Day 18.

For a while I thought following the Berlin Mauerweg would be a interesting route to explore the city of Berlin and it's surroundings. I also felt curious to see what was actually left of the Berlin wall. Well I followed the northern loop from Potsdam to the Brandenburg Gate and I can say almost nothing. What did strike me is the sheer size of the wall. One can read statistics of length and breadth, but to spend one full day until rather late riding just about half the route left an indelible impression. What one see's now however, along what was the death strip is mainly forest, a quick grow conifer and silver birch mix. One can also see many nice houses for the well to do and rich that have sprung up along the rivers and lakes that sepertae Potsdam from West Berlin. I guess as the Wall came down prime construction site became available. Anyway, as one cycles what are noticable, especially through the forested sections, is mile after mile of shorn fence posts. A clear indicater of where the wall once was.

One nice change I did see was the conversion of a former guard tower into a wildlife conservation hut and learning centre for school children to study the forest ecosystem that has grown where the wall once was.