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Sunrises and sunsets
Kronsberg
Young, pretty and carefree, the sun blinks through the leaves of the trees at the edge of the path and makes the landscape below it glow, the still shady path on the narrow hill literally bends towards the beautiful blonde in the sky and then seems to lose itself in the damp green of the surrounding meadows.
On the Kronsberg
It’s summer, and it’s early and peaceful. Anyone who sets out now in the morning dew to reach this enchanting spot—passing through blossoming pastures and forests and encountering wondrous sights along the southern slope of the Kronsberg—is already following, with every step, the soothing motto for the day ahead: The journey is the destination.
A mountain, three gardens and a whale in the middle of the countryside
The Kronsberg is the highest naturally formed elevation in and around Hanover. It is actually just a nearly six-kilometer-long ridge of limestone marl that rises 118 meters above sea level on the southeastern outskirts of the city, between the exhibition grounds and the Bockmerholz—though only thanks to the artificially constructed, twelve-meter-high observation hill at the original summit of the Kronsberg. From up there, you can also get a great view of the three differently designed parks on the Kronsberg’s southwestern slope, which were created by the Berlin landscape architect Kamel Louafi for the EXPO 2000 World’s Fair. Especially after sunrise, when everything is still quiet, it’s worth visiting the “Gardens in Transition”—50 meters wide and 750 meters long—with their ever-changing colors and shapes. Much more expansive is the 24-hectare “Parc Agricole,” which stretches eastward from the garden belt to the “Grüner Ring” bike path and, through nature-conservation-oriented maintenance, has created new habitats for rare animal and plant species. Finally, the 20-hectare EXPO-Park Süd offers art in a green setting that’s well worth seeing and experiencing, featuring the four Sky Towers and the EXPO Whale by the lake, set amid expansive landscapes.
Recreational destinations
The EXPO Gardens on Kronsberg
The EXPO Gardens - Gardens in Transition, EXPO Park South and Parc Agricole.
readOn the way to the place of inner peace
The whale-shaped pavilion, entirely enclosed by glass, served as the official landmark of Expo 2000 in Hanover and is now used as an event venue for conferences, weddings, and celebrations for up to 1,000 people. The steel “fin” of the striking roof structure juts out over the small, triangular lake in front of it, which is fed by rainwater. Along its curved shoreline lies a terraced water garden, a viewing pier shaped like a ship’s bow, and the four “sky towers” on a grass-covered hill.
Anyone strolling from the "Gardens in Transition" across the bridge by the lake with the EXPO whale at dawn is well on the way to experiencing perhaps the most peaceful hours of the day. There are usually only a few walkers out walking their dogs early in the morning. At this magical hour, however, hardly anyone strays onto the narrow plateau of the man-made embankment on the left-hand side behind the lake to enjoy the sunrise over the avenues and meadows in EXPO Park South and the woods beyond in peace and serenity from a seat that seems to have been created especially for this occasion on one of the massive stone objects made of black olivine diabase and to be at one with yourself and nature.
