marzahn neighborhood. This area has lots of similar flats that look like a giant kid spilled his Duplo. I don’t find it particularly attractive, but amid all of this lies an oasis of green. The Gärten der Welt, or gardens of the world, is a well kept park with well…. gardens of the world.
The U-bahn took me to the Kienberg station and from there I could easily hop in the ski lift. They sell combi-tickets for the lift and gardens. I loved the ride, but still missed the action of heavy ski boots stomping on the floor and skis being put in the racks of the gondola. At least I could hear the excited squeals of the kids in the gondola behind me. The gondola has 2 stops. At the mid station is the actual Kienberg, which has a park with a walking path, a lookout tower, café and a summer tobogganing track.
At first my ticket wouldn’t let me into the park, so I walked around to the main entrance where a friendly man let me in after all. From there I took a look at the international show cabinets first. All of them were surrounded by hedges which gave the garden more privacy and therefore made it easier to enjoy it. They were all about the same size and gave an impression of the country it was named after. Most gardens had benches so you could stay and relax.
The park itself is quite big and I walked a fair bit just by exploring it. There are big grassy fields, wooden lounge benches and picnic tables. There are playgrounds for kids and cafés for when you get thirsty. There is even an open air theater for summer events. Besides the garden cabinets there are a few more beautifully crafted gardens, like the Italian renaissance garden. It was just so peaceful to walk around here.
The water gardens were quite special, all with its own kind of water feature. A long path ran through several different areas. The first one had a few pits with splashing water, like an overeager jacuzzi. The second one houses a garden with lotus flowers on the water. Then there are the waterfalls that flow on and off. Finally, you walk through the mist garden, which feels a lot more tropical and has little flowers on its walls. In between the gardens are some loungers where you can relax and take in some sunshine. These gardens are designed for reflection and relaxation after all.
Further along I followed a pretty big Chinese garden. A sign informed me that it was built with Chinese cooperation and that all the materials had actually been shipped from China. There was also a nice café next to a pond.
Another surprising garden was the Japanese one. There was a route to follow that went up and down gentle steps. This garden was the most peaceful one I found. It was perfectly designed and radiated calm. At the end there was a field with little pebbles that had been raked in neat little rows.
Another garden that made me super happy was the oriental one. They’ve built a beautiful reception hall with detailed wood carving. Through this you enter a world of fountains and plants. It reminded me of some of the water gardens I’ve seen in Iran, although it’s a lot less dry here.
I was very surprised with the state of the gardens. I had low expectations since it’s September and I figured not much would be blooming after the hot summer. But the gardens are so well taken care off. Gardeners were keeping it tidy and in several places the gardens were being watered. I’d love to go again sometime and see it at a different time of year, maybe next spring!
