Up I get, around 8:30 AM. This time in ease, in the ease of knowing today is a day off, today I can take things slowly. I realize I’m in Waren, happy and relieved that I have made it here, especially after yesterday’s confusion. The sun is shining warmly and brightly through the windows, and the city is calling out to me to explore it. After some calm morning stretches in this spacey room, I head down to the breakfast area, eagerly starting the day.

I wait to be seated. Some people are there, but it’s not full. I am seated next to an aquarium that I only notice after a few minutes, despite its big size. I was too distracted by the teasing sunshine coming in through the windows.

I eat the usual, this time happy that I can add scrambled egg to my choices. Other than that, some cheese, butter, jam and coffee are my way to go. I watch the very beautiful poor fish, trying to imagine what it’s like to be stuck in that aquarium. Always surrounded by the same things. I remember having fish myself and feeling bad. I didn’t even have an aquarium. It was a fish bowl. I’m so sorry, Goldie and Blendo, and all the others whose names I don’t remember.

I have some small talk with a man in black clothes, who works at the hotel, once everyone is gone. I’m still happily sipping my coffee, and I apologize for taking so long. He tells me it’s no problem at all and lets me know I can come earlier tomorrow, when I tell him my train leaves at 8:30 AM tomorrow (and they officially open the buffet at 8:00 AM). Yay!

Up I go and prepare to go on a round trip through the city and surrounding areas. There are so many options that it’s overwhelming. I plan a long walk that goes along the Müritz lake, and then through the forest and several lakes, and then back to the city. Waren lies in the northwest of the Müritz Nationalpark, a beautiful natural reserve that takes days to explore.

Under the hotel there is already a nice hiking path starting – yay me. I take it and look at the mundane simple things around, already in a picture craze.

Part of the route goes through the old part of the city, through the Altstadt. I am in love with it already. It has a very authentic charm, reminding me of cities on the coastline. I anyway constantly have the feeling I’m at the sea, and I have to keep reminding myself that this always visible enormous piece of water in the south of the city is not the sea, but only the Müritz lake. And the sound of the seagulls is not helping! So in my mind I’m at the sea, and I’m fine with that.

I pass through the area with shops that exist everywhere, as I need to pass by a drugstore to buy a cream for body and hands. Walking outdoors for days really dried up my skin. I now get why one blogger who’s a hiker recommended lotion to be on your packing list.

I feel so out of place with my hiker’s backpack and my hiking clothes and can’t wait to be done with my errand. Everyone is dressed so clean and nicely. I wonder what people think when they see me here.

Well, it’s not so important, because there’s so much beautyyy to capture and admire!

I reached the harbor and a rush of sounds, colors, activity, smells and sights immediately overcame me. People everywhere. I was overwhelmed, yet so happy to see everything, my senses on edge.

Walking further, I pass by some bakery, hoping I find a couple of sandwiches to take with me. Somehow I’m already hungry again, and I want to be sure I have some food available. The sweet lady at the counter tells me that all the sandwiches are gone though, but that she just turned on the oven again. She only has cake and muffins. She tells me if I’m very hungry I’ll surely find something at the bakery in the city (I had passed it before but it was so full). I find it sweet that she tells me that, tell her it’s no problem at all and keep going. I like how nice she was.

The path I take goes along a long street with lots of houses and cars, but then it becomes full of trees and runs parallel to the Müritz lake. It’s beautiful. It’s well-paved and changes scenery quite often. One time I’m passing through some senior health resort’s garden, finding this hidden panorama spot…

…and the other I’m again passing a health resort’s beach, where I stand curiously watching swans and seagulls in the distance, which go absolutely crazy for some reason. I then realize someone is throwing food to them.

It’s a lady from the hotel. She tells me she does that everyday with bread the guests didn’t eat, after I ask her what she’s feeding them. Judging by the way they react, I actually thought they are fish cookies or something.

She also tells me she takes care to try and feed the younger swans (they’re sadly not visible in the video, as they come later), as they are a bit slower. I smile at her and tell her that’s nice, but am torn on the inside, knowing bread can be very bad for birds’ stomachs. Well… I still enjoy the craziness happening in front of my eyes and appreciate having this chance and short conversation.

