More than once I mentioned here that one of the things that I like the most about Berlin is the easy access to nature in a fair distance. Especially Liepnitzsee that, in spite of its surprising cold water, always worth the visit. Last weekend I went with my wife and some friends to this lake again, this time to spend the night in a camping there as well.
There are small things about camping that if you don’t take some time to enjoy it, you might miss it.
First of all, it’s a good way to realize what you really need to have fun. I don’t mean any cheap talk by saying that. Obviously you’re going to need essential gear to camp, but you also need some essential gear to stay inside your apartment. What I mean, really, is that you can experience moments that you don’t usually do like looking far at the horizons, lay down on the grass, take a nap under the trees after lunch and jump on a cold water later to refresh on a hot summer day. Does this sounds like your daily basis activities?
Besides that, during the night, we can always get philosophical about our role in the universe and things like that. After a bottle of wine, we all become specialists about any topic that pops up, you choose it. We solve worlds problems such as recycling, sustainability, poverty and, how to eliminate extinguish coriander. While looking to a starred sky, we become astronomers and navigators wondering about the mysteries of those shiny dead lights.
Why do the sky looks different at night on this hemisphere?
Luckily, there is no internet connection on such remote place that could betray our imagination. It’s funny how we get creative and more tolerant about others’ ideas is such a relaxed environment. It’s the perfect brainstorm — pun intended.
Finally, the next morning. Sunday morning and it got me thinking about how good it was to wake up in a camping site. The weather was good, there was sun in the sky but it wasn’t too hot neither too chilly, there was kids playing outside, people getting ready to go to the lake after taking a cup of coffee at the camping’s shop and people getting back to the camping after a night spent in the woods. I had the same feeling in other camping sites during the trip to Copenhagen, but I never had stopped and thought about it. Once you leave your tent, you are ready. There’s no commute time but a bike ride in the woods. There’s no schedule but taking a lunch by the lake. There’s no rush but taking a nap under the trees.
I’m now wondering whether this a common feeling after a relaxing weekend, or a call to take more vacation days or even a sign that I’m tired of this city-boxed routine. Anyway, I’d accept any of those excuses to go to a lake for another weekend.
By the way, I noticed that a lot of people went there to spend the weekend since the trains were pretty packed. I guess we all need this escape times.