The central entrance to Görli, or more formally, Görlitzer Park, is located just across from the apartment where we are staying (Thank you Linda and Andrea!) Before I arrived in Germany I was interested in running here. I got over that pretty quickly. But before I did, and because I knew we would be in Berlin for quite a while, I researched the park. There's a saying that "Görli is for everyone," meaning the park includes a number of people I might otherwise choose to avoid. Many reviewers noted the drug trade at all hours. In reality, this has proven to be precisely the case. But during our passages into and through the park, we also found it a place full of athletes playing soccer, familes with young children in the barnyard zoo, people just hanging out and chilling, and even a few runners. At night, I'm not sure what all goes on, but at least on warm summer nights I can tell you that someone is out there having fun. All night long. Yes, Görli is for everyone. Here's the view out the window.
And a New Yorker cartoon I liked before I had my Meltdown Day(s), exhausted and overloaded with the New Things.
Parts of the the city of Berlin look just like you would expect a big city to look -- other parts, not so much. This is Princess Park, a spot whose history is unclear to me. Andrea says it's abandoned, but I don't know. It seems like at some point quite a bit of energy went into this place. Now its primary energy seems to be nature reasserting herself. Maybe not so many vegetables here, but look at the flourishing greenery and outrageous re-wilding process here. Still chairs, still birds, still a fort to climb in, still no skyscraper. I liked this place, and not just because it had public toilets.