Moving on, I pass by more interesting spots, like this hidden bench on a hidden bridge, offering a view on Waren.

The weather is so warm and sunny. It just feels like Summer. Despite wearing shorts and a T-shirt, I’m feeling hot and my feet are already sweaty and hurting. A few minutes later, I take a break by another bridge, with more space.

As I walk in, a woman in a black dress sits on one of the benches. A few minutes later, as she is about to walk out with her bike, she asks me if I’m circling the Müritz lake. I realize that I’m not prepared for this question at all and stutter a hesitant but friendly “umm… so halb” (“kind of”) and then proceed to explain a bit more. She tells me that she noticed me before, while passing me with her bike and tells me about her daughter who also does hiking trips, but with a bigger backpack. She says her daughter works as a teacher and decided to go backpacking in Thailand and then she did it in Dresden in the mountains or something. I nod happily along and say that this is very nice. “It has a quite liberating feeling to it”, I say. She says with a laugh: “I always say the young girls of today go hiking and it feels like all my generation is doing is just lying down.” I say that also has something to it. She makes a reference to having to work so much and then of course needing to lie down for hours and not do anything at all, or something. In the end she wishes me a nice trip and we say goodbye in a sweet way. I loved that conversation and found it very uplifting, as it showed me exactly what I hope for. That little actions, like me going hiking alone with such a backpack, cause people to think about them, in whatever way it speaks to them.

I sit there a bit longer and then continue walking. As I walk down the bridge I admire the clarity of the water around me. I discover this hole in the ground and find myself shocked at the thought of what would happen if I suddenly step into it without noticing. Yiiish!

But there are also nicer views in the water that don’t motivate dark fantasies to emerge.

The weather is so warm that it’s killing me not to swim. But I’m torn between not feeling comfortable enough between all these people and between still having a long way to go and not having the time. So at the next possible spot, an actual swim spot, or as we’d sarcastically call it in Arabic “balbata” – بلبطة spot (the marked area for swimming was just knee-deep), I walk a few meters into the water to cool my feet down. I realize how incredibly relieving it feels to my toes, which started to form blisters. It’s relieving me in a painful way. Like, I actually feel pain while walking in, but that pain is a relieving one. And so I stay there for maybe ten minutes, just walking around the water, enjoying the refreshment.

Outside I extend the break and rest my feet a bit longer, catching nice views to capture.

Like this nice silhouette of a couple with bikes.

Time to walk further. It’s still an incredibly long way to go, and I’m constantly being stopped because the scenery attracts me like crazy. And I’m a photo-addict. I really am. It’s crazy.

As I didn’t get a chance to buy proper food today for this walk, my stomach starts to complain. Also my head. Where’s my coffee? I want coffee now. Yes, now. Okay, okay. I discover a camping place on the map and the way I know it by now they usually have a little café or a tiny supermarket, and so I walk to that camping place. And my estimation was right. They had a little service store and café.

As soon as I approach the counter, still reading the menu, the lady behind the cashier greets me, awaiting my order. I impulsively ask if they have any vegetarian sandwiches. Hmmm, vegetarian sandwiches, do we have that?, she asks as she looks to her colleague. Oh yes, they can make that for me. Yay. Coffee and a cheese sandwich. I sit outside and await my order.

I was very happy to see their generosity with the cheese and the happiness in presenting it. I eat my meal with lots of satisfaction and prepare to keep walking.

Walking through the forest is beautiful as usual. I realize that I now see way less people than along the water. I enjoy the calmness, despite having some music in my ear. I always use it as a motivation every once in a while. To keep going. But I still take moments to stand there in the absolute silence and listen to the wind talk to the trees.

On my way to my next highlighted stop, I spot a young woman who’s also walking alone, but with a smaller backpack. I watch her for a bit. We walk almost the same pace so it takes me a while to catch up with her. Something about her aura makes her feel special to me. We greet each other shortly when I pass her and then I keep walking. Little do I know this won’t be the last time I see her.

After walking through a path surrounded by forest trees for about half an hour, I reach the next highlighted spot – a truly wonderful one. It’s an area with two lakes called the Wienpietschseen, which are entirely surrounded by the woods and which can only be reached through hiking paths. It’s incredibly quiet and the trees reflect off the water like a mirror. The area is a bit swampy and according to a Komoot user comment, the lakes are remains of an Ice Age melting water channel.

