Mini-triathlon to Liepnitzsee

Today was a Sunday and I had no plans which felt sad, especially on a sunny weekend in June. So I decided to try out what I’ve always wanted: a mini-triathlon trip to a lake involving some biking + running + swimming.

I had a few options to choose from when it came to lakes. (There are around 3,000 lakes in Berlin and Brandenburg. ) I remembered a friend of mine mentioning a lake called Liepnitzsee the other day which was about 30km north of Berlin. Perfect distance.

I hopped on my bike at around 4pm and left my house in Mitte. As I cycled my way out of central Berlin through Pankow, I felt festive vibes all around - Sunday markets, music, family gatherings, and parties with friends.

After 2 hours later, I arrived at the edge of the lake. I was worried that the lake would be overcrowded but it was a lot bigger and had enough space for everyone. I parked my bike and started jogging around the lake with my backpack.

I saw people naked, bathing and swimming. I love the open-water swimming culture here in Germany. I also love that they don’t care about nudity in any body of water and also in the sauna. I wanted to take off my clothes since wet clothes are never pleasant to carry around but didn’t feel comfortable going fully naked. My underwear stayed on.

The cool thing about Liepnitzsee is that it has a little island in the middle. I think there’s also a campground there since I saw people with big backpacks and tents. I saw people swimming from the beach to the island but I was too tired to swim 100m to and back so instead, I floated.

There’s something about swimming that drains your energy but in a nice way. The feeling I get when cycling right after swimming or showering, especially in the summer, is inexplicably pleasant. I’m also usually famished and exhausted, ready for a good night’s sleep.

I didn’t have the energy to cycle back all the way so headed to a train station nearby and took the regional train back to Berlin. It took less than an hour to get back and managed to reach home before it got dark.

These days I do wonder. Am I spending way too much time relaxing? Shouldn’t I be doing something more ‘productive’? Shouldn’t I be working harder to keep up with the job market? Learn the language so I can integrate better? But there’s another voice that says ’enjoy while you can’, to justify my weekend outings but it only makes everything feel so temporary as if my reality can be taken away from me any day.

Despite these darker thoughts, I do feel better than I had felt this morning. Physical exertion and being under the sun always calm me down. I’m glad I went. Now that I know it’s possible to do a bike x run x swim trip, maybe I can organize and host an outing.