2005

Spreewald is the little Venice of Germany. Here, large and small watercourses link together numerous island farmsteads where tradition and ancient art and craft are being kept alive. You can take a trip around the area in a traditional wooden punt through the canals.

Renting a canoe or kayak is an alternative way to explore the woods. A canoeing tour takes you through changing scenery past the ruins of abbeys and castles, houses, large stone monuments and Viking graves.

If you prefer to explore the Spreewald on your own, hiking is another good alternative. Maps with walking routes can be purchased at the tourist office in Lubben. The nicest hike is from Lubben to Lubbenau, about 13 kilometres apart.

Spreewald is on Unesco's list of sites whose unique nature and biosphere need to be preserved. Its highlight includes canals, streams, secluded ponds, river meadows and historic towns where you can learn about Sorbian traditions.

The national costume of the Sorbs is an attraction for visitors. Women and young girls dress in particularly representative costumes at cultural events. Country clothes feature smock, shirt-dress, frock coat, button breeches, linen dress with matching straw hat. The costume varies in colour and embroidery, and it differs from village to village.

People in the Spreewald enjoy making baskets. Since willow trees grow in abundance there, their thin bendable strips are woven and twisted into baskets. A typical Spreewald basket has angular shape. However, baskets are also available in other shapes depending on use _ such as potato, fruit and vegetable baskets.

Pottery is one of Spreewald's indigenous craft that's been passed down the generations. It mostly comprises kitchen and tableware. Household utensils and decorative pots are traditionally brownish in colour. Produced on the potter's wheel, other items include bottles, drinking vessels, mugs, cups, plates and cooking utensils, and visitors can buy and keep them as souvenirs.

Spreewald is a land of vegetable and fish. People prepare their fish that's rich in aroma of the vegetables used and eat it with sour cream. You should also try the mussels they prepare, cooked in white wine and served with Westphalian pumpernickel _ a dark, sourish bread made from whole, coarsely ground rye.

Apart from pottery, pickled vegetables sold in attractive containers along the Spree River are a hot-selling commodity, so are decorative dolls. Visitors can stop their punt and sample the vegetables whose taste range from salty and sour to sweet. Plastic buckets emblazoned with pictures Spreewald villagers in festive costumes are also good souvenir items.

The Spree springs from three different sources. From the highest at Kottmar near Walddorf, the water flows down through the upper Lusatian hills around villages.

The route starts to get a bit steep here until you reach Bautzen.

On the upper reaches of Spreewald, you can find houses constructed in traditional style. The skyline of the 1,000-year-old town of Bautzen unquestionably leaves a lasting impression on visitors.

To the north of Bautzen, the route passes through grasslands and ponds, home to a number of different bird species. Over the Spremberg Dam and on to Cottbus, a town famous for its gardens, marks the start of the "green labyrinth" of Spreewald with its waterways and little wooden bridges. The landscape around the river accommodates exceptionally unique and beautiful flora and fauna.

Once the route leaves Spreewald, the waterways branching off the river reunite to form an expanse of lakes on either side of the Spree. The route continues through the dense woodland along the river to Furstenwalde before following the banks through pine forests to Erkner. Here you are practically at the doorsteps of Berlin city, which can be reached via train.

To get to Spreewald from Berlin, take the regional train, S-Bahn, from Zoologistical Garten or Berlin Ostbahnhof to Lubben. The train takes about half an hour and costs around 25 euros for a round-trip. Group ticket is also available for people travelling in groups of four or more.