I notice that people are happy walking over a wooden bridge / path that surround part of the lake, so I get tempted to go check it out myself. Indeed, it is beautiful. I keep looking down at the water, admiring the water lilies.

I guess I am so immersed (while taking tons of photos, of course) that I catch the attention of a very happy man and his wife / girlfriend / female friend. He approaches me and asks me happily: “So? Did you find anything else in the water that is very exciting?” His question catches me off guard entirely, and I spontaneously answer back: “Noo… I just like my reflection in the water…. (he starts laughing already) surrounded by all the plants and stuff” He keeps laughing and I laugh, too, and we say bye to each other in a sweet way. A few seconds later I realize that I basically just kind of made a reference to Caravaggio’s Narcissus. Ohhhhh…

I walk on the wooden path that leads through trees of a very special aesthetic, and I stand there in awe of what is around me. I love the energy of the place and feel drawn to stay longer.

I walk further, further through an endless amount of trees all around. Three people on their bikes ask for directions to Müritzer Mühle at some point, and I am happy to realize that I can help. I wonder how they move without any form of navigation at all. I could never do this, unless I’m from the area. Still, to be admired. Again, I’m back to my world.

I made a longer break on this bridge, with this overwhelming view in front of me, surrounded by all this reed (the plants you see). It was quite calm, as most people just went up for only a glimpse and then down again. Funnily, as I was about to leave, I saw the woman who was walking along again. We greeted each other shortly and I kept walking. I could see her walk behind me, a bit further, but my pace was faster. And then I stopped at this next spot…

…and stood there for a couple of minutes, capturing it. This would’ve been a perfect swimming spot in this other lake I passed by. Somehow I was too shy to attempt it, justifying it to myself with “I still have a long way to go.” And then, what do I know, I hear a rustling in the leaves behind me, and there she is again. The other lone female wanderer. As I’m about to say “so we see each other again”, she says “we’re attracted by the same spots”, and we both laugh. She asks me if I think the spot is suitable for swimming, and I say that I think I do. She bows down and puts her fingers in the water, with a look that says she’ll probably do it. I say “if I had more time, I would go for a swim” – such a liar – and she kind of indirectly calls me out on it: “do you still have a very long way to go?” Answering with “yeahhh, well… my navigation still says 2,5 hrs and I take tons of breaks and can’t take it not to stop at such beautiful spots, so…” I already see her giving me a look that says “you know it’d still be fine to swim” but I still just continue walking, after we say a sweet bye.

Luckily, it’s not the last chance I get to go swimming. But first, I walk a bit further and reach a sheep-run, which first gives you the impression it is closed, but it is actually not. All you have to do is push the door. :)

There I find more and more beauty surrounding the Feisnecksee. I see a spot where a young man, probably my age, is already standing, and as I approach it further, I realize he has a camera on a tripod, taking photos or something. I know how annoying it is when someone disturbs that peace, and I can already see that he’s not so happy I am coming to his already quite tight spot, so I say: “I will just disturb for a very short time. A quick photo and then I’m gone.” He says it’s fine, of course. I keep my promise and make my way out again, but he strikes conversation.

“Are you circling the Müritz?”, he asks. It’s the same question that the woman in the black dress asked me before. This time I’m better prepared.”No, I am only doing a day tour here. My destination is the Baltic Sea!”, to which he replies: “Oh, because I was wondering how you were doing it with such little stuff in your backpack.” I laugh and tell him that this is a secret I would’ve liked to know as well. We continue the conversation for a bit. He lets me know that he has a vacation house nearby or something and that he makes nature videos, complementing courses he gives about hikes and stuff. No, he does not have a channel yet, but maybe one day. I tell him that I also love taking photos, but no space for the big camera, etc. thus the phone. I don’t know why I had to justify it, but it just came out that way. We talk about the weather that will change on Thursday, after I let him know I am going to the Baltic Sea. We both wish each other nice trips and days, and I keep walking. I feel uplifted.

A few meters further, I find a beautiful spot to sit in, and it would also work wonderfully as a swimming spot. I walk in with my full clothes on still, just knee-deep, feeling the cold water cool down my swollen, tired feet. Agh!

