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It was on my journey back from a conference in Spain that I stopped by Hamburg in October 2018. Seeing autumn unfold outside the train windows, I never knew so much of western Germany was covered by beech forests on rolling hills. Yellow, and grey in that unique way of beeches.
Close to the Hamburg main railway station lies the old botanic garden. Hamburg has two, and with the old one being at such an easy walking distance from the railway station, where my hostel also was located, I thought I might have time to visit both gardens on my day in Hamburg. No. Just plain no.
The light that day, and the colors on all the trees, the full palette of what leaves can have, from bright green to red so deep it was almost purple. Stillness, reflecting in the many ponds and pools of the garden and adjoining park.
I had a special day there, in the old botanic garden in Hamburg, and I didn’t make it out until dusk, wandering between sections, distinct like entering different rooms in the garden. I could have stayed longer, but the autumn chill and darkness got the best of me. I will definitely visit again, when traveling becomes a thing we can do once more.
Photo: Alter Botanischer Garten Hamburg, Germany, October 2018. Posted on Instagram November 25, 2020.
Katja Malmborg 