Through the forest by boat

1 - The punt glides along quietly. The boatman steers it with a long pole, dipping it into the water from time to time. This is called punting. Trees and lush bushes pass by on either side. Dragonflies buzz around us.

2 - We’re in the Spreewald, a beautiful region in the state of Brandenburg. It lies southeast of Berlin and northwest of Cottbus. The area is divided into the Upper Spreewald and Lower Spreewald. Well-known places in the Spreewald include Lübben, Burg, Lehde and Lübbenau.

3 - The River Spree flows through the Spreewald. It rises in the Upper Lusatian Highlands near the Czech border. After about 400 kilometres, the Spree flows into the Havel at Berlin-Spandau. In the Spreewald, the river has a very gentle gradient. The distance between Cottbus and the northern edge of the Spreewald is about 75 kilometres, but the difference in elevation is only 15 metres. The Spree flows very, very slowly along this stretch.

4 - Over thousands of years, the waters of the Spree spread across the landscape. Marshes and small lakes formed. The Spreewald is very wet. The few people who settled in the area in earlier centuries cut down the forests and dug canals to create land they could farm. They built wooden houses on the “Kaupen,” small rises in the otherwise flat landscape. These were often raised artificially to protect against high water and flooding. There was no need for roads, as it was much easier to get around by boat.

5 - Even today, in some places, waste is collected by boat and mail is delivered by water. People grow vegetables on the small plots of land, which thrive especially well in all that water—for example, cucumbers. There is also always enough feed for cattle and other animals whose meat people eat.

6 - Particularly many Sorbs settled in the Spreewald. They are a people classified as Slavic. The Sorbs have their own language and culture. They are recognized as a national minority in Germany. It is estimated that around 60,000 Sorbs live among us today, mainly in the federal states of Saxony and Brandenburg.

7 - Sorbian customs include, for example, Easter riding. Men wearing top hats and dark coats ride in a procession through the village. Sorbian Easter eggs, decorated with great artistry, are also famous. Sorbian women used to wear traditional costumes. Some still keep this custom alive today.

Images: Hamsterkiste