Claim Goethe Institut Claim Goethe Institut

USA

Parks

Birds © Goethe-Institut

Parks are found everywhere and oftentimes offer insight into society. 

But how do we use them? How do they differ from one place to another, from the United States to Germany? Join us on a multimedia journey through parks!

In Germany

With a video crew in we traveled to Munich to film in the Englischer Garten and to Berlin to experience the history of the former Tempelhofer Flughafen.
 

Tempelhof Berlin

Tempelhofer Feld
 The Field

The Tempelhofer Flughafen was one of the first airports in the world when flying was becoming a reality. It is now the largest open space in a city worldwide. Diego Cardenas and Mareike Witt from Initiative “100 Prozent Tempelhofer Feld” discuss why they want to keep the field open to the public.

Neues Schloss Herrenchiemsee

Neues Schloss Herrenchiemsee
Escape into a Dream

Known for his love of architecture, King Ludwig the II of Bavaria, had the Neues Schloss Herrenchiemsee built in 1878. Located on the largest island in the Chiemsee the palace draws visitors from around the world. Veronika Endlicher, chatelaine of the palace, shows us around the German Versailles.

Englischer Garten

Englischer Garten
 The Soul of Munich

The English Garden, known for its English country park style, is often described as the soul of Munich residents who escape the busy city life in this tranquil park. Thomas Köster, Verwaltungsleiter of the English Garden, takes us on a tour through what he describes as “walkable landscape paintings.”

In the USA

In the United States we visited the historic Boston Common and the scenic Dolores Park in San Francisco, amongst others. A video about Rock Creek Park, the city escape of many Washington DC residents, resulted from a collaboration with American University.

San Fracisco - Mission Dolores Park © Julia Deshkin

San Francisco
 Mission Dolores Park

Painted entirely in gold, the Golden Fire Hydrant in San Francisco stands on the corner of 20th/Church Street – and is frequently overlooked despite being anything but inconspicuous: Mission Dolores Park just opposite steals the show from this city landmark, as the panoramic view it affords over the roofs of the city to San Francisco Bay is simply too beautiful.
Boston Common © Natalie Wichmann

Boston
 Boston Common

Boston Common has heard lots of stories and influenced many lives in the course of its more than 380-year history. The oldest park in North America, it attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year – from Boston, from the US and from around the world. It has given a stage to such famous people as General Washington and Martin Luther King Jr. American history has been written here.
New York Park

New York City
 Humans and Greens in Manhattan

New York City is famously known as the city that never sleeps. A similarly excited and lively atmosphere fills Tompkins Square Park whereas Gramercy Park is one of the few gated areas of the city.

Rock Creek Park

Washington, DC
 Life in a Park

Students from American University explored Rock Creek Park in Washington DC and asked residents what they love most about this unexpected oasis.

Baltimore Wyman Park © Michael Tager

Baltimore
 Wyman Park

Autumn in Baltimore is a lovely season. It’s my favorite time to take gentle hikes within the parks that spread throughout the city like so many branches. Winter can be nasty and biting, summer is almost always sweltering and sticky, but Autumn and Spring are gentle, shining and just the right temperature, perfect for exploring the post-industrial, burgeoning, redefined city of Baltimore.
Chicago © Frithjof Vogelsang

Chicago
 Humboldt Park

When in the second half of the nineteenth century a group of visionary city residents began plotting lines on a drawing board, what they designed in Chicago was to be the biggest park and boulevard system to date in the entire USA.
Atlanta © Picture Allianz/David Goldman

Atlanta
 Rodney Cook Sr. Park

A new park development in one of Atlanta’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods has residents and city officials hoping for a renaissance of the area. It also raises the question of what parks do for cities and communities – as public spaces and historical places.  
Washington, DC, Rock Creek Park © Roger Catlin

Washington DC
 Rock Creek Park

President Teddy Roosevelt may have been the most celebrated frequent visitor of Rock Creek Park, where he would take his family on picnics, bring Army buddies or ambassadors on challenging climbs over its rocky hills and lost his wedding ring over the Boulder Bridge.
Detroit Skyline © Frithjof Vogelsang

Detroit
 Belle Isle

What do an abandoned house, Friedrich Schiller, a car’s electronic ignition system, and the national border between the USA and Canada have in common? The answer is Belle Isle Park in Detroit. The park is to be found on an island in Detroit River, directly on the border with Canada. At the island’s westernmost point, the view extends from Detroit’s skyline and across Ambassador Bridge to the Canadian side of the river.
New York Tomkins Park © William Jameson

New York
 Tompkins Square Park

Tompkins Square Park, a 10-acre, mixed-use public square in New York City’s East Village, is equal parts cultural intersection and urban backyard. Unlike parks of similar size — Washington Square Park, Bryant Park, Fort Greene Park—Tompkins Square is not noticeably iconic. 

Back to “Lifestyle”

Top