This year, our FJP office outing took us to Fürstenberg/Havel, a charming town in northern Brandenburg. Set in a landscape of lakes, forests, winding rivers, and gently rolling terrain, the area is a textbook example of a glacial moraine region – much like the landscapes we often engage with in our everyday planning work.
The morning began with a guided tour of Fürstenberg Palace, once home to ducal residents. This Baroque building is currently undergoing careful renovation. After years of varied use and long periods of vacancy, it is now being thoughtfully transformed into new residential space within its historic shell. The tour offered fascinating insights into architectural history, adaptive reuse, heritage conservation, and preserving historic structures.
After the palace visit and a relaxed lunch, we traded dry land for the water and set off by canoe to explore the area from a different perspective. Gliding across peaceful lakes and along narrow river stretches, we passed dense bankside vegetation and secluded bays. Unlike 2023’s rather rainy and chilly office outing – which cut our paddling time short – this year we were treated to fine weather and a leisurely tour through nature.
Following nearly three hours on the water, we returned to Fürstenberg and rounded off the day with coffee and cake – a sweet ending and a chance to let the day’s many impressions sink in.