And then, as I sit on a fallen tree, seriously contemplating swimming, a man who I’ve been watching fishing on his tiny boat starts pedaling from a far distance to my direction. Oh, come on. He really comes to this spot and starts swimming here. He has the whole lake, but has to come here. Okay. Thanks. It’s not that I mind swimming with anyone around, but let’s just say I didn’t trust his vibe so much for some reason. He keeps mumbling to himself, singing or something, while I sit on the tree and decide to look for another spot. Off we go.

So, what are the odds of seeing the same woman again at this spot? Low? High? Does it matter? I did end up seeing her again.

“Somehow I was already expecting you”, I say and we both laugh. I find out that she went swimming at the exact spot I had saw her in last time, where I was hesitant about swimming myself. She tells me the water is beautiful and that she highly recommends it. It hurts me, because I now realize I really have to swim. I can’t finish this tour without having taken a dip once. She also tells me a bit more about herself. She lets me know that she was actually born here in Waren, but lives in Rostock (by the Baltic Sea), and that she’s here for a bit of a sad occasion. Her grandmother passed away, and so the whole family was meeting up for the funeral. She also lets me know that she already swam in 12 different lakes in the whole area. Wow! I got so jealous. In a good way. An inspiring jealousy. Does that exist? Well, I made it exist.

She shows me some other lakes she liked on a map, and I tell her that I definitely have to do it now. We walk together for a bit (me barefoot, because my feet are still wet from the water, thinking this could also be an adventure to explore – walking barefoot), and then she points to another spot that could be nice. I decide to try and go for it, and we say we’ll probably see each other again with a laugh. On a closer look, the spot is not as nice as I thought, so I walk a bit further. Komoot claims on the map that there is another nice swim-spot nearby, so I decide to trust it. Even before I reach it, I find an extremely nice one with grass, where I can just put my things down right by the water and go in.

Other than two men sunbathing, there is nobody else there. I start changing my clothes and walk into the cold water. It feels freezing cold, but it’s perfect on this very warm day. After some ahhhs, and sssssss and whatever else comes out, I am 90% in and swim ahead. It is beautiful! So so beautiful. It’s calm, the water is clean and so clear that I can see my whole body underwater all the time. Which gets a bit creepy after a while.

One of the men jumps into the water just a couple of minutes after me and keeps smiling at me. Hmmmm… I am not sure if he’s sincerely happy and thus smiling at me or if he’s hoping to strike a conversation. I decide to not find out by just sticking to my route and swimming further away. The water is incredibly beautiful and I just don’t want to come out.

I realize once I’m out how cooled down my body is. Good thing the sun is still out. The man comes out behind me also just a couple of minutes later, still smiling at me, me still trying to not pay attention. I stay in my own world, pushing myself to keep walking, as I still have a long way to go, and it’s starting to get chilly.

My last event on this long day-tour is me meeting – guess who? The same woman again. At another swimming spot. She had just gone for a second swim and was very happy. I was amazed, because I was already feeling quite cold. Once my body cools down, it really cools down. And I did not bring a jacket! I had checked the temperature in the morning after all…

We have one last short talk. I tell her I went for a swim and that it was beautiful and thank her sincerely for motivating me. We wish each other all the best, and she keeps walking, while I decide to take one last break, admiring the view. The sun paints the shore so artistically with its red-toned sun rays.

Soon enough, I reach the outskirts of the small city again. I admire the way the sunset paints the sky, and I let it flow through me, as much as I possibly can, despite the cold. But I also really feel the exhaustion of the day and try to walk in a continuous rhythm in order to get home fast enough. Still, I collect some nice moments and views on my way.

And so, I reach the hotel after having walked 20+ km. Considering this is my “free day” I am incredibly proud of myself and so happy about all the impressions I could gather. When you think about it, it’s just a hike. Incredible that a hike can do so much with your soul.

I order Indian food and wait with a grumbling stomach, keen to have its reward for being so patient. I rest my feet, I thank my body for all that I can do with it and thank life for days like these.

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Trip stats:
20,7 km – 3 hrs 50 minutes (in motion) – 5,4 km/h (average speed)

If you’d like to take a look at the path I walked on Komoot, follow this link:
https://www.komoot.de/tour/263194360